Re: RFEP and the Heart of Christianity

From: douglas.hayworth@perbio.com
Date: Thu Sep 18 2003 - 09:18:06 EDT

  • Next message: George Murphy: "Re: RFEP and the Heartl of Christianity"

    Richard:

    The examples you mention are points that most of us (I think) believe to be
    form-conferring miracles, even if we hold to the RFEP in matters of the
    ordinary formative history of the universe and earth and evolution of life
    and even consciousness that allows for God-awareness. I consider that
    these "form-conferring events" (what most of us mean by Miracles) are very
    unusual exceptions to the ordinary created structure/behavior of the
    universe. The RFEP simply posits that the balance of things we consider
    pre-gifted properties versus form-conferring events is tipped very far to
    the pre-gifted side. I believe Howard is confortable with this use of the
    RFEP (please correct me if I am wrong about this Howard). More recently,
    Howard himself has been challenged by Griffin and others to consider the
    theological implications of tipping the balance all the way. Most of us are
    not comfortable with that extreme, and we are like you in desiring to mine
    Howard's thinking along these lines.

    Douglas

                                                                                                                          
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    Questions for Howard and the supporters of RFEP:

    I am still hoping for an explanation of how we are to understand basic
    Christian doctrines in light of the RFEP. It seems to eviscerate all the
    fundamental doctrines like Election, Virgin Birth, Prophecy, the
    Incarnation, Miracles of Christ and the Resurrection.

    1) How did Mary get pregnant "by the Holy Ghost" if God doesn't "confer
    form?"

    2) How was Christ resurrected "by the glory of the Father" (Rom 6.4) if God
    doesn't go about "coercing" dead matter?

    3) What does "the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God" (Acts 2.23)
    mean under RFEP?

    4) What is the meaning of the Incarnation if God never directly manipulates
    matter?

    5) Is Scripture simply wrong when it asserts Christ healed the blind man
    (John 9). This seems to be the necessary conclusion of RFEP because that
    event clearly involved coercion of matter by God incarnate.

    These are exceedingly important questions. I look forward to the answers
    (which presumably have already been worked out, given that Howard has been
    interacting with Christians on this list for some years now.)

    In service of Christ who forms all,

    Richard
    Discover the sevenfold symmetric perfection of the Holy Bible at
    http://www.BibleWheel.com

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