westminster seminary california
SPRING2019
WHY DORT MATTERS A L E G ACY F O R TO DAY ’ S C H U R C H
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THE CANONS OF DORT FOR TODAY
GOD'S BITTERSWEET PROVIDENCE
THE DEEP WELL OF THE GOSPEL
by W. Robert Godfrey
by Marc Scaturro
by Owen Lee
PRESIDENT'S CORNER
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wo years ago, Protestants around the world celebrated the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses. Few questioned the importance of this event in the history of the church. This year we celebrate another important anniversary—the 400th anniversary of the Synod of Dort. Yet some are left wondering whether Dort bears any importance for today’s church. After all, Dort’s legacy simply is the five points of Calvinism, right? Certainly it is true that Dort’s defense of biblical, Reformed Christianity against the Remonstrants, who were followers of Jacobus Arminius, during a time when the direction of the Reformed church hung in the balance is crucial to its legacy. But it is important also that we appreciate the pastoral nature of the Canons of Dort. As W. Robert Godfrey, WSC President Emeritus and Professor Emeritus of Church history, so helpfully highlights in his new book, Saving the Reformation (Reformation Trust), “The Synod of Dort worthily taught and preserved for the churches a God-glorifying religion, a God-centered life, and a God-given comfort.” Westminster Seminary California seeks to continue Dort’s legacy of defending Reformed faith, piety, and practice through the preparation of ministers of Christ’s church who are experts in the Bible and faithful shepherds of God’s flock. In this issue, we examine the legacy of Dort and what it can teach us today. Who better to help us appreciate the importance of the Synod of Dort for modern Christians than Dr. Godfrey? In his featured article (p. 4), he makes a compelling case that the Canons are important both for what they teach us and how they teach us. Also in this issue, current student Marc Scaturro (p. 8) tells the story of God’s abundant grace in his life and how he came to WSC. Alumnus Owen Lee (p. 18) shares how his biblical training at WSC prepared him to wrestle with what it means to be an Asian-American pastor in the United States. Finally, Bill Green, a member of WSC’s first graduating class, discusses the importance of the Canons of Dort for his ministry in Latin America (p. 26). As always, we covet your faithful prayers and support as WSC seeks to work for Christ, his gospel, and his church. Cordially in Christ,
“BEHOLD, GOD IS MY SALVATION; I WILL TRUST, AND WILL NOT BE AFRAID; FOR THE LORD GOD IS MY STRENGTH AND MY SONG, AND HE HAS BECOME MY SALVATION.” Isaiah 12:2 2
Joel E. Kim WSC President UPDATE | SPRING2019
SPRING2019 UPDATE | SPRING2019 PRESIDENT Joel E. Kim EDITOR Marcus McArthur DESIGNER Megan York
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PRINTER Precision UPDATE magazine is a publication of Westminster Seminary California. For address changes, duplicate mailings, or additional magazine requests, please write or call. Westminster Seminary California 1725 Bear Valley Parkway Escondido, CA 92027 PHONE (888) 480-8474 FAX (760) 480-0252 EMAIL development@wscal.edu WEBSITE www.wscal.edu PERMISSIONS: UPDATE grants permission for any original article to be photocopied and distributed, permitted that the wording is not altered in any way, no fee is charged beyond the cost of reproduction, and no more than 500 copies are made. Any exceptions to the above must be explicitly approved by Westminster Seminary California. Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: This article originally appeared in UPDATE, a publication of Westminster Seminary California (WSC) and is reprinted with permission. For more information about WSC, visit www.wscal.edu or call (888) 480-8474. MISSION: The purpose of UPDATE is to showcase Westminster Seminary California’s distinctively Christ-centered, graduate education through the work of its faculty, students and alumni who are serving as pastors, teachers, missionaries, and leaders worldwide in light of our overarching mission “to glorify God through graduate theological study. . . for those who will serve in the Christian community and the larger society.” Since 1979, Westminster Seminary California has offered a distinctly Reformed and rigorous education in order to glorify Christ, promote His Gospel, and serve His Church. The strength of our degree programs lies in our faculty’s unified commitment to the inerrant Scriptures and the Reformed confessions. Westminster Seminary California is the only dually accredited seminary in the Western United States serving confessionally Reformed churches. 2018-2019 BOARD OF TRUSTEES Mr. Richard J. Blauw, Jr. Mr. Daniel J. Bryant The Rev. CJ den Dulk Mr. Lyle Faber The Rev. Thomas K. Groelsema The Rev. Dr. David W. Hall Mr. Milton D. Hodges The Rev. Dr. Lloyd H. Kim The Rev. Scott R. Korljan Mr. Brian D. Miller Mr. James W. Onnink Mr. Ronald W. Prins Mr. Pete Sara Mr. Roger A. Swets The Rev. Charles A. Tedrick Mr. Kent Van Groningen The Rev. Derrick J. Vander Meulen The Rev. Dr. Eric B. Watkins ©2019 Westminster Seminary California All rights reserved.
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INFOCUS
ONMISSION
4. The Canons of Dort for Today
18. The Deep Well of the Gospel 20. Alumni News
ONCAMPUS
INPERSON & INPRINT
8. God's Bittersweet Providence 10. 2019 Annual Conference 13. WSC Faculty News 14. 2019 den Dulk Lectures 16. Capital Campaign Updates
22. Faculty Speaking & Writing 24. Honorarium & Memorial Gifts 26. Up Close with Bill Green
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INFOCUS
The
CANONS OF DORT f o r
to day
by w. r o b e r t g o d f r e y 4
UPDATE | SPRING2019
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n May 29, 1619, the Synod of Dort concluded more than six months’ work with a worship service. The Synod did a great deal of work to provide for the well-being of the Reformed Church in the Netherlands for centuries to come. Most importantly it prepared and adopted the Canons, which responded to the theological challenge of Jacobus Arminius and his followers and have served as one of the confessional standards of many churches ever since. Undoubtedly this Synod and its Canons were vital to seventeenth century Calvinism theologically and ecclesiastically. But beyond providing a four-hundredth anniversary about which church historians can write, are the Canons actually valuable for Christians today? Not surprisingly, I answer that question with a resounding, Yes! The Canons are of great value for Christians today in two key ways: first, for the truth they teach, and second, for the way in which they teach.
the truth the canons teach The Canons teach what has come to be known as the five points of Calvinism. Those five points have often been presented in the acronym TULIP, although the order of the teaching in the Canons was ULTIP: unconditional election, limited atonement, total depravity, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the saints. Before and after the Synod, Reformed preachers and academic theologians had devoted time to demonstrate the truth of these doctrines from the Scriptures. While the critics of Reformed theology have often claimed that these teachings are driven by a desire to have a logical, rational theology, the Reformed insist rightly that their teaching presents the explicit and vital teaching of the Bible. Calvinism has always sought to be biblical, and historically has produced the most faithful, profound, and at the same time creative studies of the Bible. While Calvinists would all agree that the five doctrines presented in the Canons are true, they may not all be clear about how important they are. I fear that the phrase, “the five points of Calvinism,” is actually rather unhelpful and confusing. First, the phrase implies that Calvinism summarizes itself in these five points. It does not and never has. Calvinism summarizes itself in its confessions (e.g., the Belgic Confession and the Westminster Confession) and its catechisms (e.g., the Heidelberg Catechism and the Westminster catechisms). A summary of Calvinism covers many elements not in the five points. Second, the five points do not express the uniqueness of Calvinism. At least four of the five points have been taught in the history of the church by non-Reformed theologians. Indeed, the five points are not a Reformed self-expression, but a Reformed response to the five Arminian points (in the Remonstrance of 1610). The Calvinists responded with their five answers to the five errors of Arminianism.
Third, the five points may be used to suggest that Calvinism is a subset of evangelicalism with distinctive doctrines added to generic evangelical teaching. “Reformed” then is just the icing on the evangelical cake. Then Calvinism is just an optional addition to being evangelical. The effect of that thinking is to marginalize or trivialize the five points. Rather, the five points are integral elements of Reformed Christianity. Reformed Christianity certainly shares truths with other forms of Christianity, but it has its own character and integrity (and in fact predates evangelicalism). The Arminian challenge to Calvinism was not about minor or peripheral matters. Calvinists from the Netherlands and from many parts of Europe saw this challenge as an attack on the fundamentals of the Reformation. Franciscus Gomarus, a Dutch professor of theology, delegate to the Synod, and at one time a colleague of Arminius at the University of Leiden, stated that the rejection of Arminianism was necessary to preserve the Reformation doctrine of justification. That claim may initially seem strange since the Canons have no discussion or definition of justification. But the doctrines discussed at Dort are indeed foundational to preserving and understanding justification. One of the greatest recoveries of the Reformation was the biblical doctrine of grace. From its earliest days the Reformed taught that the problem of sin required a doctrine of grace that was sovereign and effective. That grace must be irresistible because those lost in sin would always resist grace. That irresistible grace of God must be grace that God had planned from eternity. That grace directs the work of Christ for the elect and preserves the elect in grace. Here is the very heart of the Christian vision of salvation. Here are sola gratia and solus Christus. Sola fide as taught from the beginning of the Reformation insisted that faith is not a work that receives what it deserves, but that faith is a gift that rests in the work of another, namely Christ. The Synod was not responding to a minor disagreement. It was saving the Reformation. The Synod did not provide exhaustive exegesis for each element of its teaching. It believed that Reformed theologians had already provided such biblical evidence. Yet the Synod made clear in the Canons that its teaching expressed the teaching of Scripture alone. The Conclusion to the Canons states: “The Synod judges
“THE SYNOD WAS NOT RESPONDING TO A MINOR DISAGREEMENT. IT WAS SAVING THE REFORMATION."
