A friend wrote:

It seems to me that Universalism is oppressive - anti-freedom. The Universalist god takes the Atheist's "no" to mean "yes" - or at least "well, OK then, if you insist"...#

My response:

Yesterday I had my weekly special-time with our two-year-old granddaughter. I do the weekly shopping with her, and part of our ritual is for her to eat a couple of beans, a few grapes, (how do I pay for them at the register? Check-out chicks have an interesting time with that :-) a cheese-stick etc.

Yesterday she wanted more beans: how many beans should a two-year-old eat at one sitting? I said 'No' and began talking about numbers. She soon accepted my 'No' and was smiling and chatting again...

Now, naughty me, I over-rode her freedom to eat what she wanted. What kind of grand-father does that make me?

I remember reading C S Lewis' The Problem of Pain about five times (summarized here - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/1174.htm ) when a young theological student, and was mightily impressed with his argument about God allowing humans freedom ('With their will or without it?' etc.)

As he revised a lot of things after his marriage to Joy, and observing his own grief when she died, and his step-fathering experiences, so would I these days...

I'm not a universalist as such (I don't think anyone can be definitive about something where the Scriptures aren't absolutely clear - see the many articles on the subject on our website) - but I wouldn't be surprised at all if God is :-) !

Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher