JAMES W. MCCLENDON (BAPTIST THEOLOGIAN)

James W. McClendon (Baptist Theologian)

James W. McClendon (Baptist Theologian)

Introduction

James W. McClendon (1924 - 2000)

Few biographical details are available about McClendon since he has passed away recently, but his works are very interesting. He was a Professor at Fuller Theological Seminary and had taught John Howard Yoder, Stanley Hauerwas and Robert Wilken. Starting from the research on his Anabaptist roots, McClendon has ventured into a singular work: there are three volumes of theology in the light of a “Vision Baptist”. His first volume begins with Ethics "Ethics" by demonstrating that a systematic study of theology that can only be initiated by its practical aspects. Only after exploring the life of a community, one can move on to investigate the teachings that are necessary to support the life. Therefore, its volume devoted to the doctors of "Doctrine" which comes as the next step. Doctrines were thoroughly analyzed by McClendon, according to his views, they are not a list of propositions to believe, but an essential practice of the Church, which are considered as the shared beliefs that the church must teach and live properly according to the church. In his latest work called "Witness" testimony, the theologian considers the broader context in which he discussed how life should be lived. Here, he asserts that the identity of a church is established not only by how the church lives and how we teach, but also on how the church enter into the conversation and connect with other systems of thought and other social structures that are outside of itself. The context of his work is the reference to narrative theology and the philosophy of languages. His total work is marked by the attempt to explore a "vision Baptist" in the tradition of an understanding of the church in relation to itself, to the scriptures and in relation to place it occupies in society, tradition that comes from the radical reform of the 16th century.

Discussion

Theologian's Key Ideas

If we look at the normative ethics they aim at the analysis, justification and criticism of prescriptive statements or mean complexes. It is clear that ethics is so determined, not in narrative form or as a bundle of stories occurs or the stories that can occur. It can also be said that ethics is never a narrative character, not even when they sense and validity claim moral rates explicitly and programmatically by recourse to narrative character. Ethics can be used to specify the elements that seek to justification. If not predictable yet consistently pragmatic and certainly forgivable, see if the following Attempt to assess the systematic design of a main representative of narrative ethics, nevertheless - narrative begins.

About McClendon

McClendon had been purely superficial and has an impressive sight. McClendon was a high growth and lanky, a white-haired and bearded Southern aristocrat. He was of an exceptionally winning manners and boyish in attitude. According to him, properties are not only regular attendance of jazz concerts but the study of the culture of the ...