.
However, there are three areas where I have observed ignorance far too often; areas where a minister should be, at the very least, conversant with major theories. Those areas are: baptism, hell, and evolution. I would go so far as to say, ordination should be withheld from someone who cannot find their way around the landscapes of these issues.
.
Baptismal controversies are numerous, of course (e.g., mode, purpose, formula, candidacy). Most ministers I have met are at least knowledgeable about the position their fellowship holds on those points. However, it seems a much smaller group of the same ministers is prepared to explain where baptism even came from.
.
Seriously, what is John the Baptist doing standing in the Jordan River, calling people to a rite that appears to be without antecedent in the pages of Scripture? Where did he get the idea that that was the right thing to do? This is the type of inquiry that can get a poorly-trained pastor's defensive side to show (not a manifestation that will aid in parishioner-pastor bonding).
.
There is a brand new resource on baptism that should make it onto the bookshelf of every minister: Baptism in the Early Church: History, Theology, and Liturgy in the First Five Centuries (Eerdmans). It is written by noted church historian, Everett Ferguson. With a serious work like this, I think it is more meaningful to you that I provide the endorsement of one of the author's peers. In this case, Ferguson's work gets the hearty endorsement of Scot McKnight over on his blog:.
"This book is not innovative; it is not an attempt to argue a brand-new theory; it's an examination of what can be known from the ancient evidence about baptism. For years I have always gone to G. R. Beasley-Murray's justifiably well-known book on baptism (Baptism in the New Testament). I will now go first to Ferguson's magnum opus."
.
Having read Ferguson, you may conclude that we still don't really know where John's impetus to water baptize came from, but if that is your conclusion, you will be able to share it comfortably with others --- without the awkwardness of being caught flat-footed, and avoiding the temptation to make the questioner feel they have asked a pointless question.
.
HELL
.
It can be successfully argued, of course, that a minister may go his entire career without ever being asked the question I raised about baptism (that, of course, does not negate the notion that he, or she, should be informed on the topic). Hell ... well, that's a different story.
.
I was raised in a fundamentalist church where hell --- and a certain depiction of it --- was a given. It is hot. Very hot. And though enveloped in its flames, its occupants do not perish. Ever.
.
I was well into adulthood when I first heard a minister in our circle of fellowship suggest anything otherwise. He put forth the idea that hell was a sort of inky, black darkness where one was tormented, not by horrific heat, but by utter loneliness and deep regret.
.
Others feel souls in hell will eventually extinguish, simply cease to exist. Going further still, well-respected British theologian John Wenham found the idea of hell noxious.
.
"I believe that endless torment is a hideous and unscriptural doctrine which has been a terrible burden on the mind of the church for many centuries and a terrible blot on her presentation of the gospel. I should indeed be happy if, before I die, I could help in sweeping it away," Wenham wrote in Facing Hell: The Story of a Nobody (Paternoster Press).
.
You may say Wenham is all wet. You may wonder what the minister with the inky, black darkness does with the Lake of Fire. But, if you are a minister, at the end of all the to-ing and fro-ing, you need to speak intelligently to the subject of hell. You owe that to your listeners.
.
All three of my children have heard me say that religious ideas are the most powerful ideas in the world. And the potency of this one is almost immeasurable. It must be reckoned with.
.
Getting your hands on material discussing hell is easy enough. But, I want to suggest two references for you.
.
Four Views on Hell (Zondervan) is part of the Counterpoints series by that publisher. I personally delight in the format that has biblical scholars and theologians putting forth their ideas, and having them responded to. The participants in this book are John Walvoord (literal view), William Crockett (metaphorical), Zachary Hayes (purgatorial), and Clark Pinnock (conditional)..
I do understand that not everyone likes debate on theological issues; to some, it seems like an exercise in intellectual vanity. On an issue like hell, however, I think the body of Christ is well served by an open airing of disparate views.
.
The foreward to the book adds weight to my concerns, "So disturbing is the idea of hell that most pastors and church members simply ignore the doctrine of final retribution, preferring to talk in vague terms about a separation of the wicked from the righteous.
.
"But what is hell? A literal place of fire and smoke? A banishment from God? Annihilation? Is there such a place as purgatory where people are readied for the presence of God? In this book four professors describe in non-technical language what they think the final judgment will be like, and then at the end of each chapter, they evaluate the opinions of their colleagues ....
.
"Although the authors differ sharply on some points, they do so in a congenial spirit, with the hope that the arguments in this book will help readers to form their own opinions."
.
Earlier this month, I provided the link to the other resource I am recommending, and it warrants re-posting. Wheaton College professor Douglas Moo has posted online a paper on the apostle Paul's teachings on hell. It can be read here.
.
EVOLUTION
.
Of these three areas where there is often lamentable ignorance, Darwinian evolution is perhaps the most understandable. There is much, much more ground to cover than the other two.
.
Now, so well-publicized is the commotion about evolution, that I won't belabor readers with much introduction. But, it does bear mentioning why I make the case that it is imperative that ministers be informed in this area.
.
Firstly, it escapes me how one can adequately teach on the first three chapters of Genesis without interacting with the claims of the proponents of evolution. I am convinced that obscurantism is unbecoming to modern evangelical believers.
.
Secondly, the atheistic evolutionary posture strides back-and-forth like a modern-day Goliath, defying the army of the Lord. It is no small challenge being issued. The veracity of our worldview is belittled as preposterous; held to only by a silly, superstitious people. It would hardly come from a "renewed mind." Like David, it is incomprehensible to me that we should shrink from this battle.
.
As with the topic of hell, above, finding material on evolution is as easy the proverbial "shooting fish in a barrel." However, I would like to suggest ideally that ministers read from each of the main perspectives on evolution so that they can arrive at a critically informed judgment. In that regard, I am recommending works that I have handled and have found profitable.
.
ATHEISTIC EVOLUTIONARY VIEW ... Eugenie Scott's Evolution vs. Creationism (Greenwood Press) provides her take on the history of the controversy. She says her aim was to provide "one-stop shopping" for those wishing to read on the "historical, legal, educational, political, scientific, and religious perspectives ...." Clear and combative, the book is a good apologetic for its viewpoint. [Doubts about Darwin (Baker) surveys the same history from a theistic point-of-view.]
.
INTELLIGENT DESIGN VIEW ... Understanding Intelligent Design (Harvest House) by William Dembski and Sean McDowell is a helpful 233-page primer for those who are looking for a quick read..
THEISTIC EVOLUTION ... Francis Collins, the leader of the ground-breaking Human Genome Movement, presents both his faith in God and his belief in theistic evolution in The Language of God (Free Press). It is sure to make the adherents of both atheism and creationism squirm.
.
CREATIONISM ... Scientific Creationism by Henry Morris is one of the seminal works for this point-of-view.
.
THREE VIEWS IN DIALOGUE ... As with the Zondervan Counterpoints book on hell (above) Three Views on Creation and Evolution allows scholars to set out their views, and then receive responses from their colleagues. The contributors are: Paul Nelson and John Mark Reynolds (young earth creationism), Robert Newman (progressive creationism), and Howard Van Till (theistic evolution).
.
With so much reading to do, you can see one of the reasons for my belief that the research should be done before one enters busy full-time ministry. But the issue is not small and neither should be our investment of time.
0 comments:
Post a Comment