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Title: If Grace Is True: Why God Will Save Every Person by Philip Gulley, James Mulholland ISBN: 0-06-251704-X Publisher: HarperSanFrancisco Pub. Date: 08 July, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.61 (31 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A Kinder, Gentler Bible Interpretation
Comment: Writing for the general reader, the authors argue that the God of love is incompatible with the doctrine of eternal damnation. Salvation, they argue, is a transformation of the soul, being liberated from self-absorption, which has little to do with embracing any kind of orthodoxy, a Nicene creed, or some canned mantra. While I'm not sure where I stand on the issue of the afterlife, I found the book helpful in showing that biblical interpretation is a sort of Rorschach test. The God we pull out of the Bible often reflects our own biases and temperaments. For example, the authors say that the more mature they become, the more they see the complexities of human behavior, the more they replace their anger with love, the less they can believe in eternal damnation. Thus it is that the God that grows inside their hearts contradicts the notion of eternal perdition. As a result, they have evolved their interpretation of the Bible to exclude the idea of an eternal concentration camp for nonbelievers. They use several Bible passages to support their views and argue that not all scripture is equal. Scripture that defines grace, they assert, has more weight than scripture that defines God as a wrath-hungry Father displeased with his children. If I had to fault the book, the authors are too inclined to pick and choose from the Bible to come up with the God of their experience. As a result, the God of the Bible seems a bit sugar-coated and almost seems like wishful thinking on their part. On the other hand, I do appreciate a theology that rejects the idea of eternal damnation, which seems just as extreme, at the opposite pole, as does the candy-coated version of God.
Rating: 5
Summary: Universalist Treasure
Comment: Ken's Guide to Universalist Books-
If Grace Is True: Why God Will Save Every Person
by Philip Gulley and James Mulholland,
2003 Harper San Francisco
Before opening the pages of this book, you find yourself impressed by the caliber of the "endorsements" on its back cover --- from Jesus, John the Baptist, St. Paul, and other Universalists --- ancient and modern --- all speaking the language of classic Universalism. You realize that this book is a "must read" for all Universalists.
If Grace Is True: Why God Will Save Every Person is written by two Quaker ministers --- friends since seminary --- to describe a spiritual journey that resulted in their belief in Universalism (the idea that God will save ALL --- immediately or eventually). Thoroughly indoctrinated during their childhood in Christian dogma that prescribed some to be saved but most to be damned, both authors grew to embrace what they term the "controversial" and "heretical" view of Universal Salvation. Philip Gulley is the author of a series of Christian fiction set in "Harmony, Indiana". James Mulholland, who also has some Methodist and American Baptist background, is the author of Praying Like Jesus, a book written in response to the "gimme" prayer, the Prayer of Jabez.
Interestingly, the authors' transformation did not occur after studying the writings of Universalists who have retained a minority but enduring position within Christianity from the early church fathers to the present. True to the Quaker tradition of heeding your Inner Light (the guiding presence of God within us), they base their views primarily on their own life experiences of God. Within Scripture, they recognize how the perspective of Peter, Paul, and others were changed by their own life experiences. They feel that the God of Jesus continues to be available to those who hear God's voice. One describes a mystical experience he had while in college and states that, "all religious truth is born of intimate experiences of God. Belief and Scripture are the offspring of such experiences".
Throughout the book, this sentence repeated: I believe that God will save every person. Examples of grace and hope found in the Bible are interfaced with the authors' own experience of God's Universal love for humankind in all its diversity. They seem especially moved when they learn that a friend who is an exemplary person is homosexual. Their understanding of the grace of God keeps expanding.
Citing their own experience of fatherhood, they recall Jesus' teachings about the nature of God as our parent --- the best parent that could ever be. They are convinced that God loves his defiant children as well as his well-behaved ones. They experience God as just, loving, and patient whose purifying fire of love will redeem the ungrateful and the wicked --- even Hitler. (This type of theology is formally known as "Restorative Universalism".) The authors do not deny evil but have faith that, in the end, God will save us all.
