# The Minutes and Papers of the Westminster Assembly, 1643-1653 Ed by Chad Van Dixhoorn



## NaphtaliPress (Feb 3, 2011)

Target date of December 2011; 5 vols; £500.
The Minutes and Papers of the Westminster Assembly, 1643-1653 
Edited by *Chad Van Dixhoorn*
*David F. Wright* 
2,592 pages | 1 map, 8 page plate section | 234x156mm 
978-0-19-920683-4 | Pack |  December 2011 (estimated) 

OUP: Van Dixhoorn: The Minutes and Papers of the Westminster Assemb - Oxford University Press
*Volume 1*
I: Summoning an Assembly
II: The Reformation at Westminster
III: The Westminster Assembly at Work
IV: The Text of the Minutes and Papers
V: Conclusion: The Reception and Legacy of the Westminster Assembly
Reader's Guide
Biographical Dictionary
Register of Citations in the Minutes and Papers
Appendices
*Volume 2*
Votes of the Assembly
Minutes
*Volume 3*
Minutes
*Volume 4*
Minutes
*Volume 5*
Table of Plenary Sessions
Calendar of Assembly Papers
Scripture Index
Subject Index
Place Index
Person Index


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## Pergamum (Feb 3, 2011)

wow!


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## NaphtaliPress (Feb 3, 2011)

I know it is expensive but if anyone can afford it, note interest to OUP at the link. They need to be encouraged to deliver this and the more interest and feedback the better. My fear is they will do a limited number.


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## Scott1 (Feb 3, 2011)

Fantastic!

A great literary contribution to reformed theology and the Christian church, and even history at large.


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## Pergamum (Feb 3, 2011)

Is this the first time the minutes and papers have all been gathered in one place?


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## Wayne (Feb 3, 2011)

Pray for a good currency exchange rate in December. The projected price of 500 British pounds as of today equals $810.00.

With praise for the Lord's providence, the Historical Center already has the money set aside for purchase, due to a recent generous donation.


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## Pilgrim (Feb 3, 2011)

I don't know a whole lot about publishing, but it would seem that at that price it might indeed be a somewhat limited run that is primarily aimed at institutions like libraries, etc.


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## py3ak (Feb 3, 2011)

_Principia Mathematica_ is over $900 for a mere 3 volumes, so this is practically a bargain!


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## NaphtaliPress (Feb 3, 2011)

I'm not certain what papers will be included or if simply an index. It will not include the Assembly documents like the WCF and Catechisms. 
It is the first time publication of the full minutes. The old Mitchell and Struthers left off the first year or so of the Assembly.


Pergamum said:


> Is this the first time the minutes and papers have all been gathered in one place?


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## DTK (Feb 3, 2011)

Chris,

I am looking forward to these volumes. It is my privilege to serve with Chad on the Candidates and Credentials committee of my presbytery, and a better Christian gentleman I have never known.


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## Wayne (Jan 25, 2012)

Update: The Westminster Bookstore notified me today that their order of the sets should arrive by late February or early March.
[the OUP web site gives April 2012 as the publication date] 
They are taking pre-orders, and the clerk said that about half of their allotment was already committed.

Needless to say, I went ahead and placed the order. (My sincere thanks to one particular donor who helped substantially with this purchase).
This will be a great resource at the Historical Center. Price is about $855.00, with free shipping included.

....let's see: 5 volume set - five into $855 = OUCH! per volume.


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## NaphtaliPress (Jan 26, 2012)

Wayne, 
the page at the bookstore says backordered until April; is that the case or do they expect them earlier? They are giving a 9% discount looks like; I suppose we should be grateful for that much!


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## timmopussycat (Jan 26, 2012)

Is there some reason why they are not producing and selling .pdf files?


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## NaphtaliPress (Jan 26, 2012)

I don't know; does OUP sell books in ebook formats?


timmopussycat said:


> Is there some reason why they are not producing and selling .pdf files?


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## ADKing (Jan 26, 2012)

timmopussycat said:


> Is there some reason why they are not producing and selling .pdf files?



$ (just a guess!)


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## Wayne (Jan 26, 2012)

Further update: Micah, the clerk at the WTS bookstore was kind to call back today
and confirmed that April is indeed the publication date as of the moment.

Sort of expect that to keep sliding back, and wouldn't be surprised if ends up shipping
in May or June.

Meanwhile, they got my money, and I got my place in line.


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## NaphtaliPress (Jan 26, 2012)

The dates been slipping for years so I think you are right.


Wayne said:


> Meanwhile, they got my money, and I got my place in line.


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## jogri17 (Jan 26, 2012)

Oxford does put a lot of their book online ectronically via an university subscription service. That is how I read the new Charles Hodge biography.


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## Wayne (Mar 12, 2012)

From the *"It's hard to hit a moving target"* file, the "target" date for the Oxford Press publication of the Westminster Minutes set has been revised to *July 2012*.

The Minutes and Papers of the Westminster Assembly, 1643-1652: Chad - Oxford University Press


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## NaphtaliPress (Mar 12, 2012)




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## Wayne (Mar 12, 2012)

And the PB award for the best use of a Smiley goes to...


