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Denominational Journalism
By James H. Smylie

THERE are a number of small, but reputable, denominational historical journals in the United States. Among these are the American Jewish Historical Quarterly, Concordia Historical Institute Quarterly, Foundations, Historical Magazine of the Protestant Episcopal Church, Journal of Presbyterian History, Mennonite Life, Methodist History, Quaker History, and Records of the American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia. This does not exhaust the list of this type of periodical, but it is a sample indicating range and number. These journals are generally sponsored by denominational historical societies and supported by a small group of persons who believe that the history of these various bodies is worth probing. They exist to help us all ask the question, to borrow and modify Sydney Ahlstrom's words: "How has a denomination come to its present spiritual and moral condition?" From my observation

James H. Smylie is Professor of American Church History, Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Va., and Editor of the Journal of Presbyterian History.

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of these journals, I find they are attempting to do this job and to do it responsibly with both an ecumenical and a critical spirit. Now the history of denominations is too important to be left to these journals alone, and much high quality material on denominational life appears in such diverse journals as Church History, the New England Quarterly, the William and Mary Quarterly, the Journal of American History, Pacific Historian, the Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, and A Journal of Church and State, to pick a few at random. But the denominational journals represent a systematic effort to ask the question raised above, and they ought to be supported by their constituencies.

As an editor of one of these magazines, Journal of Presbyterian History, I have, in the past few years, been reflecting on the responsibilities of such an editorship. I have come up with the following job description: "It is the business of a denominational historical journal to help probe in a more systematic way the historical dimensions of the problems which we face today, the part the denomination and its members have played in producing our troubles, and the resources available in the denomination's past which may help in the resolution of some of our current problems."

I would like to share the way in which the Journal of Presbyterian History has been approaching these questions in the hopes of gaining comments and more insight and information from readers about how the job can be done better. (1) We have been attempting to stimulate articles on how Presbyterians have read and interpreted the Bible, particularly during critical movements and moments in American history. (2) We have been attempting to get more material on the leading theologians of the denomination and how they interacted with theologians of other traditions. (3) We have been trying to get more mission history: domestic mission history, particularly in connection with minority groups such as the Indians, various immigrant groups, and Mexican-Americans, and -world mission history, in an effort to discover what kind of impact American missionaries have made on other peoples and cultures. For example, in the near future we shall run articles exploring several aspects of Presbyterian work in China. (4) We have been trying to get persons to work on aspects of international affairs, and how Presbyterians have been involved, particularly as laymen, in influencing foreign

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policy. (5) We have been trying to solicit material on black involvement in the life of the Presbyterian family, from a black Presbyterian perspective. (6) We have been anxious to print more studies of the history of local congregations, particularly in urban centers, to determine what has been happening among our members. Professor J. M. Bumsted, of Simon Fraser University, is showing us what can be done in this area of investigation in his treatment of some New England congregations. There are many areas which might be mentioned. I am sure that other editors are working in similar ways to make their journals more useful to their immediate constituencies and to wider audiences.

Students in divinity schools, theological seminaries, and religion departments could be of more help to us all. I know that those of us who try to keep these journals responsible are grateful for the papers which we receive and print from students. It is because of my confidence in students that I suggest that they ought to be encouraged to do more writing for publication in some of our journals. Through such work they will sharpen their academic tools, their ability to articulate their ideas more clearly, and make a useful contribution to a wider public beyond the seminar room.

There are certain problems, however. I certainly do not want our journals to become dumping grounds for half-baked term papers. Moreover, most editors simply do not have the time to spend helping to revise and rework material which is submitted in poor style and form. Therefore instructors will have to be more helpful in picking and focusing on problems, in guiding students in the use of source materials in libraries, including manuscripts, in making suggestions regarding organization, style, and form. That is what we should be doing anyway. And there is no reason why a deliberate effort cannot be made to get the more gifted and interested students to assist us in probing our various denominational traditions.

Since most of us who teach American religious history, even in denominational seminaries, do so from comprehensive perspectives, there is no reason why this should not be an interdisciplinary and and an ecumenical task, especially when the raw materials needed for doing some Presbyterian history, for example, are deposited near a Baptist, or Methodist, or Lutheran, or Catholic institution of learning.

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There is one final matter. Speaking now as one of those teachers of American religious history, these smaller journals ought to be encouraged in order to keep our generalization about American religious history straight. We often make observations about that history which really cannot stand up under close scrutiny. And we need to keep probing to correct and improve our angle of vision with more history. The smaller historical journals help us do this.