Process Theology: A Basic Introduction [Paperback]

C. Robert Mesle (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 148 pages
• Publisher: Chalice Press (January 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0827229453
• ISBN-13: 978-0827229457
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #89,405 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Primer; Best first-timer text I've seen, May 8, 2004

By 

Heather (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Process Theology: A Basic Introduction (Paperback)

This book is probably the best introduction to process theology out there. The primer is very basic (and affordable!) but covers all the bases in a brief but eloquent way. Unlike some more advanced intro texts, this book has excellent clarity on its points and those who aren't fond of advanced philosophy will be able to follow along.

While there are other good introductory texts (like Cobb and Griffin's "Process Theology: An Introductory Exposition"), those are more advanced in language and explanation and may lose first-time readers on process thought. Unlike those, this primer is much more simple without being dumbed-down.

If you're new to process theology and want a very basic explanation, this is the place to start. At the very least, this book will allow you to decide whether there's something in the theology worth investigating further (and buying more advanced texts) or whether you find it too radical to continue studying.

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars God according to Mesle, July 26, 2005

By 

D. Rigas (Northbrook, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Process Theology: A Basic Introduction (Paperback)

The title of the book should have been Process Theology according to Mesle, since in his own words "it describes the form of process theism that makes the most sense to me." Not being a theologian I cannot judge if this is an accurate description of process theology or not, although it does appear that there do exist conflicting views, one of which is appended at the end of the book.

Technically, the book is a pleasure to read. It uses words and syntax that will not scare away even a high-schooler and breaks the subject matter into little sections and short chapters so that the reader can easily assimilate it. (A very minor annoyance is that occasionally the same idea is repeated a couple of sentences apart, as at the top of p. 63. An editor should have caught these.) As one turns the pages in the first two parts of the book the author's God is slowly defined and described:

* God has always existed and will always exist, and the world has also existed in some form (49).

* God is perfectly loving (15).

* God experiences everything that every human, animal, plant, matter, even electrons experience(2, 50).

* God by himself cannot do anything, but tries to persuade us (and everything else in the world) to do good; he cannot force us to do his bidding (20).

* God knows everything that can be known at a particular time, but he does not know the future since all creation has free will. Thus God's knowledge changes with time (50).

* The universe is the becoming of events that are self-creating, something which requires freedom, so nothing is preordained.

* God's guidance of evolution is limited to prompting radiation particles to move in the direction that might result in more favorable mutations.

In the third part of the book, the author extols the advantages of process theology compared to traditional Judeo-Christianity. Actually he enumerates many of the drawbacks found in classical Judaism and Christianity, such as acceptance of slaves, divine right of rulers, favoritism for the rich and powerful, acceptance of the oppression of the poor and weak, etc. (Some of these, of course, were against Jesus' teachings, but are inherent in the teachings of Paul and of the Fathers.) Even more important, since Mesle's God is not omnipotent he cannot be blamed for the existence of evil in the world, or be required to perform miracles.

The two chapters of the book are intended to differentiate Mesle's Process Theology, which he now calls Process Naturalism, from the ideas of Tillich, Whitehead, Wieman, Hartshorne, and John B. Cobb Jr. Mesle wrote one chapter and Cobb another, but the terminology is not consistent either between these two chapters or with the rest of the book. Unfortunately this part does not share either the clarity or the simplicity of the rest of the book. Perhaps it is not possible to compress all the material in twenty pages and end with a readable account, especially when it is handled by two different authors who do not see eye to eye in what they believe.

I gave Mesle's book five stars because I think that he accomplished well what he had set out to do. The content of his ideas, however, is another matter. Why should one believe his theory?

True, I personally do prefer his non-being god to the anthropomorphic god of Judeo-Christianity (although defining god as love turns god into an emotion, something I find difficult to comprehend and does not fit with the rest of his discussion). That it sounds reasonable is no justification. Many things may be reasonable but not true. Where did his ideas originate? Was he inspired directly by God as prophets maintained in the old days? Were they relayed through prophets as most major religions claim? Did he reach his conclusions after closely examining the universe, as a scientist-type person might have preferred? None of the above. My guess is that he just sat down and wrote about the kind of God that he would be most comfortable with.

(The writer is the author of Christianity without Fairy Tales: When Science and Religion Merge.)

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A primer on process theology without the jargon..., July 17, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Process Theology: A Basic Introduction (Paperback)

For those who want to read what process theology is, but do not want to have a dictionary handy to look up every five words, this book is the one. It provides a basic understanding of process theology and how it relates to various issues without theological/philosophical jargon.