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Pray for WSC
PREPARING FAITHFUL PASTORS Please pray that WSC would continue its legacy of preparing faithful pastors to continue the Reformation in Christ’s churches.
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this declaration and rejection to be taken from the Word of God and agreeable to the confessions of the Reformed Churches.” It also appeals to “all colleagues in the gospel of Christ” that they “need to think as well as speak with the Scripture according to the analogy of faith. Finally, they need to abstain from all those phrases that exceed the limits prescribed for us in the genuine sense of the Holy Scriptures….” Similarly, the Preface to the Canons (adopted by the Synod, but not an official part of its confessional teaching) recorded about the beginning of the Synod’s work: “After calling on the name of God, it bound itself by a holy oath to have for its judgment only the standard of Holy Scripture….” Here is sola Scriptura in action. For Reformed Christians, truth is not an intellectual game. Theology does not have as its goal scoring points off its opponents. Rather truth is enlivening and sanctifying. Truth is an essential element of our communion with God. In teaching and protecting the truth, the Synod of Dort was advancing the Gospel for the church.
the way the canons teach The way in which we teach is important to the truth we teach. The Apostle Paul makes that clear in his teaching on how brothers should speak to brothers: “speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ…” (Eph. 4:15). The Canons are a model to Christians today, not only of the truth we should teach, but also how to teach it. First, in our age of speedy communication, the Canons are
“FOR REFORMED CHRISTIANS, TRUTH IS NOT AN INTELLECTUAL GAME. THEOLOGY DOES NOT HAVE AS ITS GOAL SCORING POINTS OFF ITS OPPONENTS. RATHER TRUTH IS ENLIVENING AND SANCTIFYING. TRUTH IS AN ESSENTIAL ELEMENT OF OUR COMMUNION WITH GOD." 6
a model of careful communication. The Synod met for more than six months, the majority of its time spent preparing the Canons. They carefully studied the writings of the Arminians, discussed a variety of ways in which they might respond, faced some internal disagreements among themselves, found appropriate compromises, and then reached a unanimous agreement. Such patience and commitment to communal cooperation should be an example to our age of radical individualism. Second, the compromises that the synodical delegates made among themselves remind us that a key theological skill is the ability to prioritize issues. Not all theological points are equally important. Sometimes it is right to agree to allow disagreements when basic teachings are not at stake. Third, the Synod thought carefully about the audience for whom they were writing the Canons. If the Canons were for academic theologians, then they could be written briefly in the technical, scholastic language of the universities. But the Synod judged that the audience they most wanted to address was the common people in the churches. The Arminian teachings had troubled the churches and raised in the minds of Christians both theological and spiritual questions. The Synod wanted to help the people understand, in the words of the Conclusion, “the glory of the divine name, the holiness of life, and the consolation of troubled souls.” To accomplish those goals, the Canons had to be written in the language of the people. The official language used by the Synod for its Canons and other actions was Latin. Latin had to be used because the Synod was international, and the only language that all of the delegates had in common was Latin. The Synod’s work was promptly translated into Dutch and other European languages. Latin is a language of great clarity and precision, but allows for very long sentences that remain completely understandable. The problem with most English translations of the Canons is that the translations have maintained the length of the original Latin sentences. Such long sentences in English can seem difficult and unclear, seriously undermining what the Synod intended and accomplished. In my new English translation of the Canons (in my book Saving the Reformation: The Pastoral Theology of the Canons of Dort, Orlando, Florida: Reformation Trust, 2019) I have tried to make clear the essential helpfulness and simplicity of the Canons for the church. UPDATE | SPRING2019
“CHRISTIANS CAN NOT ONLY KNOW THAT THE SAINTS OF GOD WILL PERSEVERE TO THE END, BUT CAN AND SHOULD BE ASSURED THAT THEY ARE AND WILL FOREVER REMAIN SAINTS." Fourth, the Synod wanted to anticipate and answer any suggestion that the theology of the Canons was novel or sectarian. Each Head of Doctrine, therefore, begins with a catholic statement that Roman Catholics and Lutherans, as well as Calvinists, would have agreed with in the seventeenth century. From that common catholic foundation each Head of Doctrine shows its distinctively Reformed teaching as the only proper extension of that catholic beginning. Fifth, the Canons demonstrate their great pastoral concern in all of their theological teachings. We can see that most clearly in the Fifth Head of Doctrine, where the Synod responds to the Arminian uncertainty about the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. The Synod did not just teach perseverance, but went beyond the issues originally raised by the Arminians to provide helpful reflection on the relation of perseverance to assurance. Christians can not only know that the saints of God will persevere to the end, but can and should be assured that they are and will forever remain saints.
Sixth, the Canons provide a most helpful model for the ways in which to study and teach the doctrines they present. For example, the First Head of Doctrine is about election. There are many ways correctly and helpfully to approach that doctrine. One can begin with the mind of God in eternity. But the Canons wisely begin with the human situation of being fallen and lost in sin. For that concrete historical situation the Canons proceed to show how only unconditional election can solve that problem. The Canons provide a most helpful, step-by-step approach to teaching this great doctrine. When the Synod concluded on May 29, 1619, one of the delegates who was also pastor of the Great Church in Dordrecht preached in that church before the Synod on the text of Isaiah 12. This text perfectly captured the concern and passion of the Synod. The text is a celebration—not of one or another point of doctrine—but of the great saving work of God. Isaiah 12:2: “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”
W. ROBERT GODFREY is President Emeritus and Professor Emeritus of Church History at Westminster Seminary California. He also serves as Chairman and Teaching Fellow of Ligonier Ministries. He lives with his wife, Mary Ellen, in Escondido. wscal .e d u
REMEMBERING THE CANONS At the 2019 Annual Conference, Dr. Godfrey's plenary session was titled, "Why Dort Happened, or Why Arminius is Not the Hero of the Story."
"One of the great blessings of sound theology and biblical religion is that you can know you belong to God." w. r o be r t god frey
You can watch or listen to each Annual Conference session at the link below:
wscal.edu/conference-2019
ONCAMPUS
GOD’S BITTERSWEET PROVIDENCE T
by Marc Scaturro
he road to Westminster Seminary California (WSC) was a long one for my family. I grew up in a nominally Catholic family from Grand Rapids, MI. My parents divorced when I was three, and we didn’t really have much experience with church aside from the occasional Christmas or Easter service. Though Jesus was sometimes mentioned, He was this ethereal “good guy” that I never really understood. At sixteen, I started to have questions about who God was and started visiting the United Methodist Church near our home. Occasionally, I went to Sunday School and a few Christian music festivals with the youth group. I also started checking out other churches with my friends and their families. It was a clumsy, awkward, and sporadic time of exploration. When I was seventeen, I met an amazingly stubborn Dutch CRC farm girl. I remember asking her out and getting the reply, “I think you’re a good guy, but either you are going to start going to church or this isn’t going to happen.” She and her family were very gracious and patient with me as I started attending church regularly and reading Scripture. That Christmas I received my first Bible and really started to learn about God and His Word. I became a member of the church the following January. Over the next couple of years, we grew and started planning our lives together. God had other plans, though, and in His providence she died in a car accident over Christmas vacation as she drove home from my house one night. I can still remember the phone call at 3AM. I had transferred colleges to attend the same school as her and was staying with my dad who lived close to the university when the phone rang. I didn’t think much of it. My dad managed trucks, did sales for a local construction company, and had a 4:30 start time—I figured it was work related—but then out of curiosity I glanced at the Caller ID and saw her father’s name.
“GOD BEGAN TO WORK IN ME. I WANTED TO LEARN EVERYTHING I COULD ABOUT CHRIST. I WANTED TO HAVE THAT CONFIDENCE. I WANTED TO BE ABLE TO SHARE THAT CONFIDENCE WITH OTHER PEOPLE." 88
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UPDATE | SPRING2019
I frantically answered the phone, my dad was already on the other end. “Is she ok?!? Is she ok?!? Is she ok?!?” “Marc,” it was her older brother, “there’s been an accident.” “Is she ok?!? Is she ok?!? Is she ok?!?” “It’s ok. It’s ok. It’s ok...” “Thank God! Wait… what did you just say?” “It’s ok. It’s ok. It’s ok. She’s with Jesus.” I was not at the point in my faith where I knew enough about God’s sovereignty or how to really rest in it when times became difficult. It was a stormy winter night and my step-mother had offered her the guest room for the night, but she didn’t want people thinking the wrong things before we were married. We were trying to do the God-honoring thing, so why did this happen? I had lost my biggest Christian influence, my best friend, and my soon-to-be fiancée all in the same phone call. I was numb for weeks. I tried resuming school in January, but dropped out after two weeks. I was lost. I just worked, went home, and went to church. Unfortunately, I also started looking for solace in the wrong places: girls, partying, and success. But I kept coming back to what her brother had said, “It’s ok. It’s ok. It’s ok. She’s with Jesus.” God began to work in me. I wanted to learn everything I could about Christ. I wanted to have that confidence. I wanted to be able to share that confidence with other people. I cut ties with all of my old friends and enrolled at Kuyper College in Grand Rapids, MI. I was still completely ignorant at the time. I had no categories for Calvinist or Arminian, but I quickly found myself an Arminian in a Reformed institution. I couldn’t understand how I could love God if I didn’t have the option not to love God. I fought Reformed theology with everything I could my first year of classes, but my professors were patient and gracious with me. After my first year at Kuyper, I could not afford to go back. I went back to work at my old job—I was a bank teller—but would have theological discussions with wscal .e d u
my old classmates during the evenings and weekends. I can still remember the night I was doing my devotions when I read Romans 9 and finally had to admit that the Reformed guys were actually right. A few months later, I moved out to Arizona to work for my cousin’s real estate company. I found the only church I could with “Reformed” in the name and started attending. A few months went by and I just had this nagging feeling that “I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to be doing,” so I moved back to Michigan, reapplied for financial aid, and the day I got my rejection letter for said financial aid I received a call offering me a full-ride scholarship as long as I agreed to go to a nearby Reformed seminary for my M.Div. All my dreams had come true!
