Greg Boyd |
Gregory A. "Greg" Boyd was born June 2, 1957. Boyd is Senior Pastor of Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, Minnesota and President of Reknew.org.. He is one of the leading spokesmen in the growing Neo-Anabaptism movement, which is based in the tradition of Anabaptism and advocates Christian pacifism and a non-violent understanding of God. Boyd has also long been known as a leading advocate of open theism. In addition, he is a noted Christian anarchist and is known for his writings on the relationship between Christianity and politics, including his best-selling book The Myth of a Christian Nation, which was written after the New York Times published a front-page cover article on Boyd's criticism of the Christian right. In 2010, Boyd was listed as one of the twenty most influential living Christian scholars. In addition to the New York Times, Boyd has also made appearances on CNN, NPR, the BBC, and The Charlie Rose Show.
The Myth of a Christian Nation by Greg Boyd
Greg’s story behind the writing of The Myth of a Christian Nation: Like many other evangelical pastors, in the months leading up to the 2004 election I felt increasing pressure from a number of right wing political and religious sources as well as from some people in my own congregation to “shepherd” my “flock” in voting for “the right candidate” and “the right position” on a variety of issues. Among other things, I and my board were asked to have our church sign various petitions and make various pledges, to hand out leaflets after our church services, draw attention to various political happenings during our regular church announcements, and so on. And increasingly, some in my church began to grow irate because of our refusal to participate in any of these activities. Some suspected it was because we were cowardly and “didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes.”
In April of 2004, as the religious “buzz” about the upcoming election was escalating, I felt it was necessary to preach a sermon series that would provide the biblical explanation for why our church was not joining in the rising chorus of political activity. I also decided this would serve as a good opportunity to expose the danger of associating the Christian faith too closely with any political party or nationalistic ideology. I had touched on this topic in the past, but never as deeply, clearly and persistently as I did during this sermon series. The series was entitled “The Cross and the Sword” and it forms the foundation of this present book.
The response to this series was surprising, to say the least. For one thing, I had never received anything close to the amount of positive feedback I received throughout this sermon series. Some literally wept with gratitude saying that they had always felt like “outsiders” in the evangelical community for not “towing the conservative party line” on politics. Others reported that their eyes had been opened to how they had unwittingly allowed political and national agendas and issues to cloud their vision of the uniquely beautiful kingdom of God.
But I also have never received anything close to the amount of negative feedback I received throughout this sermon series. I felt as though I’d stuck a stick into a hornet’s nest! Indeed, approximately 20% of my congregation (roughly 1000 people) ended up leaving the church.
Many of the folks who left sincerely believed there was little ambiguity in how “true” Christian faith translates into politics. God is against abortion, so one should obviously vote for the “pro-life” candidate — and the preacher should say so. God is against homosexuality, so one should obviously vote for the candidate who supports the marriage amendment act — and a Bible-believing pastor should proclaim this. God is for personal freedom, so one should obviously vote for the candidate who will fulfill “America’s mission” to bring freedom to the world — and an American pastor such as myself should use my “God given authority and responsibility” to make this known. “It’s that simple,” I was told. To insist that it’s not that simple, some suggested, was to be (as I was variously described) a “liberal,” a “compromiser,” “wishy-washy,” “unpatriotic, “afraid to take a stand” or simply “on the side of Satan.”
The intensity and scope of this emotional reaction — in a church that has usually been identified as “left of center” by other evangelicals in our area — confirmed my deepest concern about the evangelical church in America, the very thing that led me to preach this series in the first place. In a word, I believe we evangelicals have to a frightful degree fused the kingdom of God with our preferred version of the kingdom of the world (our nation, government, politics, etc.). Rather than centering our understanding of the kingdom on the person of Jesus Christ – who, incidentally, never allowed himself to get pulled into the many political disputes of his day – many of us American evangelicals have allowed our understanding of the kingdom to be polluted with nationalistic and political ideals, agendas and issues. The kingdom of God, many believe, is about “taking America back for God,” voting for “the Christian candidate,” outlawing abortion, outlawing gay marriage, winning the culture war, defending political freedom at home and abroad, keeping “under God” in the pledge of allegiance, fighting for prayer in our public schools and at pubic events, fighting to have the Ten Commandments displayed in governmental buildings, and things of that sort.
