Jewish Universalist Perspective

In the Hebrew Bible are many prophetic messages that paint a beautiful picture of an idylic restored earth. The people are being brought back to health, peace, even being called out the death state itself. Such is the visions contained in Isaiah 2, 26, 35, 42 and 49.

Note that these prophecies are fully in line with the more ancient covenant of Abraham "you you I will bless all the families of the earth". Christian commentators often assign the entire weight of this prophetic covenant to a Christian fullfilment from Galatians 3. That of course tends to subtract from the original focus of the statements made by God to Abraham. To maintain a Christian application of the Abrahamic covenant to Christians is to make Paul the author of replacement theology.

I propose that the Abrahamic covenant continues in it's primary meaning as applicable to the physical people that it was given to, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Of course that means Israel, of ancient times and modern. That continuity of course is encompassed by the "seed", the descendants that continue in the fashion of life and belief that Abraham had. As even Paul said "they have not stumbled so as to fall" Romans 11. Whatever estrangements from G-d may be seen concerning Israel's history and experiences the final result will be restoration to him.

While Israel has had strains and separations from G_d, the overall span of events as given by the hand of Moses in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28-32 indicate in the final analysis a restored Israel is the goal. That coincides in time with what both Jews and Christians refer to as the kingdom of G_d. Just as the gentiles as a whole still do not look to G_d, but eventually will, so the Jewish people are destined to fully return to their G_d in the future kingdom of G_d. The Jews won't follow the path that Christians have taken to that time, but are blessed under the original provisions of the ancient covenants. They will in turn become blessors to the nations as was also in the original conception of G-d. The word of the Lord will go forth from Jerusalem and Zion that is the Jewish people in Jerusalem and the Davidic kingdom in Israel.

Adventist Future Probation

In the late 1860's a number of adventist believers adopted the dual beliefs of future probation and an earthly kingdom of God. The biggest American influence on the group appears to have been George Storrs, one of the leaders of the Millerite movement that splintered after 1844. George Storrs himself was heavily influenced by Henry Dunn of England. Henry Dunn's The Destiny of the Human Race, 2v, 1863 was a landmark publication concerning the two beliefs of probation and earthly kingdom. Jacob Blain published Hope for Our Race in 1871, it was in part an apology for his earlier straight conditionalist writings that had a rather narrow provision of salvation.

Other individuals involved formed the nucleus of future probation believers within the Advent Christian church, but soon left and formed their own publication centers and churches. They include George Stetson, Charles T Russell, John H Paton and Nelson Barbour. Several pro future probation articles were published in the World's Crisis in the late 1860's, but these views went largely unaccepted by the Advent Christian church. George Storr's publication the Bible Examiner was a major outlet for these views starting in 1871. Storrs also published A Vindication of God's Government in 1874. Storrs magazine contained numerous advertisements for the writings of Henry Dunn, he appeared to have an American distributor. The other known American distributor of Dunn's writings was Charles F Hudson, one of the most notable of conditionalist writers of the 1850's-60's. Hudson wasn't an adventist as such, but his writings were central in the list of conditionalist writings that adventists circulated and republished.

In 1877 NH Barbour published The Three Worlds book in collaboration with Russell. Russell also published a separate essay titled The Object and Manner of Our Lord's Return in 1877. These were later followed by a more extensive book by John H Paton titled The Day Dawn in 1880. Each of these men ended up publishing independently during the 1880's, Barbour continuing his paper The Herald of the Morning in Rochester NY, Russell began Zion's Watchtower in Allegheny PA and Paton with his The World's Hope from Almont, MI. The most enduring of the group was Russell's later series titled Millennial Dawn in 6 volumes. A fourth person of note was AP Adams who began a paper called The Spirit of the Word in the mid 1880's. Adams and Paton continued in a style of presentation that appeared strongly adventist and restorationist with a universalist bent, whereas Russell and Barbour held to the a more limited universal restitution but some ultimately being lost. Their rejection of orthodox eternal torment, immortal soulism and limited atonement was uniform and very strongly stated. This of course produced numerous counter attacks from the mainstream side.

All of these were reflective of the higher level theological debates being advocated by some main stream church leaders and writers of the time. A few of those were E.Plumptre, C.A.Row, E.White, I.Dorner, H.Cremer, F.W.Farrar and F.Maurice.

LeRoy Froom in his Movement of Destiny book alludes to a couple among the seventh day adventist church who also leaned in this direction, but those appear to have been the exception to the generally closed and narrow view of salvation common among orthodox denominations.

