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As I now come to the end of the Atonement Project, I want to acknowledge again, like I did at the start, the influence of Barrie Taylor who, in 1992, sparked in me the desire to study the atonement in as much depth as possible.

There are two other people whose chats were particularly helpful. Dr Sandra Brower introduced me to Douglas Farrow’s Ascension and Ecclesia. He didn’t get much of a mention in this book as things turned out but it was his work that first stimulated me to think of the cross from the viewpoint of the ascension, a viewpoint which later became the Pentecost Standpoint, the backbone to the thought-experiment that is this book. Then there is Dr Ed McKenzie whose constant interest in my books was very flattering and whose awareness of all the scholarship I was engaging with in this volume was really helpful. He helped confirm what I was thinking and helped to navigate me to the most important sources.

With this volume I did something I have not done before and that is let someone read it before it’s completely polished. I wanted my friend Peter Hayter to read it and tell me what he thought. He represents what seems to be the main, or at least the most appreciative, audience my books have attracted so far: informed, interested non-academics. I am completely delighted with this and delighted that he was able to read it for me and give comment.

I would also like to thank, once again, my amazing editor with Cascade: Dr Robin Parry who has edited all three atonement books and whose encyclopedic knowledge and watchful eye has saved me from embarrassing myself.

Last but not least, my wife, Pearl, was completing her PhD in dietetics at the same time I was completing this book. Having her as a fellow traveler along a similar road (though hers far more demanding and stressful) has been a great comfort in what can be a lonely endeavor.