What gives this understanding of the kingdom of God such strong emotional force is the long standing myth that America is a “Christian nation.” From the start, Americans have been inclined to believe that God’s will was manifested in the founding of our country and is yet manifested in the global activity of our nation. Throughout our history, most Americans have confidently assumed our nation’s causes and wars were righteous and just and that God was “on our side.” In our minds, and often in our churches, the cross and the national flag have gone hand in hand. Consequently, the conservative church has, to a large extent at least, tended to view itself as the religious guardian of all that is godly in our culture. America is a holy city “set on a hill,” and the church’s job is to keep it shining.
My experience with my sermon series made it painfully clear to me that this foundational American myth, with its understanding of the Church as the national guardian, is still alive and well in the evangelical community – and not just in its most fundamentalist fringes. Indeed, the reaction to my sermon series has led me to suspect that this myth is possibly being embraced more intensely and widely now than in most times in the past precisely because evangelicals sense that it’s now being threatened. The understanding of America as a “Christian” nation, with all that accompanies this myth, is losing its grip on the collective national psyche. As America is becoming increasingly pluralistic and secularized, the civil religion of Christianity is losing force. And this, understandably, is producing serious consternation among those who identify themselves within the tradition of the nation’s religious guardians.
The book The Myth of a Christian Nation was based on (but goes well beyond) “The Cross and the Sword” sermon series I preached back in 2004. Since its publication, the national and international response has basically repeated the response I got in my own congregation. On the one hand, I have had thousands — and I mean thousands — of e-mails, letters and phone calls from people thanking me for expressing something they’ve felt on some level for years. Many of these positive responses have come from former church-goers who gave up on Christianity precisely because of its political involvement. But I’ve also gone a good bit of hostile feedback from conservative evangelicals who feel I’m leading the flock astray.
My prayer is that this book helps people get a clearer vision of the unique and beautiful Kingdom of God and to differentiate it from the ugliness of all versions of the kingdom of the world.
In April of 2004, as the religious “buzz” about the upcoming election was escalating, I felt it was necessary to preach a sermon series that would provide the biblical explanation for why our church was not joining in the rising chorus of political activity. I also decided this would serve as a good opportunity to expose the danger of associating the Christian faith too closely with any political party or nationalistic ideology. I had touched on this topic in the past, but never as deeply, clearly and persistently as I did during this sermon series. The series was entitled “The Cross and the Sword” and it forms the foundation of this present book.
The response to this series was surprising, to say the least. For one thing, I had never received anything close to the amount of positive feedback I received throughout this sermon series. Some literally wept with gratitude saying that they had always felt like “outsiders” in the evangelical community for not “towing the conservative party line” on politics. Others reported that their eyes had been opened to how they had unwittingly allowed political and national agendas and issues to cloud their vision of the uniquely beautiful kingdom of God.
But I also have never received anything close to the amount of negative feedback I received throughout this sermon series. I felt as though I’d stuck a stick into a hornet’s nest! Indeed, approximately 20% of my congregation (roughly 1000 people) ended up leaving the church.
Many of the folks who left sincerely believed there was little ambiguity in how “true” Christian faith translates into politics. God is against abortion, so one should obviously vote for the “pro-life” candidate — and the preacher should say so. God is against homosexuality, so one should obviously vote for the candidate who supports the marriage amendment act — and a Bible-believing pastor should proclaim this. God is for personal freedom, so one should obviously vote for the candidate who will fulfill “America’s mission” to bring freedom to the world — and an American pastor such as myself should use my “God given authority and responsibility” to make this known. “It’s that simple,” I was told. To insist that it’s not that simple, some suggested, was to be (as I was variously described) a “liberal,” a “compromiser,” “wishy-washy,” “unpatriotic, “afraid to take a stand” or simply “on the side of Satan.”