With all of its Christian publishing companies, Grand Rapids proved to be a unique place to foster my gifts, and I was blessed with working for some pretty amazing people. The Lord provided Ruth and me, now with three children, the means to pay off all of our student loan debt and opened the door to attend Westminster Seminary California with the hope of one day being a minister in the OPC. I truly feel that the Gospel is the most important thing, and I want nothing more than to dedicate my life to proclaiming it, as flawed as I am. It has been my dream to attend WSC for many years. My pastor, Dale Van Dyke, is an alumnus, and I figured if this school taught him to preach the way he does then this was where I had to be. As I began
“I TRULY FEEL THAT THE GOSPEL IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING, AND I WANT NOTHING MORE THAN TO DEDICATE MY LIFE TO PROCLAIMING IT, AS FLAWED AS I AM." I finished my Pre-Seminary Studies degree over the next two and a half years. I loved learning about God. It was also during this time that I met my wife, Ruthie, and joined the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) through the invitation and mentorship of one of my professors, Dr. Felch, along with the love and support of the congregation at Harvest OPC in Wyoming, MI. Throughout the process of my education at Kuyper and my time in the OPC, I began to notice that not all Reformed churches believed the same things. By the time I arrived at that seminary, I realized I couldn’t continue my education there in good faith. After much prayer and at the advice of my Session, we decided to leave. This was a difficult decision, but we knew it was the right one. Unfortunately, this also meant repaying the scholarship plus interest, so I enrolled in art school—I was pursuing a degree in graphic design before Kuyper and had already completed credits—finished my BFA, and went to work.
growing in the Reformed faith, Dr. Horton’s books, the White Horse Inn, and conversations with men like Dr. Godfrey, Dr. Estelle, and Dr. Fesko were also extremely influential. It just seemed so unattainable, until the Westminster Village was finished. As a husband and father of three small children, there is just no way we could have responsibly packed up and moved across the country without affordable housing. We are truly blessed.
Pray for WSC STUDENT INTERNSHIPS Please pray that our students would be challenged and blessed by their summer internships in churches around the country.
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THE RELEVANCE OF DORT IN OPRAH’S AMERICA
2019 Conference Attendees
BY THE NUMBERS
Joel E. Kim | 2019 WSC Annual Conference On January 18-19, Westminster Seminary California welcomed guests and alumni from around the country and world for its 2019 Annual Conference. This year’s theme, “Remembering the Canons After 400 Years,” addressed the history, theology, and relevance of the Canons of Dort. The WSC faculty speakers included President Joel E. Kim, W. Robert Godfrey, Michael S. Horton, R. Scott Clark, and Charles K. Telfer. Following is an excerpt from President Kim’s plenary, titled “The Relevance of Dort in Oprah’s America.”
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y responsibility this afternoon is to simply ask and answer the question, “So what?” There is some sense that Christianity by nature is contrarian. To paraphrase Oxford English Dictionary, to be a contrarian is to go against the popular opinion. And as Christians we teach that by losing you win, by giving you receive, by humbling you become exalted, by becoming nothing you become something, by dying you live. Many of us recognize that the way of the cross does not always make sense to us trained in the art of success, strength, influence, and power, but we continue to proclaim that message so despised by the world. There is in some sense that the concept of seminaries is also quite a bit contrarian. In an age when Christianity is ignored, ridiculed, and often attacked, we are asking people to accept a calling that will not pay them very well, will not make them very popular in their society, and will not guarantee them success in terms of the world in which they walk. That seminaries don’t fit into the culture at the moment makes sense to us. But we recognize that Westminster Seminary California has over time become even more contrarian, not necessarily by choice. We still believe that a community
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19 states represented
represented 4 countries
300 total attendees
393 total livestreamers
of learning together is a better way of preparing future ministers and pastors than downloading information online. We believe that the languages are important to us despite the fact that many don’t consider that important enough, that in this generation of change we need better-educated pastors, not lesseducated pastors. We also believe that in this modern and new generation, our history and our tradition—those things that have been handed down to us—are not less important, but perhaps even more significant than before. There is a sense in which our seminary has become contrarian in that we admire, we respect, we uphold the confessions of our churches because we believe them to be biblical and relevant for our time…. Here this afternoon my talk focuses on the fact that learning the Canons of Dort, as contrarian as it may sound, is as relevant today as it was 400 years ago. And in order to make that
UPDATE | SPRING2019
case, I would like to explain this in three parts: the Canons as modern, the Canons as missional, and the Canons as doxological. Let me start with the notion of the Canons being modern. Samuel Miller, a Presbyterian minister and professor of theology and church history at Princeton Theological Seminary, penned the introduction to the publication of the Articles of the Synod of Dort in 1841. He wrote in this introduction, “The convocation and proceedings of the Synod of Dort may be considered as among the most interesting events of the seventeenth century.” Considering that the Westminster Assembly met in the same century, this was quite a statement…. What is the question that unsettled the Reformed churches of Europe? I’ll let Samuel Miller finish the introduction when he said, “The question was whether the opinions of Arminius, which were then agitating so many minds, could be reconciled with the confessions of the Belgic churches….” In short, the Synod was responding to errors in theology about the Bible, about God, about Christ and his atoning work, and about the human condition in sin. Now to those of us who are moderns, this discussion sounds so arcane, too cerebral, or too irrelevant for our case and our preferences. Perhaps these are things that many of us are not engaged in, thinking about, or perhaps even praying about. Thus leading to the question, “Are the Canons only relevant to the seventeenth century?” Or “Can it
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be considered relevant and modern even to us?” Well, friends, I want to point out that historian Will Grant once commented, “The greatest question of our time is not Communism versus individualism, not Europe versus America, not even East versus the West. It is whether men can live without God.” And it seems we are about to find out in America, where we witness daily whether the challenges to the church and the faith can be responded to faithfully by the churches. And this crisis of faith is everywhere. Our country is undergoing a change where the Creator-God is being exchanged for the created-gods, and evil is called good and good is called evil. In a society where absolute is no longer valued, history no longer consulted, and authority no longer trusted, the teachings of Scripture and values of Christianity seem quaint and anachronistic at best, and dangerous to society at most. But this crisis of faith is not only about society but about the church. You may not recognize that
For audio and video resources from the 2019 Annual Conference, including President Kim's entire lecture, visit us online: wscal.edu/conference-2019
culture, instead of being challenged and spoken to by the church, the norms and the priorities of the world around us have seeped into our churches on a day-to-day basis…. If you thought that the [Canons] were simply for a seventeenth-century theological debate with no basis for application for us as moderns, I would like to remind you that this document is as relevant as it was four centuries ago and as modern as it was when it was first produced. The issues of sin, trust in the Word of God, as well as the salvation given to us through Christ Jesus our Lord are all things worth fighting over. And these are challenges that we face as seminaries and as denominations and churches, even as we speak this afternoon….
"WE ALSO BELIEVE THAT IN THIS MODERN AND NEW GENERATION, OUR HISTORY AND OUR TRADITION—THOSE THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN HANDED DOWN TO US—ARE NOT LESS IMPORTANT, BUT PERHAPS EVEN MORE SIGNIFICANT THAN BEFORE."
Winter 2019
dent Joel Kim, met with faculty, students, admissions, attended classes, and toured the housing village and campus. Their visit included sunshine in January, free registration for WSC's Annual Conference, and many of them took the opportunity to check out local sites and restaurants. It is always an encouraging day to get to know so many kinds of people and
SEMINARY FOR A DAY RECAP
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n January 18, WSC welcomed more than 30 prospective students to visit campus for Seminary For A Day. Guests heard a devotion from WSC Presi-
hear their stories of how the Lord is shaping and leading their lives, as well as to catch a glimpse of how He is calling and raising up servants of Christ, his gospel, and his church. Please consider praying for these dear friends as they weigh decisions, seek opportunities, plan, budget, and take big steps of faith in order to pursue God's calling upon their lives.
