University of Virginia Library

Theologian Raises Questions About Today

By MARION RITTER

—Ed.)

Most of us have heard of (or
can remember) the day when
polite cocktail conversation
never centered on religion,
politics, or sex. If you've
talked to anyone lately, you've
probably noticed that, on the
antithetical side today, almost
all conversation centers on
either religion, politics, sex, or
a polite combination of the
three.

A disaster? It could be for a
public speaker. How do you
convince a man to drive twenty
minutes out of his way to
listen to a speech on the new
morality or women's liberation
when he can tune in on
Richard Nixon for the same
thing? How can you expect
that same man to come out to
hear a prominent politician
speak on the upcoming
election when a phone call to
his pastor would be just as
enlightening?

Ford: Deep Thought And Conviction

For that matter, why ask
someone to sacrifice a Friday
or Saturday, or even a Sunday
night, to hear someone talk
about Jesus Christ when he can
read Fromm or Peanuts at
much less cost to himself? A
formidable task of persuasion
to say the least.

Yet, for the past seventeen
years over three million people
on every continent of the
world have been persuaded to
come and listen to what
Leighton Ford has to say. In the
past two weeks he has crossed
the United States four times
speaking to businessmen,
laymen, and students about
everything from the church
today to social reform to
modern theology.

Appeal

His appeal to a wide
diversity of audiences is
difficult to explain
rhetorically. He is neither a
Demosthenes nor a Billy
Graham. He is a very
soft spoken man who is,
nevertheless, a dynamic
speaker known for his ability
to hold the attention of his
audience.

So who is Leighton Ford?
He is a contemporary
theologian who might draw the
ire of radical, liberal, and
conservative theologians alike.
Unlike radical theologians, he
does not believe that God has
abdicated, died, or otherwise
been put out of commission.

Leading Scholar

Of one liberal theologian a
leading Russian Orthodox
scholar remarked, "Either what
he is saying is true, but in that
case it is trivial, or else it is
false." This cannot be said of
Ford. Nor does he fit into the
image of a McIntyrean
conservative. Rather, he makes
it clear that what he proposes
is not a vote cast for motherhood,
the power of positive
thinking, and the status quo.

Ford is Canadian by birth,
American in education. He
graduated from Wheaton
College with highest honors
and from Columbia Seminary
with high honors. He holds an
honorary doctorate and is the
author of several books.
Lecturing at colleges across the
nation, he grapples with the
problems of modern theology
and the sleeping Church in a
straight-forward manner.

Kahlil Gibran wrote, ".....In
much of your talking, thinking
is half-murdered." Today in
much of our talking thinking is
but half-born. The surest way
to kill an issue is to talk about
it; talk about it on t.v. panel
shows, in open forums, in
special committees, special
sub-committees, or even
dialogue sermons. Talk until
everyone is tired of listening.

Jesus Christ in the past
decade or so has gained
world-wide attention again.
Jesus freaks captured national
publicity, and turn-on churches
are being murmured about.
Leighton Ford is coming to the
University this weekend to talk
about Jesus Christ in
relationship to Christianity.
Why go to Cabell Hall on a
weekend night to listen? Isn't
Jesus Christ just another issue?

Viability

Unlike most contemporary
theologians who "depend for
their viability on being
sufficiently ambiguous to pass
for both piety and
blasphemy," Ford is
unequivocal in his views on the
meaning of Christianity. Yet,
he offers no simplistic answers,
but confronts the questions
raised by modern thought
directly.

Fischer: Folk Singer From California

In fact, don't come to hear
Ford if all you want to do is
make up for the religion
lecture you missed. From the
standpoint of Jesus Christ,
Ford may raise startling
questions about economic,
political, historical, or
sociological concerns of today.

He is a man of deep thought
and conviction, and speaks
with the authority of a man
who not only has studied
carefully what he believes,
written earnestly about what
he believes, but also lives daily
what he believes.

He will be speaking Friday,
Saturday, and Sunday nights in
Cabell Hall Auditorium.
Saturday night Tom Skinner
will also be speaking, and each
night John Fischer, a folk
singer from California will be
singing.