Scripture and Doctrine Seminar

  Sponsor: Lucas Stamps 

Historically doctrine has developed as the church needed to give an account of what it believed and to protect itself from heresy. The Scripture and Doctrine Seminar (SADS) explores the move from Scripture to the formulation of doctrine, and how doctrine and tradition illuminate our reading of the Bible. Insofar as doctrine captures the message of the Bible it also provides an indispensable lens through which to read Scripture and informs our faithful witness to Christ in His world. SADS is part of the Kirby Laing Centre Scripture Collective (KLCSC; https://kirbylaingcentre.co.uk/scripture-collective/). This year’s theme is “Scripture and the Incommunicable Attributes of God: An Exploration in the Psalter.” Our aim is to examine the extent to which Scripture does or does not undergird the vision of God expressed in classical Christian theism, with the fertile ground of the Psalter providing the soil for our explorations.

Scripture and Doctrine Seminar 
1:00 PM to 3:15 PM
11/18/2022
Room TBD
Recent decades have witnessed several fruitful attempts to bridge the gap between the often-siloed disciplines of biblical studies and Christian doctrine. Many of these efforts have been carried out under the banner of the “theological interpretation of Scripture” (TIS). The TIS movement (to the degree that it can be considered such) is a loose affiliation of scholars from both sides of the Scripture/doctrine divide with many variations of perspective and emphasis. One of the major issues of debate among TIS proponents concerns the role of philosophy, and more specifically philosophical hermeneutics, in both the exegetical and theological task. To speak in very broad terms, TIS proponents are variously influenced by continental, analytic, and classical (e.g., Thomistic) modes of thought on these important philosophical issues. These debates provide the backdrop for this year’s seminar, which features papers on the theme, Theology, Philosophy, and Biblical Interpretation. For those interested in learning more, please contact Lucas Stamps (rlstamps@andersonuniversity.edu).

Opening Liturgy & Introduction (10 min)

Steve J. Duby, Phoenix Seminary
Biblical Authority and the Role of Philosophy (20 min)

Thomas McCall, Asbury Theological Seminary
Theological Exegesis and Predestinarian Polemics: Early Modern Scholastic Theology as a Case Study at the Intersection of Metaphysics and Hermeneutics (20 min)

Judith Wolfe, St. Mary's College, University of St. Andrews
Renewal of Perception in Philosophy, Faith and Scripture (20 min)

Break (10 min)

Craig Bartholomew, Kirby Laing Centre for Public Theology (Cambridge, UK), Respondent (10 min)

Amber Bowen, Redeemer University, Respondent (10 min)

Discussion (30 min)

Closing Liturgy & Conclusion (15 min)