FROM THE EVENT
30 prospective students 17
9+
church denominations joined by
cities in california
7 states
5 spouses 4
countries
"I FELT LIKE I GOT A CLEAR SENSE OF WHAT THE PROFESSORS AND THE SEMINARY ARE LIKE. I LOVED SEEING THE RELATIONSHIPS AT WSC." –SFAD ATTENDEE
VISIT. MEET. LEARN. EXPLORE. Seminary for a Day is a unique opportunity for prospective students to experience WSC firsthand. Join us at one of our upcoming events! OCTOBER 11, 2019 • NOVEMBER 14, 2019 JANUARY 17, 2020 • MARCH 13, 2020
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wscal.edu/visit UPDATE | SPRING2019
WSC Announces
DR. A. CRAIG TROXEL as Professor of Practical Theology
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estminster Seminary California (WSC) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. A. Craig Troxel as Professor of Practical Theology, effective July 1, 2019. Dr. Troxel most recently has been serving as Pastor of Bethel Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) in Wheaton, Illinois, where he has been serving for the last 12 years. He comes to WSC with more than 24 years of pastoral ministry experience. Dr. Troxel fills the vacancy left by the retirement of Dr. Dennis Johnson at the end of the 2017-18 academic year. President Joel E. Kim commented, "We are delighted to have Dr. Craig Troxel join the faculty as we prepare the next generation of men and women for Christ's church. His years of experience as a pastor, history of training students for ministry, and wide engagement in theological education make him an ideal Professor of Practical Theology. We give thanks to the Lord for His gracious provisions for WSC." Born and raised in Nebraska, Dr. Troxel pursued his education at Anderson University in Indiana (B.A.), Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (M.A.T.S.), and Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia (Ph.D.). He was introduced to the ministry while serving Church of God congregations in Wasilla and Fairbanks, Alaska. After completing his seminary studies, he was called to serve as pastor at Calvary OPC in Glenside, PA, where he served for 12 years. In 2007, Dr. Troxel was called to Bethel OPC in Wheaton. Dr. Troxel has taught systematic theology and ministerial studies at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia and Mid-America Reformed Theological Seminary. He has also served as a faculty member for the Ministerial Training Institute
of the OPC since 2002. In addition to publishing numerous articles in publications such as Westminster Theological Journal, Presbyterion, Fides et Historia, Calvin Theological Journal, and Ordained Servant, Dr. Troxel authored What is Man? (P&R) in 2010. He has books forthcoming with Crossway, With All Your Heart: Orienting Your Mind, Desires, and Will Toward Christ, as well as P&R, What Is the Priesthood of Believers? His research interests include pastoral theology, Reformed spirituality, the doctrine of the church, and biblical teaching on the heart. In addition to his pastoral ministry to his congregations, Dr. Troxel has served the church as a member or chairman of various study committees of the OPC, as well as a member of the OPC Committee on Christian Education since 2005. Dr. Troxel and his wife, Carol, have five children and one grandchild.
WSC Announces
J. V. FESKO'S DEPARTURE
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his spring, WSC announced the resignation of Dr. J. V. Fesko as Academic Dean and Vice President. Dr. Fesko will take up a full-time teaching position as Professor of Systematic Theology for Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS), Jackson, Mississippi, in Fall of 2019. Dr. Fesko has served WSC as Academic Dean, Vice President of Academic Affairs, and as Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology for the past ten years. During his tenure he has published seventeen books, including The Theology of the Westminster Standards and Word, Water and Spirit: A Reformed Perspective on Baptism, and made significant contributions
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to the seminary’s academic labors. “It has been a privilege to work with the wonderful community at WSC,” Dr. Fesko reflected, “and it is bittersweet to leave. I am thankful to the board, faculty, staff, and students for their encouragement and support over the last ten years…. May God continue to bless WSC in her mission for Christ and his church.” Please join the faculty, board, and staff of Westminster Seminary California in congratulating Dr. Fesko on his new appointment, and join us in prayer for him, his wife, Anneke, and their three children as they make this transition in the coming months. 13
DR. CARL TRUEMAN DELIVERS DEN DULK LECTURES
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he Robert G. and Nellie B. den Dulk Lectures on Pastoral Ministry were endowed by friends of Westminster Seminary California (WSC) and by the den Dulks in 1993, when Dr. den Dulk resigned as the second president of the seminary. In appreciation for the den Dulks’ 30-year service to both Westminster Seminaries in California and Philadelphia and in recognition of their passion for the preparation of pastors to preach the Word of God faithfully and powerfully, WSC designated the proceeds of this endowment to bring an experienced pastor to campus each year to address current and future ministers of Word and Sacrament in order to encourage and offer wise counsel regarding the rigors and joys of shepherding Christ’s flock. On March 5-6, 2019, WSC welcomed Dr. Carl Trueman to deliver the den Dulk Lectures. Dr. Trueman is Professor of Biblical and Religious Studies at Grove City College. Previously, he held the Paul Woolley Chair of Church History at Westminster Theological Seminary
in Philadelphia. He also served on the faculties of the universities of Nottingham and Aberdeen in the United Kingdom. Dr. Trueman has published many books and journal articles on church history. Many know him best as a co-host of “The Mortification of Spin” podcast, as well as a regular contributor to its blog. Dr. Trueman titled his lectures, “And Miles to Go Before I Sleep: Reflections on Church, Seminary, and Bi-vocational Ministry.” His opening lecture reflected on his years serving as a pastor of a small congregation in Philadelphia while simultaneously serving as a seminary professor. While Dr. Trueman expects a continued rise in bi-vocational ministry, he wanted to share some of the unique challenges that accompany it. He explained, “In bivocational ministry, one has to choose where to fail, because you can't do it all.” His second lecture turned to the dynamics seminaries face today as they attempt to navigate their spiritual work with the fact that they also operate as businesses, albeit nonprofits. Dr. Trueman encouraged seminaries and their faculties to
Listen to the den Dulk lectures at: wscal.edu/den-dulk-lectures
refrain from treating extra-confessional issues as differences worthy of dividing us. Likewise, he warned against treating theological heroes as idols. Dr. Trueman’s final address, “Plastic People in a Liquid World,” examined the challenges facing the church with regard to rapidly changing social morality, particularly related to human sexuality. Many guests from local churches attended the 2019 den Dulk Lectures. WSC is thankful for Dr. Trueman sharing his wisdom and insight with the seminary and local community.
“IN BIVOCATIONAL MINISTRY, ONE HAS TO CHOOSE WHERE TO FAIL, BECAUSE YOU CAN'T DO IT ALL." Dr. Carl Trueman
notice of nondiscriminatory policy as to students The Westminster Seminary California school admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs. 14
UPDATE | SPRING2019
d e nn i s
an d
jan e
j o hn s o n
LECTURES ON MISSIONS featuring
R E V. D R . L LOY D K I M
WEST MINST ER SEM INA RY CA L IFOR N IA CA M P U S ESC ONDIDO, CA | NOV EM BER 13 -14, 20 19 These lectures honor the life and work of Dennis and Jane Johnson. Remembering their ministry, WSC has established this annual lecture series in missions in partnership with New Life Presbyterian Church in order to invite distinguished and experienced missionaries on campus to teach and challenge the seminary community. DE TAILS CO MI N G SUMMER 2019 | W S CA L.E DU / LE CT U RE S -O N -M I S S I O N S
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GET A CLOSER LOOK You can view photos from the whole construction process at wscal.edu/campaign/progress
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HELP US FINISH!
he Westminster Village is an in- September 2019, all the apartments will credible place for students and their be occupied. The impact on the lives of The landscaping is complete and we families to live and learn together as they WSC students is both tangible are enjoying a super bloom of flowers pursue their callings for ministry. and intangible, including: Current student Dustin Karzen from the abundant spring rains. The addiwrites, “Seminary, and specifically West- tion of covered carports and safety fencing + Saving students $325,000 minster, had been a dream of my wife and for the children’s playground complete the annually in below market myself for years. This housing project is construction of the Village, but the fundrents quite literally the reason why I am able ing of the Village is not complete! + Saving students car to attend and fulfill my call to ministry. It takes a village to build the Vilexpenses and time as they We are so grateful for the generosity that lage! God’s people have given nearly $18 walk to & from classes has created this living space, which is a million to build the buildings and bless tremendous benefit to me as a student and the students. Another $5 million is be+ Enhancing their community ing sought to eliminate the debt on this a blessing to my family.” of faith PRELIMINARY GRADING & UTILITY PLAN to be part of this This gratitude is echoed by the stu- project. You are invited + Enhancing their community as you contribute to the dents who have called the Village “home” historic initiative WESTMINSTER GRADUATE STUDENT HOUSING of learning since last Fall. By September 2018, 60 of lives of students, their families, and the the 64 units were occupied with a total of livelihood of Westminster Seminary Cali181 residents, including 65 children! By fornia for generations to come.
campaign funding progress
DRIVE
79%
of the funds have been raised for this campaign
EXISTING PARKING
"YOU ARE INVITED TO BE PART OF THIS HISTORIC INITIATIVE AS YOU CONTRIBUTE TO THE LIVES OF STUDENTS, THEIR FAMILIES, AND THE LIVELIHOOD OF WESTMINSTER SEMINARY CALIFORNIA FOR GENERATIONS TO COME." FUTURE CAMPUS OFFICES
(5) PARKING
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45 PARKING SPACES
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FF-770.0
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(9) PARKING
21%
DRIVE
remaining
SED PO PRO OAD R
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'I' G IN ILD NS BU COM G. D BL 742.0 FF IO AT
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DRIVE
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BUILDING 'H' 1 BDRM UNIT FF-738.0
KIDS PLAY AREA 1,930 SF
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TU 3 B RE B DR UIL FF M U DIN -73 NIT G 8.0
ONE-TIME GIFT Cash, securities, real estate, IRA...
