Greg Boyd

So I happened to be at North Park University this weekend on a college visit for my middle son and the speaker both Sunday night and Monday morning was Greg Boyd. I have to admit when you are evaluating a college for your child and the chapel speaker is one who embraces Open Theism and writes a book called The Myth of a Christian Nation , you wonder "what were they thinking?"

Boyd is a likeable character from the pulpit. He is animated, talks a mile-a-minute, has a self-deprecating sense of humor and doesn't appear to have a huge ego. As my wife and I listened, we found much to agree with in the general drift of his messages. But we also sensed a "taking it too far" tendency that I suspect is the source of his troubles with the evangelical community.

Post and Future Calvinism

Been ruminating on the one and only issue that has ever caused me to question my faith - the Calvinist TULIP. It started when I saw the article in CT, Young Restless and Reformed a couple of weeks ago. It documents a trend among twenty-somethings to embrace Reformed theology.

My initial reaction was "oh no!". More on that later. Second reaction was that it makes a certain amount of sense. Young people looking for a more robust theology, something deeper than the inoffensive seeker-driven relevancy of many of the mega-church, have to turn somewhere. Many have turned to history, liturgy, creed and confession. I guess I should not be surprised to see many turn to robust Reformed theology.

The article credits some of the trend to the books and preaching of John Piper. I had opportunity to hear Piper once and found his message on that day to be engaging and appreciated his humble and self-deprecating delivery a nice counterbalance to his obvious intensity. But the article also revived some old ghosts. The author, Collin Hansen recounts his own experience: