Paleo-orthodoxy (from

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

παλαιός "ancient" and

Koine Greek Koine Greek (, ), also variously known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek, Septuagint Greek or New Testament Greek, was the koiné language, common supra-regional form of Greek language, Greek spoken and ...

ὀρθοδοξία "correct belief") is a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

Christian theological movement in the United States which emerged in the late 20th and early 21st centuries and which focuses on the consensual understanding of the faith among the

ecumenical council An ecumenical council, also called general council, is a meeting of bishops and other church authorities to consider and rule on questions of Christian doctrine, administration, discipline, and other matters in which those entitled to vote are ...

s and

Church Fathers The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical peri ...

. While it understands this consensus of the Church Fathers as

orthodoxy Orthodoxy () is adherence to a purported "correct" or otherwise mainstream- or classically-accepted creed, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical co ...

proper, it calls itself ''paleo-orthodoxy'' to distinguish itself from

neo-orthodoxy In Christianity, Neo-orthodoxy or Neoorthodoxy, also known as crisis theology and dialectical theology, was a theological movement developed in the aftermath of the First World War. The movement was largely a reaction against doctrines of 19th ...

, a movement that was influential among Protestant churches in the mid-20th century.

Background

Paleo-orthodoxy attempts to see the essentials of Christian theology in the consensus of the

Great Church The term "Great Church" () is used in the historiography of early Christianity to mean the period of about 180 to 313, between that of primitive Christianity and that of the legalization of the Christian religion in the Roman Empire, correspond ...

before the schism between the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

and the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

(the

East–West Schism The East–West Schism, also known as the Great Schism or the Schism of 1054, is the break of communion (Christian), communion between the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. A series of Eastern Orthodox – Roman Catholic eccle ...

of 1054) and before the separation of

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

from the Roman Catholic Church (the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

of 1517), described in the canon of

Vincent of Lérins Vincent of Lérins (; died ) was a Gallic monk and author of early Christian writings. One example was the '' Commonitorium'', c.434, which offers guidance in the orthodox teaching of Christianity. Suspected of semi-Pelagianism, he opposed ...

as "" ("What s believedeverywhere, always and by everyone"). Adherents of paleo-orthodoxy often form part of the

Convergence Movement The Convergence Movement, also known as the Ancient-Future Faith, whose foundation is primarily attributed to Robert E. Webber in 1985, is an ecumenical movement. Developed as an effort among evangelical, charismatic and Pentecostal, and liturg ...

, though paleo-orthodoxy is not exclusive to the movement. Paleo-orthodox Protestants have different interpretations of the early Church's teachings.

Paleo-orthodox theologians

The dominant figure of the movement,

United Methodist The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...

theologian

Thomas C. Oden Thomas Clark Oden (1931–2016) was an American Methodist theologian and religious author. He is often regarded as the father of the paleo-orthodox theological movement and is considered to be one of the most influential theologians of the 20th ...

Drew University Drew University is a private university in Madison, New Jersey, United States. It has a wooded campus. As of fall 2020, more than 2,200 students were pursuing degrees at the university's three schools. While affiliated with the Methodism, Me ...

, published a series of books not only calling for a return to "classical Christianity" but also providing the tools to do so. The 2002 collection of essays in honor of Oden, ''Ancient and Postmodern Christianity: Paleo-Orthodoxy in the 21st Century'' (Kenneth Tanner, Christopher Alan Hall, eds., ) offers a glimpse into the work of some of the theologians active in this area:

Robert Jenson Robert William Jenson (August 2, 1930 – September 5, 2017) was a leading American Lutheran and ecumenical theologian. Prior to his retirement in 2007, he spent seven years as the director of the Center for Theological Inquiry in Princeton, NJ. H ...

, Christopher Hall, Amy Oden, Bradley Nassif, David Mills,

Robert Webber Robert Laman Webber (October 14, 1924 – May 19, 1989) was an American actor. He appeared in dozens of films and television series, including as Juror No. 12 in the 1957 film '' 12 Angry Men''. Early life Webber was the son of Robert Webber, ...

Geoffrey Wainwright Geoffrey Wainwright (1939 – 17 March 2020) was an English theologian. He spent much of his career in the United States and taught at Duke Divinity School. Wainwright made major contributions to modern Methodist theology and Christian liturgy, ...

Carl Braaten Carl Edward Braaten (January 3, 1929 – October 28, 2023) was an American Lutheran theologian and minister. Braaten authored and edited numerous books and theological papers, including ''Principles of Lutheran Theology'' (Fortress Press, 1983 ...

Stanley Grenz Stanley James Grenz (1950–2005) was an American Protestant Christian theologian and ethicist in the Baptist tradition. Early years Grenz was born on 7 January 1950 in Alpena, Michigan. He studied at the University of Colorado and obtained a B ...

, John Franke, Alan Padget,

Wolfhart Pannenberg Wolfhart Pannenberg (2 October 1928 – 4 September 2014) was a German Lutheran theologian. He made a number of significant contributions to modern theology, including his concept of history as a form of revelation centered on the resurre ...

Richard John Neuhaus Richard John Neuhaus (May 14, 1936 – January 8, 2009) was a prominent writer and Christian cleric (first in the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, then the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and later the Catholic Church). Born in Canada, N ...

, et al. Similar approaches emerge in the theology of

Marva Dawn Marva J. Dawn (August 20, 1948April 18, 2021) was an American Christian theologian, author, musician, preacher, and educator. She was associated with the parachurch organization Christians Equipped for Ministry in Vancouver, Washington where she ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

);

Alister McGrath Alister Edgar McGrath (; born 1953) is an Irish theologian, Anglican priest, intellectual historian, scientist, Christian apologist, and public intellectual. He currently holds the Andreas Idreos Professorship in Science and Religion in the F ...

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

Reformed Reform is beneficial change. Reform, reformed or reforming may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine Places * Reform, Al ...

evangelical);

Andrew Purves Andrew Purves (born 1946) is a Scottish theologian in the Reformed tradition through the Church of Scotland (and later, the Presbyterian Church (USA)). He holds the Chair in Reformed Theology at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary.Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

);

Timothy George Timothy George (born 9 January 1950) is an American theologian and journalist. He became the founding dean of Beeson Divinity School at the school's inception in 1988 and was the dean from 1989–2019, now serving as Research Professor of Divinity ...

(Baptist); and Christopher Hall (an

Episcopalian Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...

); J. Davila-Ashcraft (Evangelical Episcopal Communion); and Emilio Alvarez (founding Archbishop of the Union of Charismatic Orthodox Churches).

References

External links

Thomas Oden's Paleo-Orthodoxy
by Eric Landstrom Protestant ecumenism Christian terminology Christian theological movements

Background

Paleo-orthodox theologians

See also

References

Further reading

External links