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## Pergamum (Mar 12, 2012)

NaphtaliPress said:


> I know it is expensive but if anyone can afford it, note interest to OUP at the link. They need to be encouraged to deliver this and the more interest and feedback the better. My fear is they will do a limited number.



Oh, I wasn't saying "Wow" because of the cost, but because it is all there in one place (the minutes). What a resource.

---------- Post added at 10:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:35 PM ----------

p.s. What a service to the Church it would be if someone posted all the minutes online and in searchable fashion in the future.


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## Wayne (Mar 13, 2012)

This just in from one of the reps at Oxford:



> Thank you for your email. I confirmed the binding will be slotted, not sewn, and the paper is very likely to be acid-free as for almost all of our books. However, we won't have this information for sure until the book is sent to the printing house. I hope this helps you. Thank you for contacting Oxford University Press.
> 
> Regards,
> Oxford University Press, Customer Service Email Support
> /tb



To translate, there is this from the Biddles web site :


> *Slotted binding*
> Slotted binding [is] where small slots or notches are made in the binding edge of the sections and filled with adhesive to hold the pages together. This is our standard binding style which we believe produces a stronger book than perfect binding.



I think I'm highly disappointed. Adhesives inevitably dry out and give way. And the lack of complete assurance as to acid-free paper is also disconcerting (though probably in the end they will use the acid-free paper).


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## NaphtaliPress (Mar 13, 2012)

That's rather sickening at the price, at which you would think doing anything but sewn binding would be considered rather the rip off.


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## NaphtaliPress (Apr 3, 2012)

Got a call from the bookstore; OUP is now set the release for October. I've kept mine on order as it looks like the print run is going to be limited and OUP told the bookstore it is possible there will not be enough if not in line already.


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## Puritan Sailor (Apr 4, 2012)

So if it goes out of print that quickly, Chris, would you be able to reprint a more affordable version? Or do copyright laws prevent that?


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## NaphtaliPress (Apr 4, 2012)

Nope; copyrighted stuff. Maybe a Reformed publisher would pick it up if it could broker a deal with OUP (surely too rich for me). If OUP is not seeing enough interest now to print more, it is hard seeing they will do a second printing. But maybe after it is out or if the print gets exhausted record time they might? Any way, at this point I want the first and we'll all go from there I guess.


Puritan Sailor said:


> So if it goes out of print that quickly, Chris, would you be able to reprint a more affordable version? Or do copyright laws prevent that?


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## Wayne (Sep 28, 2012)

Opening my email just now, I find a post from Oxford Press informing me that this item is now in stock.

The Minutes and Papers of the Westminster Assembly, 1643-1652: Chad - Oxford University Press

May God be praised, and may this resource be used to His glory.


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## NaphtaliPress (Sep 28, 2012)

Got the same notice; I wonder when WTS bookstore will have copies to ship?


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## Wayne (Oct 5, 2012)

I wrote to the WTS bookstore today and received a prompt reply, indicating that they don't expect to receive their allotment until sometime in November.
They will, undoubtedly, set to work immediately on fulfilling orders, so, to be safe, I would expect that most everyone would have their pre-paid sets by around the 1st of December.

. . . (your mileage may vary)


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## Wayne (Nov 7, 2012)

The Historical Center's set of the Assembly's Minutes arrived today!

Already have one out-of-state patron who plans to come use the set for research.


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## NaphtaliPress (Nov 7, 2012)

I had heard the batch were here at OUP stateside, so knew they were any day now; still waiting on mine though.


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## Wayne (Nov 7, 2012)

Betcha get em tomorrow.


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## NaphtaliPress (Nov 8, 2012)

Yes; it landed with a big thud a while ago and I have been looking it over. It looks like Lightfoot's first journal is not included and so far I've not found a note on that (I assume it was cut by OUP as out of the scope of the project); the volume 5 looks like a significant addition over the dissertation; a 30 page table of titles and some data, expanded into 346 pages with extracts or full transcriptions (such as the text of the directories for worship and government) and additional data (vol. 5 also contains the indexing and such). I don't think you can _over-estimate_ the value of this set for anyone studying the Westminster Assembly and its work.


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## Edward (Nov 8, 2012)

NaphtaliPress said:


> Target date of December 2011



Only missed their target by a year.


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## NaphtaliPress (Nov 8, 2012)

More; CVD spent 11 years on this; just glad for his sake it's off his plate, finally! And we can profit from his many labors.


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## Wayne (Nov 9, 2012)

I've posted a bit fuller list of the table of contents for the five volumes, here:

Minutes and Papers of the Assembly – A Closer Look « - The Continuing Story -


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## Wayne (Nov 9, 2012)

I've posted a bit fuller list of the table of contents for the five volumes, here:

Minutes and Papers of the Assembly – A Closer Look « - The Continuing Story -


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## NaphtaliPress (Nov 9, 2012)

Are your dust jackets really mustard color? Mine are a more cream to light beige.


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## Wayne (Nov 9, 2012)

Bad lighting (bad for photography; good for preservation) in the Historical Center's reading room. Couldn't (i.e., don't know how to) adjust in Photoshop.

"I'm an archivist, Jim! Not a photographer!"


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