Theological News On-Line

Registrations now open for TC-09 - the TC Consultation in Latin America and the Annual Planning Session

Registrations are now open for TC-09, the WEA Theological Commission annual gathering which will take place in Sao Paulo, Brasil, in July. The planning and strategy session will take place on July 22 and 23, to be followed by a consultation on July 24 and 25. The theme of the Consultation will be Evangelical Theology and Evangelical Movement in Latin America - Ways, Dilemmas and Perspectives. The consultation is open to all those in Latin America who are interested in theological reflection, including seminary and Bible College faculty, students, pastors, missionaries and others. A special invitation is issued to people living in the Southern Cone.

The consultation will take place in hotel situated in the centre of the city. Participants may make their own arrangements for accommodation or they may take advantage of the Theological Commission's block booking at the hotel. For more information about accommodation, program and costings, contact the TC (see below).

TC Executive Director, Dr Parker, said, 'We have been planning for a considerable period to hold an event like this in Latin America. Therefore we are pleased to see our hopes being realised even though the global financial crisis and other factors have impacted negatively on us. However, we do not want to let these problems stop us from serving the church in Latin America through this event. We look forward to working with as many people, seminaries, associations and churches as possible to make this a significant consultation.'

He said, 'Our intention is to enter into serious theological dialogue with our friends and so to stand with them in their important task of witness and mission. Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world, accounts for half the land surface of South America and half of its population (see logo left). The evangelical church is very vibrant in Brazil and elsewhere in the region, so we have much to learn. We are hoping to have contact with a range of ministries, institutions and theological fellowships in our consultation, making it a rich experience for us all. There are many strategic opportunities in this region and we hope that our visit will help network theologians internationally and strengthen the work of theological foundations and vision.'

Expressions of interest are invited for participants to contribute papers and ideas about the program.

For registration and more information, contact

•  Dr David Parker, Executive Director tc@worldevangelicalalliance.com  or
•  Dr Claus Schwambach, São Bento do Sul, Brasil, diretoria@flt.edu.br 

ERT now available electronically

Evangelical Review of Theology, the flagship quarterly journal of the WEA Theological Commission, is now available in electronic form for regular subscription as well as, or as an alternative to, the traditional print version. ERT, which has been published since 1977, is aimed at scholars, students, church and mission leaders and others who are interested in a global forum of evangelical theology.

As of January 2009, Paternoster, who publishes the journal on behalf of the TC, has made new arrangements with AlphaGraphics, Nottingham, for its production and circulation. New features include on-line subscriptions at www.paternosterperiodicals.com, multiple and joint subscriptions at reduced rates and the choice between electronic and print. The email contact is periodicals@alphagraphics.co.uk

Dr David Parker, Executive Director of the TC and editor of ERT said, 'There have been some problems with the January 2009 issue in the change-over to the new arrangements, but once the system gets properly established, we are looking forward to an increased circulation. The new process should make our journal much more accessible to our worldwide readership. ERT is aimed at providing well-founded practical guidance for the life and mission of the church, ‘discerning the obedience of faith.’ We welcome interest in its circulation and also from potential contributors.'

The full run of ERT up to the end of 2005 is available on the TC's Theological Resource Library CR-ROM. This CD also includes a large number of other TC and WEA publications. For more details, go to the web site above and
www.worldevangelicals.org/commissions/list/index.php?com=tc&id=7

TC works with Lausanne Theology Group in Panama

TC Chairman, Justin Thacker, reflects on the recent meeting of the Lausanne Theology Working Group in Panama. Rolf Hille and Daniel Salinas also represented the World Evangelical Alliance Theological Commission at that meeting.

In the last week of January, twenty-five theologians, representing twelve countries and five continents, met in Panama to discuss the theological issues that are relevant to the third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization to be held in South Africa in October 2010. This was the third meeting of the Lausanne Theology Working Group in partnership with The World Evangelical Alliance Theological Commission in preparation for Lausanne III. The first was held in Limuru, Kenay in 2007. At the 2008 meeting held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, we addressed the topic of 'The Whole Gospel', at the final one in Beirut in 2010, we shall discuss 'The Whole World', but our concern on this occasion was 'The Whole Church'.

Using a mixture of plenary papers and more specific case studies, we examined the following six sub-themes:

•  "The whole church in the whole bible"
•  "The whole church as a transformed and transforming society"
•  "The whole church as a people committed to wholeness"
•  "The whole church called to be a blessing to the nations"
•  "The whole church and mission strategies and resources"
•  "The whole church in bewildering diversity"

The conversation was inevitably wide-ranging and benefitted hugely from the extensive experience and backgrounds of the participants. Interestingly, it was frequently the case that what appeared as initially disparate perspectives often coalesced in surprising ways. For instance, we noted both similarities and differences between the Jesus-followers in India (Yesu Bhaktas) and some of the emergent movements in the US in the way that both groups distance themselves from the public mainstream churches. Without presuming an answer, we asked whether such distancing should prompt those of us who reside within the mainstream church to consider whether the church is fulfilling its commission to be what Christ has called it to be.