By affirming their belief in Universalism, Gully and Mulholland are forced to reinterpret some other traditional theological positions. For example, they state that: God will save people who have not known Jesus; God's forgiveness does not require sacrifice but is the choice of God; the cross illustrates the cost of being gracious in an ungracious world; Jesus did not save us from an angry God but revealed the saving grace of God; salvation comes from believing that God loves you unconditionally; God was present in Jesus in the same way God wishes to be present in all of us; Jesus revealed that God is our Savior, and God extends his grace beyond the grave; the resurrection was the triumph of grace.
Anyone who has tried to explain Universalism to a mainline or conservative Christian knows the anger that can be aroused when you talk of God's love, grace, and universal forgiveness for all. Once when challenged, one author replied, "Do you really think God would damn you to hell for overestimating his love?" Multiple examples for discussing Universalism with others are provided.
The book has two appendices: 1) Universalist Themes and Verses in Scripture and 2) A Short History of Universalism. My only criticism is that the appendix on scripture could have included many more Bible verses that convey the Universalist message, although a nice sampling of Universalist verses is given.
This book is enjoyable to read and easy to understand. Its message is clear: Heaven will be populated with people of every persuasion, and God will never be satisfied until every seat is filled at the banquet table. The authors' poignant real-life examples and descriptions of how their own life experiences gradually convinced them of God's Universal restoration make it a treasure. Buy it for yourself, and buy a copy for anyone you know who is curious about Universalism.
Originally published in the Universalist Herald, Sept./Oct.,2003, Vol. 154, No. 4
Rating: 5
Summary: Accept this book for what it is, and consider it a blessing.
Comment: This book does what it sets out to do--explain why the authors believe God will not reject the soul of any person, regardless of religion, spirituality, or behavior on earth. And it does so with eloquence and respect.
I'm not sure why some reviewers harp on the point that this book wasn't "researched," or that it doesn't contain "proof" of its thesis. Nowhere in the book do the authors say they're trying to prove anything. What's more, they explicity do state that they have come to hold the Universalist perspective based on their own, and others', experiences with God. While some readers find that unacceptable, I would wonder how else a person can hold a legitimate or valid opinion on any subject without have some sort of experience. Experience is where it's at in spirituality.
This book wasn't meant to be a technical document, nor did it claim to be about biblical hermeneutics. It is about human free will and the ultimate gift of grace. I found it to be heartfelt, sincere, and incredibly gracious in that the authors didn't say their way is the only way. Throughout the book, they give credence to individuality and others' belief systems. In fact, those values and belief systems are the very reasons the authors believe God's grace is not selective.
The book is logical, and yes, full of emotion. Name one truly important topic or subject that should exclude emotion, and I'll tell you it isn't that important after all.
If this book angers you or disappoints you, it could be because you aren't up to the challenge, which is fine. God's gonna love you anyway.
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Title: For Everything a Season: Simple Musings on Living Well by Philip Gulley ISBN: 0060006285 Publisher: Harper SanFrancisco Pub. Date: 06 November, 2001 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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Title: The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith by Marcus J. Borg ISBN: 0060526769 Publisher: HarperSanFrancisco Pub. Date: 23 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
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Title: Signs and Wonders: A Harmony Novel by Philip Gulley ISBN: 0060006331 Publisher: HarperSanFrancisco Pub. Date: 25 March, 2003 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: The Inescapable Love of God by Thomas Talbott ISBN: 1581128312 Publisher: Universal Publishers Pub. Date: 01 October, 1999 List Price(USD): $25.95 |
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Title: Life Goes On : A Harmony Novel (GULLEY, PHILIP) by Philip Gulley ISBN: 0060006358 Publisher: HarperSanFrancisco Pub. Date: 16 March, 2004 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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