'All shall be well' : explorations in Universalism and Christian theology from Origen to Moltmann

454 Pages·2011·2.444 MB·English

by  MacDonald, Gregory

“All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”
“ Explorations in
—Lady Julian of Norwich A
l UNIVERSAL SALVATION and CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY
Universalism runs like a slender thread through the history of Christian theology. It l

has always been a minority report and has oft en been regarded as heresy, but it has S from Origen to Moltmann
h
been surprisingly resilient. Over the centuries Christian universalism, in one form or
a
another, has been reinvented time and time again. ll S h a ll Be
In this book an international team of scholars explores the diverse universalisms of B l W
l e
Christian thinkers from Origen to Moltmann. In his introduction Gregory MacDonald e A ll
argues that theologies of universal salvation occupy a space between heresy and dogma. “ ”
W
Th erefore disagreements about whether all will be saved should not be thought of as
debates between “the orthodox” and “heretics” but rather as “in-house” debates between e
l
Christians. l
”

Th e studies that follow aim, in the fi rst instance, to hear, understand, and explain
the eschatological claims of a range of Christians from the third to the twenty-fi rst
centuries. Th ey also off er some constructive, critical engagement with those claims.
Origen (Tom Greggs) George MacDonald (Th omas Talbott)
Gregory of Nyssa (Steve Harmon) P. T. Forsyth (Jason Goroncy)
Julian of Norwich (Robert Sweetman) Sergius Bulgakov (Paul Gavrilyuk)
Th e Cambridge Platonists (Louise Hickman) Karl Barth (Oliver Crisp)
James Relly (Wayne K. Clymer) Jaques Ellul (Andrew Goddard)

Elhanan Winchester (Robin Parry) J. A. T. Robinson (Trevor Hart)

Friedrich Schleiermacher (Murray Rae) Hans Urs von Balthasar (Edward T. Oakes, s.j.) M
Th omas Erskine (Don Horrocks) John Hick (Lindsay Hall)
a
Jürgen Moltmann (Nik Ansell)
c
D
“A lively and illuminating collection of essays. Its well-judged blend of theological
analysis and historical context makes it accessible to the general reader as well as raising o
n
provocative questions for theologians about the place of universalism in Christian
a
tradition. I will certainly use it in my teaching.” — MORWENNA LUDLOW
l
Lecturer in Patristics, University of Exeter, UK d
“Th is is a really fantastic collection. . . . Th e riveting theological biographies in chapter
aft er chapter will keep readers tuned in from start to finish to follow the twists and turns
that have characterized the quest to understand universal salvation.” — AMOS YONG
J. Rodman Williams Professor of Th eology, Regent University, Virginia Beach 
Gregory MacDonald is Robin Parry,
an Acquisitions Editor with Wipf and Stock Publishers.
James Clarke & Co
P.O. Box 60
Cambridge
CB1 2NT Edited by
www.jamesclarke.co Gregory MacDonald
[email protected] C C
“All Shall Be Well”
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“Is universalism the heart of the gospel or an idea concocted by the ‘devil’ to desen-
sitize human beings to the possibility of eternal damnation? The stakes could not
be higher! This volume shows why many of the great theologians in the Christian
tradition responded positively to the former question even as their engaging the
arguments back-and-forth will equip readers to formulate their own answers to
the latter, and other associated rationales rejecting the universalist notion.
This is a really fantastic collection! For all booklovers, the riveting theological
biographies in chapter after chapter will keep readers tuned in from start to finish
to follow the twists and turns that have perennially characterized the quest to
understand universal salvation and its implications.”
—Amos Yong, J. Rodman Williams Professor of Theology, Regent University, Virginia Beach
“This is a lively and illuminating collection of essays. Its well-judged blend of theo-
logical analysis and historical context makes it accessible to the general reader as
well as raising provocative questions for theologians about the place of universal-
ism in Christian tradition. I will certainly use it in my teaching.”
—Morwenna Ludlow, Lecturer in Patristics, University of Exeter
“Do some people spend eternity separated from God and God’s love? Or is God’s
saving love so radical, and God’s victory in Christ so complete, that eventually all
are reconciled? Robin Parry’s fine collection of exploratory essays, ‘All Shall Be Well,’
introduces readers to that relatively small but hopeful band of Christian Univer-
salists that stretches from the third century (in Origen of Alexandria) up through
the twentieth and twenty-first centuries (in Karl Barth and Jürgen Moltmann).
This fascinating book is for all who have ever wondered (or worried) about the
eternal fate of those who die unreconciled to God.”
—Kevin Corcoran, Professor of Philosophy, Calvin College, Grand Rapids
‘All Shall be Well’
Explorations in Universalism and Christian Th eology
from Origen to Moltmann
Edited by
Gregory Macdonald
C
James Clarke & Co
James Clarke & Co
P.O. Box 60
Cambridge
CB1 2NT
www.jamesclarke.co
[email protected]
ISBN 978 0 227 68028 5
British Library Catlaoguing in Publication Data
A record is available from the British Library
First published 2011
copyright © Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2011
Published by arrangement with
Wipf and Stock Publishers
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To Jimmy Stock:
Brother, friend, dude

