A LIBRARIAN’S ORIENTATION
What this book explores
Thomas Jay Oord argues that God does not prevent tragedy, abuse, and natural evil because God's loving nature is inherently uncontrolling, not because suffering is secretly required or divinely permitted for a greater purpose. Through stories, Scripture, and open-and-relational theology, he proposes that God always works persuasively with creatures and creation but cannot unilaterally determine outcomes.
EDITORIAL NOTE
Why it’s in the Library
It addresses the problem of suffering by changing the premise of divine power rather than defending a hidden providential plan. For travelers harmed by claims that God ‘allowed’ abuse, illness, or catastrophe, this can be a morally serious alternative that preserves God and love without making victims instruments of a larger design. Its value lies in making one consequential theological option clear enough to examine.
Good starting place if…
You want to retain belief in a loving God but can no longer accept that an omnipotent deity voluntarily permits preventable suffering for unknown reasons.
Know before you begin…
Oord's claim that God cannot control is a contested revision of classical omnipotence, not a broadly shared Christian conclusion. Some readers will find it liberating; others will experience it as too small a God or as weakening hope for decisive intervention. Theological explanation does not replace grief care, trauma treatment, safety planning, or the right to leave God-language unresolved.