{"id":1206,"date":"2011-07-06T00:45:45","date_gmt":"2011-07-06T00:45:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/"},"modified":"2014-01-21T02:02:03","modified_gmt":"2014-01-21T02:02:03","slug":"july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/","title":{"rendered":"A New Kind of Liberalism"},"content":{"rendered":"

Christianity<\/span> Liberalism<\/span><\/h1>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>In 2001 Brian McLaren wrote <\/span>A New Kind of Christian<\/span>1<\/sup><\/span>in which he made bold statements against orthodox Christian beliefs.\u00a0 He proposed that heaven and hell are really the same place which some will enjoy and some will not;<\/span>2<\/sup><\/span> salvation belongs to everyone because God loves everyone and, therefore all will eventually be reconciled to God;<\/span>3<\/sup><\/span> evolution is \u201cone of God\u2019s coolest creations;\u201d<\/span>4<\/sup><\/span> and that most of Christianity is steeped in modernistic thinking and it is time we all adapted to the new postmodern world.<\/span>5<\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In 2011 Rob Bell updated McLaren\u2019s beliefs with his more shocking book, <\/span>Love Wins.<\/span>6<\/sup><\/span> This has received a lot of attention because Bell\u2019s message has also been played on YouTube and has been reviewed quickly by many good men.\u00a0 Bell also denies that God will send anyone to hell forever, and redefines most of Christianity as we have known it. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

However in 2010 McLaren had struck a harder blow at orthodox Christian beliefs with his book, <\/span>A New Kind of Christianity<\/span>7<\/sup><\/span> (by the same publisher\u00a0 as <\/span>Love Wins<\/span>). This builds on his previous book (ten years earlier) and gives an even fuller explanation of why he and others are attempting to totally redefine the faith that Christians have known for two thousand years.\u00a0 The sub-title to the book is, \u201cTen questions that are transforming the faith.\u201d\u00a0 Before jumping into these, McLaren takes the reader through 30 pages explaining how he came to his current belief system.\u00a0 It\u2019s not an uncommon story of how a man gradually became disappointed and disillusioned with his evangelical faith and those who practice it.\u00a0 McLaren grew tired of the \u201cus and them\u201d attitude which categorized the world into saved and lost and, worse, made God into a Bully Who loved one but would punish the other. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It is also typical of writers like McLaren and Bell to make broad generalizations and caricatures especially of fundamentalists and even evangelicals, while at the same time bemoaning (what he sees as) the name-calling and ridicule toward liberal Christians.\u00a0 The conservative reader will just have to put up with this in order to get to the heart of the matter.<\/span><\/p>\n

After having read McLaren and Bell for a while, I would say that the most striking protest they want to make is against the orthodox Christian view of an eternal hell, and of a God Who would put human beings there.\u00a0 As Bell wrote, <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

And that is the secret deep in the heart of many people, especially Christians: they don\u2019t love God.\u00a0 They can\u2019t, because the God they\u2019ve been presented with and taught about can\u2019t be loved.\u00a0 That God is terrifying and traumatizing and unbearable.8<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

McLaren puts it this way,<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Yes, I find a character named God who does a good bit of smiting, but those who are smitten are simply smitten and buried, and that\u2019s it.\u00a0 They are not shamed and tortured for a while by the \u2018godly\u2019 before death and then shamed and tortured by God after death\u2014forever and ever, without end.9<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It seems to this reviewer, that these men (and others) begin with what to them is an unacceptable teaching\u2014a loving God who sends people to a horrible place like Hell forever!\u2014and proceed from there to dismantle this doctrine in whatever way they can.\u00a0 Whereas Bell\u2019s book is short and shocking, McLaren\u2019s newest book is more methodical and detailed.\u00a0 I intend to let him speak for himself about his 10 questions.\u00a0 To anyone who is even moderately familiar with Biblical doctrine and content, McLaren\u2019s own words are revealing enough.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. <\/span>The Narrative Question<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

