Annual Faculty Update (2018–2019)

At Phoenix Seminary, we live and labor according to our motto, “Scholarship with a Shepherd’s Heart.” In 2018–2019, the faculty has worked in countless ways. In addition to teaching, preaching, and service in the local church, they have prepared and delivered academic papers for conferences in Oxford, England; Dallas, TX (annual meeting of the Christian Association for Psychological Studies [CAPS]); and San Diego, CA (annual meetings of the Evangelical Theological Society [ETS] and the Society of Biblical Literature [SBL]). They have been researching, writing, and publishing books and articles; going overseas on missions’ work; engaging in local church ministries; and counseling in clinical settings.

By the Lord’s grace, the faculty engages at both the highest ranks of scholarship and in the life of the local church for the glory of God. The accomplishments listed below only provide a sample of the work of the faculty, but we list them so that we can thank God for his provision of strength to carry out the work.

Brian Arnold

Administration: On July 29, 2019, Dr. Arnold was elected the next President of Phoenix Seminary. Dr. Arnold is working to implement his strategy for sustained growth for the Seminary.

Preaching: Dr. Arnold has preached in numerous churches throughout Phoenix this year.

Publications: Dr. Arnold is currently working on a commentary on the Epistle to Diognetus (Cascade) with Michael A. G. Haykin and two chapters for books, one on embodiment in the church fathers (Lexham), and the other on soteriology in the Apostolic Fathers (Zondervan). Within the last two years, Dr. Arnold published these titles: (1) Justification in the Second Century (paperback), (Waco, TX: Baylor, 2018). (2) Cyprian of Carthage: Life and Impact (Ross-shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2018).

Social Media: Dr. Arnold is active on Twitter.

John DelHousaye

Conference: (1) Dr. DelHousaye will be presenting “The Therapeutic Role of Touch in the Ministry of Jesus Christ” at the national Evangelical Theological Society Meeting (2019). (2) He co-led a silent retreat for the Spiritual Formation Society of Arizona in June and will assist in a soul-care day in August. (3) He taught on Christ’s baptism at a summer camp for Cannon Beach Conference Center in Oregon.

Publications: (1) The Fourfold Gospel: a formational commentary. Vol. 1. Eugene, OR: Pickwick, expected 2020. (2) “Justification through Union with Christ with His Faith Becoming Our Own into New Creation,” in Practicality of Grace in Protestant Theology. Edited by Kevaugn Mattis and Michael G. Mannes. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, forthcoming. (3) “The Assurance of Salvation in the Letter to the Colossians,” in Perspectives On Eternal  Security: Biblical, Historical, and Philosophical Perspectives, Vol. 2. Edited by Kevaugn Mattis. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, forthcoming. (4) Articles in Baker Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, forthcoming.

Social Media: Dr. DelHousaye is active on Twitter.

Wayne Grudem

Presentation: ETS. Thursday, November 21, at 5:30 PM: "Grounds for Divorce: Why I Now Believe There Are More Than Two."

Publications: (1) Book of the Year first-place award in Bible Reference Works category was given by Evangelical Christian Publishers Association to the book Theistic Evolution: A Scientific, Philosophical, and Theological Critique (Crossway, 2017). Co-edited by J. P. Moreland, Stephen Meyer, Ann Gauger, Chris Shaw, and Wayne Grudem. (2)  Book of the Year finalist award in Bible Reference Works category was given by Evangelical Christian Publishers Association to the book Christian Ethics: An Introduction to Biblical Moral Reasoning (Crossway, 2018).

Website: Dr. Grudem posts updates to his ministry and publications on his own personal website.

Peter Gurry

Speaking / Preaching: (1) A series on the theme of love for Family Camp at Camp Barakel in Michigan. (2) A talk on the transmission of the New Testament for Scribes & Scripture at Church on Mill in Tempe (Audio). (3) Dr. Gurry was also interviewed on The Alisa Childers Podcast on “The New Testament: How Do We Know We Have an Accurate Copy?”

Academic Service: Dr. Gurry was elected last year as a Board Member (director-at-large) for the Institute for Biblical Research and has recently become a sub-editor for Religious Studies Review  covering text and canon. He is also a co-director of the seminary’s new Text & Canon Institute.

Publications: (1) Myths and Mistakes in New Testament Textual Criticism (IVP Academic, 2019), co-edited with Elijah Hixson. (2) “The Quiet Renaissance in Textual Criticism,” Didaktikos: Journal of Theological Education 2.4 (2018): 40–42. (3) “Is the Rich Man and Lazarus a Parable?” The Gospel Coalition, March 28, 2019. (4) “Are the Gospels Anonymous?” ink 1 (2018): 11.

Blogging / Social Media: Dr. Gurry blogs at Evangelical Textual Criticism and is also on Twitter.

Jonathan Logan

Pastoral Ministry: Dr. Logan is the founder and senior pastor of the Antioch Church of God in Christ (COGIC). He also serves as the District Superintendent of the Agape Fellowship District and as an Administrative Assistant to the Arizona COGIC Jurisdictional Bishop. In his capacity as the Chairman of the Arizona Jurisdiction Ordination Board, Dr. Logan wrote new comprehensive ordination board procedures and conducted the jurisdiction’s first formal ordination training classes. He also preached at several churches throughout the Phoenix metro area. As chairman of the Arizona Jurisdiction Board of Education, Dr. Logan taught training classes to COGIC Arizona Jurisdiction pastors, elders, and missionaries on The Keys to Experiencing God’s Unlimited Power and The Role of Vision in Developing your Ministry.

Missions: In July, 2019, Dr. Logan conducted a pastoral leadership conferences for over 2,000 church leaders in Busia and Hoima Uganda, East Africa. He also preached at Tororo Pentecostal church, Jinja Miracle Center, and Agape Dimensions church in Kampala, Uganda. He spearheaded a fundraising campaign that led to the drilling of a well that supplied water and running of power lines that supplied electricity for a rural elementary school in Uganda.

