Christianity Today’s annual book awards, announced this month, honor the recent publications of three Abilene Christian University faculty. 

Letters to a Future Saint, by Dr. Brad East, associate professor of Bible, Missions and Ministry, received the Award of Merit for 2024. In addition, Story, Ritual, Prophecy, Wisdom: Reading and Teaching the Bible Today, by Dr. Mark Hamilton, professor of Old Testament, and Dr. Samjung Kang-Hamilton, adjunct professor of religious education in the Graduate School of Theology, was a finalist in the category of Bible and Devotional.

The Award of Merit is the runner-up award for Book of the Year, and Matt Reynolds, senior books editor for Christianity Today, said of the top choices: “Two volumes rose to the head of the class: Gavin Ortlund’s celebration of our Protestant heritage and Brad East’s affable instructions to callow Christians. In our view, both books pair intellectual depth with generous readability. They converse with cultural currents while staying tethered to enduring truths.”

East and Ortlund will join Christianity Today editor-in-chief Russell Moore on a YouTube live event Thursday at 7 p.m. discussing their books and answering questions from Moore and Christianity Today subscribers.

Letters to a Future Saint is marketed to 18-to-25-year-olds, as well as those new to faith or exploring Christianity. East said in writing the book, he thought of the ACU students in his classes as his audience, as well as his own four children, ranging from first to sixth grade. He kept a secondary audience in mind as well.

“I wrote it for my students and for other young people, but I secretly wrote it for parents and pastors, too,” he said. “It’s hard to get 19-year-olds – give or take 5 years – to read books. And a lot of friends my age, ranging from young Gen X to older Millennials, have kids and sometimes feel unequipped to teach their kids about Christianity. You shouldn’t have to have a Ph.D. in theology to tell your kids about God. So this is marketed to young people, but it’s just as much meant to be a book that parents and youth pastors could themselves profit from – either to answer their own questions or help answer their kids’ questions.”

In Story, Ritual, Prophecy, Wisdom: Reading and Teaching the Bible Today, the Hamiltons focus on four modes of Scripture – story, ritual, prophecy and wisdom – providing examples of each within the Bible and how they address real needs in the life of the church today. Nat Schluter, principal at Johannesburg Bible College, described the book as “creative, wide-ranging, engaging, thought-provoking and challenging, bringing freshness and energy to the task of understanding Scripture.” 

Learn more about ACU’s College of Biblical Studies.