The Results of Praying for Evangelical Scholarship

Gordon Kurht

In the 1940s and '50s, some thoughtful Evangelical leaders encouraged prayer for a renewal of Evangelical scholarship, especially in the areas of biblical studies and biblical theology. Liberal theology seemed to reign unchallenged. Most Evangelicals gave themselves in Christian service to their parishes, to Evangelical agencies (eg Scripture Union, Evangelical Alliance, Church Pastoral-Aid Society) or to overseas missions. As well as prayer, some of these visionary leaders took action in the establishing of the Tyndale House Library and Research Centre in Cambridge, and the Tyndale Fellowship for Biblical Research. The early fruits of emerging scholarship were often published by the Inter-Varsity Press or Tyndale Press.

When I started studying for a university theology degree in 1960, the publications of really high-class biblical and theological scholarship by Evangelical scholars were still very few - scarcely taking up twelve inches of a bookshelf. Some looked back to PT Forsyth, James Orr and James Denney of an earlier generation. Karl Barth and Emil Brunner were regarded with considerable suspicion. The Brethren biblical scholar, Professor FF Bruce was just establishing a reputation. The London Bible College staff (and some of us students) were battling with a significant anti-intellectual spirit. I well remember the anxiety with which the three of us were regarded who were embarking on an Honours (rather than Pass) degree. The fear was that we were "soft" on the urgency of evangelism. The pursuit by several of the staff of university doctorates was often regarded with ambivalence.

In the late 1960s, however, I was invited as a young curate by Dr James (Jim) Packer to join one of the research groups of Latimer House, Oxford (an Evangelical research centre for the Church of England). Evangelical Theological College staff with a doctorate were a rare phenomenon at the time, as was the existence of Evangelical staff in university theology or biblical studies departments. In the following years, I played various roles in commissioning (for publishers), editing, contributing to, and writing books. I remember with particular pleasure the IVP Reference and Theology Committee, and the inauguration of the Grove Biblical series.

We are sometimes better at intercessory prayer than thanksgiving (eucharistic) prayer. But the last fifty years has seen a remarkable flowering of Evangelical scholarship - notably in biblical studies and theology, but also in church history, ethics, liturgy and mission. In this article, I concentrate on the UK, but others might add examples from the US, Europe and Australia, and, more recently, Africa, Asia and South America.

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