Class dates: Fridays, September 18, 25, October 2, 9, 16 (5 weeks)

Class time: 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm

Location: Assumption, Kennedy 119

The most prominent creeds and theologians of the Christian Church have advocated belief in an eternal hell whereby its inhabitants are doomed to a place of torment forever separated from God and salvation. But is this really the message of the Bible? David Bentley Hart makes a compelling case that the Christian theological tradition has misled readers on the crucial matter of universal salvation.

This class will explore the topic of universalism in the context of its related subjects of the idea of an eternal hell, the nature of God, the concept of divine judgment, the idea of the divine image in each person, and the nature of freedom.

Suggested reading:

That All Shall Be Saved: Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation by David Bentley Hart, Yale University Press, ISBN 978-0-300-25848-6

Instructor: Dr. Reverend Gary Shahinian is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ, having served various Congregational churches for 32 years. He earned a Ph.D. degree in Philosophy from the Free University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. He wrote his doctoral dissertation on the problem of evil in the thought of Alfred North Whitehead, the father of Process Philosophy. He also holds Master’s degrees from the Institute for Christian Studies in Toronto, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, and Calvin Theological Seminary. He taught philosophy and theology courses at Redeemer College in Ontario, Dordt College in Iowa, and Worcester State University.