Mark Galli Responds to “Hellbound?”

The following is a response to Mark Galli’s review of “Hellbound?” at Christianity Today entitled Movie Purgatory (9/20/12).

Mark Galli utilizes the fact that “Hellbound?” asks more questions than it answers in order to dismiss its value. Galli opens with:

‘Hellbound?,’ seemingly bound to fail from the beginning, never takes a stand on the issue.

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He continues to lament throughout the post what he considered “the complete lack of professional theologians.” I could understand this complaint if indeed “Hellbound?” were the only source covering this issue. But it isn’t. There are a number of works done by theologians that would satisfy Galli’s requirement to hear from the ‘professionals.’ Why has he not, for example, mentioned Thomas Talbott (The Inescapable Love of God) or Robin Parry (The Evangelical Universalist)? (Robin Parry was featured in the movie and did a superb job, btw)

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If I could I would ask Mr. Galli: why did you not disclose the fact that there are sources that satisfy the theological, exegetical and historical criteria you consider necessary to engage in this conversation over the nature of hell? Why did you not simply say that “Hellbound?” serves as an important catalyst for research through its questions but that you are aware of other works that fill in the gaps and attempt to answer more adequately the questions “Hellbound?” raises?

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I am disappointed with the way Galli quashes the questions regarding the nature of hell based on this movie when he knows there exist other resources that legitimize those same questions.

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For instance, regarding a book defending Ultimate Restoration, soon to be published by George W. Sarris, Mark Galli responded with the following after reading the manuscript:

“This is certainly one of the better arguments I have heard for universal restoration. You are thorough and fair with all the appropriate texts and theological concerns. . . . I have read a fair amount on the topic, so I know the issues involved. I wish Rob Bell had taken the trouble to lay out his arguments in such a clear and responsible exegetical fashion. We might be able to have an intelligent conversation about the topic in our movement!”

— Mark Galli

The above quote by Mark Galli can be found on George Sarris’ website where you can find info and updates on his upcoming book. (There is also a positive response by Eric Metaxas as well in favor of the book.)

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Next he highlights the brief appearances by the Westboro Baptist Church members:

You know a documentary about Christian faith is in trouble when it begins with film clips of and interviews with people from Westboro Baptist, the infamous hate-filled fundamentalist church in Topeka, Kansas.

Since Galli is a Calvinist he is fundamentally in alignment with the theology of WBC which is: God has chosen an elect few on whom He will apply His love while leaving billions to remain under His wrath (interpreted as hatred) for all eternity. The only difference is that Westboro is theologically consistent while Galli is not. As Keller, Driscoll, Chandler, Carson and Piper are also adept at doing, Galli borrows from the Arminian theological paradigm to buffer his Calvinism. He speaks like both a Calvinist and an Arminian. (For more on this see the following article: Mark Galli’s God…Wins)

But when the two theological camps of Arminianism and Calvinism are synthesized they clearly portray a victorious and inclusive Gospel: the God who desires and wills that all be saved and died for all is the SAME GOD who is sovereignly able to apply His irresistible grace and love to make it happen.

In closing here is the irony in his argument against what he claims is the lack of theological voices within “Hellbound?”: Mark Galli, along with the theological heavyweights of The Gospel Coalition, are together constructing and supporting–by their own theology– a perfect foundation for the doctrine of ultimate restoration of all creation. In other words Mark Galli, by his own theological confessions, is inadvertently deconstructing his own theological paradigm of eternal conscious torment and supporting the ultimate redemption of all!

Here are just a couple of examples of Galli’s spiritual intuition speaking words of restoration and hope where his traditional theological paradigm has forbidden him:

“To be holy means to be set apart for divine purposes. God wants nothing less than all creation, which is now subject to decay, futility, and corruption, to become sanctified, alive, and completely dedicated to His purposes.” (Jesus Mean and Wild, pg 44)

“The one who loves us is the Holy One who wishes to make all unclean things holy. That means the One whom we cannot stay away from is the same One who is out to destroy those very habits, sins, notions, addictions, and self-justifications that we think we can’t live without. And there are times we think Jesus is out to destroy us.

It is a wonderful and fearful thing to fall into the hands of the real Jesus.” (Jesus Mean and Wild, pg 46)

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