McLaren starts with questioning the basic understanding of the story line of the Bible.\u00a0 Rather than seeing innocence in the garden, followed by a fall into sin, followed by a history of condemnation, followed by either salvation and heaven or no salvation and hell, he believes that all of that is read into the Bible through western, Greco-Roman eyes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cWhat we call the biblical story line isn\u2019t the shape of the story of Adam, Abraham, and their Jewish descendents.\u00a0 It\u2019s the shape of the Greek philosophical narrative that Plato taught!\u201d . . . . \u201cNow the god of this Greco-Roman version of the biblical story bears a strange similarity in many ways to Zeus (Jupiter for the Romans), but we will name him Theos.\u201d10<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

From there he constantly criticizes \u201cTheos\u201d for being a mean and vicious God who only wants to hurt and punish people.\u00a0 His point is that we got this idea of God, from reading our Bible backwards through the lens\u2019 of the Greeks and Romans.\u00a0 He doesn\u2019t consider whether he may be reading his Bible from the wrong direction!<\/span><\/p>\n

2. <\/span>The Authority Question<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

This section reveals McLaren\u2019s unorthodox view of revelation and inspiration.\u00a0 Our problem has been, he says, that we take the Bible literally or as a \u201cconstitution\u201d from which we get categorical statements rather than as a \u201clibrary\u201d which is more like an ongoing conversation.\u00a0 The reader must remember that McLaren was a literature major in school whose favorite writers are men like Gustavo Guti<\/span>\u00e9<\/span>rrez and Hans K<\/span>\u00fc<\/span>ng.<\/span>11<\/sup><\/span> McLaren believes that the Bible writers matured over the years.\u00a0 The early writers wrote what they knew about God but they didn\u2019t know very much so they described a God according to their backward, violent culture.\u00a0 As time went on the Bible writers matured and God was able to use them to show His true character.\u00a0 He writes,<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

I am saying that human beings can\u2019t do better than their very best at any given moment to communicate about God as they understand God, and that Scripture faithfully reveals the evolution of our ancestors\u2019 best attempts to communicate their successive best understandings of God.\u00a0 As human capacity grows to conceive of a higher and wiser view of God, each new vision is faithfully preserved in Scripture like fossils in layers of sediment.\u00a0 If we read the Bible as a cultural library rather than as a constitution, and if we don\u2019t impose a Greco-Roman plotline on the biblical narrative, we are free to learn from that evolutionary process\u2014and, we might even add, to participate in it.12<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This is why he also can say, \u201cTo say that the Word (the message, meaning, or revelation) of God is in the biblical text, then, does not mean that you can extract verses or statements from the text at will and call them \u2018God\u2019s words.\u2019\u201d<\/span>13<\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

3. <\/span>The God Question<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

The traditional understanding of God is a real problem for McLaren.\u00a0 To take the Bible as it is leaves us with a God Who does things that seem (to him anyway) wrong and distasteful.\u00a0 In speaking of the Genesis flood, for example, McLaren says,<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

In this light, a god who mandates an intentional supernatural disaster leading to unparalleled genocide is hardly worthy of belief, much less worship.\u00a0 How can you ask your children\u2014or nonchurch colleagues and neighbors\u2014to honor a deity so uncreative, overreactive, and utterly capricious regarding life? . . . . Now remember, in making this contrast, I\u2019m not trying to defend the view of God in the Noah story as morally acceptable, ethically satisfying, and theologically mature. . . . I\u2019m recommending we notice the theological progress the story demonstrates instead of simply condemning it for not having progressed more.14<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

He means that the Genesis story is an improvement on the older Gilgamesh story which <\/span>really <\/span>portrayed God as unkind.\u00a0 It\u2019s just that the Genesis story hadn\u2019t come nearly far enough to show us a better picture of God.\u00a0 Also keep in mind that none of this means that McLaren takes the flood story literally.\u00a0 He does not believe God actually <\/span>did <\/span>that.\u00a0 This is just how the Bible tells the story so we can progress in our understanding of God.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

