Thus says the Lord: "Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.
But they said, 'We will not walk in it.'" --Jeremiah 6:16

 

17 August, 2005   comments: (0) Purpose Drivenism   Superficial Seminaries Producing Pragmatic Pastors A recipient of the Purpose Driven "Church Health Award" says the award confirms that his church (which he calls "historically Christian in doctrine but culturally relevant") is on the right path. What caught my eye about this article though, was not so much the pastor's dual-claim on both "historical doctrine" and modern pragmatic philosophy, but rather, where he was first introduced to Rick Warren's purposes. As a student of Dallas Theological Seminary, he said that the book was "required reading". His story continues on this news page: http://oldtruth.com/SeeSeminaryPurposePastor.cfm I followed-up on this with some online seminary shopping of my own, and was surprised to find quite a few seminaries offering classes in the Purpose Driven model. I even found one college that has a special "Purpose Driven Curriculum". Their description of it is on par with the modern shift away from doctrine. Here's an excerpt: "[The] traditional approach to curriculum design was carried over from the European university system nearly 200 years ago. Its structure reflects the university's primary purpose of producing scholars. Some seminaries are called to emphasize theological scholarship . . . [we are] called to emphasize ministry competency development. . .". The implication being made, is that theological scholarship is not something that relates to "ministry competency" (as they phrase it). Well, it certainly used to be, in centuries past. Anyway, you can read the rest of their Purpose Driven Curriculum description here: http://www.rbiu.org/purposedriven.php A similar trend occurred in the late 19th century at Princeton Seminary. Princeton was one of the first seminaries in America, and was home to many of the greatest theologians in American history. In a historical article entitled "The Fall of Evangelical Seminaries", Dr. Mal Couch writes: "Around 1915 in the seminary, the curriculum of traditional required hours was reduced drastically over against the opposition of the more conservative faculty members. Moral "practical" courses were added. Substantive courses were removed and replaced by fatally superficial studies. The "theological men" lost ground to the "practical men" who wanted more "how-to" studies, supposedly on the grounds of meeting the practical needs of the churches. The liberal element among the professors failed to understand the legitimate theological concerns of their colleagues. By 1929, Old Princeton ceased to exist." You can read the rest of this article at: http://conservativeonline.org/journals/04_12_journal/2000v4n12_id06.htm Whether the new Purpose Driven seminary trend is a repeat of 19th century history, or is simply a continuation of it, it's unfortunate to see the rejection of sound doctrinal principles, in favor of modern pragmatism. Posted by: Jim B.   Link: http://www.oldtruth.com/blog.cfm/id.2.pid.25   Be the first to post a comment about this article        Home  |   About  |  Videos   |  Calvinism