The Word For This Century, commissioned in 1959 by the Centennial Committee and edited by Dr. Merrill Tenney, Dean of the Graduate School, was published by Oxford University Press to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Wheaton College. In addition, it attempted to address the pressing question: “Has Evangelical Christianity a message for this era of tension and world conflict?” Containing essays based on the Wheaton College Statement of Faith by Carl F.H. Henry, Kenneth Kantzer, V. Raymond Edman, Billy Graham, John F. Walvoord and others, the book responds to the inquiry with confident affirmation. The preface, written by Tenney, follows:

Etched against the sky of a quiet Midwestern city, the tower of Wheaton College stands sentinel over the campus. For one hundred years Wheaton College has been a landmark of faith to its students who have chosen it as their Alma Mater, and to their parents and friends who have supported its ideals of Christian education. Under the leadership of four presidents, Jonathan Blanchard (1860-82), his son Charles Albert Blanchard (1882-1925), J. Oliver Buswell, Jr. (1926-40), and V. Raymond Edman (1940-65), Wheaton has maintained a consistent witness to Christian truth. Through numerous economic depressions, three major wars, and the shifting scenes of social and theological controversy, it has stood firmly for an undiluted Christian faith. Its faculty and graduates have been champions of political liberty, social reform, and evangelistic fervor. In 1937 the Graduate School of Theology was established as the result of a generous provision in the form of a residuary trust from the estate of John Dickey, Jr., of Philadelphia, in order that Wheaton’s ministry might be enlarged. Since the inception of the Graduate School more than three hundred and fifty alumni have been graduated and have entered the ranks of teaching, the ministry, and the mission field. This volume is issued on the centennial anniversary of Wheaton College as a testimony to its historic faith. The contributors of these essays, representing administration, faculty, and alumni, are actively engaged in preaching and teaching this message, and they speak for the larger number seeking to present the word of God to this century. As the list of authors on the title page of this book indicates it is the product of co-operative effort by men whose time is heavily taxed by the daily duties in which they are engaged. To them the Graduate School of Wheaton College is indebted for their contribution to this memorial volume. One of them, Dr. T. Leonard Lewis, the President of Gordon College, was suddenly taken to be with the Lord in the spring of this year, and the chapter that he wrote is one of the last products of his pen. To all of these men hearty thanks are due for their willing participation. Special thanks are offered to Dr. Carl F. H. Henry and to his publisher, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, for permission to quote two paragraphs from his Christian Personal Ethics. The Centennial Committee of Wheaton College, Richard Gerig, Chairman, has aided materially in sponsoring this project. The Editor acknowledges gratefully the help of his wife, Helen J. Tenney, in preparing the manuscript for publication, and the stenographic work of Mrs. Edward A. Adams in the transcription of the copy.