Roger E. Olson's Blog, page 12

Prophetic Tony Campolo: 1985 Warning for America

Prophetic Tony Campolo: 1985 Warning for America Many American evangelical Christians don’t remember Tony Campolo. He died recently. During the 1980s, also before and after, he was a major evangelical influencer, especially in American evangelical academic circles. He wrote popular books. He spoke at most evangelical colleges and universities and many churches. I read his […]

The Crisis of Liberal Theology

The Crisis of Liberal Theology Here I end my discussion series of my book Against Liberal Theology: Putting the Brakes on Progressive Christianity with Chapter 8: The Crisis of Liberal Theology. If you have read the chapter, you may comment (following the rules below). If you have not read the chapter, you may ask a […]

A New Book Discussion: Neoliberalism’s Demons

A New Book Discussion: Neoliberalism’s Demons: On the Political Theology of Late Capital The book is by theologian Adam Kotsko and is published by Stanford University Press (2018). It is available in both new and used (as well as Kindle) editions at many different prices.  If you want to pay less, check it out on […]

Neoliberalism and Social Darwinism

Neoliberalism and Social Darwinism Lest anyone tell me I should not blog about politics or economics, let me educate them/you: There is a branch of theology called “political theology.” This essay is about that; it is an example of it. Here is a Youtube video you need to watch if you want to know WHY […]

Is Heresy A Sin?

Is Heresy A Sin? Is heresy a sin? Yes, no, maybe. Such an answer you expect from a theologian, right? I know. What is heresy? Heresy is any teaching that is directly contrary to the stated doctrines of a religion. Since this is a blog for evangelical Christians, I will define heresy, for the purposes […]

Horace Bushnell and Progressive Orthodoxy 3

Horace Bushnell and Progressive Orthodoxy 3 In the first two installments of this three part series I talked about what Gary Dorrien calls Bushnell’s “liberal-leaning experiment in progressive orthodoxy” with special focus on the 19th century theologian’s theological method. Here I want to suggest some ways in which Bushnell’s progressive orthodoxy can be helpful today. […]

Liberal Theology and the Future

Liberal Theology and the Future Here I continue my discussion of my book Against Liberal Theology: Putting the Brakes on Progressive Christianity (Zondervan) with Chapter 7: The Future in Liberal Theology. If you have read the chapter, feel free to join the discussion with comments. If not, only ask a question. The essence of the […]

Is Christian Universalism a Heresy or Just Heterodox?

Is Universalism A Heresy? I tell my students that universalism is the least heretical of all heresies. But is it even a heresy? It certainly is in some Christian churches. A problem with calling it a heresy is that at least Gregory of Nyssa, an Orthodox Church father, was a universalist. And in recent times, […]

Is Universalism A Heresy?

Is Universalism A Heresy? I tell my students that universalism is the least heretical of all heresies. But is it even a heresy? It certainly is in some Christian churches. A problem with calling it a heresy is that at least Gregory of Nyssa, an Orthodox Church father, was a universalist. And in recent times, […]

Liberal Theology and Salvation

Liberal Theology and Salvation Here I continue my series about my book Against Liberal Theology: Putting the Brakes on Progressive Christianity with Chapter 6: Liberal Theology and Salvation. If you have read the chapter, feel free to comment. If not, feel free to ask a question. Again, in this chapter, I say that the problem […]