About the Author
Randy Petersen has written more than sixty books on a wide range of themes, including history, the Bible, relationships, psychology, Christian growth, and sports. He holds a BA in Ancient Languages from Wheaton College (Illinois) and an MA in Theater from Villanova University (Pennsylvania).
Living most of his life in the Philadelphia area, Randy has attended concerts on the Franklin Parkway, roamed through the Franklin Institute, and gotten stuck in traffic on the Ben Franklin Bridge. Any writer in this region can claim a great heritage from Franklin, “the Printer.”
Randy’s interest in “the Preacher,” George Whitefield, came alive in the late 1980s, during his work with Christian History magazine (which recycled the name of an eighteenth-century periodical published by Whitefield). As a leader and occasional preacher in Hope United Methodist Church of Voorhees, New Jersey, Randy can savor an additional connection with the Methodist pioneer Whitefield. And as a director/actor/playwright, he appreciates the theatricality Whitefield brought to his ministry.
Formerly on the staff of Eternity magazine, Randy managed publications targeted to church and ministry leaders. As an independent writer, he has produced a wide range of educational curriculum for youth and adults. He also contributed to the Quest Study Bible (Zondervan), helped edit the Revell Bible Dictionary, and wrote copy for the groundbreaking iLumina Bible software (Tyndale House). He blogs regularly for the American Bible Society.
Among his historical works are: The 100 Most Important Dates in Christian History (with Ken Curtis and Stephen Lang, published by Revell), 100 Bible Verses that Changed the World (with his father, William J. Petersen, also Revell), and The One-Year Book of Women in Christian History (with Robin Shreeves, Tyndale House).
Randy has taught public speaking at Camden County College (New Jersey) and acting at Eastern University (St. David’s, Pennsylvania). He has written and directed plays, acted, and taught acting at scholastic, community, and professional theaters throughout the Philadelphia area—including the development of an acting workshop for teenagers at Urban Promise of Camden, New Jersey. Among his greatest delights is his role as player-manager of a church softball team, which will actually win a game any day now.