BUILDING 'B' 2 BDRM UNIT FF-740.0
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(6) PARKING
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PARK
LEGACY GIFT Charitable annuity, tithe of your estate... (5) PARKING
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3 PA
YOU CAN HELP BUILD ON A FIRM FOUNDATION.
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For more details, contact Dawn G. Doorn, Vice President for Advancement at 760-480-8474, ext 130.
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UPDATE | SPRING2019
westminster village playground
Friends and family of Ronald W. Prins, WSC Trustee and Chairman, gathered on April 25, 2019 to dedicate the completed playground in memory of Jane E. Prins, 1953-2018. President Emeritus, Dr. W. Robert Godfrey pronounced a blessing on this favorite gathering spot for the many children living in the village.
"THIS HOUSING PROJECT IS QUITE LITERALLY THE REASON WHY I AM ABLE TO ATTEND AND FULFILL MY CALL TO MINISTRY. WE ARE SO GRATEFUL FOR THE GENEROSITY THAT HAS CREATED THIS LIVING SPACE, WHICH IS A TREMENDOUS BENEFIT TO ME AS A STUDENT AND A BLESSING TO MY FAMILY." Dustin Karzen 2nd year, M.Div.
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ONMISSION
THE
DEEP WELL OF THE GOSPEL by Owen Lee
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still remember the question that the late Dr. Edmund Clowney asked in one of my preaching classes at Westminster Seminary California (WSC). He asked the class of young, aspiring ministers, “Do you want to be a great preacher of the Gospel, or a preacher of a great Gospel?” At first, I didn’t understand the question, thinking to myself, “What’s the difference?” But then slowly the force of that question began to sink in, and I was convicted, as the vanity of my heart was exposed. Deep down, I knew that I wanted the adjective great to describe me, the preacher, more than the Gospel. I remember repenting of my pride and deeply desiring that Christ would increase, and that I would decrease in my life. My problem (among many) was that I had too high a view of myself and too low a view of the Gospel. But God, in His mercy, used my theological education and training at WSC to correct that, as I was shown both the depth of my sin and the even deeper depth of God’s grace and mercy in Christ. My training at WSC both humbled me, the sinner, and exalted Christ, the Savior of sinners. I began to see how truly great the Gospel was as I began to behold the glory, beauty, and riches of the Gospel. Christ became precious to me, and I wanted nothing more than to know Him personally and to make Him known passionately. WSC also taught me how to think biblically, theologically, and Christo-centrically about life and pastoral ministry, and for that I will forever be grateful.
pastor for two years. I had the privilege of working with and under the leadership of Samuel Park, who served as the KoreanMinistry senior pastor. I learned many invaluable lessons during my time at New Life, especially about the joys and challenges of doing pastoral ministry in a Korean-American church context. Those were among the most formative years of my life, and I am profoundly thankful for the way Pastor Samuel Park invested in, mentored, encouraged, and, most of all, loved me. In the summer of 2002, with the support and blessing of New Life Mission Church in Fullerton, I was launched to plant New Life Mission Church of Burbank with a small, courageous core group. Though I had good, kingdom-advancing reasons for wanting to plant a church, I also had some fleshly and unhealthy reasons as well – like my need to prove myself, to prove that I can “make it” apart from a Korean ministry, to prove that a second generation, KoreanAmerican, English-speaking pastor can plant a church. And I remember saying repeatedly (to myself and others) that I wanted to do church the “right way.” And though I didn’t realize it then, doing church the “right way” was really code for doing church the “white way.” I was 30 years old, and I had idealized and idolized leading a “multi-ethnic church,” which was code for a church that was less Asian and more white in its demographic make-up. And my idolatry was revealed in my over-valuing of white people when they showed up and under-valuing of Asians and other minorities when they showed up. To my shame, I confess that I was far more excited to see new “white” faces than I was to see new “Asian” faces. I was guilty of the sin of partiality. I was partial – not to rich people – but to people who were white,
“CHRIST BECAME PRECIOUS TO ME, AND I WANTED NOTHING MORE THAN TO KNOW HIM PERSONALLY AND TO MAKE HIM KNOWN PASSIONATELY. "
my ministry since wsc During my studies at WSC, I served as the College Pastor of New Life Mission Church (PCA) in Fullerton, CA. Upon my graduation from WSC in 2000, I served as the English-Ministry 18
UPDATE | SPRING2019
reformed, intelligent and articulate, and I went out of my way to welcome them and even to cater to them. But if someone was not white, not reformed, not intelligent, and not articulate, I ignored them or just tolerated them. And I secretly hoped that they would not scare off the kind of white people I was trying to attract to our church, so that our church could become more “multi-ethnic” (read: “more white”).
my days of unhealthy self-loathing I couldn’t articulate it back then, but as I look back I see that I needed white people in my church for my validation. It would prove that I was good enough and gifted enough to pastor a church that was “multiethnic”—a church with white people in it. I thought having white people in our church would somehow make our church more legitimate, maybe even superior in some sense. I had internalized white supremacy, and I didn’t even realize it. I was not color-blind. I struggled with self-hate, and I ran from my Korean heritage. I struggled to fully understand and believe imago dei—that God made me in His own image. I suppose I thought that I would be “more in God’s image” if I were white. Through a series of events during my transition from New Life Mission Church in Burbank to my current place of ministry (Christ Central Presbyterian Church in Centreville, VA), I began to struggle with my racial and ethnic identity. And it was the rich, deep, and full Gospel that I learned at WSC that gave me the theological resources to see, confront, and repent of my sin and of my internalized white supremacy, to believe the riches and fullness of the Gospel, and to joyfully embrace my identity—not only my spiritual identity as a Christian, but also my racial and ethnic identity as a Korean-American. Of course, my spiritual identity as a son of God in Christ is my primary and most fundamental identity, but I experienced the freedom to embrace my racial and ethnic identity as a Korean-American as important and meaningful. The biblical and theological worldview that I was trained with at WSC helped me tremendously in my struggle to understand and embrace my identity.
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“WHEN I CONNECTED THOSE 'GOSPEL DOTS' WHEN IT CAME TO MY SKIN COLOR AND RACE, I EXPERIENCED PROFOUND, LIFECHANGING HEALING AND FREEDOM FROM THE SHAME AND SELF-LOATHING I STRUGGLED WITH MY WHOLE LIFE." I began to believe—not with reluctance, but with joy—that God created me as I am—with my yellow skin. And that means that God loves me as I am—with my yellow skin. My yellow skin was no longer something to be ashamed of, downplayed, or resented; it was something I could embrace and celebrate. And the Gospel (that we are all saved by grace) means that I don’t have to be “more white” (talk more white, act more white, think more white, etc.) for God to love me more, or to be more useful to Him and His kingdom. When I connected those “Gospel dots” when it came to my skin color and race, I experienced profound, life-changing healing and freedom from the shame and self-loathing I struggled with my whole life. The Gospel tells me that I have the love, approval, and recognition of the Father, that He delights in me and sings over me, and that His face shines and smiles when He looks upon me—not because of anything I have done, but only because of what Jesus has done for me, only because the perfect righteousness of Jesus is imputed to me, and received by faith alone. The Gospel frees me neither to idolize my Asian identity nor to suppress it. But now I can embrace and celebrate it as part of how God has designed and created me. And all the things I once saw as liabilities, I now see as advantages and assets to be leveraged for ministry. Being the son of immigrant parents and having a bi-cultural experience as a minority in America has prepared me to minister to many people who have experienced the same or similar things.
For the past 7 years, I have been serving as the senior pastor of Christ Central Presbyterian Church in Centreville, VA, which is a Korean-American majorityculture church. We are slowly growing in ethnic diversity, but white people and nonAsians are the “welcomed minorities” at our church. And my calling is to minister the Gospel to a community of Christ-followers who are mostly Asian-Americans, as they seek to live, worship, work, and play in greater metro DC. I thank God for WSC and for the deep, rich, and full Gospel that I learned there. The Gospel is a Well I come back to over and over again, for both my own heart and for pastoral ministry. And to my pleasant surprise, I discover that the “Well of the Gospel” is even deeper than I thought, and it always has fresh supplies of Living Water every time I come back to it! It never runs dry, and it always satisfies the human heart like nothing else can. The more I discover how deep, how rich, and how full the Gospel is, the more content I am to confess, with my beloved professor Dr. Clowney, “I am just an ordinary preacher who gets to preach an extraordinary Gospel.” To God, and to God alone, be all the glory. Amen.
Pray for WSC ALUMNI MINISTRIES Please pray that the Lord would bless the various ministries of our alumni in churches and mission fields around the world.
REV. OWEN LEE serves as Senior Pastor at Christ Central Presbyterian Church in Centreville, VA, where he lives with his wife, Margaret, and children Abby, Caleb, and Lizzy.
