A king's herald declares to the inhabitants of a kingdom what needs to be known so that all in the realm may flourish. Making Things PublicĪs publishers, we take on the ancient role of the herald. For Christians, writing is not just informational. These markings on a page, pen and papyrus, somehow still conveyed all the transformative, revelatory power of God. The biblical writers were convinced that written texts could change people's lives. And for Christians, writing is not just informational. In Christian tradition, you can read a text in Greek, in Latin, in English, in your own heart language, and that text has the capacity to generate belief. It's a contrast to mystery religions where you had to have some sort of secret knowledge or mystical experience. The Gospel writer has every confidence that this text, these written words, can bring someone to faith in Jesus. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." The divine Word is expressed and understandable in human language, using our communications media.Ī key text for us is John 20:30-31: " Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. God reveals the word in ways that we can hear and understand-in our own human language, embodied in local words. And incarnation: The Word has become flesh. We root our theology of publishing in two main themes: revelation and incarnation. John 1: In the beginning was the Word-the logos-and the Word was with God and the Word was God. Christians are People of the Book because God is God of the Book. Theologically, it goes back to God's identity. It's consistent with our Christian history and theology. Christian missionaries in Africa and Asia were known as People of the Book because of their focus on Bible translation and producing written versions of Scripture. Puritans, Baptists, Methodists have all described themselves as People of the Book. But Christians have received it and taken it on as our own because it resonates with us. So the phrase comes from Islam, in a somewhat disparaging way. The Koran says "If only the People of the Book had faith, it would be better for them," 1 and "O ye People of the Book! Believe in what we have now revealed." 2 Islam refers to Jews and Christians as people of the book. But the Bible doesn't actually call us "people of the book." That phrase isn't in Scripture. Why Christians Are People of the Book: A Theology of Publishing By Al HsuĬhristians are People of the Book.
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