How Southern Baptist Theology Has Changed and What It Means to Us All
Fisher Humphreys
The Way We Were is a book about the theological dimensions of the controversy that shook the foundations of the Southern Baptist Convention during the decades of the 80s and 90s. That controversy began at the national level, far from most Baptist laypeople, trickled down to the state Baptist conventions, where it included a much broader audience, and now has moved into local churches where the pain, in some ways, is more sever than it was at either the national or state levels. This revision of the 1994 book could not have come at a more appropriate time for many Baptist churches. It ought to be required reading for every pulpit search committee. . . I sincerely wish that some rich brothers or sisters, fundamentalist or moderate, conservative or liberal, would come forth today and pay to have The Way We Were sent to every Baptist in America.
Fisher Humphreys is Professor of Divinity, Emeritus, of Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. He retired in 2008.
Dr. Humphreys was born in Columbus, Mississippi. He and his wife Caroline Nan Toler Humphreys have two children, Mrs. Stephanie Hoffman of Birmingham and Kenneth Humphreys of New Orleans, and three granddaughters, Camille Humphreys, Kate Humphreys, and Jane Humphreys.
He taught Christian theology at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (1970-1990) and at the Beeson Divinity School of Samford University (1990-2008). On the occasion of his retirement friends presented him with a Festschrift entitled Theology in the Service of the Church (edited by Timothy George and Eric Mason).
Dr. Humphreys is the author of The Almighty, Baptist Theology: A Really Short Version, The Christian Church, The Death of Christ, A Dictionary of Doctrinal Terms (with Philip Wise), Fundamentalism (also with Philip Wise), God So Loved the World (with Paul Robertson), The Heart of Prayer, I Have Called You Friends, The Nature of God, Southern Baptist Heritage, Speaking in Tongues (with Malcolm Tolbert), Thinking about God, and The Way We Were. He is the editor of Nineteenth Century Evangelical Theology. He has contributed numerous articles and reviews to various journals and has written lessons for use in Sunday School and in other settings.
"Even students who don't know there has been a controversy "get the point" by reading Fisher's fine book. It is amazing how much and how well he pulls things together in his usual accessible style. I plan to use the book in a class for laypersons on Baptist history and distinctives. I don't know of a better book for that purpose."
—Sheri Adams Gardner-Webb University Boiling Springs, NC
"Fisher Humphreys lays bare the Baptist transition. His book is clear, reader friendly, accessible. He is so irenic, fair and broad brush in his analysis that it is difficult to imagine anyone dismissing his work out-of-hand.
"His conclusions are logically unavoidable if slightly more sanguine than I, a recovering Southern Baptist, can be. I recommend it to every Baptist, any brand, any breed. It will do you good."
—James M. Dunn Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC
The Way We Were is a book about the theological dimensions of the controversy that shook the foundations of the Southern Baptist Convention during the decades of the 80s and 90s. That controversy began at the national level, far from most Baptist laypeople, trickled down to the state Baptist conventions, where it included a much broader audience, and now has moved into local churches where the pain, in some ways, is more sever than it was at either the national or state levels. This revision of the 1994 book could not have come at a more appropriate time for many Baptist churches. It ought to be required reading for every pulpit search committee. . . I sincerely wish that some rich brothers or sisters, fundamentalist or moderate, conservative or liberal, would come forth today and pay to have The Way We Were sent to every Baptist in America.
—from the Foreword by Walter B. Shurden
Fisher Humphreys is Professor of Divinity, Emeritus, of Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. He retired in 2008.
Dr. Humphreys was born in Columbus, Mississippi. He and his wife Caroline Nan Toler Humphreys have two children, Mrs. Stephanie Hoffman of Birmingham and Kenneth Humphreys of New Orleans, and three granddaughters, Camille Humphreys, Kate Humphreys, and Jane Humphreys.
He taught Christian theology at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (1970-1990) and at the Beeson Divinity School of Samford University (1990-2008). On the occasion of his retirement friends presented him with a Festschrift entitled Theology in the Service of the Church (edited by Timothy George and Eric Mason).
Dr. Humphreys is the author of The Almighty, Baptist Theology: A Really Short Version, The Christian Church, The Death of Christ, A Dictionary of Doctrinal Terms (with Philip Wise), Fundamentalism (also with Philip Wise), God So Loved the World (with Paul Robertson), The Heart of Prayer, I Have Called You Friends, The Nature of God, Southern Baptist Heritage, Speaking in Tongues (with Malcolm Tolbert), Thinking about God, and The Way We Were. He is the editor of Nineteenth Century Evangelical Theology. He has contributed numerous articles and reviews to various journals and has written lessons for use in Sunday School and in other settings.
"Even students who don't know there has been a controversy "get the point" by reading Fisher's fine book. It is amazing how much and how well he pulls things together in his usual accessible style. I plan to use the book in a class for laypersons on Baptist history and distinctives. I don't know of a better book for that purpose."
—Sheri Adams Gardner-Webb University Boiling Springs, NC
"Fisher Humphreys lays bare the Baptist transition. His book is clear, reader friendly, accessible. He is so irenic, fair and broad brush in his analysis that it is difficult to imagine anyone dismissing his work out-of-hand.
"His conclusions are logically unavoidable if slightly more sanguine than I, a recovering Southern Baptist, can be. I recommend it to every Baptist, any brand, any breed. It will do you good."
—James M. Dunn Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC
The Way We Were
How Southern Baptist Theology Has Changed and What It Means to Us All
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