Worth reading, part V

Another great periodical I want to highlight for reading in the Wesleyan & Methodist tradition is the publication of the Wesleyan Theological Society, an organization that I wrote about last year after attending its annual meeting in Anderson, Indiana.

The quarterly journal of the WTS is called the Wesleyan Theological Journal. Probably more than any periodical I've posted about in the past few days, The Wesleyan Theological Journal (or WTJ) represents a wide spectrum of folks who consider themselves Wesleyan.

What I mean by that is that its contributors and readers aren't just Methodists. In fact, probably the majority of them come from the Holiness tradition - a branch of Wesleyanism that includes the Church of the Nazarene, the Wesleyan Church, the Free Methodist Church, the Church of God (Anderson, IN), and the Salvation Army, among others.

There are quite a few United Methodists who are involved in the work of the WTJ as either contributors or subscribers as well (I'm one of them!). But it is also very refreshing to read the work being done by Wesleyan Christians in other denominational bodies (just like it is refreshing to interact with them at the annual WTS meeting in March).

The content of the Wesleyan Theological Journal is diverse. Its articles cover a great range of topics - across the sub-disciplines of systematic theology & doctrine, historical theology, ethics, practical theology, and even occasionally biblical hermeneutics. The unifying aspect of the journal is that all its articles supposedly connect with the Wesleyan tradition in some way (and that's largely true).

As with periodicals such as Methodist Review and Methodist History, the WTJ is essential reading for any serious student of the Wesleyan theology and/or Methodist doctrine. And just like the way that joining the Historical Society of the UMC will get you an Methodist History subscription, joining the Wesleyan Theological Society will get you a subscription to the WTJ. Plus, there's a discount for current students.

The Wesleyan tradition is rich with resources for theological reflection, as well as example and guidance for practical ministry. By 'joining in the conversation' through engaging with journals like the WTJ, we can both invigorate and extend that tradition.

So read ... and enjoy!