Here’s a video I found on a link from Mike Fox’s blog. Mike believes this video is part of the evidence that President Bush should not be considered an evangelical, and most consider it proof that he is a universalist. I’m not sure about either one of these claims.
Are inclusivists not evangelical? Most arminians I’ve met are inclusive in some way because they believe that people who have never heard of Christ will be judged according to how they responded to the revelation they did have exposure to. Other evangelicals are even more inclusive and for different reasons. So … as far as I can tell, evangelicalism is not exclusively exclusive.
Is George Bush a Universalist? Do people who believe Muslims and Jews are going to heaven automatically fit the definition of universalism? I thought universalism was when you believed that all people of all religions (not just Christians, Muslims, and Jews) are going to heaven, and even all non-religious people. Universalism by definition is the belief that all people will ultimately be saved.
Anyway … here’s the clip.
T h e o • p h i l o g u e 
You’re right in thinking that a Universalist believes all people of all religions will reach heaven. What I couldn’t figure out is that some sources said that a Universalist believes this will happen through Jesus Christ…would this be specifically a “Christian Universalist?” On this basis, I would have to say that Bush, with the information that he provided in this clip, is not a Universalist, but rather a person who believes the Christian, Muslim, and Jewish God is all the same God. As far as knowing what specific title to give a person of this belief, I couldn’t find one (but I didn’t look too far either). Regardless of what this type of person is called, it makes me kind of sad that Bush believes this. Not that you can’t make godly or wise decisions if you don’t have your theology straight, but I would feel better if I knew the President had a strong hold of what it means to be a follower of Christ and a believer in God’s Word, the Bible. As for Obama, I suppose we need to pray that the Lord would lead him to the right decisions for our country, despite however right or wrong his theology is (neither of which I feel comfortable enough to comment on yet).
Wow … thanks for all your research. It really all depends on what he means when he says that they all worship the same God. Taken at face value, I would consider him an inclusivist.
Une fois de plus un superbe article, j’en parlerai demain avec mes
potes