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The Futures of Evangelicalism (pt 2a)

I have agreed to do a book review for a webring I participate in with Biblical Ministries Worldwide.  The book is The Futures of Evangelicalism: Issues and Prospects (Kregel, 2003) ed. by Craig Bartholomew, Robin Parry, and Andrew West.  I will break the review into posts on individual chapters as they are topical and distinct from one another.  The first entry in this series is here.  The second chapter is Evangelicalism and the Church by Kevin J. Vanhoozer.  Since the chapter is long (60 pages) and the blog lends itself to shorter entries, I will break this one up a bit. 

As he introduces the topic of Evangelicalism and the Church, Vanhoozer borrows a phrase and notes this is the best of times and the worst of times for Evangelicalism.  Some might regard these as years of plenty because of increased political influence, gains in academia, credible confrontation of threats to the faith (biblical criticism, secular humanism, and scientific naturalism), apparent growth of evangelical churches, a seat at the ecumenical table, and cultural engagement.  On the other hand, Vanhoozer regards these as lean years because of a serious lack of biblical and theological substance especially regarding the doctrine of the church (poor reflection).  Not only is evangelical ecclesiology at a "near poverty level," but there is also a breakdown between what is confessed and how life is conducted (poor practice).  Finally, the lack of careful thought and practice shows up most conspicuously in "dumbed down" public gatherings (poor worship). 

Poor reflection:  Ecclesiology is the most neglected pillar in the theological foundation of Evangelicalism.  The para-church nature of the evangelical movement along with the emphasis on the salvation of the individual are cited as possible causes.  Vanhoozer notes that studies on ecclesiology are rare or absent, and that the phrase, "I believe in the holy catholic church, the communion of saints," from the Apostle's Creed seems non-existent in evangelical life.

Poor practice:  Vanhoozer laments that evangelical success seems to have come at the expense of unique evangelical identity; the world has set the agenda for the church.  Evangelical theologians look and sound like their liberal counterparts; evangelical congregants seem remarkably similar in their lifestyle to non-evangelicals.  He asks, "What kind of character is being formed in evangelical churches?" and then paraphrasing Robert Gundry, "...Evangelicals have lost their fundamentalist edge...they are no longer opposed to worldliness but in bed with it."  Maybe a good dose of Johannine sectarianism would put the church in good stead.  Vanhoozer notes the insights of David Wells diagnosing this condition, "Evangelical churches are increasingly inclined to adapt to culture rather than sustain an intellectual and spiritual antagonism towards it.  The irony, says Wells, is that in order to be relevant, the church has to be different, otherwise it has nothing significant to offer."

Poor worship:  Vanhoozer is critical of the success syndrome that has crept into the church and created a "poverty of its worship."  User-friendly styles, seeker-centered services, marketing strategies, and gospel packaging (music, entertainment, therapy, and food) have created a product that is soon boring because it is offered elsewhere.  What is not available elsewhere is Word, sacrament, and theology.  What kind of disciples are being formed over the long haul?  How can we best worship God and avoid the idolatries of our culture that make man the measure of all things?  "The failure of the Church's worship stems not from offering people too much or something too deep, but from offering too little or something too shallow....Christian variations upon a secular theme." 

Vanhoozer concludes this introduction by stating that in reality this is the most urgent of times.  The contrasting viewpoints of contemporary Evangelicalism (is it boom or bust?) point to the need of the hour.  Regardless of one's perspective, long-term Evangelical "success" is not to be found in the continued privatization of religion.  So Vanhoozer proposes this thesis:  "the best of times for evangelicalism must be church times, and the best church times must be evangelical times." 

In the next section he will propose a mere ecclesiology. 

Recovering Mother Kirk (pt 2)

It has been a few days since I posted on D. G. Hart's book, Recovering Mother Kirk:  The Case for Liturgy in the Reformed Tradition, but I would like to pick up on a couple conversations that were begun on the comment's thread.

Michael wondered if Hart was descriptive in regard to liturgy.  Did he allow for liturgical innovations?  Though Hart does not condemn innovation in liturgy, he clearly favors a liturgy with deep roots in the past.  He compares two Presbyterian authors writing on worship about a decade apart: Hughes Oliphant Old (Worship That is Reformed According to Scripture, 1984) and John Frame (Worship in Spirit and Truth, 1996).  Though Old is from the PCUSA (liberal) and Frame from the PCA (conservative), it is Old who argues for a more traditional liturgical form because of the theological and congregational implications.