The intensity and scope of this emotional reaction — in a church that has usually been identified as “left of center” by other evangelicals in our area — confirmed my deepest concern about the evangelical church in America, the very thing that led me to preach this series in the first place. In a word, I believe we evangelicals have to a frightful degree fused the kingdom of God with our preferred version of the kingdom of the world (our nation, government, politics, etc.). Rather than centering our understanding of the kingdom on the person of Jesus Christ – who, incidentally, never allowed himself to get pulled into the many political disputes of his day – many of us American evangelicals have allowed our understanding of the kingdom to be polluted with nationalistic and political ideals, agendas and issues. The kingdom of God, many believe, is about “taking America back for God,” voting for “the Christian candidate,” outlawing abortion, outlawing gay marriage, winning the culture war, defending political freedom at home and abroad, keeping “under God” in the pledge of allegiance, fighting for prayer in our public schools and at pubic events, fighting to have the Ten Commandments displayed in governmental buildings, and things of that sort.
What gives this understanding of the kingdom of God such strong emotional force is the long standing myth that America is a “Christian nation.” From the start, Americans have been inclined to believe that God’s will was manifested in the founding of our country and is yet manifested in the global activity of our nation. Throughout our history, most Americans have confidently assumed our nation’s causes and wars were righteous and just and that God was “on our side.” In our minds, and often in our churches, the cross and the national flag have gone hand in hand. Consequently, the conservative church has, to a large extent at least, tended to view itself as the religious guardian of all that is godly in our culture. America is a holy city “set on a hill,” and the church’s job is to keep it shining.
My experience with my sermon series made it painfully clear to me that this foundational American myth, with its understanding of the Church as the national guardian, is still alive and well in the evangelical community – and not just in its most fundamentalist fringes. Indeed, the reaction to my sermon series has led me to suspect that this myth is possibly being embraced more intensely and widely now than in most times in the past precisely because evangelicals sense that it’s now being threatened. The understanding of America as a “Christian” nation, with all that accompanies this myth, is losing its grip on the collective national psyche. As America is becoming increasingly pluralistic and secularized, the civil religion of Christianity is losing force. And this, understandably, is producing serious consternation among those who identify themselves within the tradition of the nation’s religious guardians.
The book The Myth of a Christian Nation was based on (but goes well beyond) “The Cross and the Sword” sermon series I preached back in 2004. Since its publication, the national and international response has basically repeated the response I got in my own congregation. On the one hand, I have had thousands — and I mean thousands — of e-mails, letters and phone calls from people thanking me for expressing something they’ve felt on some level for years. Many of these positive responses have come from former church-goers who gave up on Christianity precisely because of its political involvement. But I’ve also gone a good bit of hostile feedback from conservative evangelicals who feel I’m leading the flock astray.
My prayer is that this book helps people get a clearer vision of the unique and beautiful Kingdom of God and to differentiate it from the ugliness of all versions of the kingdom of the world.
Greg Boyd
Evangelicals typically ground the credibility of their faith on the inspiration of the Bible. If they were to become convinced that the Bible was not inspired, their faith would crumble. I think this posture is as unwise as it is unnecessary. I want it to be clear at the start that I fully embrace Scripture as the “God-breathed” (theopneustos) Word of God (2 Tim. 3:16), and I believe that, if properly defined, it is “infallible.” I also believe that Scripture should be the foundation of what we believe. But I think it’s very mistaken to make Scripture the foundation of why we believe.
If the reason you believe is anchored in your confidence that Scripture is “God-breathed,” then your faith can’t help but be threatened every time you encounter a discrepancy, an archeological problem, or a persuasive historical-critical argument that a portion of the biblical narrative may not be historically accurate. Your faith may also be threatened every time you encounter material that is hard to accept as “God-breathed” — the genocidal portrait of Yahweh I discussed in my previous blog, for example. When biblical inspiration is made this important, people are forced to go to extreme and sometimes even silly lengths to explain each and every one of the “encyclopedia” of “difficulties” one finds in Scripture (I’m alluding Gleason Archer’s apologetic book, New International Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties).
