About ten years ago I threw out a message in a bottle. Well, it was really a message on an internet religious chat room. “Were there any Bob Jones graduates out there who wanted to talk.”
An old college friend, David Gustafson, got in touch. We started emailing about religion. By this time I had just become Catholic and David was finding himself disenchanted with the Evangelical church he was attending. From there we engaged in very long email discussions on things theological.
By and by I thought we might make a book out of part of our enthusiasm. The result is Mary – A Catholic Evangelical Debate. David and I cover all the territory–the Virgin Birth, the Scriptural account, the perpetual virginity, Immaculate Conception, Apparitions, Rosary etc. He takes the Evangelical side while I take the Catholic. I think the book’s unique in that we don’t really bash it out trying to win an argument. If I humbly say so, I think we’re both concerned to find the truth. The result is a book which really helps Catholics understand Evangelical objections to Marian devotion, and helps Evangelicals understand why Catholics have always given the Mother of God such honor.
The book’s got a forward by Fr Neuhaus and the Evangelical theologian J.I. Packer. People have written nice things about the book. If you buy it from my website instead of elsewhere the poor author gets more out of it. Be in touch! The advantage of buying it through me personally is that I can send you excerpts by email to see if you like it…
I bought it a couple of years ago at a convention and loved it–very, very creative. I recommend it to everyone who wants to learn more about the Marian tradition and watch an honest debate.I always wondered how you wrote that, though. Back and forth, compile the emails, and edit? In any case, it’s a great accomplishment. (I say this as a Catholic who grew up in the South and endured my share of debates with Baptist friends on this teaching.)