Robert Eugene Webber (November 27, 1933 – April 27, 2007) was an American theologian known for his work on worship and the early church. He played a key role in the
Convergence Movement, a movement among
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
and
charismatic churches in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
to blend charismatic worship with
liturgies
Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...
from the
Book of Common Prayer
The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...
and other liturgical sources.
Early life
The son of a
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
minister, Webber was raised for the first seven years of his life in the small village of Mitulu in the
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964.
Colo ...
where his parents were
missionaries with the
Africa Inland Mission
Established in 1895, Africa Inland Mission (AIM) is a Christian mission sending agency focused on Africa. Their stated mission is to see "Christ-centered churches established among all African peoples." AIM established the Kapsowar Hospital in 19 ...
. Chester Robert Webber and Harriett Basto Russell Webber had three children, Robert, an older sister Eleanor (Webber) Entwistle, and a younger brother, Kenneth Webber. His family returned to the United States when his brother became seriously ill and his father then became pastor of the Montgomeryville Baptist Church in
Colmar, Pennsylvania
Colmar is a suburban unincorporated community located in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, along State Route 309 (Bethlehem Pike) just northeast of Lansdale. The West Branch Neshaminy Creek forms the community's natural northern bo ...
.
Family
Webber was married twice. First, to N. Dawn McCallum Webber and they had 3 children: John, Alexandra, and Stefany. His second marriage was to Joanne Lindsell Webber, who had one son, Jeremy Buffam.
Education
He received his bachelor's degree from
Bob Jones University
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, mottoeng = We seek, we trust
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, type = Private university
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in 1956 and went on to earn a divinity degree from the
Reformed Episcopal Seminary
The Reformed Episcopal Seminary is a private seminary in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1887 as the first seminary of the Reformed Episcopal Church.
History
The Reformed Episcopal Seminary was founded in 1887 in West Philadelphi ...
in 1959, and a master's degree in theology from
Covenant Theological Seminary
Covenant Theological Seminary, informally called Covenant Seminary, is the denominational seminary of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). Located in Creve Coeur, Missouri, it trains people to work as leaders in church positions and elsewhe ...
in 1960. In 1968 he received his doctoral degree in theology from
Concordia Seminary
Concordia Seminary is a Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, Lutheran seminary in Clayton, Missouri. The institution's primary mission is to train pastors, deaconesses, Missionary, missionaries, chaplains, and church leaders for the Lutheran Chur ...
in Saint Louis.
Theological influence
Webber began teaching theology at
Wheaton College in 1968.
Existentialism
Existentialism ( ) is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on human thinking, feeling, and acting. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and valu ...
was the primary focus of Webber's research and lectures during his first years at Wheaton. However, he soon shifted his focus to the early church. In 1978 he wrote ''Common Roots,'' a book that examined the impact of 2nd-century Christianity on the modern church.
In 1985 Webber wrote ''Evangelicals on the Canterbury Trail: Why Evangelicals Are Attracted to the Liturgical Church,'' in which he described the reasons behind his own gradual shift away from his
fundamentalist
Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishi ...
/evangelical background toward the
Anglican tradition. Webber faced an enormous amount of criticism from evangelicals in response to this book. Nevertheless, his work was highly influential, and his ideas grew in popularity in evangelical circles.
During the latter half of his life, Webber took a special interest in Christian worship practices. He wrote more than 40 books on the topic of worship, focusing on how the worship practices of the ancient church have value for the church in the 21st-century
postmodern era. Among his books are ''Ancient-Future Worship'', ''Ancient-Future Faith'', ''Ancient-Future Time'', ''Ancient-Future Evangelism'', ''The Younger Evangelicals'', and ''The Divine Embrace''. Webber also served as editor of ''The Complete Library of Christian Worship'' (1995), an eight-volume series created to serve as a comprehensive reference for professors, students, pastors, and worship leaders. The series draws on several thousand texts and publications and covers topics like Old and New Testament worship and contemporary applications for music and the arts.
Webber founded
The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies in
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...
, in 1998. The school offers Doctor of Worship Studies and Master of Worship Studies degrees. It is the only graduate institution in the country to focus exclusively on worship education. He remained president of the institute until his death. Jim Hart currently serves as president.
