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The God of hope and the end of the world / John Polkinghorne.
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Polkinghorne, J. C., 1930-2021.
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Eschatology.
- Physical Description:
- xxv, 154 pages ; 22 cm
- Place of Publication:
- New Haven : Yale University Press, 2002.
- Summary:
- Do we live in a world that makes sense, not just now, but totally and forever? If, as scientists now predict, the universe is going to end in collapse or decay, can it really be a divine creation? Is there a credible hope of a destiny beyond death? In this engaging and intellectually scrupulous book, a leading scientist-theologian draws on ideas from science, scripture, and theology to address these important questions. John Polkinghorne carefully builds a structure of the hope of the life to come that involves both continuity and discontinuity with life in this world -- enough continuity so that it is we ourselves who shall live again in that future world and enough discontinuity to ensure that the second story is not just a repetition of the first. Polkinghorne develops his argument in three sections. In the first, he considers the role of contemporary scientific insights and cultural expectations. In the second, he gives a careful account of the various testimonies of hope to be found in the Bible and assesses the credibility of belief in Jesus' resurrection. In the final section, he critically analyzes and defends the Christian hope of the life of the new creation.
- Contents:
- I. Scientific and Cultural Prologue
- Chapter 1. Cosmic Process: Past and Future 3
- Evolving Fruitfulness
- Threat
- Certain Catastrophes
- Questions to Theology
- Chapter 2. Insights from Natural Science 14
- Features of the Present Creation
- Responses within Science
- Chapter 3. Human Intuition and Experience 28
- Hope
- Intuitions of Reality
- Paranormal Experiences
- Chapter 4. Cultural Context 37
- The Legacy of the Past
- Present Consequences
- Cultural Memory
- Limitations
- II. Biblical Resources
- Chapter 5. Old Testament Insights 53
- Life and Death
- God in History
- Apocalyptic
- Further Eschatological Themes
- Chapter 6. The Resurrection of Jesus 66
- The Riddle of Jesus
- Appearances
- The Empty Tomb
- Pauline Reflection
- Contemporary Consonance
- Chapter 7. Further New Testament Insights 80
- The Kingdom of God
- Life after Death
- New Creation
- Hope Revisited
- III. Theological Approaches
- Chapter 8. The God of Hope 93
- Theological Hope
- Forgiveness and Joy
- Realised Eschatology
- The Sacramental Life
- Chapter 9. Personhood and the Soul 103
- The Soul
- Destiny beyond Death
- Chapter 10. The New Creation 113
- Cosmic Hope
- The World to Come
- All Creation
- Chapter 11. The Four Last Things 124
- Death
- Judgement
- Heaven
- Hell
- Chapter 12. The Significance of the End 139
- Comparisons
- Eschatological Verification
- Eschatological Criteria.
- Notes:
- Includes bibliographical references and index.
- ISBN:
- 0300092113
- OCLC:
- 48691395
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