Liturgical Jellyfish
If jellyfish worshipped God, their Nicene Creed would not say they “look forward” to the resurrection of the dead because their bodies lack fronts and backs. Nor would they speak of meeting “face to face” with God.
Articles
God and the Concept of Being
Many thinkers believe we must begin our reflections on God with the concept of being as a a box into which all existing things are placed. This results in many problems. However, we can begin our reflections on God in a different place.
Anthropogenic Cognition in Religion and Nature
This talk uses cognitive linguistics which affirms the embodied mind approach gaining ground in cognitive science to consider natural kinds. The claim is that humans use a basic mental tool set grounded in our sensorimotor capacities to reason about entities we interact with in our environment. The specific nature of the human body is key to understanding how humans cognize. I will examine several of these tools and show how they are used to construe natural kinds as well as God.
Video on Nurturing versus Authoritative religion
Video on Nurturing versus Authoritative religion
Different understandings of divine transcendence
It is common to believe that God “transcends” the sorts of limitations that we creatures have. We tend to think of God as above or beyond the created realm. The words “above” and “beyond” are common human spatial terms and are used to “elevate” the divine majesty. Some theologians use above and beyond to argue […]
Metaphors and God
The Bible contains over fifty different metaphors for understanding who God is and our relationship to God. Some of these are: husband, woman, shepherd, potter, bear, eagle, and rock. The metaphors structure how humans construe the types of relations and expected behaviors we have with God. For instance, thinking of God as a father involves […]
What difference does it make how we understand concepts such as transcendence and being?
Ways to understand divine transcendence and being
Views on divine violence in the Hebrew Bible
Did God command genocide and commit violence against people?
How the Human Mind Thinks of God: A Cognitive Linguistic Analysis of Anthropomorphic God Concepts
How embodiment and culture shape the way we think of God.
Theological Muscle-Flexing: How Human Embodiment Shapes Discourse About God
Explains some basics of cognitive linguistics and focuses on conceptual metaphor theory to show the mental tools humans employ to think about God.
Books
Books
Embracing ProdigalsJanuary 6, 2022 - 8:04 pm
Theology in the FleshMay 20, 2016 - 1:29 am
The God Who Risks: A Theology of Divine ProvidenceMarch 14, 2016 - 7:35 pm
No Other Name: An Investigation into the Destiny of the UnevangelizedMarch 13, 2016 - 7:29 pm
What About Those Who Have Never Heard?March 12, 2016 - 5:25 pm