Acts20.com

Lee University/PTS once again celebrate their academic identity as a theologically liberal institution by their hosting Yale theologian Miroslav Volf.Volf suggests the legitimacy for same sex unions:“I think God created male and female, as it says in Genesis, but not maleness and femaleness. I think maleness and femaleness is a question of cultural differentiation and kind of cultural play and I don’t play much stock into that. I don’t think there is theological – theological kind of weight to that distinction. It’s controversial, what I’m saying, theologically but that’s what I believe and I’ve written about it.”A question of culturatural differentiation ????? Really?I respectfully disagree and think he is unfortunately mistaken. The loss of sexual difference is leaving us poorer as a society. It is precisely because there are precious differences between male and female that we affirm marriage and reject its redefinition to include “same-sex marriages”.Send your kids somewhere else, get a seminary degree somewhere else. I wish I did. Who in our movement will call out the theological liberalism that permeates these denominational funded academic playgrounds

Do you know he supports same sex unions, or are you drawing that from the quote above? The reason I ask that is that the quote above would not in itself lend support necessarily to same sex unions.

I would like someone with Lee to explain this.Usually there is a simple explanation.I would tend to agree - not every person needs an invite to our educational institution.Again, I trust the leaders at Lee.However, I would like them to explain their thinking and what actually took place

We need more evidence/info than that.There are so many gender qualities that are based out of traditions and cultural pressure. In our own culture, if a girl is athletic, outdoor-sy, and prefers pants to a dress-- she is a tomboy or ridiculed as something worse. Likewise, a boy that prefers to stay inside, read, play an instrument, cook, etc. is a momma's boy or labeled as something worse. Women belong in the home. Men should mow the grass. Women should do the laundry. Men should change the oil in the car. Women should clean the bathroom. Men should make more money. Women should make (and take care of) more babies. I have personally listened to, enjoyed and learned to disagree with Shane Claiborne, Leonard Sweet, Brian McLaren, Rob Bell, Tony Campolo and others. I have some major differences with several that I listed and others that I didn't. One thing that I have appreciated about each of them is that they have made me think and think about what I believe and what I think that I know. This is what University is for. University isn't a production line for uniformity and group think. University is for building individuals who go back out into various and sundry fields, locations and occupations, creating and innovating, building upon the individuals gifts and strengths and in the process giving the University a reputation of being a destination place for this process to be successfully played out over and over again.It should not threaten us that the world thinks differently than we do. It shouldn't threaten us that parts of the Body function and think differently than we do. Someone from the stage of the General Council said it very well, our young COG generation has options outside of the COG to be a part of great organizations that are planting churches, doing Mission and making a difference for the Kingdom. I would like for them to stay with us, the COG. We can't accomplish this by clinching our fists. Thanks to the proliferation of blogs, conferences and digital learning, our people have access to more thinkers and writers than ever before. Standing in our proverbial lawn while shaking a fist to the sky and yelling, Get off my lawn, won't accomplish anything. Teaching our children that there are views out there different than our own and to engage those views inside and outside the church in the manner that Jesus would is what education is all about. Granted, my degree comes from a large, state University and not from a small, private Christian school but from my perspective, Dr. Conn and Lee University are to be applauded and celebrated for teaching a Christian work-force to think and to engage. Just my honest opinion Proverbs 3:5-6; John 13:34-35; Acts 1:8

Wow! Amazing testimony and story! I wouldn't mind hearing a lecture on what he has to say. Sure to have some interesting insights Proverbs 3:5-6; John 13:34-35; Acts 1:8

Easy WEB SEARCH will find his contention Christians and Muslims worship same God...www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2015/12/16/the-same-god-12/BELOW....From interview...www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/articles/miroslav-volf-faith-and-reconciliation-a-personal-journey/SHORTT: Can you give an example of how the Qur’an has enlarged your view of God?VOLF: In the famous Surah 112, it is written, ‘Say, He is Allah, The One and Only; Allah the Eternal the Absolute; He begetteth not, Nor is He begotten; And there is None Like unto Him. ’As I read the text, I could have immediately focused on what looks like a negation of trinitarianism. And no doubt that is also what a Christian theologian needs to do when faced with this Surah. Instead, what struck me in the text was how exalted, unique and absolute Allah is represented as being. In some recent Christian theology God has often been reduced to the status of a companion or buddy, ‘who understands and shares our pain’. As I was reading the text I was reminded of how irreverent this kind of talk can be. You might say I did not need the Qur’an to remind me of that; biblical talk of God’s holiness and God’s dwelling in ‘inapproachable light’ could have done the same. And yet it was the Qur’an that reminded me of the absolute uniqueness of the God whom I worship as a Christian

I read your statement and then read his and I don't see where he said that Christians and Muslims worship the same God. Could you highlight or bold that part? I'm probably slower than most and honestly missed it. Thank you Proverbs 3:5-6; John 13:34-35; Acts 1:8

Wonder of majority COG folks in pew would see the mission of their institutions in this same perspective --- unfortunately they are clueless to the theological declension of Lee and PTS that has devolved over past 25 years

Re: Charlie Earl...

Thanks. No the quote I used does not have him stating that.But there are numerous places -- his book on Allah -- where he states such with phrase significantly similar. What brought to my attention was his defense of the Wheaton College prof who was fired because of her contention that Muslims and Christians worship same God.I would look at his debate on Ravi Zacharias site where he defended his view against a Muslim convert contending Christians do not.Here is one link: www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2015/12/16/the-same-god-12