Stott, Empire and Class Warfare
January 25, 2012
Anglican theologian, Pete Sanlon, recently sat down with Dr. Alister Chapman to talk about the latter's new book on the life and ministry of John Stott. The interview is now available here.
With all of the uncritical adulation that typically surrounds late leaders, this is something of a breath of fresh air, highlighting key elements for understanding Stott as a distinctively English figure, shaped by his class (Americans should note that `public' schools in Britain are anything but -- they are rather elite private institutions), by the Empire, by the `old school tie,' and by a strong sense of noblesse oblige. Topics covered include the 1966 dispute with MLJ, the Lausanne movement and Stott's own attitude to his time at All Souls.
Stott's ambiguities on eschatology are not discussed but I have always had a sneaking suspicion that this too may connect to his public school background. It seems more than coincidental that the great Anglican evangelical advocates of conditional immortality -- (probably) Stott, Wenham and Hughes -- were all public school chaps who no doubt played cricket in their heyday and would have had a sense of what was and what was not fair play instilled into them at an early age. English public school natural theology is somewhat different to that of the state schools.
The bookshelf behind Dr Chapman is, I hope, not a clever editorial commentary on the current state of the post-Stott Anglican church. It is encouraging that such book are obviously not out on loan at Oakhill -- unless, that is, this is the high demand reference section.
With all of the uncritical adulation that typically surrounds late leaders, this is something of a breath of fresh air, highlighting key elements for understanding Stott as a distinctively English figure, shaped by his class (Americans should note that `public' schools in Britain are anything but -- they are rather elite private institutions), by the Empire, by the `old school tie,' and by a strong sense of noblesse oblige. Topics covered include the 1966 dispute with MLJ, the Lausanne movement and Stott's own attitude to his time at All Souls.
Stott's ambiguities on eschatology are not discussed but I have always had a sneaking suspicion that this too may connect to his public school background. It seems more than coincidental that the great Anglican evangelical advocates of conditional immortality -- (probably) Stott, Wenham and Hughes -- were all public school chaps who no doubt played cricket in their heyday and would have had a sense of what was and what was not fair play instilled into them at an early age. English public school natural theology is somewhat different to that of the state schools.
The bookshelf behind Dr Chapman is, I hope, not a clever editorial commentary on the current state of the post-Stott Anglican church. It is encouraging that such book are obviously not out on loan at Oakhill -- unless, that is, this is the high demand reference section.
