Society Notes
Compiled by Rochelle Givoni
New Trustee
We are delighted to introduce the Revd Simon Oliver as a Trustee of the Society. Simon is the new Chaplain at Hertford College, Oxford. Hertford has been part of the Tyndale story past and present, and a major supporter since the inception of the Society. We are very pleased to welcome Simon to the Society, and grateful that he has agreed to work with us.
Dr Ralph Werrell
We warmly congratulate Society member Ralph Werrell on his doctorate. The award to him of the degree of PhD, University of Hull, was made for his dissertation ‘The Theology of William Tyndale’. The Graduation Ceremony will be on 17th July 2002 at Hull. Dr Werrell, we learn, was congratulated by his examiners on the clarity of his argument and his fairness to those with whom he disagreed. His thesis is important. Tyndale was, as he showed, a first-class theologian, superior to any other Reformation figure. His consistent theology relied solely on the Scriptures, rejecting any influence from the Greek philosophers. His covenant theology based on the Fatherhood of God, the blood of Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit does not create the problems raised by Lutheranism or the federal theology of the Swiss Reformers. We hope to hear more.
Exhibition in Florida
Society member Joe Johnson is once again mounting a remarkable History of the Bible Exhibition in Florida, this time at Easter in DeFuniak Springs. This is part of a celebration of the founding 150 years ago of the YMCA, originally a London bible-study group. There are many exhibits from 1220 AD to 1900, with full recognition of Tyndale. Dr Johnson is able to use the large panels from the British Library’s ‘Let There Be Light’ Tyndale exhibition in 1994, and the latest version of David Ireson’s ‘William Tyndale’ pictures and commentary, now on CD ROM.
Ninth Annual Hertford Tyndale Lecture
This lecture will be given at 5.00pm on Thursday 17th October 2002 in the Examination Schools, University of Oxford, by Gerald Hammond, Professor of English in the University of Manchester. Professor Hammond is also a Hebraist, and author of The Making of the English Bible (1982). The provisional title of the lecture is ‘Tyndale’s Other Hebrew Translations’.
Eighth Annual Lambeth Tyndale Lecture
This lecture will be given at Lambeth Palace at 6.00pm on Monday, 4th November 2002 by the Rt. Hon. Chris Patten, CH, Commissioner for External Relations, European Commission, Brussels. The title of the lecture, and application details will be published in the next issue of the Journal.
International Tyndale Conference 2002
Members should now have received the application pack for the International Tyndale Conference to be held in Antwerp this year. A summary of key information and contact details can be found elsewhere in this issue of the Journal. The conference features important academic lectures in a wide range of subjects, as well as a fascinating programme of Tyndale events in this beautiful historic setting. We very much look forward to welcoming members, and their family, friends and colleagues to Antwerp.
Sightings of Tyndale
The lecture on William Tyndale’s interest in motoring remains to be written, but our thanks to Society member, Michael Boneham in Coventry, for spotting that Tyndale has come to the notice of the car industry. A recent issue of The Hyundai Magazine, the magazine of the Hyundai Motor Co., featured a photograph of the Tyndale Tower on Nibley Knoll with an explanation that the monument was “named after William Tyndale who was strangled and burnt at the stake for translating the Bible into English”.
News from Charlotte
Dear Members and Friends,
By now, many of you will have noticed that I am not on the end of my usual e-mail and that letters/renewals/queries may be taking rather longer to be acknowledged and acted on. You should all have received information about this by letter with the Antwerp information. Please bear with us. We will get back to everyone who is waiting, and all mail sent to Hertford College will be answered as soon as possible.
I am currently working in Elsevier Science’s San Diego Office, where I am also enjoying the sun, sea and seals. I will be back on 5th June but the changes to the administration of the membership, ordering and events (as detailed in this journal) will continue after my return.
The reason for this is two-fold. I am very honoured to have been appointed a Trustee of the Society, and that will entail a different role for me in the Society’s development and administration. We are also in the process of trying to re-distribute the administrative workload of our various volunteers. As we continue to grow, more opportunities for growth arise and these workloads are increasing. Indeed, they have already increased to such an extent that the Secretary’s role, in particular, has become too great for one person to carry out as a spare time activity. We are now looking at a structure where additional volunteers will cover some of the individual tasks which were performed by the Secretary. Whilst I am still be available for general queries until things settle down and are running smoothly, it would be much appreciated if, where possible, you could direct your inquiry to the most appropriate person listed from now on.
For now, though, I should like to say how encouraging it is that so many of you have renewed your membership this year. The Society is extremely grateful to you for your support - without it we would not be able to continue to provide you with this wonderful journal and our steadily expanding programme of events.
I would also like to thank all those of you who have sent me so many good wishes for my marriage - they are much appreciated. The warmth and friendship of members is one of the many things that I love about being part of the Tyndale Society.
Best wishes,
Charlotte