"Theodicy came to dwell in my 14-year-old head that Sunday." It was 1938.

The questions haunted William Hamilton at his friends' funeral, at school, in the Navy, at seminary and in his years as a theology professor at Colgate Rochester Divinity School. By 1966 he had an answer, and it landed him not only in Time and Playboy magazines, but also in the middle of a hornet's nest:

God was dead.

That was the only explanation. The Vietnam War divided Americans. Race riots, civil rights marches, assassinations, the sexual revolution and women's liberation divided society. Atheism gathered steam as Madalyn Murray O'Hair won her lawsuit, and the Supreme Court banned organized prayer in public schools.

In 2007, a new atheism surged. Best-sellers bashed religion, Christianity in particular. Published excerpts from Mother Teresa's private journal confessed her doubts. "The Golden Compass," drawn from a trilogy of novels in which a key character wants to kill God, became a hit movie.

For Hamilton, 83, who lives in downtown Portland with his wife, it's too late. God's already gone. Hamilton's own health is fragile. His hands shake. He unfolds his lanky body slowly as he rises to greet a guest. It is hard to imagine that this gentle man in a Chicago Cubs sweat shirt shook the world of theology.

Hamilton grew up a "bland, very liberal" Baptist, in a middle-class suburb of Chicago. "As soon as I was able," he says, "I left it."

Read it all.

Filed under: * Religion News & Commentary • Other Faiths

1. Jeffersonian wrote: In case anyone’s missed it, Pullman’s movie is tanking in the US and will likely not recover its $180 million production budget worldwide, let alone its promotional costs.  Similarly, Dawkins’ book was pilloried by many who were not only predisposed to accept his arguments, but who were longtime fans of his.  And let’s not forget that Mother Theresa’s doubts evaporated and she recovered her faith. January 1, 4:51 pm | [comment link]

2. Words Matter wrote: Actually, Mother Theresa never lost her faith: she lost the sensible presence of God for the decades she served Him faithfully. That sensibility is not faith. Yes, she did experience doubts, but she acted in faith, which is a thing greater than our inner experiences. January 1, 6:07 pm | [comment link]

3. Wilfred wrote: Hamilton grew up a “bland, very liberal” Baptist ... “As soon as I was able…I left it.” Well, no wonder.  Was it John Henry Newman who came to the conclusion that Protestantism over time inexorably leads to Liberalism, and that Liberalism leads to atheism? January 1, 6:18 pm | [comment link]

4. Sick & Tired of Nuance wrote: The “God is Dead” thing has been tried before.  The Almighty does not usually respond to the “triple-dog-dare” uttered in stupidity in the time frame of the challenger.  Ultimately though, He does respond.  BTW…Nietzsche really is dead, and God…well I just spoke with Him and He is very much alive.  Like the song says:  “You ask me how I know He lives?  He lives within my heart.”  I admit that it is not very scientific, but then, neither is trying to use science to “prove” that God is dead. January 1, 7:37 pm | [comment link]

5. Irenaeus wrote: Pretentious idiocy sometimes gussies itself up as “theodicy.” January 1, 8:50 pm | [comment link]

6. Irenaeus wrote: Brimstoners might recognize THEODICY as an anagram of HOT DICEY. January 1, 8:52 pm | [comment link]

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