Steve Chalke

Steve Chalke (MBE, UN.gifT Special Advisor on Community Action against Human Trafficking) is a prominent, and often outspoken, Christian leader and social activist based in the UK, and an ordained Baptist minister. He is best known as the founder of Oasis Trust and Church.co.uk. He is the author of more than 40 books and a regular presenter and contributor on television and radio programmes. In 2004 he was awarded an MBE for his services to social inclusion by the Queen. [cite web
title =2004 New Years Honours List
publisher =10 Downing Street
date =1 May 2008
url =http://www.number-10.gov.uk/files/pdf/Queens%20List_20046566646.pdf
accessdate =2007-05-08 ]

Early life

Chalke was born in South London in 1955. As a teenager he became a Christian and decided to spend his life working to end poverty and specifically to set up housing, healthcare and educational projects to that end. After graduating from Spurgeon's College in 1981 he spent four years as assistant minister at Tonbridge Baptist Church before setting up Oasis Trust in 1985.

Activities

In 2003, Chalke and Oasis Trust founded Church.co.uk in Waterloo, London, a growing network of Christian communities around the country who share the same values.

Steve Chalke and Faithworks are closely involved with the ongoing debate about the provision of public services in the UK by faith-based groups. [cite web
last =Blair
first =Tony
authorlink =Tony Blair
title =Prime Minister's speech to Faithworks
work =
publisher =10 Downing Street
date =22 March 2005
url =http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page7375.asp
accessdate =2007-05-08 ]

The latest initative from Chalke and Faithworks is the establishment of a 'Charities Parliament' a place of debate and interaction, for the charity sector with the aim of enabling more effective relationships with government and media specific around the role of the church and faith in public life. This new centre is based a short walk from the Palace of Westminister, at 75 Westminster Bridge Road, in a 50,000 sq foot complex dedicated to the church’s engagement with social justice, government, media and business as well as the training of church leaders and activists in community transformation and public life.

Controversy

"The Lost Message Of Jesus"

A recent book written by Chalke and his co-author, Alan Mann, "The Lost Message of Jesus" (Zondervan, 2003) has provoked considerable controversy within evangelical Christian circles. The debate has arisen mostly because of Steve Chalke's rejection of a conventional evangelical theological understanding of the atonement, known as penal substitution. Chalke's views were a departure from this doctrinal position and have drawn criticism as well as support, with numerous words in print and online being written on both sides of the debate. For example, Jonathan Stephen, the director of Affinity, spoke out against Chalke in an address at the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches conference in 2005. [cite news
last = Stephen
first = Jonathan
authorlink = Jonathan Stephen
title = The Current Crisis In Evangelicalism
publisher = Evangelicals Now
date = 2005-06
url = http://www.e-n.org.uk/p-3026-The-current-crisis-in-evangelicalism.htm
accessdate = 2007-08-26 ] The American theologian John Piper claimed Chalke's words on the cross were blasphemous. [cite web
last = Warnock
first = Adrian
title = Steve Chalke and the Lost Message of Jesus
date = 2004-11-21
url = http://adrianwarnock.com/2004/11/steve-chalke-and-lost-message-of-jesus.htm
accessdate =2007-07-17 ] Chalke replied to his critics with an article in Christianity magazine. [cite news
last = Chalke
first = Steve
url = http://www.christianitymagazine.co.uk/engine.cfm?i=92&id=22&arch=1
title = Cross Purposes
accessdate = 2007-08-27
date = 2004-09
publisher = Chistianity magazine] The continuing controversy led to the Evangelical Alliance organising a symposium in July 2005 to discuss the issue. [cite web
url = http://www.eauk.org/media/joint-evangelical-alliance-london-school.cfm
title = Joint Evangelical Alliance - London School Of Theology Atonement Symposium
accessdate = 2007-08-26
date = 2005-07-08
publisher = Evangelical Alliance] [cite news
last = Stephen
first = Jonathan
authorlink = Jonathan Stephen
url = http://www.evangelical-times.org/Website_Pages/ArticleDetail.php?articleID=950
title = Chalkegate
accessdate = 2007-08-27
date = 2005-02
publisher = Evangelical Times]

