Howdy Folks, I always become ambitious when planning for the summer. I take precious time scheming to relearn all the Hebrew I forgot from the past year or translate a letter or two from Ignatius to only fail when the summer rolls around. Usually, my grand projects stall before they get off the ground- but no more! This summer demands a certain level of study, as I am taking my diaconate exam near the end of August (huzzah!), but alongside that work I want to do a baptism study that will synthesize the following works: 1.) The Holy Bible (no brainer, right?) - examining baptism from the OT to the NT and examining major passages (e.g. Titus 3 and John 3) 2.) The BCP (1662) and the 39 Articles of Religion - how does the office for the administration of baptism and the 39 Articles understand the work of God in baptism? 3.) The Second Adam and the New Birth (Sadler, MF) - classic work; reprint available from Federal Vision Presbys: https://www.athanasiuspress.org/product/books/second-adam-and-new-birth 4.) Signed, Sealed, and Delivered (Sutton, Rt. Rev. Ray R.) - My seminary parish is REC, so this is supposed to synthesize Anglican and patristic material to deliver an accessible and holistic view of baptism http://www.amazon.com/SIGNED-SEALED-DELIVERED-Study-Baptism/dp/1893293548 5.) Baptism & Baptismal Regeneration (Boyd, Archibald) - Referenced in Bp. Sutton's work; reprint available from Fr. Klock (the Anglican Expositor) http://www.lulu.com/shop/archibald-...-regeneration/paperback/product-20986645.html 6.) Holy Baptism (Stone, Darwell) - http://www.lulu.com/shop/darwell-stone/holy-baptism/paperback/product-16262802.html and the non-Anglican(s) 7.) Reformed Dogmatics (Vol.4) - Holy Spirit, Church, and New Creation pp. 461 -539 (Bavinck, Herman) - this guy is the Reformed heavyweight; always worth reading- no matter the issue - http://www.wtsbooks.com/reformed-dogmatics-vol-herman-bavinck-9780801026577 8.) Institutes of the Christian Religion (Calvin, Jean) - yeah, yeah I know how you feel about him. If you can think of primary sources from the patristic era or others, want to join me on this summer quest (in whole or in part), or are satisfied to hold me accountable- please let me know! I'm hoping to post findings, etc. for the group to work through as I plow through these... Cheers,
Actually I admire Calvin quite a bit. Im no Calvinist, but his Institutes is quite well written and intriguing. I am very excited to see your findings. Good luck and God bless you in your endeavors this Summer!
Ive been reading St. Cyril of Jerusalem's Catechetical Lectures (through CCEL) which, of necessity, speak on baptism. Im also a big fan of Luther on the Sacraments by the man himself, and FJ Hall's The Sacraments, both of which i found on Google Books.
@anglican74 - Good call. The one that is overwhelmingly recommended (because it systematically lists biblical, historical, and patristic justifications for each article), is Edward Harold Browne's: An Exposition of the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion: Historical and Doctrinal The REC's seminary sells a print version, but it's $45 so google books to the rescue! https://books.google.com/books?id=S...of Religion: Historical and Doctrinal&f=false
Except you said Prayerbook commentaries...sorry! I own John Henry Blunt's - Annotated Book of Common Prayer - also printed by the Expositor http://www.lulu.com/shop/john-henry...common-prayer/hardcover/product-20557792.html I think there is a paperback version available but for books like these I always spring for hardbacks...
@Lowly Layman, CCEL is a Godsend for sure. I'll check out St. Cyril - have you heard of Augustine and the Catechumenate? http://www.amazon.com/Augustine-Catechumenate-William-Harmless-SJ/dp/0814661327; My rector from Tuscaloosa can't stop raving about it. I purchased FJ Hall's volume on the sacraments - thanks for the recommendation!
Hello CC. If you are looking for patristic readings, I would suggest: St. John of Damascus' Exposition of the Orthodox Faith St. John Chrysostom's On the Priesthood St. Basil's works On The Human Condition and On the Holy Trinity St. Vincent of Lerins' Commonitorium These are all quite edifying. Also of great value are: Roger Olson's Arminian Theology: Myths and Realities Vernon Staley's The Catholic Religion: an Introduction to the Anglican Communion There are so many good works available.
We will be happy to facilitate study groups, joint book reading and prayer through this site. Let us know how we can help.
@Phoenix thanks for the offer! Great admin here. I'm not sure how it would look, but I suspect I'd post a thread for the particular title or an aspect of baptism and talk about how each of the titles deals with that aspect (e.g. Regeneration). If there is a better way than that I'm all ears. Thanks for the help.
Hall's book is part of a ten volume set on Dogmatic Theology which is a simply masterfy exposition of Anglo-catholic theology.