N. T. Wright and Presbyterian Churches


December 2002

Friends,
Nicholas Thomas Wright, a high-ranking cleric in the apostate Anglican church, appears to be growing in influence in the Presbyterian Church in America.

Some sessions of PCA churches are showing his videotaped lectures in their churches; and one session, that of Auburn Avenue Presbyterian Church in Monroe, Louisiana, has published a lecture by Wright in their church's newsletter (see the October 19, 2002, excerpt from the Horror Files).

Writing to defend their action and their views, and to accuse this writer of slander, the AAPC session expressed this opinion of Wright's views:

"We published Wright because we believe his anti-Gnostic approach to New Testament theology is one of the pressing needs of the hour."

The AAPC endorsement of Wright's Antichristian theology reveals more about the AAPC than it does about Wright, especially since Gnosticism has not been a threat in centuries.

One wonders if the members of the Auburn Avenue Church are aware of the actions their elected officers are taking in their name.

Providentially, there are some other Presbyterians who understand Wright's views and the threat they pose to the Gospel. Take, for example, these paragraphs from a review of Wright's book, "What Saint Paul Really Said" by Dr. Sidney Dyer of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary:

"The most disturbing material in Wright's book is that which sets forth his view of justification. His effort to take the doctrine out of the realm of soteriology and to put it in the realm of ecclesiology is undoubtedly motivated by his desire to tear down what divides Evangelicals and Roman Catholics.

"His view of justification is an attack on the very heart of the Gospel. Paul warned of the danger of preaching another gospel in Galatians 1:8, 'But if we, or an angel from Heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached, let him be accursed.' Paul, by using the words 'any other gospel' (emphasis added), shows that he is attacking all other forms of the gospel, including therefore a proto-Pelagianism in the book of Galatians....

"Wright's view of justification is an attempt to reverse the Reformation. We must resist such attempts. The issue is one of life and death – eternal life and eternal death. When theological professors and pastors abandon the Biblical and confessional doctrine of justification, they sacrifice the Gospel and the souls of men."

And that is exactly what those Presbyterian churches are doing that publish and teach Wright's Antichristian views.

Cordially,

John Robbins
The Trinity Foundation
December 23, 2002

For further reading go to the Review Archives page at http://www.trinityfoundation.org