The godfather of the phenomenology of religion Ninian Smart infamously declared that theology was a ‘conceptual albatross around the neck of religious studies’. Although often existing in the same university department, theology and religious studies have not had a good relationship. In recent years theologians such as Gavin D’Costa and Paul Griffiths have argued that religious studies can only, and indeed must, find its true home in theology. In this talk, we outline the need and shape of an evangelical theological religious studies to be developed under the disciple of missionary apologetics also known as ‘elenctics.’ 

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Daniel Strange is director of Crosslands Forum, a centre for cultural engagement and missional innovation. Formerly he was college director and tutor in culture, religion, and public theology at Oak Hill College, London. Strange is a contributing editor for Themelios, and is a member of Hope Community Church, Gateshead, UK, which is part of the Fellowship of Evangelical Churches (FIEC). He is the vice president of The Southgate Fellowship. His book, Their Rock Is Not Like Our Rock: A Theology of Religions (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2015), received an award of merit for theology/ethics in the Christianity Today 2016 Book Awards. His most recent books are Plugged In (The Good Book Company, 2019), and Making Faith Magnetic (The Good Book Company, 2021).

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