William Hamilton, 87, an ‘atheistic Christian’ in ‘Death of God’ movement

[rug]

By JEFF BARNARD Associated Press February 29, 2012 8:44PM

Theologian William Hamilton, a member of the Death of God movement of the 1960s that reached its peak with a Time Magazine cover story, has died in Portland, Ore. He was 87.

Hamilton died Tuesday from complications from congestive heart failure at the downtown apartment he shared with his wife, his family said.

Hamilton told The Oregonian newspaper in 2007 that he had questioned the existence of God since he was a teenager, when two friends — an Episcopalian and a Catholic — died from the explosion of a pipe bomb they were building, while a third — an atheist — escaped without a scratch.

It caused him to question why the innocent suffer, and whether God intervened in people’s lives, he said.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/obituaries/10969319-418/william-hamilton-87-an-atheistic-christian-in-death-of-god-movement.html

[JDPriestly]

1. What????

when two friends — an Episcopalian and a Catholic — died from the explosion of a pipe bomb they were building

Why were Christians building a pipe bomb?

Seems like a contradiction in terms.

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. Seems like a "here, hold my beer and watch this" moment

It may well have been during WW2 Some stupid 'home defence' attempt that went horribly wrong?

One of the few memorable events of his childhood had unpleasant religious implications. Three of his school friends were using the ingredients of a chemistry set to build a bomb in the basement of one of their homes. The bomb exploded prematurely, killing two, sparing one.

"The kids that were killed were a very devout Episcopalian and a very devout Catholic. The kid that was untouched was the son of one of the most flamboyant atheist professors at Northwestern. I remember being interested in that.

"Of course, that has a pious conclusion, too. You could say that God wanted those two guys, he didn't want this other kid. And that's what piety said at the services."

http://tmcdermott.com/RELIGION.aspx

People sometimes like to make things explode - it wouldn't have to have a target.

[Brettongarcia]

3. Origin of the "Death of God" phrase - in Emerson, then Nietzsche

Nietzsche is commonly credited with the phrase, "God is dead." But surprisingly?

The popular anthology of Emerson, notes that Nietzsche, surprisingly, in turn read and admired Emerson, his contemporary. And furthermore? Before Nietzsche, Emerson had generated the phrase, people speak "as if God was dead" (in Divinity School Address? Paraphrased).

What were Emerson and Nietzsche talking about? In part, it referred to the development of scholarly theology, especially in 19th century Germany, was increasingly speaking of God, Christianity, from a nontraditional perspective. In an objective, scientific way; and in historical context.

To this day, most people are unaware of this landmark development. Though when they hear of it at last, many are still shocked at that objectivity.

More immediately, Emerson used the phrase, to deplore the fact that even religion, Christiantiy itself, spoke as if revelation from God, only happened in ancient, historical times. Whereas he suggested that a kind of revelation existed in our own time as well.


www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/emerson/.../dsa.html

Emerson: " .... Men have come to speak of the revelation as somewhat long ago given and done, as if God were dead."

People spoke as if revelation ended long ago. Emerson wanted to suggest that new insights from God, can come to our own time too: the "sun shines in our day also." Which opens up religion to the possiblity of new, modern thinking and insights.

[Jim__]

4. Žižek has written about Christianity and the death of God.

I'm not sure how his ideas relate to Hamilton's theology; but, a very short excerpt from The Monstrosity of Christ gives some idea of his thoughts:

... The lesson of Christian Incarnation (God becomes man) is that to speak of divine Persons outside of Incarnation is meaningless, at best a remainder of pagan polytheism. Of course, the Bible says "God sent and sacrificed his only Son" - but the way to read this is: the Son was not present in God prior to Incarnation, sitting up there at his side. Incarnation is the birth of Christ, and after his death, there is neither Father nor Son but "only" the Holy Spirit, the spiritual substance of the religious community. Only in this sense is the Holy Spirit the synthesis of Father and Son, of Substance and Subject: Christ stands for the gap of negativity, for subjective singularity, and in the Holy Spirit the substance is "reborn" as the virtual community of singular subjects, persisting only in and through their activity.

[Warren Stupidity]

5. It is an interesting idea.

But I view it as more of an explanation of the cultural fact that belief has became cartoonish, two dimensional, a charade, while it seems to us that somehow in the distant past that was not so. Where does that leave believers? Those who honestly think about need to come up with something, or else lose their belief.