page 2

It should be obvious that these are notbrand-new questions that have

simply burst forth from my feveredbrain. In many ways the Conference on

Faith and History has been discussing at least some of these questions from

its inception. Still, it seems to me and others that the organization isat a point

in its history when these questions mustbe addressed intentionally and

systematically; not tobe TOO melodramatic, the shape and trajectory of our

organization's future is at stake.

Here is where the October,2002 conference at Huntington College

comes in. Jay Green and others have already been workingfor months

toward designing an innovative and exciting conference program thatwill

encourage thoughtful conversation regarding the various aspectsof what it

means for people with Christian faith commitments to do history. Ihope that

we swampHuntington with long-time CFH members, brand-new CFH

members, potential CFH members, and other interested folks---and I look

forward to what should be lively and provocative discussion!

William Trollinger

University of Dayton

CFH President

From the Editors

Bill Trollinger's presidentialaddress has continued to generate a lot of

queries and comments, so much so that wehave posted the text on the CFH

web site at:www.huntington.edu/cfh/trollinger2000.htm. It will also be

published in a forthcoming issue of FIDES ET HISTORIA.

In connection with theseremarks, let us draw your attention once

again tothe prospective goals for the CFH developed by Tom Askew

(Gordon College) and Bill Trollinger. The four basic emphases are:

1. To extend the dialogueon the relationship between historical

scholarship and the faith commitments ofhistorians from various Christian

traditions, focusing on both theoretical and practical issues;

2. To enablescholars to present and publish research findings

(especially young scholars in the profession);

3. To enhance the quality of history teachingby providing a venue for

evaluating instructional strategies and interaction between newerand

veteran professors; and,