Theology in Scotland 33, 1 (2026) on Theology and Mental Health

The latest issue of Theology in Scotland is devoted to theology and mental health. The articles are available as pdfs from here.

Editorial

Katie Cross

Theology and Mental Health

‘Together, the collection of articles, reflections, and creative work that makes up this issue of Theology in Scotland constitutes an important offering to wider discourse around theology and mental health, while being rooted in the particularities of Scottish experience.’

Articles

Cody Crawshaw

Scottish Nature, Anxiety and God: Connecting to the World Around us as a Benefit for our Mental Health

From mountain peaks to sandy beaches, we in Scotland are lucky to inhabit an area of such natural beauty. Spending time in nature, at the coast or in a local park, is recognised as a benefit for our mental health. Considering the experiences of Christians with mental health concerns, how might seeing nature as a connection with and self-manifestation of God, present in the natural world as we experience it, further these benefits? In my doctoral research into the lived experiences of Christian women experiencing anxiety, a recurring theme was the importance of connecting to nature, and so to God, during times of poor mental health. In this paper, the words of my research participants will be explored alongside an understanding of the presence of God expressed through the natural world, drawing from the fields of mental health and environmental theology. I will first discuss how participants understood God as present in the natural world around them. An exploration into how this connection between God and nature interacts with feelings of anxiety will then be undertaken, asking if God’s presence is calming or concerning. Finally, drawing together the conversation between anxiety, nature, and God, the possible anxiolytic effects of connecting to Scottish nature will be considered.

Margery E. Bray

From the Keening to the Chanter: Feminine Lineage in Scottish Lament

This paper explores the theological and cultural lineage between the women’s caoineadh (keening) traditions of pre-Reformation Scotland and the later development of the pìobaireachd lament. It argues that the suppression of keening by the seventeenth-century church silenced a feminine mode of communal grief-transformation, a function preserved in part through the bagpipe’s cumha repertoire. Restoring balance between masculine and feminine energies in ritual music, it suggests, may recover heart-resonance and communal healing. The article traces the displacement of communal lament into Gaelic song and pìobaireachd as continuing vessels for grief and transformation.

Anne Marie Foster

Trauma, Silence, and Survival: Bathsheba’s Story as a Theological Resource for Mental Health

The story of Bathsheba in 2 Samuel 11–12 and 1 Kings 1–2 confronts readers with themes of sexual violence, grief, silence, and resilience. Traditional or hegemonic interpretations have often minimized Bathsheba’s experience, centring instead on David’s sin and repentance, thereby perpetuating a theological culture that marginalizes the voices of the traumatised. Such readings not only obscure the psychological realities of trauma but also risk reinforcing patterns of silencing that echo in contemporary contexts of mental health struggles. This article proposes a re-reading of Bathsheba’s narrative through feminist and womanist hermeneutics, drawing on the work of J. Cheryl Exum, Wilda C. Gafney, and Suzanne Scholz, among others. These approaches foreground Bathsheba’s perspective, reframing her story not as a tale of passive complicity but as one marked by coerced vulnerability, survival, and enduring presence within Israel’s royal history. This hermeneutical shift creates space for survivor-centred theological reflection, aligning the biblical text with contemporary insights from trauma studies and mental health discourse. By engaging the intersections of theology, psychology, and pastoral care, the study highlights how Bathsheba’s story can inform a richer understanding of lament, resilience, and healing. It argues that reclaiming silenced voices within scripture can foster theological practices that respond more compassionately to mental health crises today. In particular, it suggests that survivor-centred hermeneutics may serve as a resource for communities of faith seeking to support those navigating trauma, shame, and the long-term impact of abuse.

