St. Louis Post Dispatch, “Evangelicals and Mormons in Dialogue,” by Rosalynde Welch, 11/06/09
Christianity Today, “Most Improbable Dialogue,” by Richard Ostling, 10/30/09
Both these articles touch on Dr. Mouw’s leadership in the ongoing process of dialogue between Mormons and Evangelicals.

Associated Press, “Lutheran Gay Clergy Vote Tests Mainline Churches,” by Erick Gorski, 8/23/09
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voted recently to allow gays and lesbians in committed relationships to serve as clergy. The ELCA’s move is especially jarring and significant because “it is viewed by all of us as one of the more Reformation-rooted, broadly orthodox denominations” and takes its theology seriously, Dr. Mouw is quoted as saying. “It’s a huge, huge, departure for a church like that,” said Mouw, who has urged fellow conservatives in the Presbyterian Church (USA) to stay in the fold despite concerns about a leftward shift of sexuality.

Los Angeles Times, “Lutherans Lift Barriers for Gay Clergy,” by Duke Helfand, 8/22/09
This article also referred to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s decision to allow gays and lesbians to serve as clergy. “Those of who have been actively campaigning for a change of this sort in the other mainline denominations will see this as a sign that they should intensify their efforts,” said Richard J. Mouw in the article. “For those of us who have opposed this on biblical grounds, it is bound to reinforce the sense that we are no longer welcome in the mainline.”

Christianity Today, “The Heresy of Individualism,” by Richard J. Mouw, 7/15/09
This article by Richard J. Mouw addresses recent comments by Katherine Jefferts Schori, bishop of the Episcopal Church, denouncing the “individualistic focus” of evangelical teachings as a “great Western heresy.”

The individualism evangelicals profess, said Mouw, not only is not a heresy, it is at the heart of the gospel. “Many of us is the evangelical world have devoted much effort toward remedying what we see as an unhealthy individualist  focus in our ranks,” Mouw concedes; however, “we evangelicals never downplay the importance of individuals–as individuals–coming to a saving faith in Jesus Christ.”

Newsweek, “A Christian by Any Other Name,” by Lisa Miller, 3/7/09
This article quotes Richard J. Mouw about the increasing number of people who are referring to themselves as followers of Jesus instead of the term Christian since they believe this does not carry as much baggage.

While many Christians applaud this effort to transcend labels and history, some also worry that “follower of Jesus” diverts people from the fundamentals. “Two questions constantly come up” said Mouw, “The first is Christology. What about the full divinity of Christ? How much can you keep that in the background? Second, what’s the role of the church in all this?”

Louisville Courier Journal, “Book on Angels Looks at Jesus,” By Peter Smith, 4/12/09
This article quotes Richard J. Mouw about the book, No Ordinary Angel: Celestial Spirits and Christian Claims about Jesus. The book “does an amazing job of integrating serious theological studies of angels with both biblical teaching and popular culture,” said Mouw.

Associated Press, “California Ruling Revives Gay Marriage Debate,” by Rachel Zoll, 5/30/08
This article discusses the implications of California’s decision to put a gay marriage initiative on the ballot. Fuller President Richard J. Mouw said he worries both about evangelicals’ angry rhetoric and gay rights supporters who portray gay marriage foes as homophobic and the equivalent of racists, ignoring the moral and religious dimensions.

Associated Press, “Romney Bid Was a Crucible for Mormons,” by Rachel Zoll, 2/9/08
In this article, Richard J. Mouw discussed Mitt Romney’s failed presidential bid, and the often tense relationship between Mormons and Evangelical Christians. Mouw said some Christian conservatives consider Mormonism not just a questionable faith, but also a rival political force. Mouw discussed living in Michigan in the 1960’s, when Romney’s father, George, was governor. At that time, evangelicals weren’t deeply involved in politics, and many supported George Romney.

Los Angeles Times, “More in U.S. Jump to New Faiths, Poll Finds,” by Connie Kang, 2/26/08
Americans are switching religious affiliation in ever-greater numbers or abandoning ties to organized denominations altogether, according to a recent survey.

“The presumption of a Protestant framework for understanding the American character is now a thing of the past,” said Richard J. Mouw. “We are an increasingly pluralistic society, and we Protestants now have to think about how much we can contribute to the common good as simply just one more voice in the American choir.”

Associated Press, “Angry Atheist Books Sell,” by Rachel Zoll, 5/23/07
Christopher Hitchens’ book God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything has sold briskly ever since it was published last month, writes Rachel Zoll, and his debates with clergy are drawing crowds at every stop. Sam Harris’ The End of Faith and Letter to a Christian Nation, Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion, and Daniel Dennett’s Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon strike similar themes and have also been immensely popular.

Richard J. Mouw, president of Fuller, said the books’ success reflect a new vehemence in the atheist critique. “I don’t believe in conspiracy theories,” he said, “but it’s almost like they all had a meeting and said, ‘Let’s counterattack.’”

