Professor, Theology
Ph.D. Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI
M.A. Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, IL
B.A. Northwest University, Kirkland, WA
I grew up in the Pacific Northwest (and enjoyed fly fishing for salmon and trout). I earned the B.A. at Northwest University in Seattle. Before graduate school, I spent several years in church ministry. I was youth pastor in an Assemblies of God church for two years in Woodinville, Washington. I also served for several years as youth and associate pastor for a church on Northern Minnesota’s “Iron Range.”
I have been on the faculty at two schools as professor of theology before coming to Multnomah. My first faculty position was at Emmanuel University in northeast Georgia. At Emmanuel I taught undergraduate courses in New Testament, Gospel of John, Christian Ethics, and theology for several years. A new position took me to McMaster Divinity College. The Divinity College is part of McMaster University, which is a secular university of about 35,000 students in Hamilton, Ontario (Canada). At McMaster I taught and mentored students in MDiv, MTS, MA, PhD, and Doctor of Practical Theology (DPT) degrees.
My experiences in Christian ministry and higher education shape my vision of the theological task. Theology is not primarily a dreary trek through thick tomes and down metaphysical rabbit trails that lead one ever away from the real world (well, at least it shouldn’t be). Theology helps us to discern authentic and effective ways to embody the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives and ministries. Theology helps us “keep in step with the Spirit.” It avoids cliché, hackneyed, and effortless answers. Your life, your church, and your ministry are not prepackaged programs and standardized paradigms. Your life and ministry have a unique habitat. The art of theological reflection prepares us to follow pathways of faithful discipleship. I invite you to come join us as we endeavor to ask and answer the question: how can we embody the grace of Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit in our lives and ministry for our contemporary world? That is the question of theology.
My publications reflect two primary streams of research: evangelical theology and Pentecostal theology. Monographs on the Trinity, political theology, and atonement contributed to the field of Pentecostal scholarship and constructive systematic theology. A variety of publications on innovative church movements, theological method, and Jonathan Edwards’ trinitarian theology extended my contributions to evangelical scholarship. My present book project (The Future of Evangelicalism: Emerging Christianity and the Renewal of Evangelical Faith) is a collaboration with a colleague on the future of the evangelical churches.
