Episode 196 - The Death of Omnipotence and Birth of Amipotence with Rev. Dr. Thomas Jay Oord

Get ready for a fun one! In this 196th episode of the Brew Theology Podcast, Ryan and Janel chat with Dr. Thomas J. Oord on reasons we should stop saying "God is omnipotent." Oord suggests a new word, "Amipotence,"which combines two Latin words ami and potens. The first means “love,” and we find it in words like “amicable,” “amity,” and “amigo.” The second is the Latin word for power or influence, and we find it in “potential” and “potency.” Amipotence is pronounced, “am” (as in “Amsterdam”), with a short “i” (as in “it”), and “po-tence” (similar to “moments”). Oord coined this word to stress the priority of love over power in God. Divine love (ami) comes logically and conceptually prior to divine power (potens). Oord believes that we best understand God in general and divine power in particular if we give love pride of place. Love comes first.

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Thomas Jay Oord is a theologian, philosopher, and scholar of multi-disciplinary studies. He is an award-winning author, and he has written or edited more than thirty books. Oord directs a doctoral program at Northwind Theological Seminary and the Center for Open and Relational Theology. He won the Outstanding Faculty Award twelve times as a full-time professor and now speaks at institutions across the globe. Oord is known for his contributions to research on love, open and relational theology, science and religion, and freedom and relationships for transformation.

Oord was raised on a farm in the small community of Othello, Washington. He attended Northwest Nazarene College and graduated in 1988. After four years in pastoral ministry in Walla Walla, Washington, he attended Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri. Upon graduating with a Masters of Divinity, he attended Claremont Graduate University in Southern California. He earned a Masters of Arts in Religion and a Ph.D. at Claremont. While pursuing graduate studies, he was a part-time associate pastor in Bloomington, Ca.

 

Oord taught philosophy at Eastern Nazarene College for three years. In 2002, he returned to the Northwest to teach at his undergraduate alma mater. He taught at Northwest Nazarene University for sixteen years and served as Senior Research Fellow for the university’s Wesley Center. He is a leading theologian in the Wesleyan, Holiness, and Church of the Nazarene traditions.

Thomas Jay Oord is an ordained elder and speaks often at churches, conferences, and other settings. He serves in various consulting and administrative roles for academic institutions, scholarly projects, and research teams. Oord and his wife, Cheryl, have three daughters, a son-in-law, and two grandchildren.

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