Alleluia : A Gedenkschaft In Thanksgiving For The Life Of Walter R. Bouman

In this volume, readers are invited to enter into conversation with theologians whose work represents the dynamic search for truth that Walter Bouman once shared, and who continue in the enterprise to which he gave his life. The book begins with the funeral sermon delivered in 2005 by his nephew, Stephen Paul Bouman, for as Walter often said, to begin at the end of the story is to better understand its message. The essays that follow represent the rigorous thinking that Bouman would likely have enjoyed–whether or not he would have agreed, as the authors in this book often indicate.

In the first section, Jesus is Risen!, Mark Allan Powell, James M. Childs, Jr., and Gordon W. Lathrop, each a cherished colleague with whom Bouman worked and struggled in strengthening his own theological position, continue arguments on some of the topics in which he was engaged.

The second section s essays are by Jonathan Linman, Michael Rinehart, John Buchanan, and Robert Wright, who worked with Bouman on a variety of endeavors or were involved in teaching or leadership roles in the church or the academy.

In the third section, the outcome of some of Walt s teaching is seen in contributions from former students and colleagues Becky Robbins-Penniman and Anna Madsen. The chapter is rounded out by a new musical composition by Carl Schalk dedicated to Bouman, and a reflection on the Schalk motet by Nancy Raabe.

The volume concludes with Andy Bouman’s family reflections on his father. This is a fitting end to a book that invites readers who knew Bouman to recall their own stories about the man who inspired students and colleagues alike to share God s promise given through Jesus of Nazareth. A few of Bouman’s unpublished papers are included in the Appendix.