I wouldn’t have been able to publish this book without the help of some acquaintances who barely knew me and owed me nothing. I am astounded by your kindness. Thank you, first, to my acquisitions editor, Bob Hosack, who believed in the project enough to help me develop and refine it. Thank you to Tim West and the editorial team at Baker Academic. Your close reading and helpful suggestions made this book much better. Thank you also to Jonathon Dodson, David Swanson, Galen Jones, Evan Howard, Jeff Tabone, and Amy Oxendale-Imig, who all wrote letters of recommendation. I have never even met many of these folks. Your kindness was undeserved and thus heightens my gratitude further. I can’t repay you, but I hope I can pass on your graciousness to others.
This book would be much worse if it weren’t for the help of some friends and colleagues who offered their assistance. Sam Guthrie, Anthony Rodriguez, Colby Truesdale, and Elizabeth Juckett: thanks for making me look less like an imbecile. For any semblance of understanding or helpfulness that comes with the book, I credit this group. For any errors that remain, I take full responsibility.
Thank you also to my employers, Montreat College and Redeemer Anglican Church. To my students: you have made me a better teacher and a better person. These students took my courses the first few times I ever taught them. I told them that these courses would be the worst ones I would ever teach. We suffered through them together, hopefully with moments of joy and laughter. My colleagues—especially my fellow basement dwellers—have been constant sources of encouragement and connection.
Redeemer Anglican Church: Thank you. It’s a joy to serve you. Many pieces of this book were first tested during teachings or sermons. Like any church, we are a mess. But like few churches, you have consistently shown up and loved one another and my family. I love going to church and being together.
Finally, to Lauren, my wife: “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all” (Prov. 31:29). There’s no one else I’d rather be with. I still choose you.
In many ways my life is a collection of gifts, of undeserved favors, of grace. It is by grace that I live and move and have my being. To all who have contributed to my life, thank you. You have shaped me and, by shaping me, have shaped this book.
Alex Sosler
Epiphany 2023
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