Jonathan Shamshad

Be Still and be Present: Psalm 46 and the Challenge of Super-modern Anxiety

This paper explores Psalm 46 as a theological response to the pervasive experience of anxiety in super-modern life. Drawing on Kirk A. Bingaman’s concept of ‘new anxiety’ and Marc Augé’s theory of super-modernity, this interpretation views contemporary restlessness as both a psychological and spiritual condition arising from over-stimulation, disconnection, and uncertainty. Against this backdrop, Psalm 46 offers an alternative vision of stability grounded in divine presence and trust. A close literary and theological reading of the psalm reveals a movement from chaos to calm: God as refuge in turmoil (vv. 1–3); God’s sustaining presence in the midst of instability (vv. 4–7); and God’s sovereign command to ‘be still’ (vv. 8–11). This stillness is not passive withdrawal but an active posture of faith – an invitation to re-centre the self in God’s unshakable reality. By reframing anxiety through the lens of divine presence, Psalm 46 offers a theological framework for resilience, stillness, and hope. It speaks to the intersection of theology and mental health by affirming that peace emerges not from control or certainty, but from communion with God. The psalm functions as both a pastoral and theological resource, offering individuals and faith communities a means to encounter healing, stability, and renewed presence amid the relentless pace of modern life.

Axolile N. M. Qina

A Cross-cultural Reading of Romans 12:1–2: A Theological Reflection on Mental Illnesses Incurred from my PhD Studies in Scotland

My PhD programme in Scotland started in 2019, after completing master’s degrees in South Africa and the USA. Here, I was almost immediately medically diagnosed with anxiety, then with dyslexia through the University Disability Office, and in 2021 I started medical treatment to help overcome Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and depression. The support I received from my medical practice, disability office, and university faculty allowed me to access learning adjustments, including additional time to complete my studies. Since I am a Xhosa Christian, I turned to the Bible for spiritual encouragement to help make sense of these mental health challenges. Such clarity was required because in my own South African Xhosa cultural background it is common to interpret instances of misfortune and illness as the result of a troubled spiritual dimension that can be rectified through propitiation. After a long cycle of therapy and counselling, in 2023 I meditated on Romans 12:1–2, which lead me to the questions: how can I ‘renew my mind’ spiritually to heal my mental illnesses, and how do I honour God as a ‘living sacrifice’ if my mind is struggling to hope? This paper provides a cross-cultural theological reflection on how I answered these questions and found meaning through a Xhosa Christian spirituality bound in community, prayer and Bible study. This meditation helped me to understand that it was ‘the will of God’ to continue my PhD journey, which I successfully completed and graduated in 2025.

Kate Bowen-Evans and Mark Bowen

A Conversation on Faith and Mental Health: Breath, Presence, and the Imago Dei

Arts and Culture

Christopher N. West

Michaelmas Fragments

Faith need not rest on literal or factual truth alone; there are emotional and psychological truths that speak more powerfully through poetic and creative form. “Michaelmas Fragments” weaves found poetry and narrative prose drawn from personal journals to explore the complex realities of being both a survivor of suicidal crisis and an Anglican priest, ordained on the Feast of St Michael and All Angels. Through evocative juxtapositions – sacrament and hunger, vocation and despair, hope and fruitfulness – the piece invites readers to encounter the tensions at the heart of faith and survival.

Review Essay

Alastair McIntosh

A Literary Reinstatement of Indigenous Gaelic Cosmology

Reviews

Jennifer George and Rachel Siow Robertson on Joy and Digital Technology

Cambridge Papers are published once a quarter and address a wide range of topics, offering ‘Christian reflection on contemporary issues’.

The latest paper is available online here (from where a pdf can be downloaded here):

Jennifer George and Rachel Siow Robertson, ‘Designed for joy? Reflections on the Creation and Use of Digital Technology’, Cambridge Papers 32, 1 (March 2023).

Here is the summary:

‘As digital technologies become embedded into our places of work, education, and leisure, many people have voiced concerns about their adverse effects. Daily technology seems often to either drain our pleasure or promote pleasures which are detrimental. This reveals a need to distinguish between pleasures which support or diminish wellbeing when it comes to the design and use of technology. We argue that a theological and psychology-informed notion of joy can help do this, informing goals for the design and use of digital technology.’

