For those of you who don’t mind having your thinking challenged or stretched here is a serious giving an introductory overview of what is called ‘Integral Theology’ — giving a new perspective on an old narrative.
Integral Theology 1: Beginnings
Integral Theology 2: Eden
Integral Theology 3: Father Abraham
Integral Theology 4: Beauty, Truth and Goodness
Integral Theology 5: Apocalypse Then – Jesus and the Body
Integral Theology is based on a couple of very interesting people. Don Becks spiral dynamics and Ken Wilber’s work, though I can not begin to offer a starting point on his huge amount of output. Maybe davo can.
No, it’s more non-sectarian in that it shy’s away from the “them and us” rancour so prevalent in religious settings; but I sense it may not be your cup of tea, which is fine.
I’m not aware of any written material specific to this integral theology though of course mention is made in the first video of other works tying into it, such as Chad mentioned. Shoot off an email and ask.
If the Ken Wilber mentioned above is the one who wrote “God, Sex, Ecology”, and “No Boundaries” and “A Brief History of Everything” - well I’ve read those books and have them on the shelves here somewhere.
As speculative thinking, those books are mind-blowing. I don’t know that I need to go back through any of that material again, though.
Davo, I watched the last video that you posted. However, I don’t find it to be a new theology. He seems to be using fancy words to say exactly what most of the writers of the Bible, both Old and New Testaments have been saying since the beginning of time. Formlessness is basically “living in the Spirit” and loving others as yourself. In fact, the first commandment says that we are not to make for ourselves any graven images of God because God doesn’t have a form. He is Spirit, faceless,meaning He can be dwelling in the heart of any man. As the New Testament says, there is neither male or female, Jew nor Greek etc. Numbers 23:19 also states that God is not a man, nor is He a son of man. Abraham, Moses, and all the true prophets and followers of God understood this. Loving your neighbor didn’t mean to only love those of your own household. Moses’ instructions to those who came out of Egypt were to love the stranger as they were once strangers in Egypt. Abraham made friends with the neighboring tribes and communities as well. Joseph had no boundaries. As Pharaoh says to his servants in Genesis 41:38 “Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?”
I didn’t say it was a new theology but a… “new perspective on an old narrative” i.e., the theology uses integral theory/spiral dynamics to interpret and trace from the biblical text the evolutionary consciousness human spirituality.
That said… I’m glad from the little you watched you found such to be solid.
Davo, I had actually watched some of the other videos from your previous posts and I disagree with Mr. King’s evolutionary perspective. He wants to wrap everything up into some neat little timeline as most evolutionists do. However, I don’t find such things to be true, nor do I see it in the Biblical narrative.We can move forward or backward. All people of all nations did not believe in the same things. There were many different beliefs and practices just as there still are today.
In video three, Dr. King uses the eye for an eye example to support his point. Jesus was not the first person to ever teach not to seek revenge. In fact, Moses says in Lev. 19:18, Do not seek revenge or hold a grudge among any of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself." Again, in Deut. he says, love the stranger. As far as turning the other cheek, Isaac serves as an example to us all in digging the well- Gen.26:18-33.
That is very true, however… Moses was speaking in a context of their own people group (tribe). Jesus appears to have expanded that further to be anyone/everyone around you, if only because your neighbor could have been anyone from a Jew to a Roman to anyone else around the region and we see that clearly when someone asks Jesus “Just who is my neighbor?”.
That said, it is possible Moses intended his message to be more broad, but the way I read it, I believe it was in the context of their own nation. I mean, essentially that is a no-brainer advice if your going to work together as a nation. A divided nation will fall and the Hebrews wanted to continue to exist as a nation, so treat your neighbor well.
I’d also suggest other nations at the time probably had something similar going. In fact, you really can’t have a nation (tribe) without some level of cooperation among it’s members.
Actually, if you would take a wee bit of time and actually investigate the position, It is Don Beck’s spiral dynamics view of human behavior and Ken Wilber’s idea of integral theory, that are the building blocks of Mr. Kings videos. These are new and exciting ideas much to your obvious non agreement.
Look, LLC, you can cry and stamp your feet and flip the bird all day but the fact is that evolution is happening and has happened. It is God ordained. We as a creation are progressing. Get over it an start to help figure it out. You are very, very smart. Maybe you can be part of the solution as opposed to part of the problem.
Much of Christianity is being rapidly absorbed into the New Age philosophy of Conscious Evolution, with Presence.tv helping that along.
A premillennialist / futurist viewpoint on eschatology has expected this apostasy, e.g., 1 Tim. 4:1, But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons; but to me it’s still shocking and disappointing to actually watch it unfold.
Within the charismatic evangelical world, this New Age influence is evidenced in the growing acceptance of dominionism, and “New Apostolic Reformation,” disseminated worldwide through influential groups like Bethel Church in Redding, California.
Here is a futurist perspective on the order of coming world events:
World Crisis—Golden Age of Antichrist—Rapture—Tribulation—Second Coming—Millennial Age
As someone once said, “When your doctrine has more in common with Lucis Trust than it does with the Bible, then you are in trouble.”
How can you be so wrong and not see it, my friend?? It just boggles the mind. You however seem happy with it and since it is a matter of opinion, I respect it and you.
We’ll take it up in another thread sometime, ok? I"m not sure why I even posted that - I guess the portrayal of those of use who are throwing temper tantrums because we know that evolution, as popularly taught, is a myth. And it is. But I won’t comment on it here, I’ll find an existing thread and add to it.
Cheers!!
Ill go ahead and bait you for the significance of this forum…
Evolution is a common and natural occurrence. You have yourself said you have moved from one said position regarding scripture to another. And I agree with you and applaud your doing so. It brought you to where you are now, though that might not be the position you hold in a year or two. The point of the original Integral Theology post was to open peoples minds to the possibility of looking at the bible in a different way.
There is no new age voodoo happening here. What IS happening is that folks with long believed views and ideas are being challenged by new and exciting understandings. You yourself may not ascribe to these views, but they are happening none the less… And unfortunately, you need to at least view them as possible positions, or call theme heretics, which in case you have opened a huge can of worms.
Just to be clear… Integral Theology is not about biological evolution, so it isn’t about what is “popularly taught” — it’s track is primarily about our spiritual-cultural-societal evolution in terms of the biblical account/story/narrative.
