In a commentary Oct. 28, R. Albert Mohler Jr. noted the tragic irony surrounding the falling out between the Crystal Cathedral’s Robert H. Schuller and his son Robert A. Schuller, which has led to the son’s removal as host of the “Hour of Power” television ministry.
In a commentary Oct. 28, R. Albert Mohler Jr. noted the tragic irony surrounding the falling out between the Crystal Cathedral’s Robert H. Schuller and his son Robert A. Schuller, which has led to the son’s removal as host of the “Hour of Power” television ministry.
“In 1982 the elder Schuller published a ministry manifesto known as ‘Self-Esteem: The New Reformation,’” Mohler wrote at albertmohler.com. “In that book, mailed free to thousands of pastors, Schuller argued that the evangelical church had lost sight of the true message of the Gospel – a message of self-esteem. He castigated expository biblical preaching and called for a therapeutic gospel.
“… The main thrust of the book was a call for a ‘new Reformation’ that would replace the Gospel as preached by the churches with a new message of self-esteem to be preached by ‘missions’ for God. Along the way, Schuller redefined both sin and salvation, abandoning biblical definitions for those he found in positive thinking, modern secular psychology, and the New Thought tradition.”
A conflict arose when the younger Schuller, who had been groomed to take over his father’s ministry, began citing the Bible in his preaching “with the direct implication and instruction that we are to learn from it,” Mohler said.
Such preaching apparently crossed a line that led to Robert A. Schuller’s demotion.
“Any conflict between a father and son is tragic,” Mohler wrote. “A public conflict is all the more tragic and painful. The congregation at the Crystal Cathedral must have felt the pain. Any father or son reading the reports feels the pain. What about the younger Schuller’s self-esteem? The gospel of self-esteem is a false gospel that, like every other false gospel, breaks down under pressure.
“That’s why we so desperately need the real Gospel – the Gospel of Christ. This is also why we need the church. Possibility thinking obviously has its limits.”