The Victory of the Cross by James R. Payton Jr. has won the 2020 Word Guild Award in the Academic Non-fiction category. The Word Guild Awards are given out each year to encourage the pursuit of excellence in writing and to help to raise the profile of Canadian writers who are Christian.

David McNutt, associate editor for IVP Academic, said, “We are thrilled that Dr. Payton’s most recent IVP Academic book has been recognized with this award from the Word Guild. It is a tribute to his insights into Eastern Orthodoxy and the doctrine of salvation, which are a gift to the whole body of Christ.”

In The Victory of the Cross: Salvation in Eastern Orthodoxy Payton, a Western Christian with a sympathetic ear for Eastern Orthodoxy, explores the Orthodox doctrine of salvation. John A. McGuckin, Oxford University faculty of theology, said, “James Payton is a theologian skilled in patristic and contemporary thought. He is also a careful and sympathetic reader in all things to do with Eastern Christianity, an area in which he has immersed himself in a deeply insightful manner. In this present study he has surveyed Orthodox thought on salvation in Christ, and the result is an elegant and masterful survey of a major theme at the very heart of the Christian message. His approachable style is unfailingly clear, and this important study will surely be a new standard on the reading lists.”

Payton was recognized by the Word Guild for three previous books: Light from the Christian East, Getting the Reformation Wrong, and A Patristic Treasury.

IVP also had three titles and one book cover selected for 2020 Word Guild Short Lists. They included The Gospel According to Eve: A History of Women’s Interpretation by Amanda W. Benckhuysen (Academic), Surprised by Paradox: The Promise of “And” in an Either-Or World by Jen Pollock Michel (Apologetics/Evangelism and Best Book Cover), and Bloody, Brutal, and Barbaric?: Wrestling with Troubling War Texts by William J. Webb and Gordon K. Oeste (Biblical Studies).

For a complete list of IVP award winners visit ivpress.com/award-winners.