Old does not regard this tradition as a burden that restricts liturgical experimentation but rather as a fitting way to conduct the gathering of the saints before the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  This does not mean that Old wants simply to reproduce older patterns of worship.  He cautions against both "archaeological reconstruction" and "liturgical romanticism."  A certain amount of adaption is always necessary.  "We recognize [the Reformers] as great because they were great!...At the center of their reform was a concern for the reform of worship, and they had a profound insight into the nature of worship."

Hart is concerned that Presbyterian liturgy has been overly influenced by revivalist piety.  When asked if Presbyterians are evangelicals, Hart is hard-pressed and turns the question on its head, "Are evangelicals Presbyterians?"  The answer is clearly, "No."  Hart believes Frame has given up the ship in this regard because Frame desires to make evangelism a focus in Reformed worship.  Frame writes:

In worship, we should not be so preoccupied with God that we ignore one another....So, worship has a horizontal dimension as well as a vertical focus.  It is to be God-centered, but it is also to be both edifying and evangelistic....We should avoid slavish imitation of older practices without attention to the matter of communication....That divine mandate [the great commission], rather than any human traditions, must ultimately guide our decisions about the order of worship.

Hart notes that Frame's "logic is one of the best examples of how evangelistic aims have trumped the purpose of worship in conservative Presbyterian circles."  Isn't Frame aware that the traditional elements of Reformed worship are "effectual means of convincing and converting sinners?"

While Frame holds to a high view of scripture and the regulative principle in general, he believes scripture allows for considerable freedom in worship, defending dancing, drama, and even juggling.  Since scripture nowhere reveals a clear order of service or liturgy it is virtually impossible to prove that anything is really required for worship.

On the other hand, Old embraces tradition because it means contact with the roots of the Faith and things that last:

A tradition that gets radically changed every generation is not really a tradition.  For tradition to be tradition it must have a considerable amount of permanence and changelessness.  Tradition can only become tradition when it is passed from one generation to another.

Since the Reformed tradition is a biblical one, Old believes to follow it is to submit to the authority of scripture.  "Above all the leadership of both the Fathers and the Reformers is to be bound in the fact that they understood scripture so well."  You cannot separate form and content.  Hart concludes:

What American Presbyterians need, and have always needed, is [the] sense of the organic nature of their religion, that liturgy and theology and polity are not like parts of an automobile that can be changed for newer or better ones but in fact are connected like the branches, trunk, and roots of a tree.  Take a limb away, damage the trunk or roots, and a tree either dies or if grafted with branches from another species produces alien fruit.  Reformed theology needs Reformed liturgy just as Reformed worship makes no sense without Reformed theology.

Scott wondered about this quote from Hart:

A believer has no life outside of the church. This works against the individualism and subjectivism that characterizes much of evangelicalism. The liturgicalists emphasize the corporate character of the believer's religious life versus individual devotion. Life in the faith is nurtured from cradle to grave by taking part in the church's ordinances, worship, and submission to her authority in life, versus an emphasis on a one-time decision, personal morality, and the ups and downs of Christian pilgrimage and religious experience.

Here is Scott's question:

Are you in agreement with this? Surely you're not downplaying the importance of personal devotion (prayer, study, meditation) in the spiritual development of a Christian? Isn't a lack of personal devotion and a submission to the authority of the church the very thing that has led to the corruption of doctrine in the Catholic church and the mindless ritual of many protestant denominations? Is less personal devotion and more submission to the church's authority really a goal we ought to be pursuing? I'm confused. When I stand before God someday, am I going to be responsible for my personal obedience and commitment to Him or to the authority of the church?

The short answer is, "Yes, I am in agreement with Hart's quote."  But, "No," Hart is not downplaying the importance of personal piety.  In fact, he heartily recommends the diligent work of family catachesis and personal devotion.  But these efforts must be accomplished within the context of a vital (living) relationship to the Church.  The believer is nourished only has he or she is connected to the Body (Eph. 4:11-16; I Cor. 12).  When the local church abandons orthodoxy, of course, it is the duty of the believer to confront unbelief (1 John 4:1), not render mindless submission to a corrupt system.  However, this is not the weakness of the contemporary evangelical church.  We have pews full of little kings and queens who rule their own roosts.  If I don't like what my church says or does, I'll just travel across town to another church.  There is no sense of devotion to a creed, a congregation, a community of faith under the God ordained leadership of a body of Elders.  Covenants of membership are too easily broken; accountability is almost non-existent.  Regarding your last question...the answer is, "Yes."  God's rule over your life extends "through" the leadership of the local church...they are part of the authority God has placed in your life.  He expects you to obey them (Hb. 13:17). 

