J. I. Packer

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James Innell Packer (born July 22, 1926) is a British-born Canadian Christian theologian in the low church Anglican tradition. He currently serves as the Board of Governors' Professor of Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is considered one of the most influential evangelicals in North America.[1]

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[edit] Biography

Born in Gloucester, England, the son of a clerk for the Great Western Railway, Packer won a scholarship to Oxford University. He was educated at Corpus Christi College, obtaining the degrees of Bachelor of Arts (1948), Master of Arts (1952), and Doctor of Philosophy (1955).

It was as a student at Oxford that he first heard lectures from C. S. Lewis, whose teachings would (though he never knew Lewis personally) become a major influence in his life. In a meeting of the Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, Packer committed his life to Christian service.

He spent a brief time teaching Greek at Oak Hill Theological College in London, and in 1949 entered Wycliffe Hall, Oxford to study theology. He was ordained a deacon (1952) and priest (1953) in the Church of England, within which he was associated with the Evangelical movement. He was Assistant Curate of Harborne Heath in Birmingham 1952-54 and Lecturer at Tyndale Hall, Bristol 1955-61. He was Librarian of Latimer House, Oxford 1961-62 and Principal 1962-69. In 1970 he became Principal of Tyndale Hall, Bristol, and from 1971 until 1979 he was Associate Principal of Trinity College, Bristol, which had been formed from the amalgamation of Tyndale Hall with Clifton College and Dalton House-St Michael's.

In 1978, he signed the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, which affirmed a conservative position on Biblical inerrancy.

In 1979, Packer moved to Vancouver to take up a position at Regent College, eventually being named the first Sangwoo Youtong Chee Professor of Theology, a title he held until his retirement. He is a prolific writer and frequent lecturer, but he is best known for his book, "Knowing God". He is a frequent contributor to and an executive editor of Christianity Today. In recent years, he has supported the ecumenical movement but believes that unity should not come at the expense of abandoning orthodox Protestant doctrine. Nonetheless, his advocacy of ecumenicism has brought sharp criticism from some conservatives, particularly after the publication of the book Evangelicals and Catholics Together: Toward a Common Mission (ed. Charles Colson, Richard J. Neuhaus) in which Packer was one of the contributors.

Packer served as general editor for the English Standard Version, an Evangelical revision of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible.

As of 2008, Packer is a parishioner of St. John's Shaughnessy Anglican church in Vancouver, which in February 2008 voted to leave the Anglican Church of Canada because the St. John's church believes that the ACC is no longer teaching in accordance with scripture. So, they joined the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone of America.[2] Packer, on 23 April, handed in his licence from the Bishop of New Westminster.[3]

A sample of his work: "The unceasing activity of the Creator, whereby in overflowing bounty and goodwill, He upholds His creatures in ordered existence, guides and governs all events, circumstances, and free acts of angels and men, and directs everything to its appointed goal, for His own glory".

[edit] Works

[edit] In the Anglican Agenda Series

[edit] Collections

[edit] Co-authored

[edit] Works about

  • Alister E McGrath, To Know and Serve God: A Life of James I. Packer (1997) ISBN 9780340565711
  • Alister E McGrath, J. I. Packer: A Biography (1997) ISBN 9780801011573
  • Roger Steer, Guarding the Holy Fire: The Evangelicalism of John R. W. Stott, J. I. Packer and Alister McGrath (1999) ISBN 9780801058462
  • Don J Payne, The Theology of the Christian Life in J. I. Packer's Thought: Theological Anthropology, Theological Method, and the Doctrine of Sanctification (2006) ISBN 9781842273975
  • Timothy F George, J. I. Packer and the Evangelical Future: The Impact of His Life and Thought (2009) ISBN 9780801033872

[edit] References

  1. ^ "The 25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America". TIME. February 7, 2005. http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101050207/photoessay/21.html. Retrieved on 2008-07-24. 
  2. ^ Chantal Eustace (February 14, 2008) ([dead link] – Scholar search), Anglican congregation votes to split over same-sex blessings, The Vancouver Sun, http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/story.html?id=55cf38f7-b342-4f85-bb3e-c89057694be7&k=25745 
  3. ^ Nine priests, two deacons, hand in their licences from the Bishop

[edit] External links

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