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ALUMNI NEWS
Send your recent updates for future magazine issues to alumni@wscal.edu. 1984 Dave Bennett has served as a PCA pastor since 1986 and has been doing multicultural community development work with at-risk youth in South Phoenix, AZ, at Barrio Nuevo Phoenix since 2006. His wife, Anne Bennett (M.A.T.S. 86), did CPE training and is a chaplain at Florence & Globe Prisons. They are proud grandparents of 3 grandsons with another on the way in July.
Introducing
DIANNA HUSTON Dianna Huston joined us this year as Dean of Women Students. Dianna is a 2009 WSC graduate who also received a certification from CCEF in biblical counseling. She also serves as the counselor to women at New Life Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Escondido. Dianna is passionate about women using their gifts to the glory of God and desires to see more women involved in ministry. She believes that a solid, reformed education from WSC builds an excellent foundation for men and women to use their energies and God-given talents to all with whom they come in contact. Dianna explained, “It might be a casual conversation or an organized study of the Word, a strong foundation prepares us for every moment. The education I received at WSC has made me better prepared as a biblical counselor. I love to see women expanding their knowledge of God and His Word and to be used by Him in various capacities.” Dianna is the mother of five and grandmother of four. Married to Jim Huston for 36 years, they enjoyed travel, reading and raising their family together.
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1991 Nathan Lewis planted Evergreen Presbyterian Church (PCA) in 1992, became her founding Pastor in 1997 upon her particularization, and has now taken a new call in 2019 to be Pastor of Sterry Memorial Presbyterian Church (EPC) in Roswell, ID. 1994 Ken Davies was ordained in March 2018 with the Congregational Christian Churches. The ceremony was held in Lemon Grove Community Church where he and his family serve. 1998 Stephen P. Lewis received his Ph.D. in Old Testament Hermeneutics from Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS) in Philadelphia in May 2018. His dissertation was titled "Narrative Analogy and the Theological Message of Esther: Israel's Conflicted Relationship With An Angry Sovereign." In addition to serving as pastor of Knowlton Presbyterian Church (PCA) in New Jersey, he is now an online instructor for WTS. 2000 Danny Hyde's book, Grace Worth Fighting For: Recapturing the Vision of God’s Grace in the Canons of Dort (The Davenant Institute), was published in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Synod of Dort. 2007 Martin Hedman was installed as Assistant Pastor at Hope Presbyterian Church (PCA), Bellevue, WA, in October 2018. He also started a new job with iCap Equity in Bellevue, WA, in January 2019. Ran Shen was recently hired as director of the Chinese ministry at Calvary Presbyterian Church of Berkeley, CA (PCUSA). 2011 Collin Curfman was married to Valerie in
Spokane, WA, on November 10, 2018. They live in Sunnyside, WA. 2012 Ben Castaneda has been accepted to the Ph.D. program at the University of St. Andrews for New Testament Studies, to start September 2019. Seung Gyun Kim and his wife welcomed their second child, a son, named Athan Jaxon Kim, in December 2018. 2014 Mike Awtry and his wife, Alisa, welcomed their second child, Alden Wendell. 2015 Harrison Perkins recently completed his Ph.D. from Queen’s University Belfast, and graduated in December. He has taken a call to be Assistant Minister at London City Presbyterian Church, which is a Free Church of Scotland congregation in London, England. 2016 Adam P. Smith, WSC Director of Recruitment & Alumni Relations, was ordained and installed as (part-time) Associate Pastor of Redemption Church (PCA) in Scripps Ranch, CA, in February 2019. He was humbled and thankful for the participation of Rev. Dr. Charles Telfer, WSC Alumni Rev. Joel Fitzpatrick and Rev. Nicholas M. Davis, and WSC Trustee Pete Sara. Melvin Dotinga was ordained in November 2018 by the Lynden United Reformed Church to serve as a missionary with MINTS International Seminary, working primarily in the countries of Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. Melvin and his wife, Jane, have been living in Papua New Guinea this past winter and spring teaching at the Reformed Churches Bible College in PNG's capital city of Port Moresby and also training pastors who serve in the remote jungles of this South Pacific nation. 2017 Dan Warne and his wife welcomed their daughter, Sophia Alba Warne, on June 26, 2018. Dan came on staff as music director at Christ PCA Temecula on March 1, 2019. 2018 Jeff Gonzales was called to be the lead pastor at Peninsula Bible Church in Port Angeles, WA, and was ordained November 2018. UPDATE | SPRING2019
BACK ON CAMPUS Every January, alumni are warmly welcomed back on the WSC campus for the Annual Conference, the Alumni Winter Refresher, and to enjoy the Southern California sun.
“It’s great to be back on campus and to catch up with former classmates and professors in person. The conference sessions and our time in California have been refreshing." Jason Vander Horst (MDiv, 2017), Pastor of Surrey Covenant Reformed Church in Surrey, BC, Canada
“It’s so good to be back on campus. It’s like coming home."
“I try to make it to the conference every year...It’s so refreshing. It’s really impressive to see how the seminary has changed and grown. It seems like a lot of great things are happening."
Elizabeth Van Dyke (MABS, MATS, 2015), Ph.D. student in Hebrew Bible at UCLA
James Lee (MDiv, 1991), Pastor of New Life La Jolla PCA
“Being back in the classroom helped me use my brain in ways I hadn’t used it in awhile. It sharpened me." Wesley Holmes (MDiv, 2015), Pastor of Discipleship at Rocky Mountain Community Church in Billings, MT
"It’s so great to be back at WSC, not only for the sunshine and the warmth, but also for the chance to reconnect with old friends—people I graduated with and especially the professors who taught me." Jonathan Cruse (MDiv, 2017), Pastor of Community Presbyterian Church in Kalamazoo, MI
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“I love coming back here! I love the conferences, and I love the weather." CJ den Dulk (MDiv, 1990), Pastor of Trinity Christ Reformed Church in Sparta, MI, and WSC trustee (2011-2019)
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INPERSON & INPRINT
FACULTY SPEAKING DR. HORTON SPEAKS AT VALUED CONFERENCE
O
n Saturday, March 24, Dr. Michael S. Horton taught a session at the Valued Conference in San Diego on Jesus washing the disciples’ feet in John 13. The Valued Conference was a unique event developed by several local PCA churches to be a theologically rich and trustworthy resource for churches and believers to engage and better “Understand, Safeguard, and Respond” to the issues of sexual abuse and sexual assault. The event was founded on the belief that the whole counsel of God, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and His Church ought to have and embody a profound message of hope and comfort for those who have suffered greatly. Around 350 attendees represented more than 100 churches, as well as 18 states and 3 countries. The Valued Conference was organized and hosted by Redemption Church (PCA), Resurrection Presbyterian (PCA), and Trinity Presbyterian Orange County (PCA), all of which have WSC alumni pastors. More than 50 WSC students, faculty, and spouses attended or volunteered their time and skillsets to make this conference a reality. At least 25 WSC alumni from around the country participated as well. Dr. Horton’s presentation from John
speakers & organizers from left to right: Jamin Goggin, Adam P. Smith, Brooke Ventura, Jacob Denhollander, Rachael Denhollander, Boz Tchividjian, Nicholas Davis, Lindsey Holcomb, Justin Holcomb, Michael S. Horton
13 focused on the call and privilege we have to be both recipients and ambassadors of God’s Word and His service to us. He powerfully noted Jesus’ responses to Peter and to the disciples’ zeal, false humility, and arguing over honor was a call for them not to seek greatness or great displays of zeal for God but to first receive the service of Jesus from God. “A lot of power problems in the church today,” Horton diagnosed, “are the result of inflated egos of people who cannot be served, and cannot let God serve them. They will serve God but they will not let God be their servant.” Horton identified, particularly in the context of those who have experienced much hurt, that we “never want anybody to be broken, but brokenness is a real occasion for a shaft of light to come through the cracks.” A handful of highly-regarded speakers and practitioners on this topic also taught sessions, including Rachael Denhollander, Dr. Justin and Lindsey Holcomb, Boz Tchividjian, and Mary DeMuth. The event sought to bring forth cooperation and public conversation on this very difficult topic between churches and survivors. Dr. Horton’s presentation, along with the collection of conference videos, are available online, along with a list of books and resources on this topic for survivors, churches, and ministry leaders at valuedconference.com.
“WE NEVER WANT ANYBODY TO BE BROKEN, BUT BROKENNESS IS A REAL OCCASION FOR A SHAFT OF LIGHT TO COME THROUGH THE CRACKS." 22
UPCOMING ENGAGEMENTS may
15 | Dr. David VanDrunen speaks at Biola University (La Mirada, CA). 23 | Dr. W. Robert Godfrey speaks at Westminster Theological Seminary Commencement (Glenside, PA). 23 | President Joel E. Kim speaks at the Korean American Presbyterian Church General Assembly (Los Angeles, CA). 24-25 | Dr. R. Scott Clark speaks at Covenent OPC Conference (Fort Worth, TX). 26 | President Joel E. Kim preaches at Lamp PCA (Gardena, CA).
june
16 | Dr. David VanDrunen preaches at Redeemer OPC (Ada, MI). 30 | President Joel E. Kim preaches at Crossway Community Church (Brea, CA).
july
4 | Dr. David VanDrunen presents a paper at The International Reformed Theological Institute Biannual Conference (Amsterdam, Netherlands). 28 | President Joel E. Kim preaches at Christ Central Southern California (Fullerton, CA).
august
2-4 | President Joel E. Kim speaks
UPDATE | SPRING2019
FACULTY WRITING
UPCOMING ENGAGEMENTS at Inland Church Retreat (Murrieta, CA). 11 | Dr. Bryan D. Estelle preaches at Calvary OPC (La Mirada, CA).