Publications: (1) Served as an editor for the publication of the new Church of God in Christ (COGIC) Standardized Ordination Curriculum that was approved by the COGIC Presiding Bishop, in August, 2019. (2) Completed Doctor of Ministry Project at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, California, titled, "A Disciple Development Strategic Design for a Mission-Minded Ministry in a Post-Modern Era" (2019).

Community Service: In August, 2019, he conducted a community health fair that provided free mammograms, blood pressure, and blood sugar checks. In additions to providing training on diabetes prevention, coping with menopause, fire safety, and heart disease prevention.

John Meade

Speaking: (1) Dr. Meade gave talks on the Text of the Old Testament and the Canon of Scripture for the inaugural Scribes and Scripture conference at Church on Mill (Audio here) and plans to speak at the Scribes and Scripture conference at Clearview Church (Sept 14–15) and First Southern Baptist Church at Sahuaro Ranch (Sept 27–28). (2) He preached at several churches around the Valley this past year.

Presentations: (1) Oxford International Conference on Patristic Studies. Friday, Aug. 23 at 4:30 p.m.: "Origen and the Disputed Books: A Reappraisal of the Evidence for an Origenic Recension of Books Outside the Hebrew Canon." (2) ETS. Moderating the Septuagint Studies session on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 3:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.  (3) SBL. Sunday, Nov. 24 at 9:30 a.m.: "Origen and the Disputed Books."

Academic Service: (1) Dr. Meade serves on the Executive Committee of the International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies as a Member at Large (2018-present). (2) He is also co-chairperson of the Steering Committee for the Septuagint Studies section at the Evangelical Theological Society (2018-present). (3) He co-directs the Phoenix Seminary Text & Canon Institute.

Publications: (1) A Critical Edition of the Hexaplaric Fragments of Job 22–42 (Peeters, 2019) is set to be released by the end of the year. (2) The Biblical Canon Lists from Early Christianity: Texts and Analysis (OUP, 2018) was recently released in paperback. (3) “Myths about Canon: What the Codex Can and Can’t Tell Us.” In Myths and Mistakes in New Testament Textual Criticism, edited by Elijah Hixson and Peter J. Gurry (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, expected October 2019). (4) "Where Text and Canon Meet: An Interview with John Meade and Peter Gurry" (Logos Academic Blog).

Blogging / Social Media: Dr. Meade blogs at Evangelical Textual Criticism. He is also active on Twitter.

Justin Smith

Preaching: (1) 2 Rivers Church, Gilbert, AZ. (2) Sunnyslope, Phoenix, AZ.

Presentations: (1) Smith, J. M. (March 21, 2019). Child Abuse & Neglect. Christians in Social Work Mini-Conference. Pre-conference workshop presented at the annual conference of the Christian Association for Psychological Studies. Dallas, TX. (2) Holeman, V., Smith, J. M., Walther, D., & Romig, C. (March 21, 2019). Making room for integration in master’s level training programs. Seminar presented at the annual conference of the Christian Association for Psychological Studies. Dallas, TX. (3) Cross, K., Baker, M., & Smith, J. M. (Aril 13, 2019). Foundations of Clinical Supervision. AzAMFT Annual Conference. Gilbert, AZ.

Publications: (1) Smith, J. M. (February 9, 2019). Invited peer review of Glen E. Getz’s proposal for a book entitled of Applied Biological Psychology. Springer Publishing. (2) Bookman, R., & Smith, J. (2018).  Healing the collective: Community healing models and the complex relationship between family of origin trauma and historical trauma in First Nation survivors. Unpublished manuscript, Phoenix Seminary, Scottsdale, AZ. (3) Smith, J. M., Chatrisa, M., Rajagukguk, R., Perkins, D. (2018).  Spirituality and wellbeing: A Cross-Cultural Study of Spiritual Practices and Wellbeing during Higher Education. Unpublished manuscript, Phoenix Seminary, Scottsdale, AZ.

Academic Service: (1) Chair-Elect, Arizona Network of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. (2) Clinical Director, Committee on Supervision & Training, Arizona Network for the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy. (3) President,  Phoenix Chapter of the Christian Association for Psychological Studies. (4) MFT representative to the Arizona Interprofessional Behavioral Health Collaborative.

Blogging / Social Media: Dr. Smith is active on Twitter.

Steve Tracy

Presentations: (1) ETS, “Sexual Abuse, Gender and Power: Developing a Theological Response for the Church and Academy.” (2) Dr. Tracy regularly preaches in local churches and conducts abuse ministry training for churches and organizations.

Missions: In April/May 2019, Dr. Tracy spent a month conducting trauma ministry intensives in Goma, Congo and in western Uganda for refugee leaders and Congolese pastors. You can read updates on this ministry here.

Parachurch: Dr. Tracy serves as the CEO and international director of Mending the Soul Ministries, a Christian nonprofit which creates written resources and trainings on trauma, abuse, and sexuality for domestic and global use.

Publications: (1) Caring for the Vulnerable Child: Welcoming Children Who Have Experienced Neglect, Abandonment, and Abuse. Co-authored with Celestia Tracy, 2018. (2) “#MeToo and Evangelicalism: Shattering Myths about Sexual Abuse and Power,” Cultural Encounters, forthcoming. (3) “Abuse and Shame: How the Cross Transforms Sexual Shame,” in Honor, Shame, and the Gospel: Reframing Our Message for 21st-Century Ministry, William Carey Publishing, forthcoming. (4) By His Wounds Workbook: Trauma Healing for Africa, coauthored with Celestia Tracy, forthcoming.