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revival to support the pietistic Calvinism of their movement. Certainly, this is a legitimate practice because Edwards shares those concerns. But, Evangelicals often miss the fundamental role the Trinity plays in his theology. Thus, although reaching back to Edwards may be pedestrian in Evangelicalism, showcasing and building on his trinitarian theology is uncommon.
Edwards is important for contemporary evangelical theology because he is a major figure in the North American evangelical tradition who uses—unlike many of his contemporaries and later Evangelicals—the mutual love model as a fundamental principle of his theology. The doctrine of the Trinity played a systemic role in his doctrines of God and redemption. His use of the Trinity is not ornamentation to a more or less typical Reformed evangelical theology. On the contrary: his trinitarianism is foundational to and gives synergy to his Christology and pneumatology. To be sure, he did not write a systematic theology in the scholastic way of traveling through a catalog of doctrinal topics. Nevertheless, he used a specific theology of the Trinity, and it was a nerve center of his theology. For this reason, he should be considered a systematic theologian.
Ecumenism also remains a vital agenda for contemporary theology. On the one hand, the postmodern context of contemporary theology assumes a fragmented world and valorizes irreducible diversities. The result can be a retreat to ghettoization in which various groups lose sight of the common values and deep theological commitments that unite them. On the other hand, despite significant ecumenical breakthroughs, many Christians, particularly at the level of local congregations, continue to embrace rather parochial mind-sets toward the Christian other. For example, I attended an adult Sunday School lesson in an evangelical church in which the teacher warned the class that although there may be some people in the Catholic Church who are saved, the church itself is corrupt and does not preach the Gospel. Although this sort of anti-Catholic vitriol is hardly new, it remains a perennial mind-set in many evangelical churches. Though I do not want to downplay real theological differences, the problem with insular attitudes is that they