On behalf of IWU’s John Wesley Honors College, I am proud to present the first issue of our Aldersgate Review. Aldersgate was, of course, the site of John Wesley’s world-changing affirmation of his spiritual and intellectual transformation in Christ. The JWHC seeks to embody Wesley’s deep commitment to understanding, wisdom, and holiness that emerged from this experience of renewal. The purpose of the Aldersgate Review is to provide a small window onto some of the ways that our faculty, students, and alumni are living out this commitment.
We hope this publication will prove helpful both to prospective students who are considering joining our community and to alumni who wish to stay abreast of developments in the Honors College. But no less important, we trust that the Aldersgate Review’s articles, book reviews, and notices will also enrich a broader audience of readers who possess a “faith seeking understanding.”
I am very thankful to the faculty, students, and alumni who contributed to this inaugural issue. In particular, I owe a keen debt of gratitude to Katie Karnehm (JWHC alumna and Assistant Professor of English), Sara Scheunemann (JWHC Program Coordinator), and Holly Willman (JWHC Graduate Assistant) for shepherding this first issue of the Aldersgate Review from the drawing board to publication.
The Lord has richly blessed our community of Christian liberal learning with a gifted and ambitious group of junior and senior scholars—scholars for whom intellectual and spiritual pursuits are mutually reinforcing and for whom scholarship and learning are fundamental expressions of our new life in Christ.
May the Lord likewise bless you in the pages that follow through some of the fruits of our life together in the John Wesley Honors College.
Grace and Peace,
Dr. David L. Riggs
Executive Director,
John Wesley Honors College