Shawn Andrews
Summer 2014 Theology 313-D05 LUO
Student #23805109
Analysis
In the book Is Jesus the Only Savior?, author Ronald Nash does an excellent job in presenting his arguments in a comprehensive, thorough method. In the preface, he does well to address the important clarification of terms needed when discussing whether or not Jesus is the only savior. It is essential to understand these terms—exclusivism, pluralism, and inclusivism—when diving into the various beliefs and interpretations concerning Christ and His claim that, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me,” (John 14:6). While the intention of the book is to address such beliefs and interpretations, it is important to establish early in the text, as he does, what the different beliefs are and to define them in a very basic form. In the first chapter, Nash lays the foundation for the rest of his book—exclusivism. Similar to the importance of defining all three of the different general views in the preface, it is incredibly important for him to establish a baseline of good theology, initially, in order to effectively discuss and argue the views of pluralism and inclusivism. This is certainly one of the greatest strengths of the book as a whole. Nash lays out the main purpose of the book on page 25, stating, “The major question I will seek to answer in the rest of this book is whether pluralists or inclusivists have produced arguments strong enough to justify the repudiation of exclusivism, which is the position of historic Christianity.” Additionally, he notes that the book focuses on interpretation of salvation and does not argue against atheism, which is outside of the conversation of how people attain salvation. It is helpful that he makes the distinction, as arguing against atheism is a separate issue altogether. Regarding pluralism, Nash,