The Big Picture Magazine 6 (2023) on the Nurture of Nature

The sixth issue of The Big Picture, a magazine produced by the Kirby Laing Centre, has recently been made available.

Among other items, this issue devotes several articles to the theme of ‘the nurture of nature’.

More information is available here, and the issue can be downloaded as a pdf here.

Online versions of the previous issues of the magazine are available from here.

The Bible Project on Genesis 1

The Bible Project team has released a new video, this one on Genesis 1. Here is the blurb:

‘How is our interpretation of the creation story in Genesis 1 deepened when we consider its ancient historical and cultural context? In this Bible commentary video, we look at how the literary design of Genesis 1 reveals God’s ideal vision for the whole cosmos.’

It manages to cram a lot into its 7:42 length, and is well worth checking out here.

Christopher Watkin on a Biblical Theology of Culture

Christopher Watkin, author of the excellent Thinking through Creation: Genesis 1 and 2 as Tools of Cultural Critique (Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2017), recently led two seminars at the 2020 FEUER Academic Speakers Network.

Taking his cue from John Stott’s call to ‘double listening’, he tackles the question of ‘how to read culture through the categories and patterns of the Bible, specifically through the creation-fall-redemption framework of biblical theology’.

The two videos are available here, and are well worth checking out by those interested in this area.

Vern S. Poythress on Reading and Understanding Genesis 1-3

Vern S. Poythress, Interpreting Eden: A Guide to Faithfully Reading and Understanding Genesis 1–3 (Wheaton: Crossway, 2019).

No doubt due to someone’s generosity, a newish book by Vern Poythress on handling Genesis 1-3 has been made freely available in its entirety. Here’s the blurb:

‘Christians have long discussed and debated the first three chapters of the Bible. How we interpret this crucial section of Scripture has massive implications for how we understand the rest of God’s Word and even history itself. In this important volume, biblical scholar Vern Poythress combines careful exegesis with theological acumen to illuminate the significance of Genesis 1–3. In doing so, he demonstrates the sound interpretive principles that lead to true understanding of the biblical text, while also exploring complex topics such as the nature of time, the proper role of science, interpretive literalism, and more.’

The book is available here as a pdf.

Word and World 8 (January 2020)

‘Hope for Creation’ is the theme of the latest issue of Word and World, published by IFES. The issue contains the below pieces, and is available as a pdf here.

Las G. Newman

Is There Hope for Creation?

As climate change and its devastating consequences accelerate, we ask: is there still hope for creation? In this article, Las Newman takes a biblical and practical look at the relationship between faith in Christ and our attitude to creation care.

Ruth Hicks de Olmedo

Good News for the Whole Creation: Creation Care at University Campuses in Ecuador

We all know we should care for God’s creation – but how? What might that look like on campus? Find out how one student group in Ecuador changed environmental attitudes and practices in their university.

Andrew Shepherd

Creaturely Theology: Sharing Life and Worship with Other Species

As followers of Jesus, what should our response be to the enormous loss of biodiversity happening in our generation? Andrew Shepherd invites us to recognise non-human animals as our fellow creatures, breathed into life by God as his agents and our fellow-worshippers.

Pablo Pistilli

Pessimistic Theology and Its Impact on the World Today

Pablo Pistilli from Argentina invites readers to move beyond a pessimistic theology to caring for God’s creation.

E. Daniel Cárdenas-Vásquez

Feeding the Poor: Genetically Engineered Foods and Care for the Entire Creation

Genetically modified food is widely considered as detrimental to the farming communities who produce it. But have we misjudged it? Cárdenas-Vásquez proposes that genetically engineered foods could be a way to feed those in most need and proclaim good news to the poor.

Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology 6, 1 (2019)

The latest issue of the Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology is now available, this one exploring issues related to Christianity and science by addressing the question of ‘Theology after Darwin’. The volume carries the below essays (the brief summaries are taken from Matthew Mason’s editorial).

