Meet the Author
Author Judy McKenzie McClary and her husband of more than forty years have three children, two grandchildren and reside in the Twin Cities area. Asked to write a 12-week adult Bible study on the Holy Spirit by her 5,000+ member Lutheran church, she inevitably had to deal with the subject of water baptism because the Holy Spirit descended and empowered Jesus to do all His mighty miracles—in the waters of baptism! But when she began researching water baptism in the Bible, there was no evidence to be found of the water baptism as taught in her church - that of infant baptism.
As she worked on a Theology degree, McClary had access to libraries and ancient books not usually available to the average layperson. Studying infant baptism and early Christian church history during the next decade, she became especially interested in Martin Luther’s reaction to how infant baptism fit into his famous revelation from God that salvation is by faith alone.
Concerned because this doctrine has divided the Church into two different branches with two modes of baptism and two wildly-different teachings about salvation, the author wrote seven letters to her church as she discovered secular and Christian history books that reported on what really happened during the Reformation that brought Martin Luther full-circle back to Roman Catholicism’s belief that a ritual, this time of Infant Baptism, saves—and to the ancient heresy of the Judaizer—just as predicted by the apostle Paul (Acts 20:27-31).
The Foundations
A lifelong scholar of the Bible; McClary was born into the Presbyterian church where she was writer of Bible studies for their Sunday bulletins, teacher of teens, adults and elementary age children, board member of Presbyterian Renewal. In the Lutheran church; a writer of curriculum, co-taught and led Spiritual Growth groups with her husband. In the Assembly of God church; a TV ministry worker and Sunday school department coordinator.
As a result of her extensive interdenominational experience in church leadership, McClary has the ecumenical background necessary to take a fair look at the overall picture of the Church. She has studied at many denominational institutions including Lutheran Lay Ministry Training School, Berean College, Living Word Bible Institute, Fridley School of the Bible, Life-Blood School of Ministry, Solid Rock Bible Institute, as well as Anoka-Ramsey Community College, University of Minnesota and Maranatha College.