New SBJT looks at Mormon challenge to contemporary Christianity September 22, 2005

For the past 150 years Mormonism has been in conflict with biblical, historic Christianity.

However, leaders of Mormonism—officially known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS)—have in recent years downplayed the cult’s divergence from traditional Christianity and now portray it as merely another form of the biblical faith.

Steven J. Wellum, editor of the Southern Baptist Journal of Theology (SBJT), contends that Mormonism’s efforts at blurring theological lines are designed to make the sect appeal to a broader public. In his editorial in the Summer edition of the SBJT, Wellum argues that Mormonism is not merely one variety of Christianity among many.

“Regardless of the Mormon claims, it is difficult, nigh impossible, to maintain that Mormonism is just another version or subset of historic Christianity,” he writes. “Why? Because at point after point, if we compare and contrast Christian orthodoxy with Mormon theology, we have to conclude that Mormonism represents an entirely different theology, an alien worldview—another gospel, which is no gospel at all.

“In this regard, we need to heed the warning of Paul that even if an angel from heaven preaches a gospel other than the one proclaimed by the apostles, let him be eternally condemned (Gal. 1:8-9). That is why evangelicals historically view Mormons as those who need to hear and respond to the true gospel found in Scripture alone, and as standing outside a saving relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The new SBJT examines the topic of Mormonism from a number of angles from its overall appeal to its particular doctrines. Essayists include Chad Owen Brand, associate professor of Christian Theology at Southern Seminary. Brand examines the widespread appeal of Mormonism and shows its historical development alongside post-reformation evangelical Christianity.

Evangelicals often find Mormonism intriguing because of the clean lifestyle and conservative values of its adherents. Mormons may make great neighbors, but their doctrines and practices within the church appear as anything but appealing to evangelicals, he contends

“But it is the faith beliefs and churchly practices, not the lifestyle, of the Mormons that are so off-putting,” he writes. “Odd doctrines, like the eternity of creation, multiple gods, the preexistence of the soul, the deification of men, and virtual universalism all seem quite bizarre.

“Odd practices, such as secret temple proceedings, baptisms for the dead, sacred undergarments, and deep secrecy as to the leadership of this oligarchical (episcopal?) organization are only a few of the things that have caused orthodox Christianity generally to consider the LDS ‘church’ a cult. Yet, both in the 1830s and today, Mormonism has been a religious tradition with wide attraction.”

The SBJT Forum addresses the issue of Christians speaking the truth in love to Mormons, sharing with them the light of Christ and His genuine Gospel. Russell D. Moore, dean of the School of Theology and senior vice president for academic administration at Southern, asserts that Mormons do not need an unbiblical and unsatisfying vision of Christian hope.

“Instead, our LDS neighbors (and all of us) need to hear of the biblical glory of a restored universe in which human beings will rule with Christ over all things, a universe in which nature itself is freed from the curse and in which human friendship, love, and community continue and grow forever.

“LDS families don’t just need to hear that we are pro-family. They need to understand that we are pro-family because the family reflects the Fatherhood of God (Eph. 3:14), a Fatherhood that finds its meaning not in pre-mortal spirit babies but in the sonship of Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:15).”

Also in the SBJT forum, John Divito, a master of divinity student at Southern Seminary and a former Mormon, offers advice to those who successfully bring Mormons into a true relationship with Jesus Christ. New converts to Christianity out of Mormonism have two basic needs, he writes: clear, uncompromised biblical teaching and patience. Divito serves as a research associate for Mormonism Research Ministry.

“For some reason, many evangelicals think that when a former Mormon or other cultist comes to Christ, all of his or her former beliefs and attachments simply disappear,” he writes. “This is simply not the case.”

Other essayists include Baylor University professor Francis J. Beckwith, Palm Beach Atlantic University professor Paul Copan, and Eastern University professor Carl Mosser.

The journal also includes a number of book reviews. To subscribe to the SBJT or obtain further information about it, please contact the journal office at 502-897-4413 or journaloffice@sbts.edu.

More

Mohler names Charles Lawless new dean of Billy Graham School September 14, 2005

The president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary did not have to look far to find a new dean for the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth.

R. Albert Mohler Jr. has appointed Charles E. Lawless, the Graham School’s senior associate dean, as its new leader.

Lawless succeeds the Graham School’s founding dean, Thom Rainer, who was elected Monday as the ninth president of LifeWay Christian resources.

