Robert Webber Dies

Robert Webber, evangelical theologian and author passed away on April 27th after an eight month battle with pancreatic cancer.

Sadly, I had never heard of him until after my reversion to the Church but was intrigued by his "Call" that he put out with other evangelicals in 2006. I blogged about him before. He invited the evangelical churches to hearken back to the words and ways of the ancient church. He brought the study of Patristics into the evangelical world and his Ancient-Future Worship movement has forged much understanding between Catholicism and Protestantism. He was convinced of the need for a return to the sacraments as practiced in the early Church and believed that the Lord's Supper was not a symbolic remembrance.

Here's a portion of the Call:
"We call Evangelicals to take seriously the visible character of the Church. We call for a commitment to its mission in the world in fidelity to God's mission (Missio Dei), and for an exploration of the ecumenical implications this has for the unity, holiness catholicity, and apostolicity of the Church. Thus, we call Evangelicals to turn away from an individualism that makes the Church a mere addendum to God's redemptive plan. Individualistic Evangelicalism has contributed to the current problems of churchless Christianity, redefinitions of the Church according to business models, separatist ecclesiologies and judgmental attitudes toward the Church. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to recover their place in the community of the Church catholic."

'"Requiem aeternam dona ei , Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei . Requiescat in pace. Amen." - "Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him . May he rest in peace. Amen."