The issue is available from here via a painless sign-up link.

Gerald Hiestand

And Behold It Was Very Good: St. Irenaeus’ Doctrine of Creation

Gerald Hiestand [points] us to the rich resources of St Irenaeus of Lyon’s doctrine of creation to help the Church affirm the creaturely goodness of the material world.

Nathan Barczi

Barth, Mozart, and the Shadow-Side of Creation

Nathan Barczi draws creatively on Karl Barth and Jeremy Begbie’s reflections on the music of Mozart to ask how this might shed light on the problem of non-human suffering before the Fall.

Jeremy Mann

Learning from John Milbank’s Approach to Creation and Evolution

Jeremy Mann turns to a significant theological contemporary and draws lessons John Milbank’s approach to the doctrine of creation in relation to evolutionary theory, in order to help pastors avoid the pitfalls of talking foolishly about evolution.

J. Ryan Davidson

Nicaea and Chalcedon After Modern Christologies: Herman Bavinck as Exemplar in Engaging Christological Developments

Ryan Davidson examines aspects of Herman Bavinck’s Christology as they relate to the catholic creeds and Reformed confessions, and also to the Modern Christologies of his near-contemporaries.

Douglas Estes

Sin and the Cyborg: On the (Im)Peccabbility of the Posthuman

Douglas Estes turns our attention to the near-future and critiques transhumanist technological optimism by reminding us of the devastating effects of sin, and the impotence of technological solutions to address this fundamental human problem.

Zachary Wagner

Narratives in Dialogue: The Interplay between Evolutionary History and Christian Theology

Zachary Wagner [explores] ways in which the Christian gospel may be particularly well-equipped to speak into a worldview shaped by belief in evolution.

Book Reviews

Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology 5, 2 (2018)

The latest issue of the Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology is now available, the second of two fascicles on the historical Adam. This one carrying the below essays (alas, the summaries in Gerald Hiestand’s editorial relate to the previous issue rather than this one), and several book reviews which ‘likewise focus both on both contemporary and classic works relating to the Historical Adam, original sin, and theological anthropology’.

The issue is available from here via a painless sign-up link.

J. Ryan Davidson

All the Generations from Adam to this Day: The Place of Adam in the Apostolic Fathers

Jonathan Huggins

N.T. Wright on the Historical Adam

Michael LeFebvre

Adam Reigns in Eden: Genesis and the Origin of Kingship

Benjamin Petroelje

The Plight and Solution of the Primitive Person

Joshua Philpot

See the True and Better Adam: Typology and Human Origins

Book Reviews

The Asbury Journal 72, 1 (2017)

The latest issue of Asbury Journal, containing the below main articles, with the one on Lesslie Newbigin particularly catching my eye.

Nathan Crawford

Improvising with the Quadrilateral: An Augustinian Approach to Recovering the Use of the Wesleyan Quadrilateral in the Theology of Preaching

This article explores the improvisational nature of preaching through a closer examination of Augustine’s view of the theology of preaching in De Doctrina Christiana, and an exploration of the Wesleyan framework, known as the Wesleyan Quadrilateral as an additional, but key supplement to developing a theology of preaching which maintains the centrality of scripture, but permits the important addition of improvisation to meet the needs of changing times and congregations.

Samuel K. Law

Waltzing with Wesley: Wesleyan Theology as a Renewing Framework for Chinese Christian Spirituality and Global Identity

This paper argues that Wesleyan theology, understanding that God’s prevenient grace is working toward the restoration of all Creation, serves as a means of grace for global Christians to incarnate Christianity with their indigenous cultural identity. Using the Chinese context, this paper explores how a Wesleyan perspective, being itself a pragmatic and integrative theology, provides a pathway for the Chinese church, suffering from a hobbled spirituality as consequence of an over-identification with Confucian philosophy, to achieve a synergistic spirituality that balances both biblical and Chinese cultural components. A brief review of Chinese spirituality is first provided.

