“Karl Barth and American Evangelicals: Friends or Foes?”—Second Annual Conference on Karl Barth June 24 through 27 at Princeton Seminary

Princeton, NJ, June 6, 2007–Ever since Cornelius van Til’s thorough critique of Karl Barth in the first part of the twentieth century, the conservative elements of popular Christianity in the United States—known broadly as “evangelicals”—have generally followed van Til’s lead in their interaction with Barth’s theological work. “The critical stance of Cornelius van Til toward the theology of Karl Barth has long shaped the reception of Barth in evangelical circles,” says Clifford Anderson, curator of special collections at Princeton Theological Seminary. “However, a new generation of evangelical theologians have been rediscovering Barth as an ally in their struggle against the cultural captivity of Christianity. The purpose of this conference is to bring together evangelicals and ‘Barthians’ to talk about lingering points of disagreement and emerging points of commonality.”

The Center for Barth Studies at Princeton Seminary will hold its second annual conference on Karl Barth from Sunday, June 24 through Wednesday, June 27 on the Seminary campus. Plenary speakers for the conference include Dr. Clifford Anderson, curator of special collections at Princeton Seminary; Dr. Kimlyn Bender, assistant professor of theology and philosophy at the University of Sioux Falls; Dr. John Hare, Noah Porter Professor at Yale Divinity School; Dr. George Harinck, director of Historisch Documentatiencentrum at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Dr. D.G. Hart, director for partnered programs at Intercollegiate Studies Institute; Dr. Michael Horton, J. Gresham Machen Professor at Westminster Seminary in California; Dr. George Hunsinger, Hazel Thompson McCord Professor of Systematic Theology at Princeton Seminary; Keith Johnson, Ph.D. candidate at Princeton Seminary; Dr. Bruce McCormack, Frederick and Margaret L. Weyerhaeuser Professor of Systematic Theology at Princeton Seminary; and Dr. Suzanne McDonald, lecturer in theology at Westminster College in England.

The public is invited to attend after-dinner talks on Monday, June 25 and Tuesday, June 26 at 7:00 p.m. in the Main Lounge of the Mackay Campus Center. David Guretzki of Briarcrest Seminary will speak on Monday and Paul Louis Metzger of Multnomah Biblical Seminary will speak on Tuesday. Worship services in Miller Chapel on Monday, June 25, Tuesday, June 26, and Wednesday, June 27 at 11:30 a.m. are open to the public as well.           

Karl Barth (1886–1968), once described by Pope Pius XII as the most important theologian since Thomas Aquinas, was the principal author of the Barmen Declaration and was the intellectual leader of the Confessing Church, the Protestant group that protested the Third Reich. His multivolume systematic theology, Church Dogmatics, is a closely reasoned and eloquent statement of belief and theology, and stands as the crowning work of Protestant theology of the early twentieth century.

The Center for Barth Studies was established at Princeton Seminary in 1997. Administered by a board of seminary faculty, the Center sponsors conferences, research opportunities, discussion groups, and publications. The Karl Barth Research Collection, part of Special Collections at the Princeton Seminary Libraries, supports the scholarly activities of the Center for Barth Studies. The reading room of the Karl Barth Research Collection is open by arrangement to scholars, students, pastors, and laypersons.

The conference is cosponsored by the Karl Barth Society of North America and the Center for Barth Studies at Princeton Theological Seminary. For more information, visit http://libweb.ptsem.edu/collections/barth/events.aspx.

Princeton Theological Seminary was founded in 1812 as the first seminary established by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. It is the largest Presbyterian seminary in the country, with more than 700 students in seven graduate degree programs.