Christianity and Liberalism at 100 Years
In 1922, Harry Emerson Fosdick (1878–1969) preached a sermon entitled “Shall the Fundamentalists Win?” at the First Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, New York.[1] In the decade prior to Fosdick’s sermon, Americans had suffered through the First World War, and American Protestants (particularly the Baptists and Presbyterians) were amid the Fundamentalist-Modernist controversy. Fosdick’s “Shall the Fundamentalists Win?” was a call for...
Book Reflection: The Making of Stanley Hauerwas
Recently I read The Making of Stanley Hauerwas, a book adapted from David Hunsicker’s doctoral dissertation. Hunsicker is a Presbyterian minister in Alabama and former theology professor. Published dissertations usually aren’t a type of reading material that gets me very excited, but the subject matter of this one intrigued me. For the last thirty years, Stanley Hauerwas has been among the most discussed and debated theologians in the...
Recommended Books (Fall 2017)
“Words are the progeny of the soul,” states Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 150-215).[1] As our bodies produce children for posterity, so do our souls. Just as we all wish to produce good children to build up the coming generation, Clement argues we should be careful to leave only the best words to those who come after us. In this way of thinking, “wisdom is a communicative and philanthropic thing.”[2] For this reason, Clement cautions us...
When Free Will Baptists Went Liberal (Part II)
In Part I, we began examining the Free Baptists’ relationship to Higher Criticism, particularly through Alfred Williams Anthony’s writings. In this piece, we’ll consider the influence of Higher Criticism at Bates College and Cobb Divinity School, as well as the Free Baptists’ interest in the Ecumenical Movement. This exploration will us a clear understanding of the theological status of key Free Baptist leaders and institutions in the...
When Free Will Baptists Went Liberal (Part I)
The 1911 merger between the Free Baptists[1] and the Northern Baptist Convention marked the former’s near extinction as a distinct religious body. However, this merger was symptomatic of a deeper theological shift among some Free Baptist leaders that had begun years before. In 1911, the Free Baptists merged all of their assets, missions organizations, and educational institutions with the Northern Baptist Convention’s. Many Free...
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