Posts under "...and the Kitchen Sink"

Thomas à Kempis and Imitating God

October 16th, 2023 / No Comments

I’ve been working on an essay about what it might mean to imitate God. My argument will be that open and relational theology provides a helpful framework to make sense of this idea. The classical theism of Augustine and others does not help. Here’s an excerpt of my argument for why Thomas à Kempis is […]

Read More


Divine Glory Be Damned!

September 23rd, 2022 / 4 Comments

I’m writing an essay for a book on hell. Mine is among more than a dozen essays from various contributors. The book’s overall thread is a rejection of the traditional idea of hell. I’m arguing that relentless love is God’s glory. This stands in stark contrast to a widespread view that hell glorifies God. A […]

Read More


“Another Love Book?”

July 14th, 2022 / No Comments

I recently gave a lecture in Vancouver, BC at an event co-hosted by Vancouver School of Theology and St. Andrews Wesley United Church. In my lecture, I explored seven obstacles to love and how we might overcome them. My book, Pluriform Love, provided the details for my arguments. Of the 25+ books I’ve written or […]

Read More


A Thanksgiving Prayer to an Uncontrolling God

November 15th, 2020 / 14 Comments

The uncontrolling love view has positive implications for prayer at Thanksgiving. Thanking an uncontrolling God makes a lot of sense. Thanking a controlling God doesn’t. Each November, Americans gather to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. Words of thanks sometimes enter the public news or get expressed at civic gatherings too. It’s natural to wonder, “What do […]

Read More


Tripp Fuller’s Open and Relational Christology

October 27th, 2020 / 3 Comments

Tripp Fuller’s book Divine Self-Investment: an Open and Relational Constructive Christology makes an important contribution to understanding Jesus of Nazareth. In this essay, I summarize Fuller’s book. I show how he affirms Jesus as a special expression of divine self-investment. As one who joins Fuller in embracing an open and relational theological vision, I am […]

Read More


Emails of the Deceased

November 1st, 2017 / No Comments

What should we do with the email folders of our deceased friends? I’ve been thinking about this question for more than a decade! And I’ve come to an All Saints Day answer. It somehow felt wrong to delete immediately the email folders of friends and acquaintances who have died. But as the years have passed, the […]

Read More


Martin Luther’s Greatest Contribution

October 25th, 2017 / 2 Comments

Christians around the world are celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. Not just Protestants, even many Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christians are celebrating! Five hundred years ago, Martin Luther nailed 95 theses on Castle church door in Wittenberg, Germany. Most Christians today who read the document Luther posted would find his theses bewildering. […]

Read More