Four-Views books — or Three-Views or Five-Views — are now so popular that it’s difficult to remember a time when they didn’t exist. Dozens of such titles have been published in the past thirty(??) or so years. The format of multiple-view books will be familiar to many reading this blog: Four (or three or five) prominent theological representatives on a contested topic are invited to write. Each contributor is assigned a page limit within which to summarize and argue his or her position on a given topic. Following the presentation of the first essay, the other contributors respond to the first contributor’s position, and so on throughout the second and third (… and fourth … and, yikes! sometimes even fifth …) essay. An editor normally provides framing perspectives in an introduction and summaries in a conclusion. Such introductions and conclusions are sometimes the most helpful aspects of the book.

Honestly, I love multiple-view books (and recently finished reading two more of such books). The format allows me to learn about a topic from representatives who argue for whatever view they happen to hold from their own convicted perspectives. Best of all, such books allow me to read a 30-40 page presentation, without having to read three, or four, or five separate books. I also love the repartee that each response represents. (Personally, when I read such books, I sometimes start by reading the introduction, then the conclusion, followed by the responses, and finally only read the essays themselves if I’m still engaged! But don’t tell the authors…)

I like this format so much that a number of years ago, I joined with my colleague, Jon Lunde, to edit a .

But there is a problem. Increasingly, I’m convinced that the problem is not minor.

Multiple-view books present as serious options positions that are sometimes either on the fringe of historic Christianity or (as this genre has developed) sometimes outside of its doctrinal boundaries altogether. Such books give the impression that each represented position is a legitimate view worthy o