Abstract

MASANGO, Maake J.  and  WHITE, John D.. Theological reflection, assurance and the doctrine of God. Herv. teol. stud. [online]. 2019, vol.75, n.4, pp.1-7. ISSN 2072-8050.  http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hts.v75i4.5360.

This article focuses on the anxiety about whether God loves one or not. In the author's nearly 30-year ministry, this pastoral difficulty continues to perplex and afflict. While the presenting problem is what in theological parlance is 'a lack of assurance', a side difficulty is the poor and incorrect doctrine of God often associated with this. A Baylor University Study in 2006 characterises the kind of God that different groups of Americans believe in. While the phrase 'a lack of assurance' is a part of dogmatic parlance, and has fallen out of use, the feeling of not belonging to God can be overwhelming for people. This feeling may be overwhelming. This makes it a pastoral issue. This article suggests a pastoral response to this issue and a proposal for a clarification in the nature and character of God using the therapeutic theology of 19th-century Scottish minister-theologian John McLeod Campbell.

Keywords : assurance; God; theological reflection; parrhesia; frame of reference; reframing; election.

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