Campbell Divinity Professor Dr. Steve Harmon has completed a second round in a series of conversations between the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) and the Vatican Dec. 2-8, 2007, in Rome, Italy. The purpose of the conversations is to promote Christian unity and mutual understanding between the Baptist World Alliance and the Roman Catholic Church The first round in this series was held at Beeson Divinity School at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala., Dec. 10-15, 2006.A highlight of the week was a private audience with Pope Benedict XVI, arranged for members of the Baptist and Catholic delegations, in which he told the representatives he hoped the conversations would “bear abundant fruit for the progress of dialogue and the increase of understanding and cooperation” between the two denominations.The Pope also explained that there are many points upon which Baptists and Catholics agree, including the primary source of knowledge of God is Scripture; the Trinity, the divinity and humanity of Jesus; and the existence of heaven and hell. In addition, they share common concerns over social and moral issues such as abortion, pornography and violence.Harmon, who is one of only 10 Baptist theologians throughout the world to be invited to be a part of the Baptist delegation, will attend all five conferences. The theme of these conferences is “The Word of God in the Life of the Church: Scripture, Tradition and Fellowship.”As part of the conference, Harmon presented a paper offering a Baptist response to the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei Verbum,which is a significant document issued by the Second Vatican Council that is a key expression of the Catholic position on the relationship between scripture and tradition.The first series of talks between the BWA and the Vatican took place between 1984 and 1988.A native Texan, Harmon holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (summa cum laude) from Howard Payne University in Brownwood, Texas, and Master of Divinity and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. He completed additional graduate studies at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, and post-doctoral studies at the University of Dallas. A committed churchman, Harmon has served as pastor of three Baptist churches in Texas and regularly preaches and teaches in North Carolina Baptist congregations. Prior to coming to Campbell in 1998, Harmon served as adjunct professor of Christian Studies at Howard Payne University and as a teaching fellow in the Department of Theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Among his published works is a recent book, “Towards Baptist Catholicity: Essays on Tradition and the Baptist Vision.” The book is volume 27 in the series “Studies on Baptist History and Thought.”Harmon has previously served as a member of the Doctrine and Interchurch Cooperation Commission from 2000-2005. He was also one of six Baptist theologians and historians selected to represent the commission in 2003 as part of the North American phase of the Anglican-Baptist International Conversations held in Wolfville, Nova Scotia.Photo Copy: Dr. Steve Harmon of the Campbell University Divinity School
Campbell professor participates in international Catholic-Baptist conversations