Campbell
DR. R. ALASTAIR Campbell, lecturer at the United Theological College of the West Indies, last Thursday launched The Story We Live By a book for lay persons that helps one to better understand some of background and the issues in the New Testament.
Dr. Campbell, who describes himself as an evangelical, hails from the United Kingdom. He served as a lecturer in New Testament at Spurgeon College in Britain. While there, a pastor invited him to do a series of lectures for the his church - such as he would do for seminary students.
Later, when Dr. Campbell became a pastor in Nepal, he did the series again for his own congregation. The feedback was positive and he was encouraged to put his series of lectures in a book hence the idea for The Story We Live By was born.
"It is not a book by scholars for scholars. It is a book for ordinary church persons who want a better understanding of the Bible and their faith," Dr. Campbell said.
BOOK LAUNCH
The book launch took place at the United Theological College of the West Indies where Dr. Campbell is a lecturer in New Testament Studies.
"I call it The Story We Live By because at the heart of Christianity is a story the story of Jesus. The story of Jesus is what holds together the various writings of the New Testament," Dr. Campbell said.
"The opening chapter is called 'The Story Behind the Story'. This is a brief survey of the story of Israel leading up to the story of Jesus. Then the next part is the story of Jesus through the eyes of the gospel writers. Then in Acts and the letters Paul we have the Church's story." Then there is the 'Living By the Story' which covers the general epistles and Revelation.
The book which has been out since March 2004, seeks to introduce the methods of reading the Bible that scholars use without using the scholarly jargon, Dr. Campbell said.
In particular, he sought in his discussions of the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, to help people to appreciate each of the writer's portrait of Jesus without seeking to 'harmonise' the four accounts.
"We gain a better insight into Jesus by looking at these portraits separately and noting how different they are," Dr. Campbell stressed. For that reason, he commends the approach that says listen to each gospel writer's account and understand why they chose to tell their stories the way they do.
An expert on the writings of the Apostle Paul, Dr. Campbell said he sought without getting into much history and geography - to help people understand the story behind each epistle and the story that resulted after the writing of the epistles.
