Editorial – Issue 87
DJ is the Editor of Foundations. He is also an Elder at Cambridge Presbyterian Church and Assistant Professor of Historical Theology at Westminster Presbyterian Theological Seminary.
He [Apollos] began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. (Acts 18:26, ESV)
This, much delayed edition of Foundations, covers a wide variety of topics of interest to the church – ranging from the text of scripture to the role of men and women in the church.
Two of the articles either directly or indirectly continue from earlier editions of Foundations. Professor Ian Shaw provides the second part of his sobering consideration of “Slavery, The Slave Trade and Christians’ Theology.” (For part one see Foundations 86 – Spring 2024). It is humbling to consider the failings of the church, which were so serious. But it is encouraging to be reminded of those who rightly understood the Bible’s teachings and who, driven by Christian conviction, fought against slavery. Stephen Steele continues his examination of historical views on the original text of scripture. He previously argued (Foundations 85 – Winter 2023) that leading theologians around the time of the Westminster Assembly were not committed to “word for word” identification of the “Textus Receptus” with the original manuscripts of scripture. Building on this, Steele now turns his attention to the founding fathers of the Free Church of Scotland. Again, he seeks to demonstrate that they, far from viewing the “Textus Receptus” as sacrosanct, argued for the superiority of alternative readings of the original text. Any alternative understandings of the Free Church Fathers, or indeed any scholarly response to Steel’s first article, would be most welcome in Foundations. Foundations is an academic journal committed to dialogue within the range of views permitted by the Affinity basis of faith.
Alison Umpleby provides an important engagement with Nay Dawson’s recent book She Needs: Women Flourishing in the Church (IVP, 2024). This review article is sympathetic to the aims of the book and yet also raises important questions as to how discussions over the role of men and women in the church are best addressed. In essence Umpleby argues that we cannot really see women flourishing in the church without agreement on “the big picture of who God is, his purpose in creating us male and female, and how individual men and women are called to live out our gifts and callings within that bigger vision.” I.e. the main thing is to understand the Bible’s teaching on what it means for women to flourish (even where that cuts across our culture’s desires). Umpleby makes the case (perhaps due to the purpose of the book) that this needed clarity is lacking.
The final two articles provide engagement with topics related to apologetics. With apologies to those with a fear of statistics, Nick Meader provides an examination of the likelihood of the resurrection based on a Bayesian approach. Meader’s article certainly provides interesting reading. The final article from Steve Bishop and Mark Roques considers the topic of mysticism, and specifically so-called Christian mysticism. This is relevant given cultural trends in the West, and Bishop and Roques provide a trenchant critique.
I trust these articles, and the book reviews in this issue, are all of help for the church.
Dr Donald John MacLean
Editor of Foundations
Elder, Cambridge Presbyterian Church and President and Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology, Westminster Seminary (UK).
February 2025
Book Review: Sermons on Job
Book Review: The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (4th edition)
Book Review: Metaphysics and Christology in the Seventeenth Century
The “Christian” Mysticism of Meister Eckhart and Teresa of Ávila
Resurrection: Apologetics and Biblical Theology
Review Article: She Needs
Garnishing the Sepulchres of the Righteous: Textual Criticism in the Free Church Fathers
Slavery, The Slave Trade and Christians’ Theology – Part Two: Theological Themes
Editorial – Issue 87