Lawless was greeted with a standing ovation after Mohler announced his appointment during Tuesday’s chapel service.

“He (Lawless) is a leader – one that has given us a model of the kind of leadership upon which institutions are built,” Mohler said. “I have no doubt whatsoever that this is the man God would give us to lead the Billy Graham school into its next phase. He had the enthusiastic and unanimous support of his own faculty and that says a lot as well.

“Moments like this are the events of which an institution’s history is made...You never know how God will use a man placed into a position like this...We need to pray with absolute gratitude to God for giving him to us and a sense of anticipation of what God is going to do through him.”

Lawless has served as senior associate dean of the Billy Graham School since 2002 and has been a member of the faculty since 1996.

“I have for 10 years had the privilege of working alongside Dr. Rainer, who is the most creative leader for whom I have ever worked,” Lawless said. “He has built a great Graham School team to lead us into the future. I am honored that President Mohler would ask me to follow in his footsteps.

“At the same time, I look forward to working with Dr. Rainer to consider ways that the Graham School and LifeWay might work together to help reach this nation for Christ.”

Lawless is a two-time graduate of Southern Seminary, having completed a master of divinity degree in 1992 and a Ph.D. in 1997. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Lawless is a popular seminar speaker on such issues as spiritual warfare and prayer.

He has written numerous books including “Membership Matters,” a book released this summer by Zondervan and “Discipled Warriors: Growing Healthy Churches That Are Equipped for Spiritual Warfare” (Kregel, 2002).

In 2002 Lawless received the Findley B. and Louvenia Edge Award for Teaching Excellence, an honor conferred by a vote of the student body. Since 1981, Lawless has served numerous Southern Baptist churches in Ohio and Kentucky in various capacities including pastor and interim pastor. Lawless and wife Pam have been married since 1991.

Lawless said he wants to continue building the Graham School upon the foundation that was put firmly in place by Rainer.

“My first goal is to keep building on the foundation that is already in place,” Lawless said. “Dr. Rainer has given us the vision to be the finest Great Commission school ever built and we will continue to move in that direction. Ultimately my mission is to be a Great Commission school with Acts 1:8 impact, that is, that our students would spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ in Louisville, Kentucky, North America and around the world.

“I want us to produce what I call ‘discipled warriors’ who march into battle wearing the full armor of God. All of us in the Graham School would appreciate the prayers and support of Southern Baptists as we tackle this challenge.”

More

Churches must help uninvolved members serve consistently, SBTS professor writes September 12, 2005

Paul was a member of First Baptist Church who attended every Sunday morning. Other church members often commented favorably on Paul’s faithfulness. But in reality Sunday morning worship attendance was the limit of Paul’s commitment to the church.

Unfortunately, Paul’s story is not an isolated case but is repeated thousands of times each Sunday in churches across America, writes Southern Baptist Theological Seminary professor Chuck Lawless in “Membership Matters,” a new book published by Zondervan. According to Lawless, churches must transform uninvolved members like Paul into fully involved Christian servants.

Many church attenders “are evangelicals, committed to Christ and his Word—but they’ve never been discipled,” writes Lawless, who serves as Brookes Professor of Evangelism & Church Growth and senior associate dean of Southern’s Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth. “... My prayer is that the book you now hold in your hands will help confront this issue.”

Lawless’ research began as a study of new member classes in 150 growing churches. As the research progressed, he expanded his investigation to the additional question of how churches move current members to greater commitment and involvement.

A membership class is a highly effective method of assimilating uninvolved and new members into a church, he writes. Such a class introduces members to the church’s mission and doctrine in addition to helping them build significant relationships within the congregation, according to Lawless.

“Scheduling a membership class is never easy,” he writes. “Church staff members and potential class members are already too busy.... But the leaders in this study told us that the benefits of the class far outweigh the scheduling difficulties.”

Among the basic doctrines taught in most successful membership classes are the plan of salvation and the nature of the church, including the church’s status as a family and God’s expectation that Christians join a local congregation, he writes.

“The churches in our study ... did not promote joining only as a response to a biblical command; rather, they emphasized joining as an expression of commitment to God and to a particular group of believers,” Lawless writes. “Membership is a public pledge to find our role in the body, work alongside other members, and hold each other accountable to faithful Christian living.”

Along with central Christian doctrines, successful membership classes also teach membership expectations and the church’s mission, he writes, adding that membership expectations frequently include identifying with the church, attending worship and small groups, giving financially to the church and serving in ministry.