Recovering Mother Kirk

In D.G. Hart's work, Recovering Mother Kirk: The Case for Liturgy in the Reformed Tradition, he posits that those in the Reformed tradition accomplish the opening theme ("the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever") of the Westminster Shorter Catechism in one of three ways: by emphasizing doctrine, by stressing the comprehensiveness of the Reformed worldview to all of life, and by embracing a Reformed piety (experimental Calvinism). 

He breaks down many of the institutions in the Reformed tradition accordingly.  For instance, in the doctrinal camp he places Ligonier Ministries, the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, and the OPC.  In the cultural outlook camp he places the Christian Reformed Church and various Kuyperian expressions of the faith.  In the category of experimental Calvinism he places Banner of Truth Trust, New Life Presbyterians, and the PCA. 

To these categories Hart would like to add a fourth:  liturgicalism.  So now you have four main themes:  doctrinalists, culturalists, pietists, and liturgicalists.  Hart notes that Calvin placed a great emphasis on worship, even ahead of justification, as encompassing "the whole substance of Christianity."  By liturgicalism Hart does not mean only the order of worship during a Sunday service, he means "the life of the visible church through her officers, ordinances, and public worship."  To pursue any of the other themes (doctrine, piety, and cultural life) outside of the church is "to commit a form of religious reductionism." 

So Hart is arguing for a higher view of the church, even in Reformed circles.  Though Luther and Calvin vehemently protested the abuses of Catholicism, they still viewed the church as essential to Christian living--it is "the external means" by which "God invites us into the society of Christ and holds us therein."  A believer has no life outside of the church.  This works against the individualism and subjectivism that characterizes much of evangelicalism.  The liturgicalists emphasize the corporate character of the believer's religious life versus individual devotion.  Life in the faith is nurtured from cradle to grave by taking part in the church's ordinances, worship, and submission to her authority in life, versus an emphasis on a one-time decision, personal morality, and the ups and downs of Christian pilgrimage and religious experience. 

It is interesting to see many evangelicals abandon the low church mentality of populist religion for a fuller expression of the Faith.  The divide is between formalists and informalists, liturgicalists and pietists.  Many look to Rome, Canterbury, or Constantinople.  Hart believes they should look to Geneva.  However, he is also concerned for those in his own tradition.  They seem to have abandoned their Reformed distinctives for evangelical and pietistic practices that make for success (of some sort) and are assumed to be similar.  Hart disagrees, and boldly embraces a divisive or sectarian note as he demonstrates that, "Reformed identity cannot be separated from Reformed practices in church and worship." 

However, he believes a Reformed liturgy is, at the end of the day, ecumenical and catholic.  He writes, "Although these essays may highlight differences between Reformed and evangelicals, they also underscore what Presbyterians, by virtue of a high view of the church and worship, have in common with Lutherans, Anglicans, and even at times, Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox." 

He concludes the introduction with these thoughts about worship, "For doctrinalists, worship is a time to teach; for culturalists, it is a time to exhort toward harder work; and for experimental Calvinists, it is a time to emote.  But if worship is a time during which weary pilgrims feed on the Word incarnate through preaching and the sacraments and during which they respond in prayers of praise, thanksgiving, confession, and petition, then the centrality of worship and work of pastors to the life of believers becomes apparent."

The Futures of Evangelicalism (pt 1)

I have agreed to do a book review for a webring I participate in with Biblical Ministries Worldwide.  The book is The Futures of Evangelicalism: Issues and Prospects (Kregel, 2003) ed. by Craig Bartholomew, Robin Parry, and Andrew West.  I will break the review into posts on individual chapters as they are topical and distinct from one another.  The first chapter is Theology and the Futures of Evangelicalism by Alister E. McGrath. 

McGrath begins the chapter by noting the general hostility Christian culture has to the academic pursuit of theology.  He believes there are two main reasons. 

