{"id":6703,"date":"2025-04-17T07:10:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T11:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/livingaholyadventure\/?p=6703"},"modified":"2025-04-17T19:25:04","modified_gmt":"2025-04-17T23:25:04","slug":"good-friday-without-divine-violence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/livingaholyadventure\/2025\/04\/good-friday-without-divine-violence\/","title":{"rendered":"Good Friday Without Divine Violence"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Beyond Divine Violence<\/h3>\n

What do you do with Good Friday and the Cross when you\u2019ve abandoned the doctrines of substitutionary atonement and the divine necessity of Jesus\u2019 death? \u00a0When you affirm that Jesus died because of sinful humankind, not to satisfy the wrath of God toward humanity?<\/p>\n

Like many progressive Christians, I grew up hearing the mantras \u201cJesus died for our sins,\u201d \u201cJesus died so that we might have eternal life and escape God\u2019s wrath,\u201d \u201cJesus paid the price for our salvation,\u201d and \u201cour sin deserves death and Jesus stood in our place.\u201d Recently, I saw a billboard with the stable and manger and three crosses in the background, with the description \u201cborn to die.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although I no longer believe in substitutionary atonement, I must confess that I still sing the songs of my childhood faith with their emphasis on transactional and vicarious atonement, \u201cThe Old Rugged Cross\u201d and \u201cHow Great Thou Art.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 I no longer believe the words of \u00a0Stuart Hine\u2019s the popular translation of \u201cHow Great Thou Art\u201d \u2013<\/p>\n

And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing;
\nSent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
\nThat on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing,
\nHe bled and died to take away my sin<\/p>\n

Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee,<\/p>\n

How great thou art<\/p>\n

How great thou art. \u2013<\/p>\n

Still, the hymn is still dear to my heart and represents the simple faith of my small-town Baptist childhood.<\/p>\n

Rethinking \u201corthodoxy\u201d<\/h3>\n

Without reflecting on the meaning of their favorite hymns or the impact of Jesus\u2019 death in the drama of salvation, many 21st century Christians, who regularly use AI, ponder photos from the Hubble telescope, marvel at images of black holes, go to Sikh and Hindu doctors, and believe that humankind emerged from a multi-billion year process of evolution, assume the following statements reflect the essence of Christianity:<\/p>\n