249 - Beyond Fundamentalism

Beyond Fundamentalism
By James Barr
Philadelphia, Westminster, 1984. 195 pp. $9.95.

James Barr is the Jack Dempsey of modern Anglo-American theology. Outside the ring he is a perfect gentleman; inside it he is a ruthless opponent. Over the years, Barr has attacked fundamentalism with fervor and skill. In this book, he has changed his role from that of a critic and iconoclast to that of a pastor and shepherd. That in itself makes this book a remarkable and courageous tract for the times. Some friends and foes will be tempted to read it as part of Barr's own struggle to escape from an earlier past. This is otiose and false. Barr has correctly perceived that fundamentalism is a very serious force to be reckoned with in the modern world. It is a major factor within Christianity and shows no signs of abating. Church leaders and scholars cannot ignore it if they intend to be realistic about their listeners and readers. Besides, many find their way to a genuine faith in Christ within fundamentalism, and they need help to cope with its complexity and its intellectual structure. Hence this book is extremely important for Christendom as a whole. I can think of no one, be it layperson, student, pastor, or scholar, who would not benefit from it. Certainly it is essential reading for those seeking to escape from fundamentalism.

Beginning with the issue of biblical inspiration and authority, Barr sets out to evaluate the central religious assertions of fundamentalism. He covers such issues as Jesus and the Old Testament, justification by faith, the divinity of Jesus, miracles, prophecy, and creation. In dealing with these matters, the general strategy is straightforward. Barr starts on the fundamentalist's own ground, the content and character of the Bible as it is. He then proceeds to show how Scripture rarely supports the exact theology built up by fundamentalist thinkers. Either the Bible contradicts the fundamentalist position, points in another direction, or states the matter more subtly. Hence fundamentalist theology rarely, if ever, fulfills its own boasted promise. The whole argument is a model of sustained clarity and rigor. Aside from an occasional lapse where he appeals to alternative logical possibilities rather than alternative practical possibilities, Barr invariably establishes his case. Fundamentalists will prefer to ignore rather than answer his arguments.

But Barr wants to do more than win an argument. What was implicit in his earlier work on fundamentalism is quite explicit here. Barr wants to foster the development of a genuinely evangelical vision of the Christian faith. Hence he seeks to show that a penetrating evangelical faith can still be derived from Scripture, provided, of course, that evangelicals take the trouble to extricate themselves from the rigidity of the recent past and honestly set about developing a serious theological alternative. This is a costly move to make within evangelical circles, but

250 - Beyond Fundamentalism

Barr is right to insist that it must be made if evangelicals are to remain loyal to Scripture rather than to the traditions about Scripture into which they have been initiated. This will not be easy theologically. Barr, perhaps without fully realizing it, shows how difficult it is to integrate what we know about the nature and content of the Bible into the fabric of a living faith. Thus, anyone concerned to think deeply about the authority of Scripture could well begin with this book as a stimulus. Barr in his asides identifies very graphically some of the issues that need to be addressed.

Two words of caution are needed, however. Some readers may only know fundamentalism through Barr's writings. If this is so, they should know that Barr is using the term "fundamentalism" polemically. The real target of Barr's attack is not so much the old fundamentalism of the 1920s, which has recently been revitalized by figures like Jerry Falwell, but the conservative evangelicalism of the recent past. Barr has not acknowledged that there was a genuine and costly break with fundamentalism in the neo-evangelical movement of the last generation. To that extent, I think his reading of recent evangelicalism is much too abrupt and simplistic. Yet his basic criticisms of the recent past remain secure. In particular, Barr is correct to say that the doctrine of Scripture is by far the weakest element in the whole tradition. Secondly, given Barr's success in demolition, many readers will be tempted to hold that the renewal of evangelicalism is quite impossible, especially so if they judge that in this volume Barr as iconoclast still wins out over Barr as pastor. Yet this judgment would be premature and unfounded. Surely it is true that the best traditions produce the best rebels. Barr is one of the best rebels evangelicalism has ever produced. So its resources cannot be entirely bankrupt.

William J. Abraham
Seattle Pacific University
Seattle, Washington