Despite the benefits of a membership class, a class alone cannot accomplish fully the work of motivating members to become involved in ministry, according to Lawless. Churches must also implement a ministry placement strategy and encourage every member to find a place to serve, he writes.

Raising the standards of membership and starting a class may result in short-term decline and frustration, but the benefits of a committed membership far outweigh the costs, he writes.

“Moving attenders into membership and members into ministry through a membership class will require some work,” Lawless writes. “Decide now that the results are worth the cost.”

Some key steps to beginning the process of moving members into ministry include enlisting a prayer team to pray for laborers, asking uninvolved members why they aren’t involved and starting with a few people who are willing to be discipled.

Lawless concludes the book with a chapter detailing the stories of specific congregations that successfully move attenders into membership and ministry. He then closes with a word of encouragement to church leaders.

“As you make membership matter in your church, develop a clear disciple-making strategy. Don’t stop with a membership class and a ministry placement strategy.”

More

Thom Rainer gets unanimous vote as LifeWay president-elect

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Trustees of LifeWay Christian Resources unanimously approved the election of Thom S. Rainer to become the ninth president of the Southern Baptist entity Sept. 12.

As president-elect, Rainer will begin working alongside LifeWay President James T. Draper Jr. Oct. 17 until Draper’s retirement Feb. 1, 2006.

“This is a great day for all Southern Baptists and for LifeWay Christian Resources,” said Rick Evans, pastor of Dalraida Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala., and chairman of the LifeWay presidential search committee. “Dr. Rainer will provide the kind of leadership that will enable us to be the leading producer of Christian materials for years to come. His theological and doctrinal positions are synonymous with who we are as Southern Baptists. He is a visionary who possesses the skills to both communicate and administer the goals of LifeWay.”

Rainer, 50, is dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. A 1977 graduate of the University of Alabama, he earned a master of divinity and Ph.D. at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He served as pastor of churches in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky and Indiana prior to joining Southern in 1994 as founding dean of the Billy Graham School.

Rainer has served as a church consultant and church growth conference speaker for several years and is in frequent demand as a speaker in Southern Baptist churches. He is the author of 16 books, including “Surprising Insights from the Unchurched,” “The Unchurched Next Door” and “Breakout Churches.” He is a member of both the Academy for Evangelism in Theological Education and the American Society for Church Growth.

Rainer also is founder, president and CEO of The Rainer Group, one of the nation’s leading church and denominational consultant organizations.

He and his wife, Nellie Jo, have three sons: Sam, Art and Jess.

Draper said he is “incredibly excited to have a man of Thom Rainer’s gifts and vision to work alongside in the months ahead. He is a proven leader, a brilliant statesman and a gifted visionary. That’s why I believe LifeWay’s best days are still ahead.”

Responding to the trustees, Rainer spoke of the passions that will drive his leadership at LifeWay:

-- Evangelism. “The Southern Baptist Convention is a denomination of fierce love for missions and evangelism,” Rainer said. “As we work with other agencies, churches and Christians across the globe, LifeWay must be at the forefront of a great renewal for evangelism in our denomination and beyond.”

-- Denominational memory, or “that which defines who we are as a people called Southern Baptists.... Doctrine is not a word from which we should hide,” he said.

-- Relevancy. LifeWay must understand the culture and help the church connect in a relevant way for the purpose of evangelism.

Rainer also expressed admiration for Draper’s leadership. In assuming the presidency of LifeWay, Rainer said he stands “on the shoulders of giants” who made LifeWay what it is today.

LifeWay is one of the world’s largest providers of Christian products and services, including Bibles, church literature, books, music, audio and video recordings, church supplies and Internet services through LifeWay.com. Established in Nashville, Tenn., in 1891, the company owns and operates 124 LifeWay Christian Stores throughout the United States as well as two of the largest Christian conference centers in the country.

More

New Orleans refugees find shelter at Southern Seminary September 8, 2005

When Hochel Song and his family left their home on the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary campus Aug. 27, they expected to return within a couple of days.

Song—along with his wife Yunja and children Yejin, 4, and Joshua, 1—headed for Baton Rouge, La., where he serves as associate pastor at the Korean Central Church of Baton Rouge. The family heard that a storm was approaching New Orleans, so they planned to wait an extra day before returning home.