A group of three conservative evangelical theologians responded to Chalke with their book, "Pierced for our transgressions" (Crossway Publishing, 2007), which strongly criticises Chalke's position as inconsistent with some evangelical confessions of faith. [cite book
last = Jeffery
first = Steve
coauthors = Mike Ovey, Andrew Sach
isbn = 1844741788
publisher = Inter-Varsity Press
origdate = 2007-03-16
title = Pierced for our Transgressions - Rediscovering the Glory of Penal Substitution] [ cite web
url = http://www.piercedforourtransgressions.com
title = Pierced for our Transgressions - Rediscovering the Glory of Penal Substitution
accessdate = 2007-08-26] However, the current bishop of Durham and prominent theologian, N. T. Wright, has endorsed Chalke as a leading evangelical and spoken out against the latter book, commenting, for instance, that ‘despite the ringing endorsements of famous men, it [Pierced For Our Transgressions] is deeply, profoundly, and disturbingly unbiblical.’ . [cite news
last = Wright
first = NT
authorlink = N. T. Wright
date = 2007-04
url = http://www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/news/2007/20070423wright.cfm?doc=205
title = The Cross and the Caricatures - a response to Robert Jenson, Jeffrey John, and a new volume entitled Pierced for Our Transgressions
publisher = Fulcrum
accessdate = 2007-08-26] Several figures connected to the christian conference Word Alive have stated that disagreements over Chalke's view of the atonement was part of the reason Spring Harvest and Word Alive went their separate ways, although they have dagreed on how large a factor it was, and the split was declared amicable by both parties at the 2007 event. [cite news
last = Ashworth
first = Pat
title = Atonement row gets personal as Evangelical partnership splits
publisher = Church Times
date = 2007-04-27
url = http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/content.asp?id=38093
accessdate = 2007-07-17 ]

In North America, conservative spokesmen like J.I. Packer see Chalke's reference to the "cosmic child-abuser" [cite book
last = Chalke
first = Steve
title = The Lost Message of Jesus
page = p. 182] as a "supremely silly ... smartypants notion" [cite web
last = Packer
first = J. I.
title = Penal Substitution Revisited
publisher = Reformation 21
date = 2007-07-03
url = http://www.reformation21.org/Reformation_21_Blog/Reformation_21_Blog/58/vobId__6193/
accessdate = 2007-10-13] while others have seen his comments as a relevant critique of punitive visions of God. [cite web
last = Jersak
first = Brad
title = "Methinks He Budged: An Evening with J.I. Packer"
publisher = Clarion Journal of Spirituality and Justice
url = http://clarionjournal.typepad.com/clarion_journal_of_spirit/2007/09/methinks-he-bud.html#more
accessdate = 2007-10-13 ]

The book has highlighted the continuing divide in evangelical Christianity and caused an increased polarisation between the two camps. It can also be seen as part of three ongoing debates: firstly, the question of exactly what does it mean to be evangelical, which traces its roots back to the 1950s (see Neo-evangelicalism), secondly, a more recent exploration as to the place of post-modern thinking within this branch of the church, and finally, the meaning of the cross itself as it relates to human salvation (cf. "Stricken by God? Nonviolent Identification and the Victory of Christ," ed. by B. Jersak and M. Hardin - Eerdmans, 2007).

Bibliography

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* "The Parentalk Guide to the Childhood Years", Hodder & Stoughton, 1999, ISBN 0340721685
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* "New Era, New Church? The New Millennium Challenge To The Churches", Marshall Pickering, 1999, ISBN 0002740265
* "He Never Said... Discover the Real Message of Jesus", Hodder & Stoughton, 2000, ISBN 0340756977
* (ed) "Parent Talk: 80 Celebrities Take a Sideways Glance at Parenting", Hodder & Stoughton, 2000, ISBN 0340785160
* "The Parentalk Guide to Your Child and Sex", Hodder & Stoughton, 2000, ISBN 0340756616
* "The Parentalk Guide to Great Days Out", Hodder & Stoughton, 2001, ISBN 0340785454
* "Faithworks: Stories of Hope", Kingsway, 2001, ISBN 1842910140
* "Faithworks Unpacked", Kingsway, 2002, ISBN 1842910280
* "How to Succeed as a Working Parent", Hodder & Stoughton, 2003, ISBN 0340861207
* "Connect! Your Place In A Globalised World", Authentic Lifestyle, 2003, ISBN 1850784825
* "100 Proven Ways to Transform Your Community", Kingsway, 2003, ISBN 1842911198
* "Faithworks: Intimacy and Involvement", Kingsway, 2003, ISBN 184291118X
* "More Than Meets the Eye: A Fast-moving Look at Christianity", Hodder & Stoughton, 2003, ISBN 034086172X
* "The Lost Message of Jesus", Zondervan, 2003, ISBN 0310248825
* "Trust: A Radical Manifesto", Authentic Media, 2004, ISBN 1850785864
* "Intelligent Church: A Journey Towards Christ-centred Community", Zondervan, 2006, ISBN 0310248841
* "Change Agents: 25 Hard-Learned Lessons in the Art of Getting Things Done", Zondervan, 2007, ISBN 0310275490

References

External links

* [http://www.oasisuk.org/about/stevechalke/ Biography of Steve Chalke]
* [http://www.vanguardmagazine.info/vanguard/Vanguard20.pdf The Lost Gospel of Steve Chalke]