Ecclesial Theology Posts
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March 8, 2010
Pastor-Theologians and Academic Theologians: Toward a Healthy Division of Labor
I’ve spent the last few weeks reading Robert Jenson’s Systematic Theology. The trinitarian framework that permeates Jenson’s project is fascinating. I’ll need more time (a lot more time!) to sort through all of the implications, but his desire to liberate Christian theology from Greek notions of impassibility and move it toward a (in Jenson’s mind) more biblical notion of God’s ontology has my mind churning in all manners of …
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February 21, 2010
The Pastor-Theologian as Ecclesial Theologian
I’ve reworked my 2009 Symposium paper in light of feedback received. The paper brings together the content of my Reformation 21 article, with the content of my taxonomy series, and seeks to articulate an understanding of the pastor-theologian that includes the writing of ecclesial theology as as significant factor in the pastor-theologian’s identity.
The intent is to include this paper in an edited volume alongside the other 2009 Pastor-Theologian Symposium papers, so any feedback before publication is welcome. Here’s the introduction followed by a link to a pdf:
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The … -
February 16, 2010
Bargerhuff, The Love that Rescues
Eric Bargerhuff, one of our SAET Fellows, has just announced the release of his book on church discipline, Love That Rescues: God’s Fatherly Love in the Practice of Church Discipline (Wipf and Stock). Every pastor needs to think carefully and biblically about this important topic. I encourage you to pick up a copy. The book’s description is below:
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In an age where “church discipline” has fallen out of favor in … -
February 12, 2010
Two Birds With One “Pastor-as-Ecclesial-Theologian” Stone
Nothing particularly new here. Todd and I had lunch with a number of area pastors who wanted to hear more about the SAET. We both came away feeling like maybe we could have been more precise in explaining the SAET vision and mission. So I’ve been trying to think in fresh ways about how best to frame the whole discussion. What problems are we trying to address? How does the …
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January 13, 2010
Carl Trueman on “The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind”
Carl Trueman has a piece over at 9Marks that resonates with much of what the SAET stands for regarding ecclesial theology. Trueman’s basic point is that there is tendency among (some) evangelical academics to pander to the fancies of the secular establishment, and that such pandering is harmful to the church and her theology. I used to push this message more ardently in the early days of the SAET, but have since concluded that …
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December 22, 2009
Who Needs the Pastor-Theologian?
The pastor-theologian programs of organizations such as the Center for Theological Inquiry, and the Presbyterian Church USA (both programs are discontinued) follow a nearly identical organizational model as the SAET—we each host symposiums, bring together a diverse body of pastor-theologians and academic theologians, present papers, and pursue publishing, etc. Yet for the CTI and the PCA, such activities are meant to further the pastor’s effectiveness as a local-theologian, not primarily to season the body of orthodox theological reflection.
The SAET however, is primarily concerned to further the pastor’s ability …
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December 18, 2009
Thielicke on the (Ecclesial) Theologian
“Insofar as we are determined to be true theologians, we think within the community of God’s people, and for that community, and in the name of that community; – how shall I say? – we think as a part of the community itself.”
and again,
“I should like to add to all this that the church has the prior right to question us, even if it does not and cannot understand the details of our work; …
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November 30, 2009
Taxonomy of the Pastor-Theologian, Part 5: The Pastor-Theologian as Ecclesial Theologian
Having discussed the reigning models of the pastor-theologian (local, popular, academic), the SAET’s vision for the pastor-theologian begins to emerge—the pastor-theologian as ecclesial theologian.
The pastor-as-ecclesial-theologian marks a new path. The ecclesial theologian is as church centered as the local and popular theologian models, and is as intellectually rigorous as the academic theologian model. The ecclesial theologian is a pastor who writes robust, biblical, ecclesially centered, theological reflection …
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November 27, 2009
Taxonomy of the Pastor-Theologian, Part 3: The Pastor-Theologian as Popular Theologian
Moving beyond the local theologian model, we arrive at a more objective definition of the pastor-theologian—the pastor-theologian as popular theologian. In this model, the pastor-theologian is a pastor who actually writes theology—an objective function not typical of most pastors. Bridging the gap between the professional theological community and the local church, the popular theologian translates academic theology “down” to other pastors and the laity. Many pastor-theologians of this variety have post-graduate degrees, read widely in theology, and serve as significant (and necessary) voices in contemporary evangelicalism.
The writing ministries …
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November 22, 2009
Taxonomy of the Pastor-Theologian: Part 1
I’ve been reading The Power to Comprehend with All the Saints: The Formation and Practice of the Pastor-Theologian. The book is a collection of essays written by the group of pastors who were part of the (now disbanded) Pastor-Theologian Program of the Center For Theological Inquiry. The CTI’s Pastor-Theologian program was, in many respects, a mainline version of the SAET. The book has a number of robust essays that, …
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Welcome
Welcome to saet-online.org, the online home of The Society for the Advancement of Ecclesial Theology (SAET). The SAET is an organization dedicated to assisting pastor-theologians in producing biblical and theological scholarship for the renewal of orthodox theology, for the renewal of the church.
Operating within the historic evangelical tradition, the SAET believes the contemporary bifurcation between the pastoral calling and theological formation has resulted in the loss of a distinctly ecclesial voice in orthodox theology. The SAET seeks to resurrect this voice...(continue reading)Recent Posts
- Dr. Joel Willitts, Newest SAET Fellow
- Pastor-Theologians and Academic Theologians: Toward a Healthy Division of Labor
- The Faith of Jesus Christ, Sprinkle and Bird
- The Pastor-Theologian as Ecclesial Theologian
- Bargerhuff, The Love that Rescues
- Two Birds With One “Pastor-as-Ecclesial-Theologian” Stone
- New Digs for the SAET Site
- Biblical Evidence that Pastors Are Called to Serve as Wider Theologians: Part 2
- Jenson on Prolegomena
- Newly Updated Fellowship Prospectus
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