4. <\/span>The Jesus Question<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

To McLaren, Jesus is the only reality in Scripture.\u00a0 Whether creation, history, or prophecy, only Jesus can be taken at face value.\u00a0 But, it seems, even Jesus must fit McLaren\u2019s preconceived \u201cthree-dimensional biblical paradigm\u201d of creation, liberation, and peace-making.\u00a0 He sees the Jewish point of view (rather than what he calls the old \u201csix-line narrative\u201d) as these three themes taken from Genesis, Exodus, and Isaiah (for no apparent reason other than his agenda).\u00a0 Yet while criticizing everyone else for fitting their point of view into a preconceived perspective, McLaren forces everything in the life of Jesus (and beyond) into his three-fold mold.<\/span><\/p>\n

In these two chapters McLaren renders all prophecy, whether in Isaiah 4 (discussed in length) or Revelation 19 (also discussed in length) as allegory and merely pictorial language of peace that Jesus brought to us in the gospels.\u00a0 Dealing with no theology or theologians and using only online fanatics as examples, he ridicules those who believe Jesus came \u201cto save us from hell.\u201d\u00a0 He says,<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

But even these few examples, selected from so many more, make it clear that Jesus, contrary to my dear loyal critic\u2019s assertion, did not come merely to \u201csave souls from hell.\u201d\u00a0 No, he came to launch a new Genesis, to lead a new Exodus, and to announce, embody, and inaugurate a new kingdom as the Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6). Seen in this light, Jesus and his message have everything to do with poverty, slavery, and a \u201csocial agenda.\u201d15<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

McLaren calls his new perspective a \u201crenaissance\u201d of new understanding currently taking place.\u00a0 But it seems much closer to the old \u201cliberalism\u201d of the nineteenth century and beyond.<\/span><\/p>\n

5. <\/span>The Gospel Question<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

The reader may hope that in this fifth question he would see a clear gospel definition, but that hope will not be realized.\u00a0 McLaren tries to blend his previous thoughts with the gospels and the book of Romans but his attempt is less than satisfying.\u00a0 Noticeably, his previous reference to N.T. Wright and James Cone (p. 46) as two of his favorite authors, might give a hint to finding a gospel somewhere between the New Perspective on Paul and Liberation Theology. <\/span><\/p>\n

McLaren starts with the gospels and their frequent \u201cgospel of the kingdom\u201d being \u201cat hand.\u201d\u00a0 He defines this as a kingdom that Jesus began that is not the old Jewish idea nor the traditional Christian idea nor an eschatological idea, but \u201cGod\u2019s new benevolent society [which is] already among us.\u201d<\/span>16<\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

A new kingdom is much bigger than a new religion, and in fact it has room for many religious traditions within it.\u00a0 This good news wasn\u2019t simply about a new way to solve the religious problems of ontological fall and original sin (problems, remember once more, that arise centuries later and within a different narrative altogether).\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t simply information about how individual souls could leave earth, avoid hell, and ascend to heaven after death.\u00a0 No, it was about God\u2019s will being done on earth as in heaven for all people.\u00a0 It was about God\u2019s faithful solidarity with all humanity in our suffering, oppression, and evil.\u00a0 It was about God\u2019s compassion and call to be reconciled with God and with one another\u2014before death, on earth.\u00a0 It was a summons to rethink everything and enter a life of retraining as disciples or learners of a new way of life, citizens of a new kingdom.17<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