Mouw also said that conservative Christians are partly to blame for the backlash—that the rhetoric of some evangelical leaders has been so strident, they have invited the rebuke. “We have done a terrible job of presenting our perspective as a plausible world view that has implications for public life and for education, presenting that in a way that is sensitive to the concerns of people who may disagree,” he said. “Whatever may be wrong with Christopher Hitchens’ attacks on religious leaders, we have certainly already matched it in our attacks.”

CNN, “The Legacy of Jerry Falwell,” 5/15/07
“Jerry Falwell had evangelicals describing themselves as the moral majority,”  Fuller Seminary President Richard J. Mouw commented on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees” program. “…that’s an amazing shift of self-definition. And he used all of the means of communication available to him.”

Mouw said that Falwell understood the power of creating a brand matched by a strong ideology, an ideology he would bring to future generations at his Liberty University. “He realized that a certain kind of public figure needed to have, among other things, an academic community as a base, as a political power base. And so he established this university and was quite successful at it.”

Christian Century, “Communion with the Saints,” 5/15/07
In this reflection, President Richard J. Mouw discusses the issue of praying to the saints, exploring the differing perspectives of Catholics and Protestants. Mouw describes a public dialogue he had with a Roman Catholic priest on the subject, saying that he came away from that experience “a little less convinced that the theological case was as tightly shut as I had thought.” Although he holds to his Protestant convictions concerning prayer to the saints, Mouw points out that open dialogue on these kinds of theological differences can serve to enrich our faith.

The Los Angeles Times, “Theologian Aims to Clarify a Loaded Word’s Meaning,” by K. Connie Kang, 12/2/06
In this feature interview, Fuller president Richard J. Mouw reflects on the history, significance, and perceptions of the word “evangelical.” “To be an evangelical is to take seriously the cross of Jesus Christ as the only solution to the fundamental issues of the human life,” Mouw explains. Although this word has often become “tied up with culture wars,…we have a special obligation to explain what the word means and why some of us think it’s such an important label.” To read the complete article, go to http://www.fuller.edu/news/html/mouw_latimes1206.asp

ChristianityToday.com, “Shoot-First Apologetics,” 11/10/06
In defense of his dialogues with Mormon scholars, Fuller president Richard J. Mouw recounts an exchange between Walter Martin (of Kingdom and Cults fame) and theologian Donald Grey Barnhouse in which Barnhouse shot a bluebird he had mistaken for a grackle. This accident became an analogy for the dangers of hastily formed conclusions about other faith groups. “It is not wrong to contend for the gospel,” Mouw recalls Barnhouse explaining, “but it is wrong to shoot first and ask questions later. What you think might be a grackle, an apostate, or an Antichrist might well be a bluebird you looked at in a hurry.” To read the complete article, go to http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/november/27.98.html

USA Today, “Some Churches Rejecting Occult for Holy Halloween,” by Judy Keen, 10/31/06
Pastors who believe Halloween is a pagan tradition are urging children to trade pumpkin-carving and scary costumes for hayrides, contests for best saint costumes and prayers, writes Judy Keen of USA Today.
“More churches are spurning Halloween as interest in witchcraft, seances, and ‘channeling’ grows,” said Richard Mouw, president of Fuller. “At the very least, this means that Christians cannot view Halloween as just another innocent childhood ritual.”

The New York Times, “Christian Foes of Da Vinci Code Mull Tactics,” by Laurie Goodstein, 5/11/06
Laurie Goodstein writes that not all evangelicals are in agreement on how to respond to the Da Vinci Code film. Some will boycott it, while others will use it as a teaching moment.
“I think we really have to see it, at least some of us,” said Fuller president Richard J. Mouw. “It’s very important for some Christians at least to be able to engage in an intelligent discussion.”

The New York Times, “A Pulpit Online for Critics of the Da Vinci Code Film,” by Laurie Goodstein, 2/9/06
In advance of the Da Vinci Code film, Sony pictures posted a website featuring commentary from evangelical leaders. Among the writers are Richard J. Mouw, the president of Fuller. Mouw, who contributed an essay on “Why Christians Ought to See the Movie,” said: “It’s going to be water cooler conversation, so Christians need to take a deep breath, buy the book and shell out the money for the movie. Then we need to educate Christians about what all this means. We need to help them answer someone who says, ‘So how do you know Jesus didn’t get married?’ ”

The Washington Post, “Among Evangelicals, A Kinship with Jews,” by Allan Cooperman, 1/8/06
Alan Cooperman discusses the growing number of evangelical groups that are participating in dialogue with Jewish groups. He mentions the kosher breakfast that Fuller recently had for local rabbis.
“More and more, we’re inviting Jews as guest lecturers,” said Richard J. Mouw, president of Fuller. “We’re looking at rabbinic literature and how we can better understand the Bible through rabbinic eyes. That’s a real push for us.”