David J. Fuller

The Theme of Creation in Old Testament Theology from the Twentieth Century Onwards: Assessing the State of Play

One particularly disputed topic within the field of Old Testament theology is the subject of creation, specifically the theological and ethical import of the creation materials. The present study conducts a survey of positions on the theme of creation in significant works of Old Testament Theology (excluding works that utilize a narrative or book-based approach) from the seminal volumes of Eichrodt and Von Rad to the present day. It is the intention of the present study to identify the various zones of general agreement and disagreement within the subcategories present in different discussions of creation in Old Testament Theology, in order to clearly isolate the areas that require further research.

Kelly J. Godoy de Danielson and Robert Danielson

Pentecostal Music in the Public Square: The Christian Songs and Music of Juan Luis Guerra

This article explores the issue of contextualization of music in Latin America, particularly through the lens of Pentecostal singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his story of healing and conversion. Instead of leaving the pop music scene that had made him famous, he chose instead to stay in pop music and introduce Pentecostal Christian songs into his secular albums and concerts. This is a continuation of a long history of creative contextualization by Pentecostal musicians in sharp contrast to mainline Protestants who still primarily rely on translations of English hymns and music in a world where music is an integral part of the culture.

Kelly J. Godoy de Danielson and Robert Danielson

Música Pentecostal en la Plaza Pública: Las Canciones Cristianas y la Música de Juan Luis Guerra

Samuel Lee

An Eschatological Framework for Assessing the Effectiveness of Business as Mission Companies

This paper attempts to address the following question: “What metric or indicator is most useful for assessing the effectiveness of BAM (Business as Mission) companies?” Several books have provided evaluative tools for assessing ministry viability and business effectiveness, but there are currently none that explicitly deal with a BAM measuring stick for holistic BAM effectiveness. This study thus will seek to offer several possible outlets for the emergence of a relational metric that can be used by BAM practitioners in a variety of different contexts. Specific avenues that will be explored include the business world, economic theory, the Christian canon, as well as church history.

Shawn P. Behan

A Hermeneutical Congregation: A New Reading of Lesslie Newbigin’s Missional Ecclesiology through the “Congregation as Hermeneutic of the Gospel” Principle

Within the Missional Church Movement, the work of Lesslie Newbigin in developing a missional ecclesiology has been foundational. Yet often his ideas are not fully followed, rather just his language or overarching principles. Thus, a new reading of Newbigin’s central idea for missional ecclesiology, the congregation as hermeneutic of the Gospel, is necessary. Looking at his initial work on this concept, expanded with the work of others, along with examples from churches, forms the content of this article. Ultimately, it provides a new way of reading Newbigin’s missional ecclesiology for application in local churches.

From the Archives: E. Stanley Jones and Nellie Logan

The entire issue is available as a pdf here.

Foundations 72 (Spring 2017)

Issue 72 of Foundations: An International Journal of Evangelical Theology, published by Affinity, is now available (here in its entirety as a pdf), with the following contributions, most of them on the theme of church planting.

Ralph Cunnington

Editorial

Neil Powell

The Nature and Necessity of Church-Planting Movements

This paper introduces church-planting movements and considers how they differ from both networks and institutions. It next addresses the nature of gospel partnership within such movements and the place theological vision plays in enabling and establishing a partnership. Further, the paper reflects on some of the challenges movements face, and how they may be overcome, including defining a biblical basis for such partnerships. Finally, it seeks to establish the claim that the development of church-planting movements is necessary to reach our cities and our nations for Christ. 

Philip Moore

Defending Specificity on Doctrinal Distinctives for a Church-Planting Network

Acts 29 is a church-planting network of over 630 churches from 18 different denominations in 30 countries. Acts 29, as well as subscribing to the Lausanne statement of faith, has five specific doctrinal distinctives which its members must accept whole-heartedly. Two of these are Reformed soteriology and complemantarian relationships for men and women in the home and in the church. This article argues for the legitimacy of a network setting distinctives like these as boundaries for the network, describes how Acts 29 lives them out in its different constituencies and finally shows how they relate to the church-planting mission of the network.