The general contribution of these adventist elements is generally neglected in histories of the doctrine of future probation. One exception is That obnoxious dogma: Future probation and the struggle to construct an American Congregationalist identity (Massachusetts) Sharon Ann Taylor, Boston College, link at http://escholarship.bc.edu/dissertations/AAI3142885/ in PDF format but it's not free.

Who will be the kingdom of God?

Alot of different people and groups are prophetically stated will be living in the time of the kingdom of God on earth. People are brought back, they are described as living again, they will be learn more about God, there will be an educational time as part of the millennial jugdement process.


Specific people that Jesus said will be present to witness and be part of the judgment time and future kingdom:
Pharisees
Sodom, Ezekiel 16 also mentions them
Nineveh
Queen of the south
Mary mentions Lazarus rising at the last day

More general
Peter the apostle, a time of restitution, Acts 3
Paul the apostle, a resurrection of the just and unjust. Acts 24:15
Ancients will rise, Hebrews 11
Israel , those written in the book, Daniel 12
Christians - to be with Messiah, as judges of the 12 tribes, Matthew 19:28
The nations - Isaiah 2 and 35
Abrahamic promise, Genesis 12,17, 22 there will be a seed (the core group) and those who will be blessed by them (those who do not know God, the nations)

Henry Buckle

The After Life, a reasonable hope in the probation life to come, 1907 pub. is an interesting book that I located in recent years. There are 2 editions, either of which has copious references concerning the options of salvation in the afterlife. What's interesting is that this book and Percy Dreamer's later book The Legend of Hell treat the subject as one that is almost settled and uncontroversial. I wish they were right, but there is still quite a strong current of opposition to the wider hope of future probation, post mortem salvation and other more optimistic Christian hopes.

John G Wilson "Atheism and Theism"

Another writer from the late 1800's represented a unique take on future probation. His name is John G Wilson, he lived in Philadelphia and published several books and a Christian journal on prophecy "The Last Times". One of his books is titled "Atheism and Theism" published in 1883. In that he presents a Biblical eschatology that addresses the concerns of atheists who were challenging Christianity based on the unfairness of the mainstream evangelicals exclusivist teachings on future punishment. Many objected to the Christian message that left the overwhelming majority consigned to eternal torment.

On page 110 he says:
" Now, though all who die in Adam shall be made alive in CHRIST, yet every one in his own order,_ in the order appropriate to his own conduct and relation to CHRIST. The order in the resurrection to life has respect to time and condition. The first resurrection is that of the just, of believers in JESUS CHRIST, who shall be made kings and priests unto GOD, and shall reign with CHRIST. Their reward is the glory and blessedness of the kingdom of GOD. They shall be the glorified rulers of the world to come, and all nations and people and languages shall serve them. They shall be on with CHRIST in his glory.
But the unrighteous dead shall not be raised until after the thousand years of millennial rule over the nations shall have ended, and the little season of their trial shall have passed. Then death and hell shall deliver up the dead that are in them, and every one shall be punished for his sins and eventually subjected, and reconciled in that condition of subjection to the righteous government of GOD.."


141 "But no more pain does not prove the dogma of Universalism "that there is to be but one final destiny for all the human family," or that "immortal, incorruptible or endless life of holiness and enjoyment, as the free and unpurchased gift of GOD, will be conferred on all mankind in the resurrection." This would be to destroyball distinction between the righteous and the wicked, and totally subverts the kingdom of heaven by reducing it to a conglomeration of happy immortals. It denies that GOD will reward the righteous and punish the wicked hereafter. It denies that the saints or believers only will be made partakers of a first resurrection, immortal and incorruptible, and glorified with CHRIST as kings and priests unto GOD, and that all nations and people and kindreds shall serve and obey them. It says in effect that GOD is the SAVIOUR of all men, and that there will be no special salvation for believers..."

So, Mr. Wilson's view is rather unique. He believes in two separate destinies that encompass all people, all eventually saved, but to different final levels of nature. He denies the permanent loss of any individual but also denies the label of universalism. He notes that classic universalism erases the difference between saved Christians of this age and everyone else that God will save in future ages. I think is point is an excellent counterpoint to those of the universalist camp. Universalists took exception to even the loss of a few in the schemes of restitutionists like CT Russell of Millennial Dawn fame. Wilson correctly highlights an important critique of universalism by looking at the clearly Biblical statements concerning the final positions, roles and natures that follow from each human beings life history and future salvation.

Mr. Wilson's writings appear to have gotten substantial press in his day, numerous Presybeterian, Methodist and independent Christian journals took note of his publications. In his Vindication of Discources on Prophecy he defends himself against from several critics. One of those critics appears to have been an early mentor of Wilson by the name of David N Lord. As far as I know there are no present day adherents to Wilson's teachings. He appears to have been a courageous, thoughtful and independent preacher.

