God, the Almighty

The doctrine of God is receiving renewed and vigorous attention in theology. Even a cursory examination of recent scholarship reveals what leading evangelical theologian Donald Bloesch describes as "a mounting controversy over the concept of God." God is variously portrayed as vulnerable (Jurgen Moltmann, Clark Pinnock), as lover (Norman Pittenger, Ronald Goetz), as friend (Alfred North Whitehead, Sallie McFague) and as empowerer (Rosemary Radford Ruether). Bloesch agrees that many of these proposals have some biblical merit. But what is lacking, he argues, "is a strong affirmation of the…