But when Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans Aug. 29, the Songs, natives of South Korea, were left with no home and just one small suitcase of clothes. Desperate to find food and shelter, the Songs called The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. Southern housed the Songs along with three other New Orleans families in the Legacy Center, the campus’ conference center and hotel, for several days. Southern also provided all meals for the refugees at the seminary cafeteria.

“We never expected this situation,” Song said. “Every morning when we wake up, we’re surprised. We thought we would go home Monday at first. Then we heard next week. Now we hear it could be two months or even a year before we can return.”

Song completed his master of divinity at New Orleans Seminary last spring and planned to begin work on a Ph.D. this spring. But with both his home and the seminary campus ravished by the Hurricane, Song plans to “watch the New Orleans website then make a long-term plan.”

For the immediate future, Song will live in Baton Rouge so that he can be near his church. The pastor asked Song to return to Korean Central Church as soon as possible to minister to the large numbers of Korean refugees from New Orleans approaching the church for assistance. Being in Baton Rouge will also allow Song to travel to New Orleans quickly when he is allowed to retrieve belongings from his house, he said. Song departed Louisville Sept. 2.

“Many people from New Orleans are rushing to Baton Rouge,” he said. “And the pastor called to ask for help ministering. Many people feel fear and ask for help from the church.”

Initially Song was concerned about the loss of his possessions, including important legal documents permitting him to live in the United States, he said. But as time progressed, Song became thankful just to be alive.

“At first we were concerned about our stuff,” he said. “But now we’re just thankful that God saved our lives. We can’t make our house again. But can make our lives again. We’re just having faith in God.”

Mike Withers, Southern’s supervisor for international and disability services, said the seminary is assisting students like Song by meeting their physical needs and allowing them to enroll at Southern free of charge. The Seminary is offering free housing, as it is available, to all New Orleans students, Withers said.

“NOBTS students are arriving on our campus with little,” Withers said. “So with no more than a completed admission file, we have already begun admitting these hurting students, providing them free on-campus housing and tuition. They have been advised into courses that we believe will count toward their NOBTS degree requirements. The assistant registrar is manually registering them for courses.”

Song noted that the destruction in New Orleans gives Christians an opportunity to speak with people about their need to store up treasures in heaven rather than in this world. Many New Orleans residents are bogged down in sin and do not think about spiritual matters, he said.

“Jesus said one day, ‘This night, God may take your life,’” Song said. “I believe God wants us not only to build a home on earth, but also think about a home in heaven. Many people in New Orleans just enjoy their lives on the earth. ... But I think God will handle this situation and save people.”

More

Southern Seminary mobilizes for disaster relief in wake of Katrina September 2, 2005

Students, faculty and staff at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary should pray, give and go to assist with relief in wake of Hurricane Katrina, seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr. said during chapel services in the days following the storm.

The hurricane, which struck the Gulf Coast Aug. 29, claiming hundreds lives, demands that Christians mobilize to help people whose lives have been affected, Mohler said.

“Southern Baptists are going to be mounting a massive effort to assist people all throughout the region in terms of families in distress and churches that need to be rebuilt and re-established,” he said. “Entire communities just have to be restarted and refounded. There are a lot of displaced people that really need assistance.”

Southern Seminary will focus many of its relief efforts on helping the students, faculty and staff at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Southern began its efforts Aug. 30 by signing up volunteers to serve on relief teams that will be ready to go whenever they are called upon. To date more than 300 Southern students and faculty have volunteered, and the sign up is continuing in Student Services, Norton Hall 150.

“They’re trying to build an army of volunteers to be ready,” Mohler said. “And this is your chance to sign up. We’re looking for a few good men and also women who can help with the rebuilding of lives and the reconnecting of the people. There’s a lot to be done.”

Southern is also collecting an offering for its sister seminary. Checks should be made out to the Southern Baptist Foundation and designated for New Orleans Seminary relief. Donations should also be taken to Student Services in Norton 150. Thus far the seminary family has donated more than $26,000.

The extent of the damage at New Orleans seminary is still unknown, but the lives of students, faculty and staff have been devastated, Mohler said. New Orleans administrators have set up a temporary base of operations at the seminary’s Atlanta extension center.

“We have a seminary, as it were, now in exile, setting up in its extension in Atlanta,” Mohler said, commenting on Jeremiah 29. “The most important part of this passage is what the Lord promises His people: ‘I have plans for you, plans for your welfare and not for evil.’ We have claimed that promise for so many who are suffering and grieving and scrambling together today to figure out how they can put their lives and ministries and families back together.”

