Paul Wilczynski's Observations

About Hartshorne’s Divine Relativity

Progressive Ink!, while researching theological alternatives for religious liberalism, finds Charles Hartshorne.

This search led me to Charles Hartshorne, a process theologian, who discarded the traditional view of G.O.D. and developed a philosophical theology which colored divinity as an entity which was perfect in change and evolved along with humanity's empirically realizable reality(ies) and in relation to the world. G.O.D., in other words, is completely relative. This G.O.D was the very embodiment of all possibility, but this possibility could change and consequently led to subsequent change and growth in G.O.D. itself. G.O.D. also could never be surpassed by humanity or any other ... things (for lack of better nouns), but G.O.D. could surpass G.O.D., and in fact grow (evolve). This is what I know so far concerning Hartshorne's theological alternative for liberal religion. I have more reading to do ... but it sounds like basic process theology, which is beckoning me to take a second and deeper look. It may be the most accessible alternative theological shape religious liberalism can draw from.

I'm not a theologian or theology student, nor have I ever taken a theology course. But to me, the idea of what is called G.O.D. in that description sounds so ... ordinary. Or maybe not ordinary ... perhaps better than us, but not different from us. My first reaction to this is that I like my Higher Power, at the very least, unchangeable. I have a hard enough time understanding a Higher Power that's static; how the heck am I gonna understand something that isn't what it was a couple of minutes ago?

posted by Paul Wilczynski @ 6:59 AM