The book is, A High View of Scripture? The Authority of the Bible and the Formation of the New Testament Canon, published by Baker 2007 and written by Dr. Craig D. Allert1 It has been positively reviewed by some close friends of mine but I have not had the time to get to it, until now.
In a nutshell, this is perhaps the single best work I have ever read from a Protestant perspective on such touchy issues as the formation of Scripture, the relationship of tradition to Scripture in the early Church (and the Regula Fidei) and most importantly how much of todays Evangelicals have misunderstood and misinterpreted the raw data of history and the patristic fathers. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for a balanced and fair examination of these tuff issues.
Dr. Allert represents a growing group of Protestant scholars2 that are putting tradition (the fathers) back into Protestantism, just as the original (non radical) Protestant Reformers envisioned. Allert is especially one to follow since he is completely at home with all the issues and the secondary literature.
Allert's other works are - Revelation, Truth, Canon and Interpretation: Studies in Justin Martyr's Dialogue with Trypho, published by Brill, 2002.
As well as Allert's informative entry on sola Scriptura and tradition in Evangelical Quarterly 76 which can be read on line here.
Bravo for sane Protestant scholarship.
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1. Dr. Allert is chair of religious studies at Trinity Western University, Langley B.C.
2. Such as among others, Christopher Hall, Lee McDonald, D. H. Williams, Stephen Holmes, Kenneth Tanner, et al.
2 comments:
Nice! I saw this when I was looking at other books you recommended to me the other day and read a brief synopsis of it. I actually meant to ask you about it.
A good one to put on the list. I would like to have things like this to give to some Evangelical friends and family who stand on the obscure side, where history holds no weight.
-g-
Good, hope this helps you.
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