Christians must not downplay the fact that much of the damage caused by the hurricane was the destruction of physical objects, he said, adding that God has programmed humans to need physical possessions and to attach to them great sentimental value.

“It is just stuff in many cases, but it’s the stuff of which human lives are made operational,” he said. “... There are people who have no homes in which possessions could even be kept. No jobs: That’s one of the real issues in the rebuilding of the seminary ... how they put together an entire economy for the region. Students won’t have any place to work.”

Mohler noted, “No one knows what this rebuilding is going to look like. President Bush was surely right ... when he said it would take years. But it has to start somewhere, and we need to make a response as quickly as possible.”

More

Southern Seminary mobilizes for disaster relief in wake of Katrina August 31, 2005

Students, faculty and staff at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary should pray, give and go to assist with relief in wake of Hurricane Katrina, seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr. said in an Aug. 30 chapel service.

The hurricane, which struck the Gulf coast Aug. 29, claiming dozens of lives, demands that Christians mobilize to help people whose lives have been affected, Mohler said.

“The scope of the devastation is so wide ... that we really cannot take it in,” Mohler said. “And sitting here this morning, there is the feeling that we probably can’t do much about it. As Christians, we know we are to pray, and I know we have been doing that. But it feels like there ought to be something else that we can do.”

Southern will focus its relief efforts on helping the students at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary in New Orleans, La., as they attempt to recover their homes and possessions, he said. Southern’s efforts will include taking up an offering to assist New Orleans students and sending teams of Southern students to assist physically with cleanup efforts in the churches and homes of New Orleans students.

New Orleans Seminary is undertaking a massive cleanup operation and hopes to resume classes Sept. 6. But that date may be pushed back, Mohler said. The New Orleans Seminary campus did not sustain major damage, but the lives of many students have been devastated, he said.

“We want to ... try to help the students at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and their families and the churches they serve,” Mohler said.

“There ought to be something we can do to encourage them and to help them, those who may very well have lost everything.”

Chapel attendees were given the opportunity to sign up for short-term relief trips immediately following the chapel service, and many responded by volunteering.

Students, faculty and staff who would like to volunteer for disaster relief may continue to sign up in Student Services in Norton Hall 150.

“There are going to be dozens and dozens of short-term trips once the roads are clear and once minimal infrastructure is in place to go down and help put things back together,” Mohler said. “It may be going down for a weekend to help get a church ... back in its minimal situation so that a church can hold services. It may be helping a family by going to put their home back together. It could be any number of things.”

In addition to sending short-term relief trips, Southern will begin taking up its offering for New Orleans students during the Sept. 1 chapel service. Anyone wishing to donate to relief efforts may do so during this service or may bring donations by Student Services in Norton 150.

To illustrate how Katrina has impacted Southern in a personal way, Mohler asked all chapel attendees with family members in the affected areas to stand. Several rose to their feet. Mohler then asked how many had not heard from their family members, and about a dozen students remained standing.

“There’s literally no way in terms of human wisdom to put this back together again, but we want to help,” he said.

“God’s people know that in a moment like this, the one thing that we most need to do is to place our trust in God. There’s nothing that can be done humanly speaking from here right now. No one can connect a phone cable and no one can fly down a cell phone. ... But we do need to pray.”

Mohler closed his comments on the hurricane by asking chapel attendees to gather in groups of three or four to pray for all people affected by Katrina.

More

Mohler to students: Ministry is “not about us” August 26, 2005

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--Ministers are not volunteers who join a profession, but are earthen vessels chosen and equipped by God to proclaim His Word for His glory, R. Albert Mohler Jr. said during The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary’s annual fall convocation Tuesday.

The standing-room-only crowd also saw four professors sign the seminary’s confession of faith and the installation of four professors into endowed chairs. Mohler also introduced 13 new faculty members.

During his message, Mohler said there is no higher calling than to preach the Gospel, but reminded ministers that they must hold the same view of themselves as does Paul in 2 Corinthians 4 – weak and sinful mortals who preach the Gospel solely by the mercy of God.

“We are called not because of who we are any more than we were called to salvation because of who we are,” Mohler said. “We are called in spite of who we are. We alone understand that we are the least qualified persons imaginable for the job that has been entrusted to us...It is not about us. It is about God.