Neil MacMillan

Building a Church-Planting Movement in a Traditional Denomination

This article explores how we can have the best of both worlds. The dynamic growth of a church planting movement welded to the resources and depth of a traditional ecclesiastical setting. Because most European Christians belong to traditional denominations it is crucial that these institutions learn to embrace church-planting movement dynamics that can counter the decline of the church. The article begins with a definition and analysis of church-planting movements and contrasts these with the benefits of institutional environments. It is argued that movements and institutions cannot flourish without elements of the other and that it is possible to blend the best features of movement and institution in one organisation. This is followed by a case study of how the Free Church of Scotland has worked to foster a church-planting movement within its existing structures. I try to outline the processes necessary to allow this to happen and some of the challenges involved. The article concludes with a look to necessary future developments that might allow this movement to take root and mature. 

Andy Paterson

Multi-Site Church

Multi-site churches litter the American churchscape and are beginning to crop up on the British scene. This article examines what they are, how the multi-site movement arose and what biblical rationale there might be for their existence. Appeals have been made both to church history and to evangelistic success by their advocates whilst the critics major on the nature of church and its oversight. The paper investigates whether multi-site church is an end in itself, a dangerous distortion to be avoided or a pragmatic tool that might help structure a transitional phase for some church plants and mergers.

Stephen Lloyd

Chronological Creationism

This paper coins a new term, “Chronological Creationism” to describe a nuanced approach to the creation-evolution debate which is theologically, apologetically and scientifically appealing. The importance of the Bible’s chronology, both relative and absolute, is introduced and then chronological considerations are applied to a series of doctrinal issues relating to origins: Adam and humanity, Noah’s flood and the relationship between Adam’s sin and death. It is concluded that if the Bible’s relative chronology in these doctrinal areas is maintained then it is impossible to reconcile the absolute chronology of the Bible with the dating used in evolutionary history. While this presents a formidable challenge, it is only if the relative chronology of the Bible is maintained that we are able to provide coherent responses to many contemporary attacks on Christianity. Starting with the relative chronology of the Bible also allows us to develop a robust scientific approach to origins that is innovative and enriching.

Book Reviews

Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology 4, 1 (2017)

The Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology is published annually by the Center for Pastor Theologians, and is drawn from the papers presented at the Center’s bi-annual theological conference for pastors.

Three archived volumes are available – 1.1 (2014) with essays on gender and sexuality (available as a pdf here), 2.1 (2015) with essays on work, wealth and economics (available as a pdf here), 3.1 (2016) with essays on liturgy, worship, and spiritual formation (available as a pdf here).

The latest volume carries the below essays on the doctrine of creation, exploring the relationship between science and faith, and is available as a pdf here.

Jim Samra

Faith as an Epistemology: Hebrews 11:3 and the Origins of Life

Dillon T. Thornton

Consecrated Creation: First Timothy 4:1–5 as an Underused Remedy for the Cosmological Dualism Prevalent in the Church

David Rudolph

The Science of Worship: Astronomy, Intercalation, and the Church’s Dependence on the Jewish People

Chris Bruno

Creation and New Creation: How should our Understanding of the End Influence our Understanding of the Beginning?

Gary L. Shultz Jr.

The Cosmological Aspect of the Atonement and the Integration of Faith and Science

Gerald Hiestand

The Bishop, Beelzebub, and the Blessings of Materiality: How Irenaeus’ Account of the Devil Reshapes the Christian Narrative in a Pro-Terrestrial Direction

Foundations 71 (Autumn 2016)

Issue 71 of Foundations: An International Journal of Evangelical Theology, published by Affinity, is now available (here in its entirety as a pdf), with the following contributions. The article by Ted Turnau is the second part of a two-part discussion of cultural engagement. The plea by John James to remain non-dogmatic on the age of the earth feels significant given the theologically conservative provenance of this publication.