In 2006, he organized and edited the "Call to an Ancient Evangelical Future", a document intended "to restore the priority of the divinely inspired biblical story of God's acts in history".
Webber died of pancreatic cancer on April 27, 2007, at his home in
Sawyer, Michigan, aged 73.
In 2012,
Trinity School for Ministry Trinity School for Ministry (TSM), formerly known as Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry, is an Anglican seminary in Ambridge, Pennsylvania. It is generally associated with low church, evangelical Anglicanism. History
In the mid 1970s, several ...
, an evangelical Anglican seminary in
Ambridge, Pennsylvania
Ambridge is a borough in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States. Incorporated in 1905 as a company town by the American Bridge Company, Ambridge is located 16 miles (25 km) northwest of Pittsburgh, along the Ohio River. The population wa ...
, established the Robert E. Webber Center for an Ancient Evangelical Future.
The Center's mission is to continue Webber's vision: to recover the theological, spiritual and liturgical resources of the ancient Christian Tradition for the church today.
Partial bibliography
* The Secular Saint: A Case for Evangelical Social Responsibility (1979) ISBN 978-0310366409
*Celebrating Our Faith: Worship as Outreach and Nurture (1986) ISBN 978-0060692865
* The Majestic Tapestry (1986)
*Evangelicals on the Canterbury Trail: Why Evangelicals Are Attracted to the Liturgical Church (1989 reprint
985
Year 985 ( CMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Summer – Henry II (the Wrangler) is restored as duke of Bavaria by Empress Theoph ...
ISBN 9780819214768
* Worship is a Verb (1992)
* Liturgical Evangelism (1992)
eprint of Celebrating our Faith under different publisherISBN 978-0819215963
* The Book of Daily Prayer (1993)
* The Worship Phenomenon: A Dynamic New Awakening in Worship is Reviving the Body of Christ (1994)
* Worship Old and New (1994)
* The Complete Library of Christian Worship, 8 vols. (1995)
** The Biblical Foundations for Worship, Volume 1
** Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, Volume 2
** The Renewal of Sunday Worship, Volume 3
** Music & the Arts in Worship, Book 1, Volume 4
** Music & the Arts in Worship, Book 2, Volume 4
** The Services of Christian Year, Volume 5
** The Sacred Actions of Christian Worship, Volume 6
** The Ministries of Christian Worship, Volume 7
* Blended Worship: Achieving Substance and Relevance in Worship (1996)
* The Book of Family Prayer (1996)
* Planning Blended Worship: The Creative Mixture of Old and New (1998)
* Ancient-Future Faith: Rethinking Evangelicalism for a Postmodern World (1999)
* The Prymer: The Prayer Book of the Medieval Era Adapted for Contemporary Use (2000)
* The People of the Truth with
Rodney Clapp (2001)
* Journey to Jesus: The Worship, Evangelism, and Nurture Mission of the Church (2001)
* The Younger Evangelicals: Facing the Challenges of the New World (2002)
* Ancient-Future Evangelism: Making Your Church a Faith-Forming Community (2003)
* Ancient-Future Time: Forming Spirituality through the Christian Year (2004)
*The Secular Saint: A Case for Evangelical Social Responsibility (REPRINT by Wipf & Stock, 2004) ISBN 978-1592446308
* The Divine Embrace: Recovering the Passionate Spiritual Life
ncient-Future Series(2006)
* Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches: Five Perspectives (Editor, 2007)
* Ancient-Future Worship (2008)
* Who Gets to Narrate the World?: Contending for the Christian Story in an Age of Rivals (2008)
*Evangelicals on the Canterbury Trail: Why Evangelicals Are Attracted to the Liturgical Church (Revised with Lester Ruth, 2012) ISBN 978-0819228512
Some of Webber's books were republished under different titles.
References
External links
The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship StudiesRobert E. Webber Center for an Ancient Evangelical Futurearticle in
Christianity Today
2006 interviewTrinity School for Ministry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Webber, Robert E.
1933 births
2007 deaths
American Christian writers
American theologians
Christian writers
Deaths from pancreatic cancer
People from Berrien County, Michigan
Deaths from cancer in Michigan
Wheaton College (Illinois) faculty
Bob Jones University alumni
Reformed Episcopal Seminary alumni
Covenant Theological Seminary alumni
Concordia Seminary alumni