Gordon Donald Fee (May 23, 1934 – October 25, 2022) was an American-Canadian
Christian theologian
Christian theology is the theology of Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theologians use biblical exegesi ...
who was an
ordained
Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...
minister of the
Assemblies of God (USA). He was professor of
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
Studies at
Regent College
Regent College is an interdenominational evangelical Christian College of Christian studies, and an affiliated college of the University of British Columbia, located next to the university's campus in the University Endowment Lands west of V ...
in
Vancouver, British Columbia
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
, Canada.
[Gordon Fee online]
accessed June 4, 2011.
Biography
Fee was born in 1934 in
Ashland, Oregon
Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. It lies along Interstate 5 approximately 16 miles (26 km) north of the California border and near the south end of the Rogue Valley. The city's population was 21,360 at the 2020 cen ...
,
to Donald Horace Fee (1907–1999) and Gracy Irene Jacobson (1906–1979). His father was an Assemblies of God minister who pastored several churches in
Washington state
Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...
. Fee received his
BA and
MA degrees from
Seattle Pacific University
Seattle Pacific University (SPU) is a private Christian university in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1891 in conjunction with the Oregon and Washington Conference of the Free Methodist Church as the Seattle Seminary. It became the Seat ...
and his
PhD from the
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...
where he wrote his dissertation on the
Papyrus 66. On April 21, 2010, Fee was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from
Northwest University in Kirkland, Washington, where Fee had taught in the past and where a building is named for his father, Donald Fee. After teaching briefly at
Wheaton College in
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
and for several years at
Vanguard University of Southern California
Vanguard University of Southern California is a private Christian university in Costa Mesa, California. It was the first four-year college in Orange County. The university offers over 39 undergraduate degrees and emphases in 15 different depart ...
, Fee taught at
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in
South Hamilton, Massachusetts
South Hamilton is a postal address assigned to ZIP code 01982 by the Postal Service and is part of the town of Hamilton, Essex County, Massachusetts, United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the Uni ...
, from fall 1974 until 1986. He then moved to Regent College where he was Professor of New Testament until his retirement in 2009.
[Christianbook.com]
Meet Gordon Fee
August 2008, accessed June 4, 2011.
Fee was considered a leading expert in
pneumatology
Pneumatology refers to a particular discipline within Christian theology that focuses on the study of the Holy Spirit. The term is derived from the Greek word ''Pneuma'' ( πνεῦμα), which designates "breath" or "spirit" and metaphorica ...
and
textual criticism
Textual criticism is a branch of textual scholarship, philology, and of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification of textual variants, or different versions, of either manuscripts or of printed books. Such texts may range in ...
of the New Testament.
[ He was also the author of books on ]biblical exegesis
Biblical criticism is the use of critical analysis to understand and explain the Bible. During the eighteenth century, when it began as ''historical-biblical criticism,'' it was based on two distinguishing characteristics: (1) the concern to ...
, including the popular introductory work ''How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth'' (co-authored with Douglas Stuart), the "sequel," ''How to Read the Bible, Book by Book'', ''How to Choose a Translation for all its Worth'' (co-authored with Mark L. Strauss
Mark Lehman Strauss is an American biblical scholar and professor of the New Testament at Bethel Seminary San Diego, which is part of Bethel University, Minnesota. His areas of expertise include New Testament Gospels and Bible translation.
B ...
), and a major commentary on 1 Corinthians
The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-aut ...
, as well as numerous other commentaries on various books in the New Testament.[ In the 1990s, he succeeded ]F.F. Bruce
Frederick Fyvie Bruce (12 October 1910 – 11 September 1990), usually cited as F. F. Bruce, was a Scottish biblical scholar who supported the historical reliability of the New Testament. His first book, ''New Testament Documents: Are They ...
to become the editor of the notable evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
commentary series, the ''New International Commentary on the New Testament
The New International Commentary on the New Testament (or NICNT) is a series of commentaries in English on the text of the New Testament in Greek. It is published by the William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. The current series editor is Joel B. ...
'' of which his commentaries on 1 Corinthians
The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-aut ...
and Philippians are a part.[
Fee was a member of the CBT (Committee on Bible Translation) that translated the '']New International Version
The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1978 by Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society). The ''NIV'' was created as a modern translation, by Bible scholars using the earliest an ...
'' (NIV) and its revision, the ''Today's New International Version
Today's New International Version (TNIV) is an English translation of the Bible which was developed by the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT). The CBT also developed the New International Version (NIV) in the 1970s. The TNIV is based on the NI ...
'' (TNIV).[Committee on Bible Translation]
Gordon Fee Biography
accessed June 4, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110705021420/http://www.niv-cbt.org/translators/dr-gordon-fee/ Archived from the Wayback Machine He also served on the advisory board of the International Institute for Christian Studies.[International Institute for Christian Studies]
Board of Advisors
, accessed June 4, 2011.