First, theology is marginalized because the Christian community tends to embrace the pragmatic and utilitarian before the philosophical and reflective.  Especially in America, there is a love for the practical that eclipses the theoretical.  McGrath illustrates the point by noting the emphasis a megachurch will place on pastoral technique versus theology.  He also references an interesting phenomenon in minister's libraries--a cut-off point when pastors stop buying theological works and start buying practical "how to" books; their brain dies.

Second, theology is little esteemed because of the perceived elitism of academic theology.  The theologians speak a different language and have a separate agenda.  McGrath remembers a prof he experienced in seminary who referenced spending time with little old ladies over tea in parish ministry.  McGrath said that when the man completed his absolutely irrelevant lecture, the students wished he had spent more time sipping tea with the little old ladies.  He says, "It was after that lecture I decided that I did not want to be a theologian, and would go into parish ministry as a corrective to my academic tendencies." 

Next McGrath takes up the topic of evangelicalism and theology.  The unique, and in some places despised, contribution of evangelical theology is its insistence on the centrality of scripture to the theologian's task.  Christian theology is subservient to scripture; it is shaped and reshaped by scripture.  Though evangelicalism has been regarded as anti-intellectual in the past, it has gained ground since the Second World War, and demonstrated a balance between the academy and the faith community.  Nevertheless, McGrath still believes a large segment of the evangelical community is ambivalent toward sustained theological engagement.  He lists four reasons:

First, the lingering influence of fundamentalism:  McGrath believes the initial fundamentalists of the 1920's divorced a generation from scholarly work by refusing any kind of cultural engagement.  In an over-reaching comparison, he likens the experience to the "Cultural Revolution" in the People's Republic of China. 

Second, a pragmatic approach to theology and church life:  Returning to a theme mentioned at the beginning of the chapter, McGrath laments the therapeutic culture of much of North American evangelicalism.  The church has yielded wholly to pragmatism and utilitarianism in pastoral and evangelistic methodology.  He notes the work of David Wells (No Place for Truth) in documenting this decline.  He also believes that theology itself must demonstrate its own relevance to the faith community.  This will only happen with a revival of sorts in evangelicalism itself.  The result of a deeper evangelicalism will be a more sustained theology.  "A vibrant tradition of theological reflection is the outcome, rather than the cause, of a dynamic community of faith."  For McGrath, evidence of this life is evangelistic activism, the vigorous pursuit of sustainable spiritualities, and an increased engagement with social and political issues."

Third, the elitism of academic theology:  The evangelical theologian is suspicious of a secular academy with a decidedly anti-Christian worldview that considers him to be naive.  The profession of learning is no longer identified with wisdom and personal integrity; therefore, the evangelical does not bow to the authority, so-called, of the secular academy.  Contrary to the academic theologian, the evangelical theologian stands within his community, and serves his community from the inside.  He is not over, or outside of, the church.  He serves the needs and life of the church.  This is distinct from the theological elite who grace their ivory towers in detached contempt from the realities of everyday life. 

Fourth, evangelical theology is rooted in popular piety:  Though McGrath praises the ability of evangelicalism to speak to the ordinary, he is concerned that evangelicalism will leave its theological roots for the shallow waters of populism.  Only the deep roots of the historic Christian faith will provide an appropriate anchor to span the generations.  Too many small ideas are being pitched with each successive generation.  McGrath says, "Given both the widespread contempt for the concern of ordinary Christians by academic theologians and the shallowness of populist theology, evangelicalism would do well to encourage the emergence of sustained serious theological reflection from a committed standpoint within the Christian community, and see the theologians as believers who think for themselves and for others within the community of faith."  He believes John R. W. Stott is an excellent model for this kind of theologian who comes from within the church and earns a place of authority based on who he is, rather than how he is credentialed.  "The best intellectuals may exist and operate outside of the academy!"

Finally, McGrath takes up the benefits of theology for evangelicalism.  He lists three:

(1) Theology enhances our appreciation of our faith (e.g. a rich, trinitarian theology), (2) theology helps us to engage our emotions responsibly (e.g. Isaac Watt's hymnody), and (3) theology enables us to behave appropriately (e.g. Jonathan Edward's sermon The Christian Pilgrim).   