BOOKS
For more faculty books, see the bookstore ad on p. 27 or visit us online at wscal.edu/bookstore.
saving the reformation
11 | President Joel E. Kim preaches at Redeemer OPC (Ada, MI).
The Pastoral Theology of the Canons of Dort by W. Robert Godfrey
25 | President Joel E. Kim preaches at New Life PCA Orange County (Fullerton, CA).
Dr. W. Robert Godfrey takes us back to 1618-19 when the Canons of Dort were written in response to a mounting theological assault on Reformed Christianity. Now, for its 400th anniversary, he offers a new translation and pastoral commentary on the canons, equipping the next generation with these God-glorifying truths.
september
13-15 | President Joel E. Kim speaks at Buffalo New Hope Presbyterian Church Conference (Buffalo, NY).
october
11-12 | Dr. Michael S. Horton speaks at the Cheyenne Reformation Conference (Cheyenne, WY).
justification: 2-volume series by Michael S. Horton
The doctrine of justification stands at the center of our systematic reflection on the meaning of salvation as well as our piety, mission, and life together. In his two-volume work on the doctrine of justification, Michael Horton seeks not simply to repeat noble doctrinal formulas and traditional proof texts, but to encounter the remarkable biblical justification texts in conversation with the provocative proposals that, despite a wide range of differences, have reignited the contemporary debates around justification.
17-19 | President Joel E. Kim speaks at the Reformation Worship Conference at Midway Presbyterian Church (Powder Springs, GA). 25-26 | Dr. David VanDrunen speaks at the Reformation Conference at Grace URC (Milwaukie, OR). 27 | Dr. David VanDrunen preaches at Grace URC (Milwaukie, OR).
the spiritual life
november
4 | Dr. David VanDrunen speaks at the Southern California Reformed Baptist Pastors Conference (Orange County, CA).
by Campegius Vitringa, translated by Charles K. Telfer
What does it mean to have spiritual life, and how does a believer achieve it? What are the fruits of this spiritual life, and what are the hindrances and helps for cultivating it? In this classic treatise of Reformed spirituality, Campegius Vitringa provides answers to these questions as he teaches what it means to be made alive in Christ. Translated into English for the first time, The Spiritual Life is accompanied by a helpful biographical sketch of the author and revives the riches of Reformed piety for a new generation of readers.
View more faculty speaking events at wscal.edu/news-and-events/facultyspeaking-calendar
ARTICLES
bryan estelle
david vandrunen
charles k. telfer
“Why Protestant Christianity Needs a Theology of Natural Law,” Ad Fontes 2.10 (June 2018): 1-5.
“Even Though I Walk Through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I Will Fear No Evil, For You Are With Me,” Tabletalk, August, 2018. “‘The Holy Exercises of Piety’ in Nadere Reformatie,” Hapshin Theological Review, 7 (December 2018): 51-76. wscal .e d u
“SBJT Forum” (on Martin Luther’s Two Kingdoms Doctrine), Southern Baptist Journal of Theology 21.4 (Winter 2017): 177-80.
joshua van ee
"Was Adam Created Mortal or Immortal? Getting Beyond the Labels," Sapientia May 31, 2018. (http://henrycenter.tiu.edu/2018/05/ was-adam-created-mortal-orimmortal-getting-beyond-the-labels/) "The Psalm of David the Shepherd," Tabletalk (August 2018): 6-8.
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HONORARIUM & MEMORIAL GIFTS Gifts Received from October 1, 2018, through March 31, 2019
IN HONOR OF... Rev. Dr. Steven M. Baugh Jess Ranch Community Church Rev. Dr. R. Scott Clark Anonymous Mr. and Mrs. Richard C. Wolfe WSC Current Faculty Dr. and Mrs. William J. Montgomery Ms. Marilyn Jean Frank Mr. Burton Santee Rev. Dr. W. Robert Godfrey Dr. and Mrs. William J. Montgomery Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd J. Schout Ms. Verna C. Hoopman Ms. Sandra J. Nonhof Rev. Joel E. Kim Mr. and Mrs. Kwon Mr. Clyde P. Lems Mr. and Mrs. Christopher J. Kuperus
Rev. Andrew A. Cammenga WSC Trustee: 2011-2016
Mr. and Mrs. Edward Brower Mr. and Mrs. Ken Cammenga Rev. Dr. and Mrs. R. Scott Clark Covenant Reformed Church Mrs. Nellie B. den Dulk Mr. and Mrs. Henry Doorn II Mr. and Mrs. Lyle Faber Rev. Dr. and Mrs. W. Robert Godfrey Mr. and Mrs. Mark S. Hoekstra Mr. and Mrs. Case Houson Mr. and Mrs. Jack Knol Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Korthuis Mr. and Mrs. Keith Korthuis Mr. and Mrs. Arlan F. Memmelaar Rev. and Mrs. Bradd L. Nymeyer Mr. and Mrs. Elmer R. Nymeyer Mr. and Mrs. Allan Oudman Mr. Ronald W. Prins Mr. and Mrs. James Reynolds Mr. and Mrs. Jake Stap Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Van Corbach
Ms. Laura Lide Dr. and Mrs. William B. Lide
Mr. Sydney T. Cammenga
Mr. and Mrs. Ronald Verhoeven Mr. and Mrs. Ben Veenendaal
Mrs. Mildred A. Cammenga Mr. and Mrs. Scott Korthuis
IN MEMORY OF... Mr. John K. Andrews WSC Trustee: 2006-11; 2016-17
WSC Trustee: 1995-2000
Mrs. Bertha Christoffels Rev. and Mrs. LeRoy Christoffels Mr. and Mrs. Alvin Kooiman
Mr. Ronald W. Prins
Mrs. Gertie Cnossen Mr. and Mrs. Edward Brower
Ms. Jackie Baatz Mr. and Mrs. James W. Onnink
Dr. Grant M. Duncan Mr. and Mrs. Henry Doorn II
Mr. Henry Bouma Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Henry Doorn II
Mr. and Mrs. Dick Dykstra Mr. and Mrs. Andy Van Die
Mr. William Brouwer Mrs. Joyce Dekker
Ms. Shawna Hensley Mr. and Mrs. Alex Watson-Wong
Mr. Gerrit Hofstee Rev. and Mrs. LeRoy Christoffels Mr. and Mrs. Ben Goedhart Dr. Meredith G. Kline Mr. and Mrs. Meredith M. Kline Rev. Dr. William H. Kooienga Mrs. Marilyn Kooienga Mrs. Mary J. Lammers Ms. Sandra J. Nonhof Mrs. Sherry Lersback Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Korthuis Rev. Donald McClure Mr. and Mrs. Ian McClure Mrs. Jane E. Prins Ms. Ellen Ward Mrs. Alice Strimple Mr. and Mrs. Edward Brower Mrs. Kathryn K. Culver Mrs. Nellie B. den Dulk Mr. and Mrs. Henry Doorn II Rev. Dr. and Mrs. W. Robert Godfrey Rev. and Mrs. Joel E. Kim Mrs. Elfreda Lewis Dr. and Mrs. Marcus McArthur Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Porter Mrs. Nancy V. Richardson Mr. Donald L. Viohl Ms. Nell Vandenacre Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Korthuis Mrs. Sjoerdje (Shirley) M. Vander Stelt Mr. Anthony Vander Stelt Mr. Martin G. Verhoeven Mr. and Mrs. Ben Veenendaal Mr. Carlton J. Yuke Mr. and Mrs. Alex Watson-Wong
FOUNDER ALICE STRIMPLE ENTERS GLORY
O
n February 19, 2019, Dr. Robert B. Strimple's wife, Alice, left her mortal body to be at home with her Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. A Memorial Service was held on March 2 at Soaring Oaks Presbyterian Church, Elk Grove, CA. She is survived by her husband of 63 years, 4 children and their spouses, and many
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grandchildren. Dr. Robert B. Strimple is WSC President Emeritus and Professor Emeritus of Systematic Theology. In November 1978, as a 50th anniversary project of Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, it was decided that Robert Strimple (Vice President for Academic Affairs) and Robert
den Dulk (Vice President for Administrative Affairs) would be sent to California to establish a Reformed seminary on the West Coast. Thus, the Strimples and the den Dulks moved to California and became the “founding families” of Westminster Seminary California, with the first classes starting in August 1980. UPDATE | SPRING2019
7 Reasons Reasons to to Review Review Your Your Will Will 7 Life changes—and your will should, too. As your situation and goals change, Life changes—and your will should, too. As your situation and goals change, your estate plan should evolve to reflect your needs. your estate plan should evolve to reflect your needs. 1. Family YES 1. Family YES Have you or your children recently married, remarried or divorced?............................... Have you or your children recently married, remarried or divorced?............................... Have you gained family members either through birth, adoption or marriage? ............. Have you gained family members either through birth, adoption or marriage? ............. Do you need to determine a trusted guardian for your children? .................................... Do you need to determine a trusted guardian for your children? .................................... Have you experienced the death of someone dear to you? ........................................... Have you experienced the death of someone dear to you? ........................................... Have you or your loved ones experienced a significant injury or life-altering illness? .... Have you or your loved ones experienced a significant injury or life-altering illness? .... Are you concerned about the financial maturity of your heirs? ....................................... Are you concerned about the financial maturity of your heirs? ....................................... 2. Charitable Relationships 2. Charitable Relationships Have you become more involved in your church or a particular ministry?...................... Have you become more involved in your church or a particular ministry?...................... Does your will reflect your Christian values and priorities?............................................... Does your will reflect your Christian values and priorities?............................................... 3. Career 3. Career Has your employer or income level changed? .................................................................. Has your employer or income level changed? .................................................................. Do you have new business ventures? ............................................................................... Do you have new business ventures? ............................................................................... Have you recently retired or are you planning to retire soon? .......................................... Have you recently retired or are you planning to retire soon? .......................................... 4. Assets 4. Assets Has your estate experienced a significant increase or decrease in value? .................... Has your estate experienced a significant increase or decrease in value? .................... Have you bought, sold or moved a business? .................................................................. Have you bought, sold or moved a business? .................................................................. Have you bought or sold property?..................................................................................... Have you bought or sold property?..................................................................................... Have you changed the beneficiaries on your insurance policies or retirement assets? Have you changed the beneficiaries on your insurance policies or retirement assets? 5. Location 5. Location Have you or those listed in your will moved? ..................................................................... Have you or those listed in your will moved? ..................................................................... 6. Tax Law 6. Tax Law Have state or federal tax laws changed since you last reviewed your will?.................... Have state or federal tax laws changed since you last reviewed your will?.................... 7. Time 7. Time Has it been more than three years since you last reviewed your will? ............................ Has it been more than three years since you last reviewed your will? ............................
