Evangelicals and Nicene Faith: Reclaiming the
apostolic witness
Timothy George, editor
Baker Academic £16.99
(978-0-8010-3926-3)
Church Times Bookshop £15.30 (Use code
CT226 )
THERE is something deeply ecumenical going on in American
Evangelicalism which is of great significance to the worldwide
Church. A broad range of American Evangelicals are reclaiming their
stake in the universal heritage of the Church, renewing their
fundamental identity in historic Nicene Christianity, and
reconnecting with the great tradition of Christianity, shared with
Catholic and Orthodox. This collection of essays, edited by Timothy
George, is part of that movement, and focuses on the
Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed of 381.
Evangelicals and Nicene Faith is divided into three
sections: identity, history, and practice. Some of the essays will
be valuable reading for anyone who wants to understand the
evolution of the Creed, and especially its relationship to the
scriptures. Others are of general appeal, and apply the Creed to
various aspects of Christian living, from political thought
(Elizabeth Newman) to suffering in times of national crisis (John
Rucyahana, former Bishop in Rwanda during the genocide). Others are
more specifically addressed to intra-Evangelical debates,
especially among American Baptists. But, even to those far away
geographically and theologically, these studies offer fascinating
insights into the ecclesial psychology of a powerful swath of
American Christianity as it seeks to be both self-critical and
self-consistent. Among them are two essays that particularly
grabbed my attention, raising matters of direct relevance to the
Church of England.
Steven Harmon grapples with the "problem of the Magisterium". He
recognises that some agency of doctrinal authority is needed in
order to define the teaching of the Church, and to secure an
authentic interpretation of biblical truth. After analysing the
Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church and the methods of the
Magisterial Reformers, he proposes "a Free Church Magisterium" in
which authority is located in the gathered Church that listens
attentively to the whole Church, past and present.
Although his model does not map exactly on to Anglican ways,
Harmon's wise words on the weighting of voices may give us some
clues on how to handle the tensions between the part played by
synods and the responsibility of bishops in the articulation of the
Church's teaching.
Mark DeVine's engagement with the emergent church scene not only
rehearses Evangelical critiques of the creeds, but also provides a
good example of raw ecclesiology-in-the-making. While defining the
Nicene Creed as a response to the voice of God rather than the
voice itself, DeVine strongly commends the Creed to the emergent
Church as a voice that it needs to hear with humility and
obedience.
At the same time, although he regards the Creed as necessary to
the healthy development of new forms of church, he does not see it
as sufficient, and calls for accompanying confessions that provide
a theological interpretation of the Creed's narrative of salvation.
Anglicans are unlikely to be convinced about the lattercri de
coeur, but DeVine's challenge to shape every emergent form of the
Church according to the contours of the Creed is a timely reminder
to us all.
Dr Christopher Cocksworth is the Bishop of
Coventry.