“We are the people of all the earth who must understand that our resumes mean virtually nothing. There really is no aptitude in us that is our own. There is no qualification that is our earning. The Lord God, for His good reasons in His sovereignty, chooses those who will be the preachers and teachers of His Word and the vessels of His Gospel, and He equips the incompetent.”

Ministers are not called to be “peddlers” of the Gospel who merely seek to gather an audience and “cut corners in the ministry,” as did the so-called “super apostles” of Paul’s day, Mohler said. Rather, Mohler asserted that the first task of a minister is to openly proclaim the truth of God in the manner of the apostle Paul, preaching the message of “the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

“Paul continued his ministry always in light of that fact that he lived and was called and he preached and he taught by the mercy of God,” Mohler said. “How important it is that we do the same. How important it is that every day I realize that I am here by the mercy of God. I hope that you know you are here by the mercy of God.

“It is a ministry that is received, and because it is received it isn’t ours to invent. This isn’t a profession we are developing. This is a calling we have received by mercy. Therefore there are certain realities we have to affirm. We are not in the business of cunning speech. We are not in the business of deception. We are not peddlers of the Word of God. Our business is the open statement of truth.”

God has entrusted the Gospel to men who are made of mere flesh and blood, whom Paul describes as “jars of clay,” a humbling truth ministers must always keep before them, Mohler said.

“Paul is talking about us here,” Mohler said. “Earthenware vessels are considered to be cheap, expendable and relatively fragile. No one has an earthenware vessel as a centerpiece...God chooses earthenware vessels made out of mortal stuff. We are flimsy, frail, fragile sinners. At best our strength is weakness. At worst, our weakness is weakness.

“If the Lord did not take care of us we would wither and die...We would be crushed by every problem in ministry.”

Like the apostle Paul, those who faithfully preach the Gospel will undergo persecution and affliction ranging from conflict with members of the church they lead to physical ailments and perhaps even death, Mohler said. Ministers must also expect to be regularly perplexed by their congregations, he added.

No matter how intense the suffering may be or how perplexed a minister may become, God will faithfully sustain those who keep trusting Him, Mohler said, urging ministers to realize as Paul did that “momentary light affliction” is producing in them the glory of God. Mohler encouraged ministers to keep Paul’s eternal perspective and persevere by looking steadfastly to the hope of the promised resurrection that the work of Christ secured.

“The ministry is going to cost us something,” he said. “The ministry is going to cost us more than we have to give. It is going to cost us our lives if we understand what it is all about. It is going to cost us everything we are [and] there is not going to be anything left of us at the end except the glory of God.”

So, why does God choose such weak and vulnerable people as His means to proclaim the Gospel? It is to demonstrate that all glory and power belong to Him and not to man, Mohler said.

“[He calls people like us] to make a point that it’s all about His glory,” he said. “It is not about us.”

During the service, professors signed the Abstract of Principles, Southern Seminary’s confession of faith: Russell D. Moore, associate professor of Christian Theology, dean of the School of Theology and senior vice president for academic administration; Robert L. Plummer, assistant professor of New Testament interpretation; and Larry J. Purcell, associate professor of leadership and church ministry.

Mohler inducted four faculty members into endowed professorships, including Duane A. Garrett as the John R. Sampey Professor of Old Testament Interpretation, Purcell as the J.M. Frost Associate Professor of Leadership and Church Ministry and Robert A. Vogel as the Carl E. Bates Professor of Christian Preaching. Mohler was also inducted as the Joseph Emerson Brown Professor of Christian Theology.

Southern’s president also recognized several new Southern Seminary and Boyce College faculty members, including W. Hayward Armstrong, associate professor of Christian missions and associate vice president for distance education and innovative learning; William A. Dembski, professor of science and theology; Mary A. Kassian, distinguished professor of women’s studies; Eugene H. Merrill, distinguished professor of Old Testament interpretation; Jonathan T. Pennington, assistant professor of New Testament interpretation; Randy L. Stinson, assistant professor of gender and family studies; Donald S. Whitney, associate professor of biblical spirituality and director of Supervised Ministry Experience; Jaye Martin, interim director of women’s programs; Linda Miniard, assistant director of women’s programs; Gary D. Almon, assistant professor of Christian education and associate director of the International Center for Youth Ministry; Nathan H. Platt, assistant professor of worship ministry; Kristin J. Yeldell, instructor of Christian education, and Stuart W. Scott, associate professor of biblical counseling.

