Hugh McKay says God is Love (but not much else)

On The Religion Report on ABC Radio National this morning, Jon Cleary interviewed Hugh McKay, the Australian social commentator and author. After years of documenting the religious and other attitudes of Australians, Mackay has publicly spoken of his own views. It is quite revealing. He has rejected the biblically conservative beliefs of his youth and now holds to something approximating the Process Thelogy of Charles Birch. His aim is to build bridges between Theism and Atheism by coming up with a universal belief that everyone can espouse together. His solution? "God is Love." But from the way he speaks, he really means something more like "Love is god." God is no longer transcendent in any sense, but only immanent. God is "the spirit of love" working in us. Strangely, he is still drawn to the concept of attending church as a "sacred place" and attends occasionally "mostly for the music." But he no longer holds to the creeds and doctrines of Christianity, which he sees as unnecessary dogma that cause all kinds of evil.

Though some of his criticisms of "established religion" and "fundamentalism" are accurate, I think he is sadly mistaken in his views of the nature and character of God. He would think me "arrogant" for thinking that, but that's his problem, not mine.