In the second chapter of this section, McLaren presses this definition of the kingdom of God into the book of Romans.\u00a0 He describes inspiration as a \u201cwonderful dance of the Spirit of God and the mind of a man in the context of a community in crisis.\u201d<\/span>18<\/sup><\/span> He then gives seven \u201cmoves\u201d that Paul makes as he writes this book by the Spirit.\u00a0 In the end, McLaren tries to force Romans to mean that the gospel is the message that God has reconciled the world (though he often contradicts himself by referring to \u201ceveryone who believes\u201d and similar statements) or has already finished the \u201cjustification of all humanity.\u201d<\/span>19<\/sup><\/span> The invitation, evidently, is \u201cto share a common life and mission\u2014living out the restorative justice, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit that constitute the kingdom of God.\u201d<\/span>20<\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Book Two:\u00a0 Emerging & Exploring<\/span>.\u00a0 That is what McLaren titles the second half of his ten questions.\u00a0 These are shorter, outgrowths of the first five.\u00a0 Therefore, and for space, I will give brief summations.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

6. <\/span>The Church Question<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

Since the kingdom of God includes all people, churches exist to train people how to become profitable members of this kingdom.\u00a0 To save someone is to rescue them from uselessness.<\/span><\/p>\n

7. <\/span>The Sex Question<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

In this longest chapter of the section McLaren OKs nearly all sexual life-styles, or at least says they should be open and not condemned.\u00a0 The real culprit here is what he calls \u201cfundasexuality,\u201d the \u201cbrand of religious fundamentalism that preoccupies itself with sexuality.\u201d<\/span>21<\/sup><\/span> That is, any who still condemn homosexuality, even premarital sex,<\/span>22<\/sup><\/span> are the real anti-Christians who are keeping the church from being all it should be.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

8. <\/span>The Future Question<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

McLaren unequivocally rejects a second coming of Christ (in any literal sense), especially a dispensational approach which he calls a conventional, \u201cflatline,\u201d deterministic view.\u00a0 His view is a \u201c3-D participatory eschatology\u201d which defines the \u201cparousia\u201d (presence, specifically not an \u201capousia\u201d or absence) as Jesus being present in the world since His resurrection. <\/span><\/p>\n

If McLaren does not subscribe to an Open Theism approach to the future he subscribes to its twin.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

In this 3-D view, God is not in control <\/span>in the sense of being a machine operator pulling levers or a chess master moving bishops and pawns.\u00a0 Nor is the universe out of control<\/span> in the sense of being chaotic, random, and purposeless.\u00a0 Instead, God and the universe are in relationship<\/span>.23<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Final judgment (he calls \u201creconciling\u201d) is redefined as the time when God finally reconciles all of creation back to Himself.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

9. <\/span>The Pluralism Question<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

By cleverly explaining away John 14:6, McLaren does away with evangelizing non-Christians.\u00a0 His new evangelism \u201cwould celebrate the good in the Christian religion . . . Just as it would in every other religion, calling people to a way of life in a kingdom (or beautiful whole) that transcends and includes all religions.\u201d<\/span>24<\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

10. <\/span>The What-Do-We-Do-Now Question<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

According to McLaren we quit the old and start the new.\u00a0 He calls this \u201c<\/span>ubuntu<\/span>, from Africa, a rich word meaning one-another-ness, interconnectedness, jointed-in-the-common-good-ness, and profound commitment to the well-being of all. . . The transformation of \u2018the other\u2019 into \u2018one another.\u2019\u201d<\/span>25<\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

