THE ETS VOTE
(Saturday) Laura is a bit surprised that open theists Clark Pinnock and John Sanders survived a membership vote in the Evangelical Theological Society.

I was actually a bit surprised, too -- at least by how many votes they received (67% voted to retain Sanders and Pinnock).

Two observations:

1. This shows the breadth of evangelicalism as a movement. The type of evangelicalism that Laura is experiencing at Talbot is but one small component in the big picture (No criticism of Talbot intended. They know their niche and they do it well). The people in ETS come from diverse backgrounds and perspectives.

2. I wonder if the controversy doesn't reveal the weakness of trying to use the "inerrancy of the Bible" as the hinge upon which evangelicalism swings. I'm sure that there were many who voted to retain Pinnock and Sanders, not because they agreed with open theism or thought it an acceptable option, but because it doesn't directly contradict their definition of inerrancy. I suspect that the ETS leadership will be looking at a more comprehensive statement of faith -- perhaps something more rooted in conciliar tradition. That would be a better debate. Is open theism compatible with the faith expressed in the Nicene Creed? Even then, though, open theism is such a different bird. As Karl Thienes wrote in my comment box on Thursday, "Open theism is like many things: a nifty and rational answer to a problem that never needed to be solved in the first place."