Conclusion:  This chapter was not what I initially expected.  I was looking for an analysis of the theological challenges facing evangelicalism at the dawn of this millennium (e.g. open theism, postmodernism, hermeneutics, etc).  Instead, McGrath is more interested in outlining practical ways for theology to serve the evangelical community and leap over a couple of the barriers he perceives as obstacles to that reality.  The chapter serves as a good reminder of the "isms" that seek to snuff out good theology, of the centrality of theology to nurturing faith in a pastoral setting, and also of the need for theologians to work from within the church.  As pastors, we must be certain our libraries do not contain that tell-tale line of demarcation that indicates our brain died and we stopped doing theology.   

A Book List

I participate in a pastor's webring in which we were asked to list the top 4-6 books that have influenced us in the last 5-10 years.  I couldn't list that few, so I made 6 categories with a couple books in each.  Here is my list.  What would you add?

1.  Pastoral theology:  Biblical Eldership: An Urgent Call to Restore Biblical Church Leadership & The New Testament Deacon: The Church's Minister of Mercy.  Both of these books are by Alexander Strauch.  Strauch makes a biblical case for an egalitarian form of church governance and servanthood.  We have followed this model in our congregation and it is a blessing.

2.  Hermeneutics:  Foundations of Contemporary Interpretation.  This book is actually six volumes in one dealing with various areas of interpretation including:  contemporary challenges, literary interpretation, biblical history, science, theology, and language.  This volume, along with others, opened my eyes to the value of literary interpretation; whereas before, I was tempted to view scripture as a theology textbook.  You might also enjoy Words of Delight: A Literary Introduction to the Bible by Leland Ryken.

3.  Apologetics:  The Gagging of God: Christianity Confronts Pluralism by D.A. Carson; and Is There a Meaning in This Text?  by Kevin Vanhoozer.  Carson's work is foundational to an understanding of the worldviews we confront in our culture.  The bibliography is worth the price of the book.  Vanhoozer is tough reading, but he will help you come to grips with the post-modern charge that no reader can make truth claims from scripture.

4.  Evangelicalism/Fundamentalism:  No Place for Truth or Whatever Happened to Evangelical Theology by David Wells.  Though this book is getting a little dated (1993), it offers a scathing review of contemporary evangelicalism from an insider's perspective.  It helped me to grasp the fragmentation of evangelicalism into various streams, so that I no longer painted with such a broad brush.  I see a corresponding fragmentation in fundamentalism.  You might also enjoy two other books Wells has written:  God in the Wasteland: The Reality of Truth in a World of Fading Dreams and Losing Our Virtue: Why the Church Must Recover It's Moral Vision.

5.  Church Leadership:  The Debt Free Church: Experiencing Financial Freedom While Growing Your Ministry by Jeff Berg and Jim Burgess, and When Not to Build: An Architect's Unconventional Wisdom for Growing the Church by Ray Bowman.  Our elders and deacons read both of these books together and found them to be extremely helpful in resisting the siren call of buildings, bodies and bucks (debt).

6.  Counseling:  The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict by Ken Sande.  If you can develop the culture of peace that Sande is advocating, you will go a long way toward honoring God's reputation in your community.  This book has transformed how our church deals with conflict.

Well, that's it for now.  Hope this is helpful.

Insurgents in Black Robes

Al Mohler reviews Phyliss Schlafly's recent book, The Supremists" at Crosswalk.com. Schlafly argues that activists judges have already usurped the rule of law and caused a revolution in our country.

An exerpt: Justice Antonin Scalia once asked: "What secret knowledge, one must wonder, is breathed into lawyers when they become justices of this Court, that enables them to discern that a practice which the text of the Constitution does not clearly proscribe, and which our people have regarded as constitutional for 200 years is in fact unconstitutional?" As he lamented, the Supreme Court "is busy designing a Constitution for a country I do not recognize."

General Tommy Franks: American Soldier

Well, I am back from vacation in Canuck and already mid-way through a drill weekend with the Ohio ANG. It seems appropriate, therefore, to plug a new book by General Tommy Franks. Franks is the four-star who helped design the invasion of Iraq and then led the coalition during Operation Iraqi Freedom. I heard him interviewed on the trip back to Ohio and was duly impressed. Here is an interview and here is the book.

Christian Book Awards

Bet, at Dappled Things, alerted me to Christianity Today's release of their annual Christian Book Awards. I always feel pretty good when I have a couple of these under my belt already. I own Marsden's work on Jonathan Edwards (supposed to set the standard for generations to come), but I have been too intimidated to dive in. Check these out and then visit christianbook.com. After you buy one (or two), read them and write a review for our website. You'll be famous.