Shepherding the Ministry of Chalcedon
People have periodically asked me if being left to shepherd the ministry of Chalcedon and my father’s work felt like a burden. The answer to that is not easy, because the work is, in fact, overwhelming, in that Christian Reconstruction is not something that can be accomplished in my lifetime; the church is still largely behind closed doors debating whether it is even necessary. In that sense, I feel a burden. My work is more then I can envision being undertaken, much less brought to completion.
On the other hand, my work was laid out for me; I did not have to struggle with uncertainty in my vocation. I have plenty to do. Sometimes I wish there was a little less on my plate, perhaps, but there is a very real joy knowing your calling.
When my father passed away sixteen years ago it was clear that I could not fill his shoes and that I would have to preserve and further the work in ways different than his. Much of that responsibility was to make both his and Chalcedon’s material available. Many of his books were out of print, many of his manuscripts unpublished, and much of Chalcedon’s material, such as his newsletter and magazine articles, no longer available.
We have made major progress in these areas. We have published many of his manuscripts with several still in the works. More of his material is available today than ever before. We have also just launched our all-new website, chalcedon.edu, which will continue to expand its archival content of my father’s material to anyone in the world with internet access. The past twenty years of Chalcedon Report/Faith For All of Life are available. We will eventually plan on having every issue going back to 1965 available, all easily searchable. Even all the issues of the Journal of Christian Reconstruction are on our new site. When our anthologies of my father’s magazine articles and Position Papers are published, they will be available online as well.
So yes, there is tremendous responsibility involved in the work and that can be daunting, but there is also a real joy in being involved in so important a work. For fifty-two years it has been those who give regularly, who have enabled this work. We do not have an endowment and depend on the support of our readers. We are grateful for their partnership in helping us help others to apply the Christian Faith to all of life.
Topics: Biblical Law, Christian Reconstruction, Dominion, R. J. Rushdoony