More

Evolution & Christianity ‘completely incompatible,’ Mohler says in NPR forum August 23, 2005

Evolution is a driving force behind the rejection of traditional morality, R. Albert Mohler Jr. said in a National Public Radio online forum on evolution and religious faith.

“Evolutionary theory stands at the base of moral relativism and the rejection of traditional morality,” Mohler writes. “If human beings are not made in the image of God, and if the entire cosmos is nothing more than a freakish accident, morality is nothing but a mirage, and human beings -- cosmic accidents that we are -- are free to negotiate whatever moral arrangement seems best to us at any given time.”

For the Aug. 8 edition of its “Taking Issue” forum, NPR solicited the views of five experts on the question of religious faith’s compatibility with evolution. Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., presented an evangelical Baptist perspective.

Other forum participants include Brad Hirschfield, vice president of CLAL-The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, who articulates a Jewish perspective; George Sim Johnston, author of “Did Darwin Get It Right: Catholics and the Theory of Evolution,” who offers a Roman Catholic view; Katharine Jefferts Schori, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada, who makes a case for the Episcopal view; and Sulayman Nyang, professor of African studies at Howard University and co-director of the Muslims in the American Public Square research project, who presents a Muslim view.

Mohler argues that a fundamental divide exists between those who argue that the universe was purposefully created by God and those who argue that the universe evolved by chance. This divide manifests itself in disagreements between Christians and secularists over a variety of issues, he writes.

“Debates over education, abortion, environmentalism, homosexuality and a host of other issues are really debates about the origin -- and thus the meaning -- of human life,” Mohler writes.

The biblical Book of Genesis makes it clear that humans are neither “accidents” nor “mere animals living among other animals, for human beings alone are made in God’s image,” according to Mohler.

“The theory of evolution argues that human beings -- along with other living creatures -- are simply the product of a blind naturalistic process of evolutionary development,” he continues. “... By definition, evolution has no room for the concept of the image of God, for evolutionary theory has no room for God at all.”

Hirschfield argues from his Jewish perspective that the Bible allows a person to believe simultaneously in both Darwinian evolution and the existence of a purposeful creator. Darwinian evolution explains the mechanical aspects of life’s origins while belief in an intelligent creator is “driven by the desire to appreciate the presence of a creator of life,” he writes.

“That difference does not imply that one is more valid than the other, or even more accurate,” Hirschfield writes. “It simply means that when each of them is taught, there should be full recognition of the different biases that each approach carries with it.

“... In fact, the only unacceptable position in this debate between the Intelligent Design folks and proponents of Darwin is the one that insists there is no room for both of these positions in our classrooms, homes, hearts and minds.”

Schori, reflecting his Episcopalian view, contends that Christians should accept Darwinian evolution and the big-bang theory because these theories are based on a significant body of scientific evidence.

“I simply find it a rejection of the goodness of God’s gifts to say that all of this evidence is to be refused because it does not seem to accord with a literal reading of one of the stories in Genesis,” Schori writes.

New scientific discoveries should be viewed as new acts of revelation from God, Schori says.

“We believe that revelation continues,” she writes, “that God continues to be active in creation, and that all of the many ways of knowing -- including geology, evolutionary biology, philosophy and arts such as opera, punk rock or painting -- can be vehicles through which God and human beings partner in continuing creation.”

Nyang notes that modern Muslims agree with much of contemporary science but reject any theory that downplays man’s status as created purposefully and uniquely by God.

“This Islamic view of human origins and man’s favored status in the universe does not square with the dominant scientific view of evolution as argued by Charles Darwin and the scientific communities around the world,” Nyang writes. “If one follows the logic of the evolutionists, man appeared after a long process of transformation from lower forms of existence to this higher form of biological development.

“... Rather than enclose man within the biological framework of Darwinian theory, man should be seen as a creature that yearns for a rendezvous with the source of his life and existence.”

Johnston, meanwhile, argues that Catholics may accept the mechanical process of evolution but must reject all materialist philosophy, which insists God could not have caused the universe.

“What raises red flags for Catholics is not evolutionary theory per se, but materialist philosophy disguised as science,” he writes, noting that much evolutionary science is based on the “preconceived opinion” that God is not the cause of the universe.