Talk with a Planner Talk with a Planner
Through our partnership with Through our partnership with Barnabas Foundation, Barnabas Foundation, you have access to you have access to complimentary will planning complimentary will planning services with someone services with someone who understands tax-wise who understands tax-wise charitable planning from a charitable planning from a biblical perspective. We’ll biblical perspective. We’ll help you review your will and help you review your will and make important, God-honoring make important, God-honoring decisions in an atmosphere of decisions in an atmosphere of complete confidence and trust. complete confidence and trust.
Start your conversation Start your conversation by calling Westminster by calling Westminster Seminary California Seminary California today. today.
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, it’s time to review your will! If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, it’s time to review your will!
Westminster Seminary California Westminster Seminary California wscal .e d u
www.wscal.edu www.wscal.edu
760-480-8474, ext. 130 760-480-8474, ext. 130
info@wscal.edu info@wscal.edu 25
THE
CANONS OF DORT AND LATIN AMERICA by
bill green
I
’ve heard all my years in ministry in Latin America that the historic, Reformed confessions treat matters long gone and far away, and that this especially applies to the Synod of Dort. It is certainly true that the Synod of Dort was held far away from my country of Costa Rica. But to imply its irrelevance is a leap, either of wishful thinking or naiveté. Theological modernists, of course, wish Dort had never happened, since it affirms an absolutely sovereign God, the inability of men to contribute to their own salvation, and denounces everything that the modernist believes! These modernist liberals often clothe themselves in the language of “scientific sociology” or “anthropology,” affirming that ancient creeds can have no importance for the evolving human race. They make it impossible for past ‘truths’ to have any truthful significance for modern men. Others may have better intentions, but are simply naive. Or they’ve never read the Canons of Dort! Latin America is a complex mix of currents, many of which are direct descendants of Roman Catholic theology and history. Others are direct descendants of Arminian churches. Interestingly, in Latin America today there is
"I BELIEVE THAT THE TRUE 'MYSTIQUE' OF WSC'S ESSENCE CONSISTS IN ENGAGING ALL CONTEMPORARY THOUGHT FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE HISTORICALLYCONFESSED GOSPEL OF CHRIST." 26
a revival of “Molinism,” the theology developed by the Jesuit priest Luis de Molina at the time of the Reformation, and almost certainly one who influenced Jacob Arminius. Molina thought his system could ‘save’ a sovereign God from being the author of evil, while affirming man’s free will. Arminius followed significant aspects of Molina’s theology. The Canons of Dort deal with these aspects directly. In summary, our historic Reformed confessions continue to bear directly upon the religious milieu in Latin America. But there is another issue of great importance, which our tradition at Westminster Seminary California has acknowledged. And this is twofold. Firstly, it is clear that new tendencies, or re-packaged philosophies, will continue to be proposed as a guide for society. Since its inception under Machen, Westminster Seminary has fully engaged the “modernist.” Machen dedicated much energy and ink to engaging the most recent tendencies in the United States and in Europe. My own education at WSC was rigorous in requiring the reading of influential theologians and philosophers outside the Reformed tradition and even outside of Christianity. It is absolutely essential that church leaders today develop the skill of critical analysis. The initial “practice” that we received as students at Westminster was a critically essential tool necessary for my ministry in the context of Latin America. Secondly, as Christians face changing values, chaos, and flux around us, what will be the guiding principle for addressing them? It must be the timeless Word of God, affirmed over and over by Christ’s Church throughout history. We cannot address chaos with chaos! Those churches that have embraced all things “new” have consigned themselves willingly to complete irrelevance in a very short time. We are presently seeing this in Latin America. Large numbers of Pentecostal churches
rejected church history and proclaimed a “new anointing.” Leaving aside the fact that it wasn’t new, the Pentecostal movement has entered into a crisis. Some have catapulted themselves completely outside of any semblance of Christianity, evolving into neo-Pentecostal heresy, and have made themselves totally irrelevant to the pressing issues of society. But others have recognized the problem and are returning to historic Christianity, seeking a foundation. I believe that the true “mystique” of WSC’s essence consists in engaging all contemporary thought from the foundation of the historically-confessed Gospel of Christ. If we lose either emphasis, we either embrace contemporary solutions as our norm or we sink into a mere nostalgic review of past history. My son William Green IV is a fourth generation Westminster student. (I keep insisting vainly that his tuition should be free; there must be some sort of covenantal application here!) It is my hope and confidence that he will receive the same skills of analysis and application, received in the context of Christ’s historic Church, as did my grandfather and father before us. My son will graduate more than 80 years after his great grandfather studied with Machen. May Westminster’s tradition continue until Christ’s return! REV. BILL GREEN, with the help of his wife Aletha, has planted three Reformed churches in San Jose, Costa Rica, founded a Christian school, and is the Executive Secretary for the Latin American Fellowship of Reformed Churches (CLIR in Spanish). UPDATE | SPRING2019
FACULTY BOOKS AVAILABLE NOW N E W!
What is Man?
N E W!
Basics of Faith Series
Saving the Reformation
by A. Craig Troxel (P&R, 2010)
The Pastoral Theology of the Canons of Dort by W. Robert Godfrey (Reformation Trust Publishing, 2019)
N E W!
Justification
The Spiritual Life
Romans
2-Volume Series, New Studies in Dogmatics
by Campegius Vitringa, translated and edited by Charles K. Telfer (Reformation Heritage, 2018)
The Lectio Continua Expository Commentary on the New Testament
The Majesty on High
Learning to Love the Psalms
by Michael S. Horton (Zondervan, 2018)
Journeys with Jesus
Echoes of Exodus Tracing a Biblical Motif
Aquinas Among the Protestants
Every Path in the Bible Leads Us to Christ
by Bryan D. Estelle (IVP Academic, 2018)
Edited by David VanDrunen (Wiley-Blackwell, 2017)
Introduction to the Kingdom of God in the New Testament
by J. V. Fesko (Reformation Heritage Books, 2018)
by W. Robert Godfrey (Reformation Trust, 2017)
by S. M. Baugh (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2017)
by Dennis E. Johnson (P&R, 2018)
Ephesians
Core Christianity Finding Yourself in God's Story
The Majestic Heart of Christian Faith and Life
by S. M. Baugh (Lexham Press, 2016)
by Michael S. Horton (Zondervan, 2016)
by David VanDrunen (Zondervan, 2015)
Evangelical Exegetical Commentary
N E W!
God's Glory Alone
Preaching the Whole Counsel of God
Design and Deliver Gospel-Centered Sermons by Julius J. Kim (Zondervan, 2015)
Monday Through Friday in The Word Weekday Inspiration by Derke P. Bergsma (Christian Faith Publishing, Inc., 2018)
Rediscovering the Holy Spirit
God's Perfecting Presence in Creation, Redemption, and Everyday Life by Michael S. Horton (Zondervan, 2017)
Walking with Jesus through His Word Discovering Christ in All the Scriptures by Dennis E. Johnson (P&R, 2015)
Calvin on the Christian Life
Glorifying and Enjoying God Forever by Michael S. Horton (Crossway Books, 2014)
Visit our campus Bookstore! | wscal.edu/bookstore wscal .e d u
1725 BEAR VALLEY PARKWAY ESCONDIDO, CA 92027 WWW.WSCAL.EDU
d i g n i t y, d e p r av i t y, & d e s t i n y D E TA I L S C O M I N G S E P T. 2 0 1 9 | W S C A L . E D U / C O N F E R E N C E 28
UPDATE | SPRING2019