Contents
list of Contributors / ix
1. Introduction: Between Heresy and Dogma—Gregory MacDonald / 1
I. ThIrd To FIFTeenTh CenTurIes
2. Apokatastasis: Particularist Universalism in Origen (c.185–c.254)
—Tom Greggs / 29
3. The Subjection of All Things in Christ: The Christocentric Universalism
of Gregory of nyssa (331/340–c.395)—Steve Harmon / 47
4. Sin Has Its Place, but All Shall Be Well: The Universalism of Hope in
Julian of norwich (c.1342–c.1416)—Robert Sweetman / 66
II. sevenTeenTh To nIneTeenTh CenTurIes
5. love Is All and God Is love: Universalism in Peter Sterry (1613–1672)
and Jeremiah White (1630–1707)—Louise Hickman / 95
6. Union with Christ: The Calvinist Universalism of James Relly
(1722–1778)—Wayne K. Clymer / 116
7. Between Calvinism and Arminianism: The evangelical Universalism
of elhanan Winchester (1751–1797)—Robin Parry / 141
8. Salvation-in-Community: The Tentative Universalism of Friedrich
Schleiermacher (1768–1834)—Murray Rae / 171
viii Contents
9. Postmortem Education: Universal Salvation in Thomas Erskine
(1788–1870)—Don Horrocks / 198
10. The Just Mercy of God: Universal Salvation in George MacDonald
(1824–1905)—Thomas Talbott / 219
III. TWENTIETH TO TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY
11. The Final Sanity Is Complete Sanctity: Universal Holiness in the
Soteriology of P. T. Forsyth (1848–1921)—Jason A. Goroncy / 249
12. The Judgment of Love: The Ontological Universalism of Sergius
Bulgakov (1871–1944)—Paul Gavrilyuk / 280
13. I Do Teach It, but I also Do Not Teach It: The Universalism of
Karl Barth (1886–1968)—Oliver D. Crisp / 305
14. The Totality of Condemnation Fell on Christ: Universal Salvation in
Jaques Ellul (1912–1994)—Andrew Goddard / 325
15. In the End, God . . . : The Christian Universalism of J. A. T. Robinson
(1919–1983)—Trevor Hart / 355
16. Christ’s Descent into Hell: The Hopeful Universalism of Hans Urs
von Balthasar (1905–1988)—Edward T. Oakes, SJ / 382
17. Hell and the God of Love: Universalism in the Philosophy of John
Hick (1922–)—Lindsey Hall / 400
18. The Annihilation of Hell and the Perfection of Freedom: Universal
Salvation in the Theology of Jürgen Moltmann (1926–)
—Nik Ansell / 417
Index / 440