He discovered that Codex Sinaiticus
The Codex Sinaiticus (Shelfmark: London, British Library, Add MS 43725), designated by siglum [Aleph] or 01 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 2 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscripts) ...
in Gospel of John 1:1–8:38 and in some other parts of this Gospel does not represent the Alexandrian text-type
In textual criticism of the New Testament, the Alexandrian text-type is one of the main text types. It is the text type favored by the majority of modern textual critics and it is the basis for most modern (after 1900) Bible translations.
Over 5,8 ...
but the Western text-type
In textual criticism of the New Testament, the Western text-type is one of the main text types. It is the predominant form of the New Testament text witnessed in the Old Latin and Syriac Peshitta translations from the Greek, and also in quotations ...
.
In 2012, Fee announced that he was retiring as general editor of the New International Commentary on the New Testament
The New International Commentary on the New Testament (or NICNT) is a series of commentaries in English on the text of the New Testament in Greek. It is published by the William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. The current series editor is Joel B. ...
series due to the fact that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...
. He died on October 25, 2022, at his home in New York City, aged 88.
Views
Christian egalitarianism
Fee was a Christian egalitarian
Christian egalitarianism, also known as biblical equality, is egalitarianism based in Christianity. Christian egalitarians believe that the Bible mandates gender equality and equal responsibilities for the family unit and the ability for women to ...
and was a contributing editor to the key Christian egalitarian book ''Discovering Biblical Equality: Complementarity without hierarchy'' (2004). His above mentioned commentary consistently translates the generic "men" as "men and women" with an explanatory footnote. He was also a member of the board of reference for Christians for Biblical Equality, a group of Evangelical Christians who believe the Bible teaches complete equality between men and women and that all Christians, regardless of gender "must exercise their God-given gifts with equal authority and equal responsibility in church, home and world".[Christians for Biblical Equality]
Leadership
an
Our Mission and History
, accessed June 4, 2011.
Pentecostal distinctives
Fee was a Pentecostal; nevertheless, he disagreed with some long held and deeply cherished Pentecostal beliefs. Specifically, he questioned article 7 of the Assemblies of God Statement of Fundamental Truths
The Statement of Fundamental Truths is a confession of faith outlining the 16 essential doctrines adhered to by the Assemblies of God USA. These doctrines are heavily based on other evangelical confessions of faith but differ by being clearly Pent ...
, which articulates a classical Pentecostal understanding of baptism in the Holy Spirit
In Christian theology, baptism with the Holy Spirit, also called baptism in the Holy Spirit or baptism in the Holy Ghost, has been interpreted by different Christian denominations and traditions in a variety of ways due to differences in the doctr ...
as subsequent to and separate from Christian conversion
Conversion to Christianity is the religious conversion of a previously non-Christian person to Christianity. Different Christian denominations may perform various different kinds of rituals or ceremonies initiation into their community of belie ...
. In "Baptism in the Holy Spirit: The Issue of Separability and Subsequence", Fee writes that there is little biblical evidence to prove the traditional Pentecostal doctrinal position.[Gordon D Fee. "Baptism in the Holy Spirit: The Issue of Separability and Subsequence," ''Pneuma: The Journal of the Society of Pentecostal Studies'' 7:2 (Fall 1985), p. 88.]
On the other hand, he maintained that "the Pentecostal experience itself can be defended on exegetical grounds as a thoroughly biblical phenomenon".[Fee (1985), "Baptism in the Holy Spirit", 91.] Fee believed that in the early church, the Pentecostal experience was an expected part of conversion:
Fee believed the Spirit's empowerment is a necessary element in the life of the Church that has too often been neglected.[Fee (1985), "Baptism in the Holy Spirit", 95–96.] It is this neglect, Fee argued, that led early Pentecostals to seek the presence and power of the Spirit in experiences which they identified as baptism in the Holy Spirit.[Fee (1985), "Baptism in the Holy Spirit", 98.]
Opposition to prosperity theology
Fee was a strong opponent of the prosperity gospel
Prosperity theology (sometimes referred to as the prosperity gospel, the health and wealth gospel, the gospel of success, or seed faith) is a religious belief among some Protestant Christians that financial blessing and physical well-being are a ...
and published a 1985 book entitled ''The Disease of the Health and Wealth Gospels''.[See his booklet entitled ''The Disease of the Health and Wealth Gospels'', Regent College Publishing, January 1, 1985, .]
Works
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As editor
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fee, Gordon
1934 births
2022 deaths
20th-century Canadian Protestant theologians
American emigrants to Canada
American Pentecostal pastors
Assemblies of God people
Bible commentators
Canadian Pentecostal pastors
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary faculty
New Testament scholars
Pentecostal theologians
Pentecostal writers
Regent College faculty
Seattle Pacific University alumni
University of Southern California alumni
Wheaton College (Illinois) faculty
Writers from Ashland, Oregon