As has happened to so many others, throughout my seminary training this foundation became increasingly shaky and eventually collapsed. I know a number of former-evangelicals who completely lost their faith when they experienced this. One is Bart Ehrman, who I’m sure many of you recognize as one of Christianity’s most well-known contemporary critics. He and I were in the doctoral program at Princeton Seminary at the same time, and we fell through our crumbling Scriptural foundation at roughly the same time and for many of the same reasons. But while Bart gradually fell into agnosticism, I fell onto a different and much more firm foundation. I fell into Christ. -Greg Boyd; ReNew; Why Christ, not Scripture, is Our Ultimate Foundation 8.3.23
If the reason you believe is anchored in your confidence that Scripture is “God-breathed,” then your faith can’t help but be threatened every time you encounter a discrepancy, an archeological problem, or a persuasive historical-critical argument that a portion of the biblical narrative may not be historically accurate. Your faith may also be threatened every time you encounter material that is hard to accept as “God-breathed” — the genocidal portrait of Yahweh I discussed in my previous blog, for example. When biblical inspiration is made this important, people are forced to go to extreme and sometimes even silly lengths to explain each and every one of the “encyclopedia” of “difficulties” one finds in Scripture (I’m alluding Gleason Archer’s apologetic book, New International Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties).
As has happened to so many others, throughout my seminary training this foundation became increasingly shaky and eventually collapsed. I know a number of former-evangelicals who completely lost their faith when they experienced this. One is Bart Ehrman, who I’m sure many of you recognize as one of Christianity’s most well-known contemporary critics. He and I were in the doctoral program at Princeton Seminary at the same time, and we fell through our crumbling Scriptural foundation at roughly the same time and for many of the same reasons. But while Bart gradually fell into agnosticism, I fell onto a different and much more firm foundation. I fell into Christ. -Greg Boyd; ReNew; Why Christ, not Scripture, is Our Ultimate Foundation 8.3.23
April 27, 2023: 9 Marks: Book Review: Empires of Dirt, by Douglas Wilson
As our public discourse has become more polarized and politicized, calls for Christian nationalism have begun to resonate with well-meaning believers. Doug Wilson’s Empires of Dirt reads like a manifesto. His “Mere Christendom” is not as mere as it appears. Wilson begins by reminding us that public secularism is not religiously neutral. “Soft socialism” has advanced its own salvation narrative (8, 9). American Zionism and Exceptionalism were idols. And compassionate conservatism was never a convincing stand-in for Christianity. But raw secularism looks like the last man standing in the public square, and it leaves the state (apparently) answerable to no one. Whither then a Christian public theology? |
Wilson first dismisses radical Anabaptist separation of church and state as pessimistic (Hauerwas, Willimon) and pacifist (Greg Boyd). Since “Christ already humiliated the principalities” (80) in binding Satan. Wilson says, “This should have obvious political implications” (81), one of which is Christian nationalism. Buttressed by an ecclesial application of Psalm 2 and Revelation 19:15, the church rules with the rod of iron, which is “the preaching and declaration of God’s gospel authority in this world” (89, 90). When kings kiss the Son, they lead their nations—as nations—to espouse Christian views and virtues, and nations become disciples as national people units (95, 259). |
Greg Boyd
It’s a wonderful thing to know that God is love (1 John 4:16), but this information will not significantly impact us until we can intimately grasp and savor the truth that God loves us individually. It’s a wonderful thing to know that Jesus died for the world, but this information will not significantly impact the way that we experience ourselves and the world until it becomes vivid, experiential, and personalized. I need to be able to savor in a concrete way the truth that Jesus died for me, that he loves me to this unfathomable degree, and that I am completely forgiven. This involves the imagination.
We need to imagine truth and savor it; only then can the flesh that holds us in bondage be broken. We need to see pictures of grace in our minds and savor them; only then can grace break our flesh-driven compulsion to perform. We need to engage imaginatively in the unconditional love of God; only then can it break our flesh’s need to hide.
When we do these things, we will find ourselves savoring wholeness and life, our new identity in Christ, rather than death and destruction.
--Greg Boyd; Seeing Is Believing: Experience Jesus Through Imaginative Prayer
We need to imagine truth and savor it; only then can the flesh that holds us in bondage be broken. We need to see pictures of grace in our minds and savor them; only then can grace break our flesh-driven compulsion to perform. We need to engage imaginatively in the unconditional love of God; only then can it break our flesh’s need to hide.
When we do these things, we will find ourselves savoring wholeness and life, our new identity in Christ, rather than death and destruction.
