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For Dr. Josh McNall,��the connection between his writing and his teaching��is simple.��“If you’re not reading and researching, then you’re probably not learning,” he said. “And professors need to learn, too.”��

This��central tenet��within 51������’s School of Ministry and Christian Thought��is��an idea that��both��McNall��and��Dr.��Jerome Van Kuiken��take seriously, as��evidenced��by their respective��recent releases. Dr. Van Kuiken��contributed a chapter to the compilation��,��published in November, while��McNall’s latest——was released in September.����

While different in scope and subject, both projects help the professors hone their academic instincts and remain fresh in the classroom. “Writing and publishing helps me to keep up with what’s going on in the field of theology, which then affects��what��I teach my students,” Van Kuiken said.����

“I’ve become even more convinced that American evangelicalism needs to return to Jesus as the focus of our faith—even as we wrestle with questions that we can’t always answer.”��

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The Space Between��

The idea for McNall’s work came��from watching Christianity in America��grapple with itself��in these��recent tumultuous years, as��he began to��identify��factions��emerging��in competition with each other.��

“Perhaps��emerged out of a basic observation: American Christianity is fracturing,” he said. “One faction of the church is increasingly identified with a kind of narrow and politicized dogmatism, while another faction drifts toward doubt and��disillusionment. I wanted to speak to that divide by way of a reinvigorated Christian imagination that engages with theology,��in conversation with culture��and with��the arts.”����

Perhaps is available through InterVarsity Press.

The premise of the book is��an interesting question—is all uncertainty bad?—and one that provided the idea for the title of the book.��Perhaps��not.��That uncertainty is��not an easy space to live in,��admittedly;��it requires brutal honesty, difficult hopefulness, and the willingness to ask tough questions. But McNall’s book explores the��value in embracing this��“perhaps” space.����

During the writing process, McNall says he came to��understand��the commonalities between both sides of the factions he identified. “I’ve come to believe that both crippling doubt and angry dogmatism often share a common core,” he said. “It’s a need for certainty over Jesus, and it’s a willingness to be conformed to the image of our culture rather than the image of God’s Son…��I’ve become even more convinced that American evangelicalism needs to return to Jesus as the focus of our faith—even as we wrestle with questions that we can’t always answer.”����

“What surprised me was how beautifully it all came together and how much fun I had writing this chapter.”��

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Superhero Studies��

Van Kuiken’s path to the��Theology and Spider-Man��project came about a bit differently.��He saw the project on Facebook and thought it looked intriguing, eventually submitting a proposal and being accepted.��His chapter tackles the��Spider-Man��film trilogy from the early 2000s, starring Tobey Maguire, examining how those movies illustrate the three sources of sin in Christian theology: the world, the flesh, and the devil. On the whole, he says it was a fun introduction to a new and as-yet unfamiliar academic discipline—superhero studies. It was also perfectly timed for the release of the newest Spider-Man film.��

While there are always a number of challenges with any writing project, Van Kuiken points specifically to the demands of the different audiences his chapter had to appeal to. “[It] had the challenge of addressing different types of readers simultaneously,” he said. “On the one hand, it needed to be understandable to those who either hadn’t seen the movies or who weren’t familiar with Christian theology or superhero studies. On the other hand, it couldn’t come across as patronizing or too superficial. The chapter had to be interesting to novices, fans, and scholars alike. But what surprised me was how beautifully it all came together and how much fun I had writing this chapter.” ��

McNall had a similar challenge with his book, intending Perhaps��both for theologians and for college students. “It’s not a popular level book,��but it’s also not just for scholars. I hope it serves the church, and particularly those individuals—including pastors—who are wrestling with their faith and with our current cultural moment,” he said.����

In addition to��Perhaps��and��Theology and Spider-Man,��both McNall and Van Kuiken continue��to produce resources for the church. McNall��hosts��his��successful��Outpost Theology��podcast, where he interviews luminaries across the spectrum of American Christianity, and he recently submitted his��newest��book��manuscript, dealing with the doctrine of atonement. Van Kuiken contributed a chapter to a new collected��Theology and Tolkien��volume, as well as a��manuscript��about��the biblical��book of��Jude. Both are expected next year.����

So, yes—both professors are still learning, too

For more information about 51������’s School of Ministry and Christian Thought, click��here.