Writing in these pages a few years ago, the philosopher Kenneth Minogue discussed the rise of “Christophobia,” that species of politically correct prejudice against Western civilization that focuses its animus on the doctrines and traditions of Christian civilization. Has Christophobia come to Wiley-Blackwell, the distinguished English academic publisher? Therein lies a still-unfolding tale.

Some background: In 2006, Wiley contracted with George Thomas Kurian to produce a multivolume Encyclopedia of Christian Civilization. We presume Kurian was a known quantity. He is an industrious encyclopedist who has edited or co-edited dozens of reference works on diverse subjects. A look at his bibliography shows that he has a particular interest in Christianity. His new edition of the World Christian Encyclopedia, for example, was published by Oxford University Press in 2001.

Kurian and nearly ...