His Collected Shorter Writings are available in four volumes, and a selection of his articles has been published as The J. Packer Collection. Packer preached and lectured widely in Great Britain and North America, frequently contributed to theological periodicals, and was an Executive Editor of Christianity Today. Phone: Fax: Toll free: Need assistance with the website? No reproduction, electronic or otherwise, without the permission of Regent College. Please refer to our Fine Print section for information on our privacy policies and terms of use.
Website design by Domain7. For more information on how we collect, use, and disclose your personal information, please see our Privacy Policy. Regent College. Go to Summer Programs. More Links About Us. Return to Faculty List. Fee Maxine Hancock James M. Houston J. Packer Eugene Peterson Charles R. It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Dr. Packer, a treasured faculty member, author, churchman, and friend.
He was ninety-three, and humorous, gracious, and prayerful even in his final days. One of the most widely-respected systematic theologians of the twentieth century, Jim drew his inspiration primarily from Scripture, but was deeply influenced by the works of John Calvin and the English Puritans. Jim brought seventeenth-century Puritan devotion to life for his twentieth- and twenty-first-century students.
From his youth as the son of a railway clerk in Gloucester, England, Jim won a scholarship to Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he was noted as a remarkable student with a brilliant intellect. He quickly felt drawn to further study, and commenced his studies in theology at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Jim was ordained a deacon in , and a year later, a priest, at St. From parish ministry, Jim became the Librarian at Latimer House at Oxford, and during this time, his writing and speaking began to gain attention in the United Kingdom and beyond.
Jim remained there until he was enticed by James M. Houston, the founding principal of Regent College who had been an Oxford don when Jim was a student to come to Vancouver. He was the first faculty member to hold the Sangwoo Youtong Chee Chair of Theology and he taught a wide range of classes, including Systematic Theology and Puritan Theology as well as theological expositions on his favourite Pauline letters.
His final work, The Heritage of Anglican Theology, will appear in He co-authored nineteen others. Editors repeatedly observed that Jim was clear, factual, and humble—meticulous in proofreading his own work. He was an editor at Christianity Today for more than thirty years, and General Editor of The English Standard Version of the Bible, a role he considered one of his greatest contributions to the global church. Jim did not court controversy, but on occasion he expressed his strong, and sometimes controversial, opinions on biblical inerrancy, theistic evolution, women in ministry, and ecumenical dialogue between Evangelicals and Roman Catholics.
While others—clergy, scholars, and laity—sometimes disagreed with him, Jim was unfailingly gracious with everyone. He was a champion of the Book of Common Prayer, introducing both lifelong Anglicans and first-time visitors to its theological richness and devotional grace.
Jim met his wife, Kit, a nurse, in at a conference. Seeking to reconnect afterwards, he wrote to her under the guise of wanting advice for a walking trip in Wales, her home country. She saw through the ploy but corresponded with him regardless. Jim loved jazz, trains, and mystery novels.
He was witty and quick to see humour; he made fun of himself but never others. When he was writing daily, Jim wrote words on his treasured manual typewriter before breakfast. Packer believes that the most important project of his life is a book that does not even carry his name—the English Standard Version of the Bible for which Packer served as general editor.
That verdict comes from a man whose book Knowing God ranks fifth in a list of "books that have shaped evangelicals. Among Anglicans, Packer has been an "iconic figure" who embodies the essence of Anglicanism. This is relatively unknown to "free church" evangelicals because Packer has moved with equal ease in both worlds and has been more influential in the nonconformist world especially the Calvinistic wing.
Packer has said that he has "always wanted peace, and like Richard Baxter I've been involved in trouble, trouble, trouble, all the way. In private conversation Packer confided to me that he has been a controversialist by necessity, not by preference.
In , Packer wrote an article discussing how he wishes to be remembered, and regarding his lifetime of entering controversy for the sake of truth he said that it is something that needs to be done but tends to be "barren.
Packer has achieved fame and been serviceable to Christ's kingdom through a very simple formula: he has done the task before him and left the outcome to God. To use a metaphor that Voltaire was inspired to place at the end of his book Candide , Packer has cultivated his garden instead of engaging in grand designs.
When I spent two days with Packer in the Crossway offices in June of , he repeatedly told me that he has never cultivated a following. How, then, did he make it onto Time magazine's list of 25 most influential evangelicals? His published writings have been the main vehicle for spreading his name and influence. Packer has never held a prestigious academic post and has never filled a high-visibility pulpit on a permanent basis.
We can truly say regarding his fame and influence that God did it. Ryan Lister. What does it mean that God condescended in Christ and dwells with us through His Spirit?
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