The Reverend
Brian D. McLaren
McLaren in 2012
Born1956 (age 67–68)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materUniversity of Maryland
ReligionChristianity
Congregations served
Cedar Ridge Community Church, Spencerville, Maryland (1982–2006)

Brian D. McLaren (born 1956) is an author, speaker, activist, public theologian and was a leading figure in the emerging church movement. McLaren is often associated with postmodern Christianity.[1]

Education and career

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Raised in Rockville, Maryland in the conservative Open Brethren, part of the Plymouth Brethren, McLaren became attracted to the countercultural Jesus Movement in the 1970s.[2] He is a faculty member and Dean of Faculty for the Centre for Action and Contemplation.[3]

McLaren attended the University of Maryland where he received both a B.A. (1978) and M.A. (1981) [4][5] He holds an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Carey Theological Seminary, Vancouver. In 2010 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from Virginia Theological Seminary (Episcopal).

From 1978-1986 McLaren taught college English. He helped form Cedar Ridge Community Church, a non-denominational church in Spencerville, Maryland, in 1982.[6] He was founding pastor and served in that capacity until 2006. The church eventually grew to include 500 members.[7]

In 2011, McLaren defended Rob Bell's controversial book Love Wins against critiques from figures such as Albert Mohler, who argued that Bell advocated universalism.[8]

In 2013, McLaren stated that he did not believe homosexual conduct to be sinful.[9]

In 2015, McLaren was recognized by Time magazine as one of the 25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America.[10]

Personal life

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McLaren is married and has four children and five grandchildren.[5][11] In September 2012, McLaren led a commitment ceremony for his son Trevor and partner Owen Ryan at the Audubon Naturalist Society in Chevy Chase, Maryland.[12]

Publications

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Children's Books

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Sole-authored Books

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Co-authored books

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Books part of a Series

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Co-edited volumes

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Brian McLaren: Postmodern Christianity Understood as Story". Christianpost.com. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
  2. ^ Murphy, Caryle (September 10, 2006). "Evangelical Author Puts Progressive Spin On Traditional Faith". Washington Post. Retrieved January 3, 2023.
  3. ^ "Building on Richard Rohr's Founding Vision". cac.org. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  4. ^ "Author Brian McLaren to speak at summer worship series". Asheville Citizen. Asheville, NC. August 12, 2010.
  5. ^ a b Tucker, Abigail (April 27, 2005). "Fire without brimstone: Brian McLaren preaches tolerance and environmentalism, making him one of the country's more unusual yet influential evangelicals". Baltimore Sun.
  6. ^ "Cedar Ridge Community Church". crcc.org/. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  7. ^ Garrison, Greg (August 2, 2014). "'The Bible is a book about immigration': Emerging Church leader McLaren returning to Birmingham". al.
  8. ^ "Brian McLaren Defends Rob Bell against Mohler's Critique". Christianpost.com. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
  9. ^ Theoblogy (8 October 2012). "Brian McLaren's View on Homosexuality".
  10. ^ "Brian McLaren - Paradigm Shifter". Time. 2005-02-07. Archived from the original on June 11, 2010.
  11. ^ "About Brian McLaren". Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  12. ^ "Trevor McLaren, Owen Ryan - Weddings". The New York Times. 2012-09-23. Retrieved 15 October 2012.

Critical references

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Interviews

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