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Editorial:
Spring Fever Comment:
What is Reconciliation? From
the Director: Ireland is changing and so are we! The
Whole Gospel for the Whole World (and beyond...) Rwanda
Ten Years On Anglo-Irish
Relations The
Hard Gospel Interview
with Robin Eames: RECONCILIATION - A View from Armagh Interview
with Sean Brady: RECONCILIATION - A View from Armagh Church-based
Peacebuilding Evangelism
& Reconciliation - are they irreconcilable? Dogville
and the Drama of Redemption Blessed
are the Peacemakers? Review:
Bitter Fruit Review:
The Colour of Darkness Review:
The Lost Message of Jesus Review:
The Futures of Evangelicalism Review:
Evangelicals in Ireland: An Introduction |
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review: IN THE SPACE of eleven chapters, the editors have brought together the reflections of several major evangelical authors or statesmen such as Alister McGrath, Kevin Vanhoozer, Howard Marshall, and Eugene Peterson. The collection has an international, if totally Western, flavour (Australia, Lausanne as well as UK/USA). Some of the less familiar contributors, including the editors, come from the University of Gloucester, where the project appears to have had its genesis. The ground covered is impressive and refreshingly comprehensive, including essays on Evangelicalism, Ethics, Spirituality, Politics, and Philosophy, as well as Ecclesiology, Hermeneutics and Systematics. There are however notable omissions. Theologically, no reference is made to the challenge presented by recent developing diversity on previously accepted evangelical non-negotiables such as substitutionary atonement. Similarly, little enough space is actually given to the driving force behind the etymology of the movement, namely, evangelism. Mission in its broadest sense is covered in several articles, but Chris Wright’s ‘Future Trends in Mission’ is global in its scope and an all too brief examination from, significantly, a Western voice. This bypassing of Developing World theologians is as disappointing as the absence of any female writers. This is not a plea for tokenism, rather it is an acknowledgement that the contribution made by women to the Movement has been as significant as the debate that arisen as a result of that contribution. Nigel Scotland’s piece on Charismaticism is mainly historical and descriptive, with only superficial analysis towards the end. Regrettably he never really deals with the subject of charismatics and scriptural authority – the main reason many traditional evangelicals still struggle to admit charismatics into the evangelical fold. Howard Marshall deals honestly and lucidly with the problems faced by any evangelical Christian who wants to take the Bible seriously and yet has to grapple with difficult life situations. He does not shy away from pointing out the reality of controversial hermeneutical issues; ‘when does diversity become contradiction?’ or how these issues affect key doctrines. The reader looking for a definite position to be taken on these issues, will be disappointed. Marshall instead outlines the principles that all who seek the truth must employ if they are to be true to Scripture’s self-understanding. Lazarus’s contribution on Evangelicalism and Politics is worth noting. It is written from, and to, the American situation, and probably adds little to the conversation this side of the Atlantic that hasn’t been said before in evangelical academic and theoretical quarters with regard to faith and politics. Nevertheless, the ongoing realities of Northern Ireland religious life and the increased Americanisation of aspects of British evangelicalism means that Lazarus’s ‘Fourth Way’ of doing politics as Christians needs to be heard all the more urgently. Eschewing pietistic withdrawal, triumphalistic dominance and apathetic non-involvement, he sounds a much needed rallying call for all evangelical communities to be involved corporately in establishing justice in the public square. The book suffers from the problems of its genre as a collection of essays at the end of which, one is no clearer about the future(s) of evangelicalism. The clever use of the plural in the title signals that there is no narrow preconceived agenda here, but the lack of a concluding chapter to seek to make sense of the whole, is a significant weakness. The collection is a veritable curate’s egg, but worth purchasing for two or three of the strongest essays alone. At a time when it is too easy to be cynical about evangelicalism, the fact that this is written ‘not from those who in despair have left evangelicalism, but from those who remain within and passionately so.’ Oh – and did John Wimber really help to form ‘The Righteous Brothers’? (p286). You learn something new every day! REV DAVID MONTGOMERY is Associate Minister at Knock Presbyterian Church. THE FUTURES
OF EVANGELICALISM : Issues and Prospects, Eds. Craig Bartholomew,
Robin Parry & Andrew West. |
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