Roger Olson

“Leading Christian ethicists went all over the place in total chaotic, seemingly anarchic theories and arguments about right and wrong, good and bad. The center fell apart—beginning with Constantine.” - Roger Olson

“There are some who may say that fundamentalism is a failed movement. I do not believe so. But I do believe that pastors must learn the lessons of the past, and even from others in mainstream evangelicalism who are noting their own problems.” - P&D

Roger Olson: [T]he vast majority of people, even my own family members and friends (not all but most) have never shown any interest in what I do. It’s viewed largely as “ivory tower,” speculative, merely academic, a waste of time.

I would probably prefer Anglicanism to this non-descript and dumbed down church life stripped of tradition, history, symbolism, language and very seriously accommodated to suburban, white, affluent, sensitivities and values.

Roger Olson: I am more than happy to finish my forty year career of teaching Christian theology to students using it as my primary textbook for upper level systematic theology students.

“Olson’s introduction to postfundamentalist evangelicalism (new evangelicalism) is striking in that the history I was taught by fundamentalist professors matches exactly what Olson describes.” - Don Johnson

“One thing that I perhaps should mention is that evangelicalism (and fundamentalism) is the sum of reactions to the Enlightenment. In this sense, both movements are reactionary, but with turtle-like reactions of decades to a problem now centuries old.” - Don Johnson

Roger Olson: Typically, fundamentalists elevate to the status of dogmas (essentials of Christian faith) interpretations of the Bible that are really matters of debate and differing opinions among equally God-fearing, Bible-believing, Jesus-loving Christians.

“[P]revenient grace (enabling, assisting grace that goes before conversion making it possible) is supernatural and a special work of the Holy Spirit freeing the will of the sinner which is otherwise bound to sin (unbelief).

Roger Olson: The change of substance is so radical that we have trouble recognizing contemporary evangelical Protestant Christianity in America as in continuity with the religious form of life we both grew up in and began our ministries in.