Following a one-year internship in North Carolina, I returned to my last year of study at Reformed Theological Seminary. The year was 1980, and as a student of theology under the care of presbytery, I had attended some of the most turbulent meetings our Synod had witnessed in many years.

It was in that setting that I was faced with an assignment for a course in Systematic Theology that allowed me to look more closely at the issue that was tearing our Synod apart. The assignment was to write a research paper, and my choice was the doctrine of Scripture, specifically the question of inerrancy. Considerable effort was put into the project, as was reflected in the length of the paper (nearly 40 pages).

With concerns that were raised during the 2007 meeting of Synod the thought occurred to me to pull it out of moth balls, bring it up to date, and make it available to members of my church, and perhaps others, who were perplexed over the controversy. The events that unfolded at the 2008 meeting, along with my appointment to the Erskine board, were further confirmation. For those who read, I trust that you will be better informed, and for those who have been misinformed, I hope that at least some obstacles to the acceptance of this teaching will be removed.

-Pastor Donahue