Ralph Cunnington

Editorial

Ted Turnau

Dialogues Concerning Cultural Engagement (Part Two)

In this two-part essay, the author addresses the subject of Christian cultural engagement in a post-Christian context. In Part One (Foundations 70), the author establishes that cultures of the West can be characterised as post-Christian. He then explores the issue of engagement through a series of dialogues with different characters: 1) the Knight, who represents a political approach to cultural change, 2) the Gardener, who represents the Benedict Option espoused by conservative writer Rod Dreher, and 3) the Member of the Loyal Opposition, who represents the posture of “faithful presence” espoused by sociologist James Davison Hunter. Part Two (in Foundations 71) gathers the various characters for a round-table discussion. After pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of each, the author lays out his own approach which focuses on imaginative cultural engagement using the arts and entertainment. He explores the issue of same-sex marriage as a case study, and the reconciliation between gay activist Shane Windemeyer and American Christian businessman Dan Cathy as an example of winsome engagement in which each discovered a common humanity in the other. Our goal is a cultural engagement that is an analogue to that kind of winsome reconciliation that creates space within which estranged parties can meet, or what the author calls “planting oases”. He then briefly considers two examples of this in the work of J.R.R. Tolkien, and U2’s Superbowl performance in February 2002.

David Green

A Theology of the Created World: Neglected Biblical Perspective

Both inside and outside Christian circles, “creation” is understood as a doctrine about origins. This has unhelpfully drawn attention away from the biblical emphasis on God’s “present continuous” activity in the world and the display of his glory in creation. The biblical doctrine of creation has wide-ranging implications for how we understand ourselves and how we live in this world, giving significance to what we call “everyday life”, encouraging a more integrated theological approach to life, and calling for greater engagement in the world in a distinctly Christian way. It also clarifies and enhances our self-understanding as human beings within the created order, and enriches the prospect of our place in a redeemed creation in the life to come.

John James

The Age of the Earth: A Plea for Geo-Chronological Non-Dogmatism

This paper considers authorial intent in relation to Genesis 1, and suggests that it is not the primary objective of the author to fix the age of the earth. When Scripture is understood as God’s accommodated word to us, to remain non-dogmatic on something the author is not choosing to speak on, in no way undermines the doctrine of inerrancy. The paper then considers the history of biblical interpretation in relation to the author’s intention in Genesis 1. It is noted that the rise of modern geology did little to change the predominant non-dogmatism, and that the forceful insistence on six literal solar days is a relatively recent phenomenon in response to the atheistic outworking of Darwinian evolution. The overall aim of the paper is to show that a dogmatic adherence to any particular age is not necessary in order to defend a high view of Scripture and picks the wrong fight against scientific naturalism.

Stephen Clark

Some Thoughts on the Relationship Between the Word of God and the Holy Spirit

Taking published material by Ralph Cunnington and Professor Robert Letham as a point of departure, this article considers the relationship of the Holy Spirit to the Word of God and focuses upon certain particular aspects of this relationship. A historical survey analyses the teaching of Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones with respect to the relationship of Word and Spirit in the areas of preaching and regeneration, before considering the concept of “immediate regeneration” in the context of the Pajonist controversy and in the teaching of Herman Bavinck. This historical survey of the doctrine of an immediate work of the Holy Spirit concludes with brief references to the teachings of the following: Jonathan Edwards, John Owen, Abraham Kuyper, Charles Hodge, B.B. Warfield, and John Murray. Certain theological “axioms” concerning the ontological nature and status of the Holy Spirit and of Scripture undergird an analysis of the relationship of Word and Spirit, and this leads to the conclusion that while the Word and Spirit are distinct but related, in certain respects the Spirit is greater than, and separate from, the Word.

Bob Letham

A Reply to Stephen Clark

Book Reviews