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Prof's Book Relives Apostle Paul's Journeys

Seafaring isn’t for the faint of heart. It wasn’t for the Apostle Paul in the first century A.D. - shipwrecked, imprisoned and often a stranger in foreign lands.

And it turned out to be a heart-stopping task some 2,000 years later when Linford Stutzman and his wife, Janet, undertook a 14-month journey by sailboat. The Stutzmans sailed 3,656 nautical miles to eight countries on their voyage, beginning May 2004 and ending August 2005, visiting every one of the 36 ports where Paul stopped on his tumultuous missionary journeys.

The adventures and reflections of this trip are captured in a new book, "SailingActs: Following an Ancient Journey," published by Good Books.

Dr. Stutzman, an associate professor of culture and mission at Eastern Mennonite Seminary and in the undergraduate Bible and religion department, and Janet Stutzman, who is also employed by EMU's development department, made the trip during a sabbatical from teaching.

"Explorers are easy to admire or despise, but very difficult to understand without going on the trip," Stutzman writes at the beginning of SailingActs. "To really appreciate the experiences, the drama and development of Paul the explorer, you need to sail with him."

Stutzman draws thoughtful comparisons from his own travel mishaps and adventures to the ones Paul experienced on his journey. And, Stutzman’s knowledge of the socio-political setting in the first-century Roman empire provides an informative backdrop to understanding Paul and reading his epistles in a new light.

Stutzman will sign copies of his book during homecoming weekend from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 14, at the University Bookstore.

For more information on "SailingActs," visit www.GoodBooks.com.

— posted October 4, 2006