Does Mark Driscoll Belong at John Pipers Conference?
In the following video (see video), John Piper responds to criticisms about his bringing Mark Driscoll into his Desiring God conference (taking place on September 29th). In the video, Piper rightly analyzes the dangerous trend of the trivialization of doctrine by the emerging and seeker friendly churches. However, incorporating Mark Driscoll into his conference (who aligns with people like Thomas Merton), will be as devastating as the very problems that Piper foresees. Those who Driscoll admires were some of the greatest enemies of Christian doctrine of the 20th century. Let me give you an example of what we are talking about. This excerpt from A Time of Departing shows why affinity with Thomas Merton does not mix with sound biblical Christianity: In order to understand Merton’s connection to mystical occultism, we need first to understand a sect of the Muslim world–Sufis, who are the mystics of Islam. They chant the name of Allah as a mantra, go into meditative trances and experience
