2027 Theologians Network

Historically speaking, European theology has had a leading role in the shaping of evangelicalism. What about today? The spiritual climate in the continent is patchy and evangelical theology reflects its diversified condition. The session aims to provide a bird’s-eye view of its present-day outlook, taking 1976 (i.e., the constitution of FEET, the Fellowship of European Evangelical Theologians) as a starting point. The session will attempt to geographically map the institutions, journals, personalities, conferences, etc., that have played a role in shaping European evangelical theology. It will also suggest some theological reflections on the strengths and weaknesses of its contemporary setting. This preliminary groundwork may stimulate further exploration of the opportunities and challenges ahead as we consider the future of European evangelical theology.

This session will look first at the sort of arguments for the reliability of the Old Testament which tend to be ineffective because they are not adequately supported or appeal to evidence which is debatable and urges Christians to use arguments which are based on the broadest possible patterns of evidence. These arguments include arguments for the uniqueness of the Old Testament theologically and for its unusually critical view of the human protagonists. We also consider the significant changes which have occurred in our knowledge since archaeology began and how approximately 2% of the named individuals in the Old Testament may be verified outside the Old Testament.

Since 2009, the Old Testament scholar John Walton has produced a series of short books for laypeople which assert the existence of a “lost world” behind key parts of the Old Testament, including The Lost World of Genesis One, The Lost World of Scripture (co-authored with D. Brent Sandy), The Lost World of Adam and Eve, The Lost World of the Israelite Conquest (co-authored with J. Harvey Walton), The Lost World of the Flood (co-authored with Tremper Longman III), The Lost World of Torah (co-authored with J. Harvey Walton), The Lost World of the Prophets, and, most recently, New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis. For Walton, this lost world, a historical-conceptual background reconstructed from extrabiblical literature, is essential for understanding the Old Testament. This presentation will evaluate Walton’s arguments, especially in his books dealing with Genesis, and offer a critique, from the point of view of ancient Near Eastern literature and biblical exegesis.

This joint session with the Theologians and Scientists Networks focuses on the exegetical, biblical side of the creation debate. Three biblical scholars–Peter J. Williams, Andrew Loke, and Jack Collins–will present their linguistic and theological arguments on how Genesis and the creation texts in Scripture should be understood. These presentations will be followed by a moderated panel discussion and then Q&A from the audience.

In the daily practice of teaching students Hebrew and Greek in seminaries and theological degree programmes, we constantly emphasise ‘translation’. But why should we spend hundreds of hours learning the biblical languages when there are already good Bible translations? Though much is found in our translations, the richness of the original is not something that a single translation can capture fully. By learning to read Scripture well in the original languages, as opposed to merely translating, we learn to follow the thoughts and the subtle points the author is making. In this session, we will look at a number of examples in the New Testament that will help us to appreciate the usefulness of reading the text in Greek. This will encourage us to become better readers, better students, and also better teachers of Scripture. 

We would know so little about the early church if we did not have the book of Acts. Some argue we still do not know very much because we cannot trust Acts as history. We examine this question by showing how the ancients viewed history versus myth, working through some examples of how Acts reports events, and examining carefully claims that the picture of the theology of Acts does not fit with what we do know about Paul. Luke indeed shows himself to be a credible ancient historian. This workshop shows how we know that.

The Book of Exodus does more than develop the plot of the Book of Genesis. Genesis had taught us how to view ourselves in the land of Egypt. More broadly, Genesis had taught us how to view the whole world in relation to the God who creates and who saves. Exodus tells its magnificent history in ways that build on the lessons of Genesis. We can see that there is much more going on here than yet another tale of oppression and rescue. The God who made the world and who had already begun to redeem sinners, created something new by calling his people out of Egypt. We will see how this helps us to understand the Biblical Theology that the New Testament assumes.

Liberation Theology challenges the church to care for the poor and oppressed, but its Marxist roots raise serious questions. This talk examines both its appeal and its dangers, and points to the true hope of freedom in Christ.