In contrast to materialist philosophy, most Americans recognize that something more than chance caused the creation of the universe, Mohler says.

“Even though they are not credentialed scientists, most Americans have a fairly good grasp of reality,” he writes. “As they observe the world, they are unable to accept an explanatory theory that says that everything -- from human beings to the starry heavens above -- just ‘happened’ and came to exist without any design whatsoever.”

Mohler concludes, “Without the Christian doctrine of creation, Christianity is only one more artifact of an evolutionary process. The Christian affirmation represents the most significant intellectual challenge to evolutionary naturalism.”

More

Evolution utterly incompatible with Christianity, Mohler says in TIME cover story August 8, 2005

Evangelical Christianity and evolution are incompatible beliefs that may not be held together logically within a distinctly Christian worldview, R. Albert Mohler Jr. says in this week’s edition of TIME magazine.

For its Aug. 8 cover story, TIME solicited the views of four experts with different answers to the question “Can you believe in God and evolution?” Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, comments from an evangelical Christian perspective.

Other participants include Francis Collins of the Human Genome Research Institute who argues for theistic evolution, Harvard University psychology professor Steven Pinker who articulates the naturalistic evolutionary position and Lehigh University professor Michael Behe who makes a case for intelligent design.

Mohler,a young-Earth creationist, says the Bible is clear about the way in which God created the earth in six days and argues that Christianity and evolution offer opposing views of human origins.

“Given the human tendency toward inconsistency, there are people who will say they hold both positions,” Mohler says. “But you cannot coherently affirm the Christian-truth claim and the dominant model of evolutionary theory at the same time.

“...I believe the Bible is adequately clear about how God created the world, and that its most natural reading points to a six-day creation that included not just the animal and plant species but the earth itself.

“But there have always been Evangelicals who asserted that it might have taken longer. What they should not be asserting is the idea of God’s having set the rules for evolution and then stepped back. And even less so, the model held by much of the scientific academy: of evolution as the result of a random process of mutation and selection.”

Pinker argues that the moral design of nature “is as bungled as its engineering design,” evidence itself that life did not arise from an intelligent and good creator.

“Many people who accept evolution still feel that a belief in God is necessary to give life meaning and to justify morality,” Pinker says.

“But that is exactly backward. In practice, religion has given us stonings, inquisitions and 9/11. Morality comes from a commitment to treat others as we wish to be treated, which follows from the realization that none of us is the sole occupant of the universe. Like physical evolution, it does not require a white-coated technician in the sky.”

Behe says he does not reject Darwinian evolution on theological grounds but disagrees with it for scientific reasons. God could have made life any way He wanted to, said Behe, a Roman Catholic.

“I think God could have made life using apparently random mutation and natural selection,” Behe says. “But my reading of the scientific evidence is that he did not do it that way, that there was a more active guiding.

“I think that we are all descended from some single cell in the distant past but that that cell and later parts of life were intentionally produced as the result of intelligent activity. As a Christian, I say that intelligence is very likely to be God.”

Collins, who considers himself a Christian, says believers may view evolution as a bona fide explanation for the origin of the universe.

“I see no conflict in what the Bible tells me about God and what science tells me about nature,” Collins says. “...I do not find the wording of Genesis 1 and 2 to suggest a scientific textbook but a powerful and poetic description of God’s intentions in creating the universe. The mechanism of creation is left unspecified.”

But that view usurps the biblical teaching of man being made in the image of God, Mohler says. Evangelicals must affirm the special creation of humans by the sovereign Creator who rules, cares for and governs His creation, Mohler says.

The God of Scripture is not merely a “blind watchmaker” who steps back from His creation and watches in a detached fashion, Mohler says.

Stalwart evolutionists in recent years have moved away from theories that involve God, Mohler points out. While he disagrees vigorously with their views, Mohler says the evolutionist’s rejection of God and embrace of pure naturalism is more consistent than theistic evolution’s attempt to wed the God of the Bible with natural selection.

“I think it’s interesting that many of evolution’s most ardent academic defenders have moved away from the old claim that evolution is God’s means to bring life into being in its various forms,” he says.

“More of them are saying that a truly informed belief in evolution entails a stance that the material world is all there is and that the natural must be explained in purely natural terms. They’re saying that anyone who truly feels this way must exclude God from the story. I think their self-analysis is correct. I just couldn’t disagree more with their premise.”

To view the entire article, please see: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1090921-1,00.html

More

Upcoming Events