And So . . .<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

So much more could and needs to be said.\u00a0 This is liberalism whether short-lived or long-lived.\u00a0 God will see to its end either way.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Christianity Liberalism \u00a0 \u00a0In 2001 Brian McLaren wrote A New Kind of Christian1in which he made bold statements against orthodox Christian beliefs.\u00a0 He proposed that heaven and hell are really the same place which some will enjoy and some will not;2 salvation belongs to everyone because God loves everyone and, therefore all will eventually be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[123],"tags":[162,157],"class_list":["post-1206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles","tag-history-story-narrative","tag-modern-authors-theological-issues"],"yoast_head":"\nA New Kind of Liberalism - Aletheia Baptist Ministries<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A New Kind of Liberalism - Aletheia Baptist Ministries\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Christianity Liberalism \u00a0 \u00a0In 2001 Brian McLaren wrote A New Kind of Christian1in which he made bold statements against orthodox Christian beliefs.\u00a0 He proposed that heaven and hell are really the same place which some will enjoy and some will not;2 salvation belongs to everyone because God loves everyone and, therefore all will eventually be […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Aletheia Baptist Ministries\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AletheiaBaptist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-07-06T00:45:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2014-01-21T02:02:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Book-Reviews-1024x1024.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rick Shrader\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Rick Shrader\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"12 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Rick Shrader\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/person\/588b75c574dc86d40cf5fb13774181b2\"},\"headline\":\"A New Kind of Liberalism\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-07-06T00:45:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2014-01-21T02:02:03+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/\"},\"wordCount\":2421,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"History \/ Story \/ Narrative\",\"Modern Authors \/ Theological Issues\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Articles\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/\",\"name\":\"A New Kind of Liberalism - Aletheia Baptist Ministries\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2011-07-06T00:45:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2014-01-21T02:02:03+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"A New Kind of Liberalism\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/\",\"name\":\"Aletheia Baptist Ministries\",\"description\":\"Rick Shrader's Blog\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Aletheia Baptist Ministries\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/bible-study.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/bible-study.jpg\",\"width\":400,\"height\":277,\"caption\":\"Aletheia Baptist Ministries\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AletheiaBaptist\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/person\/588b75c574dc86d40cf5fb13774181b2\",\"name\":\"Rick Shrader\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7c8bdc017347d423d458094a09c43d05fb368007ffcd14de5437afe5cc616c7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7c8bdc017347d423d458094a09c43d05fb368007ffcd14de5437afe5cc616c7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Rick Shrader\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/author\/rick\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"A New Kind of Liberalism - Aletheia Baptist Ministries","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"A New Kind of Liberalism - Aletheia Baptist Ministries","og_description":"Christianity Liberalism \u00a0 \u00a0In 2001 Brian McLaren wrote A New Kind of Christian1in which he made bold statements against orthodox Christian beliefs.\u00a0 He proposed that heaven and hell are really the same place which some will enjoy and some will not;2 salvation belongs to everyone because God loves everyone and, therefore all will eventually be […]","og_url":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/","og_site_name":"Aletheia Baptist Ministries","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AletheiaBaptist","article_published_time":"2011-07-06T00:45:45+00:00","article_modified_time":"2014-01-21T02:02:03+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":1024,"url":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Book-Reviews-1024x1024.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Rick Shrader","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Rick Shrader","Est. reading time":"12 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/"},"author":{"name":"Rick Shrader","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/person\/588b75c574dc86d40cf5fb13774181b2"},"headline":"A New Kind of Liberalism","datePublished":"2011-07-06T00:45:45+00:00","dateModified":"2014-01-21T02:02:03+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/"},"wordCount":2421,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#organization"},"keywords":["History \/ Story \/ Narrative","Modern Authors \/ Theological Issues"],"articleSection":["Articles"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/","url":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/","name":"A New Kind of Liberalism - Aletheia Baptist Ministries","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2011-07-06T00:45:45+00:00","dateModified":"2014-01-21T02:02:03+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/july-qa-new-kind-of-liberalismq\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"A New Kind of Liberalism"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/","name":"Aletheia Baptist Ministries","description":"Rick Shrader's Blog","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#organization","name":"Aletheia Baptist Ministries","url":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"http:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/bible-study.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/bible-study.jpg","width":400,"height":277,"caption":"Aletheia Baptist Ministries"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AletheiaBaptist"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/person\/588b75c574dc86d40cf5fb13774181b2","name":"Rick Shrader","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7c8bdc017347d423d458094a09c43d05fb368007ffcd14de5437afe5cc616c7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7c8bdc017347d423d458094a09c43d05fb368007ffcd14de5437afe5cc616c7b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Rick Shrader"},"url":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/author\/rick\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1206"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3990,"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1206\/revisions\/3990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aletheiabaptistministries.org\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}