Van Driel’s main theological interests are in Christology, ecclesiology, and the interaction between biblical studies and theology. His first book dealt with the divine motivation for the incarnation: is it contingent upon sin, or does God have deeper motives to become human? Van Driel suggests the latter, arguing that in friendship and love God wants to come as close to creation as God can—by coming among us as a human being. His current book, Rethinking Paul, offers a theological reading of contemporary Pauline exegesis and tries to glean what Protestant theologians can learn from the New Perspective on Paul and an apocalyptic reading of the apostle.
Rev. Dr. Edwin Chr. van Driel
Van Driel is an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and served on the church’s committee that produced the denomination’s new hymnal, Glory to God. He was the primary writer of the committee’s “Theological Vision Statement” and “A Statement on Language,” and also served on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Book of Common Worship. He is a member of the International Research Consortium, which researches missional congregations.