Other recurring issues include the ethnocentrism that often causes us to view one ecclesiological form as superior to others, the utilitarianism that leads us to champion pragmatics over virtue, and the syncretism that allows the gods of money, power and status to drive out the Christ-like qualities that should characterise our communal life. We were adamant that our ecclesiology (or ecclesiologies) must be grounded in and derive their meaning and purpose from our confession of the One God in Three Persons. Hence, the church is not merely a means to an end, a vehicle either for keeping safe the elect till the day of judgement, or a spiritual welfare agency to deliver services to the poor. Rather, in God's sight, the One Church has an inherent goodness, meaning and purpose derived from its identity in Him.

Our minds (and prejudices) were challenged and stretched as we considered the catholicity of the One Church and in particular the way in which various marginalised groups should not just be considered as a welcome part of the church, but even more so, that they have a distinct contribution to the church without which the rest of us remain impoverished. Such groups might include those with disabilities, the elderly, the young, women and migrants.

Finally, we considered the nature of the church as missional. We recognised that, far too often, we have been guilty of a 'managerial missiology' that fails to recognise the way in which the mission of the church flows out of the being of the church which in turn is located in the Godhead. Hence, we repudiated the old dichotomies - such as that between social action and evangelism - and sought to identify, once again, a far more integrated gospel emanating from an integrated people.

All of this work is now in the process of being analysed, synthesised and expressed succinctly with a view to informing the planning and progress of Lausanne 2010. In addition, the findings of this consultation will be integrated with those that arose from Chiang Mai concerning 'The Whole Gospel', and those that will arise in Beirut as we consider 'The Whole World' in order to produce a solid theological grounding for the congress in Cape Town in 2010. In this way, our hope is that the congress will be both theologically formed as well as practically useful as it seeks to serve the worldwide church.

Up-date: Evangelical Theology of Suffering, Persecution and Martyrdom.

The conference on an evangelical theology of suffering, persecution and martyrdom, mentioned in the last issue, will be held in Bad Urach, Germany on 16-18 September 2009. It is part of a study process being sponsored by the World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission and other interested parties, and is convened by Dr Christof Sauer (International Institute for Religious Freedom IIRF and Dr Richard Howell (Asia Evangelical Alliance). The IIRF will organize the consultation with about 20 expert participants and some observers.

For more information, contact Dr Christof Sauer, Convener International Institute for Religious Freedom P O Box 535, Edgemead 7407 Cape Town, South Africa Email: christof@iirf.eu Phone: +27-21-558 7744 Mobile: +27-83 788 2103 Fax: +27-21-559 7745.

Reviews:

Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels by Kenneth E. Bailey
Downers Grove, Inter-Varsity, 2008. 978-0-8308-2568-4. Pb., pp443, Bibliog, index.

With a life-time of living, observing and teaching in the Middle East, Kenneth Bailey's insights as a commentator are invaluable, showing time after time, how an understanding of the cultural features of the background to the Gospels can bring alive the meaning of the text, and more importantly, the power and significance of Jesus and his message. This is aided by an intimate knowledge of contemporary and later religious literature of the region which he uses frequently to give deeper appreciation of the biblical text either by making a comparison with the broad cultural milieu or by making a contrast to show just how radical Jesus was in relation to other traditions.

The 32 chapters of this book, divided into six parts, cover narratives (the infancy and the many of the 'dramatic actions' of Jesus), teaching (the Sermon on the Mount, and parables) and a special section on 'Jesus and Women'; the commentary covers specific passages of three Gospels (excluding Mark). The material dealing with narratives (including parables) is by far the most helpful, and even to read only the first part on the birth of Jesus is likely to dispel forever the myths that are usually associated with the Christmas story.

Another helpful part of the work is the author's exposition of the rhetorical structure of the text, where he often finds vital aspects of the meaning of the text which would otherwise be completely overlooked.

A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards by George M Marsden
Library of Religious Biography, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008, ISBN 9780-8028-0220-0, Pb, pp152, illus, index

Drawing on his extensive knowledge of the subject and previous publications (including a definitive full length biography), George Marsden has written a new life of Jonathan Edwards. Published in the Library of Religious Biography series, it is for the general reader but would be suitable also as an introduction for students including as it does clear summaries of all Edwards' major works and an appendix giving suggestions for further reading. Apart from the first few pages and the rather awkward introduction of the contemporary, Benjamin Franklin (the significance of whom is clarified later on), the surprisingly compact narrative of his life, family and ministry as preacher, pastor, theologian, intellectual and supporter of missions to Indians, is gripping and informative-even to the extent of including detailed information about pastoral problems created by rebellious youth.

Edwards is placed firmly within the social, political, intellectual and religious context of the day, clearly showing why he is such an important figure in American (and evangelical) history; of particular importance is his connection with and influence on the 18th century revivals and awakenings, which constituted a 'revolution' of their own and which contributed so significantly to the later, more well known political revolution.

This book dispels many myths about the author of famous sermon, 'Sinners in the hands of an angry God', and is a model of popular yet scholarly biography.

Reviewed by David Parker, Editor, Theological News

Notice to Readers

Thank you for interest our work and newsletter through the year.

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