Voliscience

Last week, Vox Day coined a new word:

The problem with the concept of omniscience is that it’s a weirdly binary notion, wherein the only options are a superficially illogical all-knowing and a definitively non-Biblical naught-knowing of nonexistence. But how would one describe the knowledge of the Game Designer God, who can know or not know any given thing depending solely on His will?The concept of voliscience describes a Creator who knows whatever He wants, whenever He wants, to the extent that the concept of time is even relevant to such a being. Not only does this concept not limit God, but it has the additional benefit of being far more Biblically accurate than the traditional concept of an omniscient God.

Now you’ll remember that Vox has written about this before – Last November:

First, it is important to note that the Christian God, the god towards whom Dawkins directs the great majority of his attacks, makes no broad claims to omniscience. Although there are eighty-seven references to the things that the biblical God knows, only a single example could potentially be interpreted as a universal claim to complete knowledge.Among the things that God claims to know are the following: He knows the way to wisdom and where it dwells, he knows the day of the wicked is coming, he knows the secrets of men’s hearts, he knows the thoughts of men and their futility. He knows the proud from afar, he knows what lies in darkness, and he knows what you need before you ask him. He knows the Son, he knows the day and the hour that the heavens and the earth shall pass away, . . .

In some of what follows I am making some guesses about what Vox thinks – Vox, please correct me if I’m wrong.

Not only does Vox think that God doesn’t know all of what happens in the future; Vox thinks that God doesn’t know all of what is happening in the world currently. So, for example, I think he’s going to say (when he finally gets back to our argument) that he doesn’t think that God knew where Adam and Eve were when he called for them in the Garden after they ate the fruit.

So not only does this makes Vox an extreme Armenian (sp?), but it even makes him an extreme Open Theist (Can someone tell me if Boyd thinks that God doesn’t know everything about the current state of the world?). What I don’t understand is (A) What Vox thinks is the difference between a God who can at any time know anything, and a God who knows everything. And (B) If there is a difference, why does Vox think God limits himself this way? What possible motivation could God have to do this? An even greater super duper possibility for unfettered and fully appreciated free will?

On Wednesday, I’ll post my response to Vox regarding his addition to our vocabulary.

Update: I am reading Greg Boyd’s ‘God of the Possible’ and it really looks to me like Pastor Boyd believes in God’s Omniscience of the Present. But perhaps he has changed his mind or I haven’t read far enough.