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Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) President Steps Down, Converts to Catholicism
Orginally published on Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 7:24 AM
by Todd Rhoades
Baylor University professor Francis Beckwith was sitting on top of the evangelical Protestant intellectual world as president of the 4,100-member Evangelical Theological Society. But on April 29, he quietly, formally returned to the faith he grew up in – Catholicism.
On Saturday, Dr. Beckwith used his blog to go public. He also announced his resignation as ETS president, saying he understood that members probably would not have elected him if he had run as a Catholic.
The news has caused much heated discussion within the organization, which includes many of the brightest and best-educated conservative evangelical leaders. They spread the news and their reaction to it through phone calls, e-mails and nearly 300 postings to Dr. Beckwith’s blog.
“I think it is fair to say that everyone was completely surprised,” said Darrell Bock, a professor at Dallas Theological Seminary and a former ETS president.
The turn of events has also underscored doctrinal divides between theologically conservative Catholics and Protestants, who agree on the primacy and inerrancy of the Bible but not on other key issues.
As of Saturday, Dr. Beckwith planned to remain in ETS as perhaps its only known Catholic. But on Monday, he withdrew altogether, saying he’d been told that some members would try to have him removed.
The fight wouldn’t be worth it, he said.
More here in the Dallas News...
The ETS response to the resignation here...
You can read Beckwith’s blog entry breaking the story here...
Any thoughts?
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There are 10 Comments:
Hi... I'm Todd Rhoades. I'm a Christ-follower, husband, father and I love to connect leaders with other leaders. Hopefully you'll find something here at MMI you like and will return often. If you want, you can find out more about me or follow my every step on Twitter.
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Posted by Daniel
Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 8:16 AM
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Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 8:42 AM
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Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 10:36 AM
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Posted by RevJeff
Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 11:35 AM
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Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 12:55 PM
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Posted by Leonard
Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 1:16 PM
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Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 1:38 PM
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Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 2:28 PM
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Posted by Leonard
Wednesday, May 09, 2007 at 2:35 PM
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Posted by Stewart
Thursday, May 10, 2007 at 5:41 AM
Post Your Comments:My only thought is that it’s sad so many of our brothers and sisters are so quick to use the word ‘apostate’. Ah the human tongue!
My protestant Jesus can beat up your… oh forget it…
I bet he still loves Jesus. Still follows Him, still worships Him. I wish he’d stay, it’s a fight worth fighting. I have a lot of respect for Catholics. A TREMENDOUS number of people I’ve known through the years who are inspiring Christ-followers are in the RC Church. And yes… they’re still saved…
Okay. Would someone like to explain to me why it is even necessary to have a “Evangelical Theological Society?”
Well, CAMEY -
You see.... Uh.... I guesss…
Its Rick Warren’s fault! Yeah that’s it.... we need to make sure everyone stays PURE and .... uh like us…
Now RevJeff.... Peter already pointed out it’s not Friday yet. Please put down the “RW” card. It can’t be used until then.
I think societies like this can be a positive place. Doctrine matters a lot. Because we lack the ability to remain gracious in our beliefs is no reason to de-emphasize doctrine rather a reason to re-emphasize humility. Without humility we tend to worship doctrine over God because we cannot tell the difference. We become confused because we spend more time with doctrine than God.
There are too many itching ears to not stay sharp doctrinally. To many people willing to believe anything based upon what feels good rather than what is right. Jesus was both truth and grace, not one over the other but both simultaneously. I know you all believe this too but I would say as Paul did. “watch your life and your doctrine. This is a great command but not very easy to do.
my 1.678 cents
Thanks Leonard. Greatly appreciate your taking the time to explain it like you did. Worth more than that for sure.
I didn’t realize being “Evangelical” was such an exclusive club.
Dictionary.com defines evangelical as:
1. pertaining to or in keeping with the gospel and its teachings.
2. belonging to or designating the Christian churches that emphasize the teachings and authority of the Scriptures, esp. of the New Testament, in opposition to the institutional authority of the church itself, and that stress as paramount the tenet that salvation is achieved by personal conversion to faith in the atonement of Christ.
3. designating Christians, esp. of the late 1970s, eschewing the designation of fundamentalist but holding to a conservative interpretation of the Bible.
we even have our own handshake and sweater vest
I’m going to take a different side. I applaud Beckwith for following his conscience and I think he has done the right thing. I have no problem with Catholics, but I’m not sure the Evangelical Theological Society is the right place for people who really embrace Catholicism… unless the Catholics have changed some of their core teachings.
We (Evangelical Protestants) share a lot of core teachings with our Catholic brothers and sisters. We have more in common than we have different. I’m sure Beckwith still loves Jesus. I just think the ETS should be in dialogue and fellowship with the Catholic Church, but we aren’t ready to merge.
Just my two cents.
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