Evangelical Training

Michael Bird reviews an audio address by D.A. Carson to the 1998 ETS gathering. I look forward to hearing Dr. Carson speak. Allow Michael Bird to give a couple of reasons why

I agree that evangelicalism must be defined theologically (as opposed to defining it sociologically or as a post-enlightenment religious renewal movement). For me the centre of evangelicalism must be the evangel, rather than things like inerrancy or complementarianism, while a number of theological corollaries follow from the evangel, nothing must displace the evangel as the theological center. In fact, I would go so far as to say that the distinctive element of an evangelical theology would be the setting out of the gospel as part of it’s prolegomena…

I could not agree more with the importance of biblical theology as something that needs to be taught in order to provide an over-arching meta-narrative for evangelical students and scholars. The sad fact is that it is not taught in a number of institutions and it desperately needs to be.

I eagerly await Carson’s address.