--Greg Boyd; Seeing Is Believing: Experience Jesus Through Imaginative Prayer
Sept 26, 2022: Scott E Olson: Relational Theology Yes; Panentheism No
Many 19th and 20th century Christian thinkers have contributed to relational theology including (among others) Georg Hegel, Horace Bushnell, I. A. Dorner, Emil Brunner, K. Kitamori, Juergen Moltmann, and Robert Jenson. Open theism is a type of relational theology and was promoted especially by Clark Pinnock, John Sanders and Greg Boyd (among others). Among Christian philosophers it (relational theology) has been embraced Keith Ward, William Hasker, Nicholas Wolterstorff and others.
Many 19th and 20th century Christian thinkers have contributed to relational theology including (among others) Georg Hegel, Horace Bushnell, I. A. Dorner, Emil Brunner, K. Kitamori, Juergen Moltmann, and Robert Jenson. Open theism is a type of relational theology and was promoted especially by Clark Pinnock, John Sanders and Greg Boyd (among others). Among Christian philosophers it (relational theology) has been embraced Keith Ward, William Hasker, Nicholas Wolterstorff and others.
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Dec 16, 2021: Premier Christianity: Greg Boyd: The progressive preacher on spiritual gifts, racism and Covid prophecy
Three years before the pandemic struck, Greg Boyd received an unusual prophetic word, which prompted him to move his church’s material online. We asked him about this seemingly unique warning about Covid-19, and how he feels about being labelled both ‘charismatic’ and ‘progressive’ Nov 5, 2015: Pangea Blog: Greg Boyd Gives 5 Bullet Points about Open Theism in the Bible
Greg does us all a favor by compiling this helpful list of how the Bible speaks to Open Theism. |
Mar 11, 2015: Youtube: Greg Boyd - Generic God Sermon Clip - ReKnew.org
"Let's all just get along." Is this what God and religion are really about? All we have to do is just be good to people? Almost all religions can agree on this, but it is a generic view of God. In this clip from Greg's latest sermon, he talks about this generic view of God and how that affects our pluralistic culture.
Dec 20, 2014: Worldview of Jesus: Greg Boyd’s World of Possibilities
Above is a video of Greg Boyd, a popular advocate for open theism, providing a brief summary of open theism and an explanation of why he finds it to be convincing. Boyd answers three questions, “What is Open Theism?”, “How is this relevant today?”, and “How does this help the believer?”
Nov 5, 2014: Eclectic Orthodoxy: Greg Boyd and C. S. Lewis on the Open Future
Greg Boyd just posted a short article on his blog: “Does the Open View Limit God?” His thesis is simply stated: open theists do not limit God, as they agree with classical theists that God knows everything that can be known; therefore the open God is properly described as omniscient.
"Let's all just get along." Is this what God and religion are really about? All we have to do is just be good to people? Almost all religions can agree on this, but it is a generic view of God. In this clip from Greg's latest sermon, he talks about this generic view of God and how that affects our pluralistic culture.
Dec 20, 2014: Worldview of Jesus: Greg Boyd’s World of Possibilities
Above is a video of Greg Boyd, a popular advocate for open theism, providing a brief summary of open theism and an explanation of why he finds it to be convincing. Boyd answers three questions, “What is Open Theism?”, “How is this relevant today?”, and “How does this help the believer?”
Nov 5, 2014: Eclectic Orthodoxy: Greg Boyd and C. S. Lewis on the Open Future
Greg Boyd just posted a short article on his blog: “Does the Open View Limit God?” His thesis is simply stated: open theists do not limit God, as they agree with classical theists that God knows everything that can be known; therefore the open God is properly described as omniscient.
August 12, 2021: Roger E Olson: Experiences of an Evangelical Theologian 8
One of my greatest achievements during my Bethel years was recruiting Greg Boyd to join our faculty----in the undergraduate Biblical and Theological Studies Department. The department chair handed me a pile of applications for an assistant professor position in theology. I went through them and picked out Greg's application as the obvious best choice for us. Of course, we did our due diligence and interviewed several candidates and gave them all fair hearings in interviews. However, Greg stood out as most qualified. I was delighted when he joined our faculty and soon he was publishing and making his mark on the evangelical world. Greg and I spent many hours together discussing theology and singing old gospel songs on road trips.
