Postmortem Opportunity - by James Beilby (Paperback)

About the Book

Examining the biblical evidence and assessing the theological implications, James Beilby offers a careful consideration of the possibility for salvation after death.

Book Synopsis

What happens to those who did not hear the gospel before death, or who heard an incorrect version? What about those who were too young or who were otherwise unable to respond? Examining the biblical evidence and assessing the theological implications, James Beilby offers a careful consideration of the possibility for salvation after death.

Review Quotes

"Beilby does an admirable job of working through every dimension of how we should understand the fate of those who have died without hearing the saving message of Christ. This is not just a complex and interesting theological question. The answers have emotional and existential importance to those deeply concerned about the eternal status of loved ones. Beilby skillfully draws on exegetical, philosophical, and theological resources to offer his view of Postmortem Opportunity for salvation, both for the unevangelized and the pseudoevangelized. Throughout, the book offers creative alternatives while avoiding speculative conclusions, all the time insisting on the centrality of salvation in Christ."

"Beilby's defense of the controversial idea of postmortem conversion is biblically engaged, theologically robust, and philosophically sophisticated. It is hard to imagine a better or more thorough treatment of this complex set of issues. Indeed, this book is a model of how philosophical theology ought to be done."

"Beilby's scriptural and theological arguments are cogent, careful, and convincing. He does not claim too much for any of the passages but simply shows how those texts that might seem to close the door to Postmortem Opportunity, when considered fully and in context, do not. Beilby's book has convinced me of the plausibility of a Postmortem Opportunity for salvation for those who have not heard at all or have not heard well. Such a suggestion aligns with what I have found to be true of the character of God and enlivening for Christian mission and discipleship."

"Well-anchored in Scripture and Christian orthodoxy, Jim Beilby's book provides a careful and wise exploration of Postmortem Opportunity. Beilby's book is honest, humble, judicious, and insightful. Even if readers may disagree at points, Beilby will expand their horizons and offer much important food for thought."

About the Author

James Beilby (PhD, Marquette University) is professor of systematic and philosophical theology at Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is the author of Thinking About Christian Apologetics and Epistemology as Theology, the editor of Naturalism Defeated?, and the coeditor of numerous volumes, including The Nature of the Atonement, Divine Foreknowledge, The Historical Jesus, and Justification. His written work has appeared in publications such as Faith and Philosophy, Philosophia Christi, Religious Studies, and Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society.