This paper seeks to give an account for Paul’s use of the verb καλεω and to show how the word con... more This paper seeks to give an account for Paul’s use of the verb καλεω and to show how the word contributes to Paul’s argument in Rom 9:6-29. My argument is that Paul has developed a specialized use of καλεω that draws on his exegesis of the latter half of Isaiah. For Paul, καλεω is an amalgam of two previously separate semantic ranges from the Hebrew verb קרא: “To name” and “to summon.” Paul sees in Isaiah a progression of the word to include a benefit for the one “called.” For Paul, the benefit is always salvation unless the context clearly shows otherwise. Because the “naming” aspect of καλεω is also at play, Paul never places emphasis upon the volitional response of the one called. It is this specific usage of καλεω that Paul brings to Romans 9. In that passage, God’s calling is the “naming” and “summoning” of those whom he chooses, independent of their works.
This paper traces the motif of the land curse from Gen 2 to Rev 22. I argue that the land is a re... more This paper traces the motif of the land curse from Gen 2 to Rev 22. I argue that the land is a representation of the broken relationship between Yahweh and man. Specifically, this means that the land will fail where man’s obedience fails and that it will be fruitful where man is fruitful.
Kevin Giles is a clear writer and a strong proponent that the Immanent Trinity is egalitarian. In... more Kevin Giles is a clear writer and a strong proponent that the Immanent Trinity is egalitarian. In his book, The Trinity and Subordinationism, he summons forth a number of allies to his cause including church fathers such as Augustine and modern theologians such as Karl Barth. This paper offers two counter points to Giles' arguments and ultimately questions the logic of Giles' pre-supposition that any authority-submission structure in the Immanent Trinity must be ontologically subordinating.
In this paper I argue that the results of QM align best with a particular philosophical position ... more In this paper I argue that the results of QM align best with a particular philosophical position called Theistic Idealism. More specifically, I see the idealism set forth by Jonathan Edwards as providing a model that has verisimilitude to the philosophical suggestions resulting from our current quantum mechanical observations. I begin by giving a non-mathematical overview of the principles of what Bruce Rosenblum and Fred Kuttner call the “Quantum Enigma.” Second, I offer some philosophical entailments of the enigma. Finally, I suggest that Jonathan Edwards’s model of the Creator-creature relationship fits closely with these modern findings.
This paper will attempt to construct a theological bridge between two categories that normally se... more This paper will attempt to construct a theological bridge between two categories that normally seem disparate: (1) God is love, and (2) God sends his enemies to a place of eternal, conscious torment. The reason it is so important to connect these two doctrines is because many scholars, especially in the modern era, have attempted to pit them against each other. In other words, rather than seeing God’s love and his reprobation as aligned theological concepts, many modern theologians claim that the two are inconsistent. “If God is love,” they claim, “he could never send people to a place of eternal conscious torment.” This attack comes in a variety of different forms that can be laid out on a spectrum. At one end are universalists. They claim that, given enough time, God’s love will triumph over his wrath and that all people will ultimately be with him in heaven. So they privilege God’s love over the doctrine of God’s wrath. On the other end of this spectrum are annihilationists. They argue that God’s love is such that he will not cause his enemies to suffer eternally in hell. Rather, God will “annihilate” them, causing their existence to cease. So annihilationists use God’s love to attack the consciousness and eternality of hell. Contrary to these views, the goal of this paper is to show that God’s love and his wrath, which sends his enemies to conscious, eternal torment, are allies rather than foes. The paper will proceed along the following lines: (1) God’s wrath is an extension of his love. (2) God’s wrath, as a part of his love, is something he desires to display to his loved ones for eternity. Therefore, (3) a place of eternal, conscious torment is consistent with God’s love.
This paper seeks to give an account for Paul’s use of the verb καλεω and to show how the word con... more This paper seeks to give an account for Paul’s use of the verb καλεω and to show how the word contributes to Paul’s argument in Rom 9:6-29. My argument is that Paul has developed a specialized use of καλεω that draws on his exegesis of the latter half of Isaiah. For Paul, καλεω is an amalgam of two previously separate semantic ranges from the Hebrew verb קרא: “To name” and “to summon.” Paul sees in Isaiah a progression of the word to include a benefit for the one “called.” For Paul, the benefit is always salvation unless the context clearly shows otherwise. Because the “naming” aspect of καλεω is also at play, Paul never places emphasis upon the volitional response of the one called. It is this specific usage of καλεω that Paul brings to Romans 9. In that passage, God’s calling is the “naming” and “summoning” of those whom he chooses, independent of their works.
This paper traces the motif of the land curse from Gen 2 to Rev 22. I argue that the land is a re... more This paper traces the motif of the land curse from Gen 2 to Rev 22. I argue that the land is a representation of the broken relationship between Yahweh and man. Specifically, this means that the land will fail where man’s obedience fails and that it will be fruitful where man is fruitful.
Kevin Giles is a clear writer and a strong proponent that the Immanent Trinity is egalitarian. In... more Kevin Giles is a clear writer and a strong proponent that the Immanent Trinity is egalitarian. In his book, The Trinity and Subordinationism, he summons forth a number of allies to his cause including church fathers such as Augustine and modern theologians such as Karl Barth. This paper offers two counter points to Giles' arguments and ultimately questions the logic of Giles' pre-supposition that any authority-submission structure in the Immanent Trinity must be ontologically subordinating.
In this paper I argue that the results of QM align best with a particular philosophical position ... more In this paper I argue that the results of QM align best with a particular philosophical position called Theistic Idealism. More specifically, I see the idealism set forth by Jonathan Edwards as providing a model that has verisimilitude to the philosophical suggestions resulting from our current quantum mechanical observations. I begin by giving a non-mathematical overview of the principles of what Bruce Rosenblum and Fred Kuttner call the “Quantum Enigma.” Second, I offer some philosophical entailments of the enigma. Finally, I suggest that Jonathan Edwards’s model of the Creator-creature relationship fits closely with these modern findings.
This paper will attempt to construct a theological bridge between two categories that normally se... more This paper will attempt to construct a theological bridge between two categories that normally seem disparate: (1) God is love, and (2) God sends his enemies to a place of eternal, conscious torment. The reason it is so important to connect these two doctrines is because many scholars, especially in the modern era, have attempted to pit them against each other. In other words, rather than seeing God’s love and his reprobation as aligned theological concepts, many modern theologians claim that the two are inconsistent. “If God is love,” they claim, “he could never send people to a place of eternal conscious torment.” This attack comes in a variety of different forms that can be laid out on a spectrum. At one end are universalists. They claim that, given enough time, God’s love will triumph over his wrath and that all people will ultimately be with him in heaven. So they privilege God’s love over the doctrine of God’s wrath. On the other end of this spectrum are annihilationists. They argue that God’s love is such that he will not cause his enemies to suffer eternally in hell. Rather, God will “annihilate” them, causing their existence to cease. So annihilationists use God’s love to attack the consciousness and eternality of hell. Contrary to these views, the goal of this paper is to show that God’s love and his wrath, which sends his enemies to conscious, eternal torment, are allies rather than foes. The paper will proceed along the following lines: (1) God’s wrath is an extension of his love. (2) God’s wrath, as a part of his love, is something he desires to display to his loved ones for eternity. Therefore, (3) a place of eternal, conscious torment is consistent with God’s love.
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