What are missions accomplishing?

I recently picked up a copy of Edward White's book, The Theory of Missions A Scriptural Inquiry into the Destiny of the Heathen. pub date 1855. Mr. White rightly brings up the question concerning future punishment and the love of God. He asserts that the theory of missions is often flawed since the motivation is based on a concern that all of the unconverted peoples will go to a burning hell. He claims that a gospel based on a positive assesment of God's character is a more effective basis on which to preach about Christ to those who know nothing about Christianity.

Even though Mr White is heading on the right track, he falls short of answering his own question. To be fair to Mr. White he did at a later date admit the possibility of future probation for those who never hear the gospel. See the publications by Nisbett in c. 1887-8 titled "Future Probation A Clerical Symposium" and "Immortality a Clerical Symposium". He removed the negative attribution about eternal hell but does not clearly say why his approach is that much better. I say that since his doctrine still did not solve the problem of how many are lost. There has been a manifest failure of Christian missions over the centuries since Christ. During most of the past 2000 years the majority of people have never even heard of Christ, much less had a good witness concerning him and the gospel. So they can only fail to respond to Christianity positively and are therefore lost anyway. And let's face it, even death that results in dissolution and non-existence is still a terrible fate. Those evangelicals who pretend that annihilation is the easy way out compared to eternal torment are simply suffering from an exaggerated need for extreme wrath and senseless torture and violence throughout all time.

Even the conditionalist position that Mr White advocated was considered soft of sin due to what I just mentioned above. In response I would only mention that the motivation to religion and the Christian message can be just as negative and motivating in either sphere of belief. A case in point is the Jehovah's Witnesses, who adhere to a strongly conditionalist position, but are able to emphasize the fear of "simple" death as extinction of being and terrorize people with the fear of second death. The rate of mental illness and side effects of this fear is legendary. The Watchtower organization isn't any worse than the churches who advocate eternal torment, they are simply more effective in getting the message across. I'd suggest that those who believe in eternal torment for all unbelievers aren't being very responsible to their fellow humans, since few even try to reach out to the unconverted "heathen".

My last point is, all of the missions spawned over the past 200 years have garnered some converts, but overall Christianity is losing the numbers race to Islam and other non Jewish and non Christian religions. I therefore conclude that the present age is not the time for converting the nations (or for pronouncing eternal damnation either). That's going to happen in the time of the kingdom of God and the resurection of the just and the unjust.

First or Second Death?

Most Christians agree that the idea of second death expresses a final status concerning salvation. For the universalist believer it means a purification process leading to eventual salvation. However, most consider it to be a point of finality, when certain individuals will be irretrievably lost and condemned by Divine justice to some fate of destruction or eternal punishment.

I'd like to highlight one small aspect of this topic here. That concerns when people are subject to the condemnation of second death. Most Christian theologies still hold to a position that people will be judged for eternal life based on what they do or in the present life. In the case of the majority of people living this results in an unfavorable outcome since most do not accept Christ. That means as well that their postmortem status leading to the second death is essentially completed in this life.

I would like to propose that this is inherently unfair and actually places excessive weight on present life decisions. Firstly, all people living throughout history have already been subjected to the weaknesses of human nature which results in death. This is sometimes referred to as Adamic death, the essential point being that everyone is trapped in circumstances and a physical makeup that is incapable of living sinlessly and perfectly. We all die at the end of some number of years. That is the first death and it exactly corresponds to our life time of imperfection.

If a second death is considered a possibility at some point after death, then it must be for something additional, something beyond this life. To say that it is a reaffirmation of the 1st death in the final day of judgment seems redundant. It also appears to me that this also misses a crucial point. This is each judgment should be based on some period of trial, which itself should be capable of 2 outcomes, good or bad.

There are 2 possibilities for the period of trial. Many who have held to the future probation concept concentrate their attention on what is called the intermediate state. They consider that people will continue in a conscious state following the death of the body. Somewhere between death and the final judgment they suggest that God and Christ will reach out to each and present them the gospel for their acceptance and salvation.

The other possibility which I prefer is the the period of the resurrection is the time that God will present the all people with the truth, then they will have the opportunity the learn, to revive their minds and hearts and to reach everlasting life. It's the reason for the resurrection of the unrighteous that Jesus tells us about in John 5:28-29 and Paul also does in Acts 24:15. People will be brought back in a resurrection of judgment, that judgment containing an educational and reforming period. Then the decision will be made concerning life or death. If death is the outcome, that will be the second death. It is a failure that follows from the 2nd life, the resurrection time.