SATIRE: Oct 16, 2016: Daily Bonnet: DNA Testing Reveals Theologian Greg Boyd to be ‘90% Mennonite’ After sending away for one of those DNA home testing kits, Greg Boyd, renowned author and pastor of Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, discovered he was almost entirely Mennonite. The new improved test enable users to determine their theological DNA from a small amount of saliva.
One of my greatest achievements during my Bethel years was recruiting Greg Boyd to join our faculty----in the undergraduate Biblical and Theological Studies Department. The department chair handed me a pile of applications for an assistant professor position in theology. I went through them and picked out Greg's application as the obvious best choice for us. Of course, we did our due diligence and interviewed several candidates and gave them all fair hearings in interviews. However, Greg stood out as most qualified. I was delighted when he joined our faculty and soon he was publishing and making his mark on the evangelical world. Greg and I spent many hours together discussing theology and singing old gospel songs on road trips.
SATIRE: Oct 16, 2016: Daily Bonnet: DNA Testing Reveals Theologian Greg Boyd to be ‘90% Mennonite’ After sending away for one of those DNA home testing kits, Greg Boyd, renowned author and pastor of Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, discovered he was almost entirely Mennonite. The new improved test enable users to determine their theological DNA from a small amount of saliva.
Oct 9, 2014: ReKnew: Is God Trying to Tell Us Something Through Blood Moons?
This week we experienced the second of a series of four “blood moons.” If you’ve read John Hagee’s book Four Blood Moons: Something Is About To Change, you might be inclined to believe that God is sending us a message through these heavenly events. Greg begs to differ
Oct 8, 2014: ReKnew: Sermon Clip: God Doesn’t Speak Gibberish
This week we finish our short series on the spiritual gifts today with a sermon discussing the gift of tongues and the interpretation of tongues. As the most controversial of the gifts, we will correct false beliefs and discover the Scriptural truths and blessing that come from speaking in tongues.
This week we experienced the second of a series of four “blood moons.” If you’ve read John Hagee’s book Four Blood Moons: Something Is About To Change, you might be inclined to believe that God is sending us a message through these heavenly events. Greg begs to differ
Oct 8, 2014: ReKnew: Sermon Clip: God Doesn’t Speak Gibberish
This week we finish our short series on the spiritual gifts today with a sermon discussing the gift of tongues and the interpretation of tongues. As the most controversial of the gifts, we will correct false beliefs and discover the Scriptural truths and blessing that come from speaking in tongues.
Oct 2, 2014: Rethinking Hell: Episode 60: Withdrawing His Sustaining Hand, with Greg Boyd
Best-selling author, pastor, theologian, and President of ReKnew.org, Greg Boyd joins Rethinking Hell contributor Joshua Anderson to discuss the evolution of his understanding of hell, based on a Christocentric hermeneutic.
Aug 21, 2007: An Appraisal of Folly: An Answer to Greg Boyd’s Argument from Demonically-Influenced Infirmities
Read Boyd’s argument here. When people disagree over theological issues it seems like the opposing parties skip over the good points and focus only on the bad. I want to point out that I think Boyd has made a some good points about demons and their ability to influence the natural world. I also like his point that just because something can be explained scientifically does not rule out the supernatural aspect about it. That being said, I still have to take issue with Boyd’s hypothesis, and I will only relate a few observations in response.
Best-selling author, pastor, theologian, and President of ReKnew.org, Greg Boyd joins Rethinking Hell contributor Joshua Anderson to discuss the evolution of his understanding of hell, based on a Christocentric hermeneutic.
Aug 21, 2007: An Appraisal of Folly: An Answer to Greg Boyd’s Argument from Demonically-Influenced Infirmities
Read Boyd’s argument here. When people disagree over theological issues it seems like the opposing parties skip over the good points and focus only on the bad. I want to point out that I think Boyd has made a some good points about demons and their ability to influence the natural world. I also like his point that just because something can be explained scientifically does not rule out the supernatural aspect about it. That being said, I still have to take issue with Boyd’s hypothesis, and I will only relate a few observations in response.