Category Archives: who are we?

Criteria for Holiness and Catholicity

(continuing with Clowney) In his chapter on holiness and catholicity, Clowney brings us back to the Scriptures and past traditional doctrine. Drawing on Paul’s epistolary salutations, he discerns two movements in holiness. In the initial movement, those who trust Christ … Continue reading

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The Identity and Function of the Church

Excerpt from “The Identity and Function of the Church in Lesslie Newbigin’s Missionary Ecclesiology,” my paper on Newbigin’s ecclesiology. One might think of ecclesiology as an identity-function grid upon which specific expressions of church are practiced. The identity axis describes … Continue reading

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The Missional Identity of the Church 7

The Gospel in a Pluralist Society by Lesslie Newbigin 255 pages Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (December 1989) ECCLESIOLOGICAL INSIGHTS The church is… a community of peace, overflowing reverence for and gratitude to Jesus in the presence of others. … Continue reading

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The Missional Identity of the Church 6

NOTE: this post has been rewritten Foolishness to the Greeks Lesslie Newbigin 160 pages Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (April 1986) Post-enlightenment culture, chapters 1-2 Modern culture has three key features: the public-private dichotomy, the fact-value dichotomy, and the … Continue reading

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The Missional Identity of the Church 5

Question to Consider from my reading of Newbigin’s The Open Secret If the Trinity is best understood through the narratives of salvation history and if the ecclesia exists only in relation to the Trinity, then what do the Trinity-revealing narratives … Continue reading

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