Envoy - A Tribute to Dr. Beauford Bryant

Dr. Beauford H. Bryant
1928–1997

Jesus said to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

Let us pray. Grant us our Father such spiritual triumphs that death may be swallowed up in victory. Amen.

The lifeless body of Beauford Bryant lies before us. His obituary says that he died on September 27, 1997. Don’t you believe it!

Do not be deceived by appearances. Beauford Bryant lives! He is more alive today than he has ever been. Let us look not at the things which are seen, but the things which are unseen. For the things which are seen are temporal but the things which are unseen are eternal. Let me tell you how he lives: he lives in our memories; he lives in our hearts; he lives in our lives.

Jesus said of John the Baptist, “He was a lamp that was burning and shining, and you were willing to rejoice for awhile in his light.” Those of us who are here have rejoiced for awhile in the light of Beauford Bryant. I was never his student formally, but he was always my teacher. I rejoice in the fact that for several years I was in the presence of the light of this burning and shining lamp.

Dr. Beauford Bryant He lives in our memories for several reasons, and each of us would have his or her own reasons. We are gathered here tonight in the chapel of Emmanuel School of Religion and remember him for what he has done for Emmanuel. As long as Emmanuel lives, Beauford Bryant will live. He was the last of the original faculty who taught here continually over the years, the last member of the “big four.” He had a major role in the founding of this institution. He gave a major portion of his life in this enterprise, the best portion of his life. Truly his passing, like a fallen tree, leaves a hole in the sky, to use Edwin Markham’s metaphor. His contribution to our Library is legendary; he was a major donor himself. He was a fund-raiser for the Library. He was an advocate for the Library, and he was a consultant and advisor for it. I don’t know of a 30-year-old seminary anywhere that has as fine a Library as we have. Tom Stokes is quick to say, “Beauford Bryant gets all the credit.”

This afternoon Dr. Wetzel reminded me of the story of Luke Timothy Johnson’s visit with us, the renowned New Testament Scholar. He delivered the Kershner Lectures here in 1996. He looked over our Library and asked how Emmanuel could have such a New Testament collection as that. It was explained to him that it was through Dr. Bryant’s efforts. When he was asked “Why?” Dr. Johnson said, “I can think of only two other libraries in the country where I can sit in one place and have all the resources I need for New Testament studies, and both of those are ivy league schools.”

All the honoraria that he received at evangelistic meetings, his weekend speaking engagements, all were contributed to the New Testament collection. I am so pleased that a few years ago while he was still with us personally, it was decided that the third floor of the Library would be called the Beauford Bryant floor, and it will house this same New Testament collection.

Not only was he zealous for the Library of Emmanuel, he was zealous that the students build their own library and counseled student after student to give 10% of their income to buying books for their library. I don’t know of many who heeded his advice, but I’m sure they bought a lot more than they would have otherwise, had he not so advised them.

Beauford Bryant lives in our memory because of the way he combined scholarship and faith. With him they were not adversaries, they were handmaidens. The more scholarship abounded with him, the more faith abounded. He was a spiritual and intellectual giant. He was committed to excellence and was himself a scholar of first rank.

It began early in his career. A fellow classmate of his told me this weekend that in a freshman class at Johnson Bible College they were given a remarkably difficult exam. One student got a C, one student got an A, and everyone else failed. It doesn’t surprise at all that the A went to Beauford Bryant. It was a pattern that was established throughout all his life. Dennis Helsabeck reminded me this evening that his Ph.D thesis at Edinburgh University consisted of 500 pages, 46 pages of bibliography. A special note of commendation from his professor said, “This is outstanding. Thank you for coming and studying with us.”

Beauford was even more deeply committed to the Christian faith. Whenever he spoke in chapel, he always chose a theme that was basic and fundamental to Christianity. He never left you in doubt about what he believed or how he stood on doctrine. Among his colleagues at this institution he was known for his scholarship. But out there, out among the churches, he was known as a flaming evangelist. He never wavered in his commitment to evangelism, never wavered in his commitment to Christ. The more he became a scholar, the deeper became his faith. He never wavered in his commitment to the Restoration Movement. He had a passion for evangelism and a passion to communicate that spirit of evangelism to his students.

He lives because of his humility. He was humble and self-effacing, content to live his life in the shadows. He was invited to speak all over the country—gone most weekends. Nobody ever knew where unless you were out there and would get reports of where he was. He was always minimizing his abilities, including his scholarship abilities. I remember a faculty meeting near the time of his retirement when in a relaxed moment we were discussing his future. He was very noncommittal and, after we exerted a little pressure on him to tell us what he was going to do, he finally admitted that he thought he might write a commentary on the Gospel of John. After he said that, he said in a low voice, almost a mumble, “I suppose I might get someone to print it.” He threw me off guard as he often did. I was not prepared for the mail I would get the very next day. For the very next day I received a beautiful color brochure from College Press announcing a new series of New Testament Commentaries with Beauford Bryant as the author of the one on John. I am delighted to say that he completed that commentary two weeks ago. Now he will live for the ages in that commentary.

He lives in our memories. He lives in the lives of his former students. He could have written to hundreds of his former students, “You are my letter, known and read by all men, written not with ink but with the spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.” I used to be amazed at how many students expressed their appreciation for Dr. Bryant. No longer. I’ve heard it so often from alumni out serving in the field and heard it expressed with such exuberance that it never surprises me even a little when someone begins telling me how much Beauford Bryant meant to him. Out there he may be known as a flaming evangelist, in here he may be known as a scholar of the first rank. But among the alumni who are out there serving, he is a mentor, a pastor. They loved him dearly. They were his disciples. We often talk about his class notes, the transfer of his notes to his students. He transferred more than his notes. He transferred himself, his values, his ideals, his fervor. He followed their ministries. He could tell you where they were serving and how their ministry was going. If they were off to a graduate school working on a Ph.D. he continued to take an interest, carried on a voluminous correspondence. I learned to check with Beauford if we lost the location of an alumni. He just might know where they were. Alumni were always asking him to speak in their churches. As I traveled around representing Emmanuel in various churches visiting with different people I often felt that I was following the trail that had been blazed by Beauford Bryant. His zeal for the gospel, his love for Christ, his commitment to scholarship, his passion for evangelism, his commitment to the Restoration Movement, live in these his former students.

But finally and supremely, we say Beauford Bryant lives because he is sharing in the life everlasting. U

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