A fellow Canadian and a great but controversial scholar has suddenly ended his earthly course. A sudden heart attack this past Sunday ended the life of Clark Pinnock, 73 (who suffered also from Alzheimer’s disease) who was an annhilationist (which I was until a few years ago, approximately 2004) and a wider hope Christian like myself (meaning the majority of the human race will be saved as opposed to the Augustinian-Calvinistic view where only a minority saved) but who had the most controversial view on Open Theism in which where God chooses NOT to know everything. Open Theism was one of his doctrines that I could not and still cannot personally grapple with—esepecially coming from an Armstrongist background which sort of taught their own kind of open theism but this is not the time to dwell on that but celebrate a man’s life who was a fundamentalist at some point in his life but began to see “gray” areas and say, “Yes! Gray is beautiful!” From The Associate Baptist Press, it states: ” At a 1987 conference on biblical inerrancy, Pinnock said that moderate Baptist scholars were never far removed from the biblical theology of rank-and-file church members. He said Southern Baptists’ approach to the Bible was really not inerrancy but rather a “simple Biblicism,” and that the “inerrancy controversy” was invented as a political weapon.Of course, that view did not come with a price from his detractors. Almost got kicked out of The Evangelical Theological Society, a good number of academics voted him to stay on as a member (talk about saving hyde). Kudos to a man who was not afraid to change and see and think things outside the box. He states, “So I do not apologize for admitting to being on a pilgrimage in theology, as if it were in itself some kind of weakness of intelligence or character. Feeling our way toward the truth is the nature of theological work even with the help of Scripture, tradition and community …. A pilgrimage, therefore, far from being unusual or slightly dishonorable, is what we would expect theologians who are properly aware of their limitations to experience.” Amen to that! All is I can say that it looks like heaven’s getting crowded (and that’s a good thing). I hope at least 40 to 50 years from now when my earthly course is finished, I can finally meet and greet and be in ETERNAL fellowship this scholar on the other side with many of the other saints! Rest in peace, Mr.Pinnock for the great day to be REVISED and UPDATED by the AUTHOR!
Here’s a PDF link on some of his views on annhilationism for those interested.
Life After The WCG: A Spirital Pilgrimage of an Independent Believer 