The Evangelical Universalist—Gregory Macdonald

[auggybendoggy]

Can an orthodox Christian, committed to the historic faith of the Church and the authority of the Bible, be a universalist?

• Is it possible to believe that salvation is found only by grace, through faith in Christ, and yet to maintain that in the end all people will be saved?
• Can one believe passionately in mission if one does not think that anyone will be lost forever?
• Could universalism be consistent with the teachings of the Bible?

Gregory MacDonald argues that the answer is yes to all of these questions. Weaving together philosophical, theological, and biblical considerations, MacDonald seeks to show that being a committed universalist is consistent with the central teachings of the biblical texts and of historic Christian theology.

… [T]his passionate and lucid advocacy of an evangelical universalism … not only engages with key passages in the context of the overall biblical narrative but also treats clearly the profound theological and philosophical issues to which that narrative gives rise … readers … will find this book an excellent, accessible and indispensable aid in their own attempts to grapple with what its author describes as "a hell of a problem.

… I was struck by the persuasiveness of many of Gregory MacDonald’s arguments, not least since they rest in an unusually adept interweaving of biblical exegesis with relevant philosophical and theological considerations …

Gregory MacDonald’s defense of universalism is well argued logically, theologically, and especially biblically . . . Evangelicals, among whom MacDonald would count himself, will find him a civil and insightfully critical dialogue partner.

With this wonderful book, Gregory MacDonald joins the growing body of Evangelical Christians who now accept a doctrine of universal reconciliation. But I know of no one who has set forth an equally clear, thorough and compelling case for a universalist reading of the Bible as a whole . . .

Gregory MacDonald is a pseudonym. The author’s real name is Robin Parry.

Contents

• Chapter One: A Hell of a Problem
• Chapter Two: Universalism and Biblical Theology
• Chapter Three: Israel and the Nations in the Old Testament
• Chapter Four: Israel and the Nations in the New Testament
• Chapter Five: A Universalist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation
• Chapter Six: To Hell and Back
• Chapter Seven: Advantages of Christian Universalism and Replies to Remaining Objections
• Appendix 1: A Reply to William Lane Craig’s Argument that Molinism is Compatible with Non-Universalism
• Appendix 2: Christ, Cosmos, and Church: The Theology of Ephesians
• Appendix 3: The Lamb’s Book of Life
• Appendix 4: Love Wins?
• Appendix 5: Responses to (Some of) My Critics
• Appendix 6: Election
• Appendix 7: Hell, Moral Formation, and Calvinism
• Study Guide

[Alex_Smith]

With Robin’s permission, I’m attaching a thorough 26 page summary of the book which a rline has helpfully done

Summary of The Evangelical Universalist.pdf (107 KB)

[sihil]

This summary sounds super helpful @Alex_Smith but the link above is dead and not sure who “a rline” is. Have you still got a copy?

[Alex_Smith]

This summary sounds super helpful @Alex_Smith but the link above is dead and not sure who “a rline” is. Have you still got a copy?

Whoops, looks like that link go broken in the migration! Thanks for pointing that out, it was downloaded almost 700 times on the old site so important to fix. (“rline” was a member but he’s moved on to other things)

Here’s a new link Summary of The Evangelical Universalist.pdf (106.9 KB)