|
Contents
Ralph Sims concludes Trustee Leadership Accepting the
chairmanship of a committee does not ordinarily commit one to a
quarter century of service. But it did for Ralph Sims when he The 35-year history of Emmanuel School of Religion has been characterized by stability and progressive development. During both the difficult times and the prosperous years, the School has been true to its founding purpose. The trustees under the leadership of Harold Hockley and Ralph Sims have played a decisive role in bringing the School to where it is today. At the October 2000 meeting of the trustees, Chairman Ralph Sims and Vice-Chairman Richard Crabtree chose to retire from their respective offices, but will continue as trustees. Graham Johnstone of Pittsburgh was elected as the new chairman, and Charles E. Allen of Johnson City will serve as vice-chairman. John Samples of Indianapolis will continue to serve as secretary.
Yuri and Elena Skopylatov, first-year students from Krasnodar, Russia, are the parents of the first baby born to residents of the Emmanuel Village. Vladimir Y. Skopylatov was born January 30 at the Johnson City Medical Center Hospital. He weighed 7 lbs, 12 oz. Yuri, Elena, and little Vladimir reside in the Nutley Cottage in the Village. Yuri did his undergraduate studies at Ozark Christian College. He plans to return to Russia following the completion of his M.Div. studies and intends to teach at a Bible college there. Yuri is at Emmanuel on full scholarship provided by the Southeast Christian Church in Parker, Colo.
Order
your tickets now! Emmanuel School of Religion will host its annual North American Christian Convention breakfast in Tampa, Florida, on Wednesday, June 27 during the 2001 NACC. The event will be held at the Marriott Waterside Hotel at 7:30 a.m. in the Grand Ballroom Salon. Tickets are $15 per person. Plan to join President Wetzel, Chancellor Phillips, Dean Daniel and other administrators and staff for a time of fellowship around the table. Alumni and special guests will be introduced and a report on the future plans and progress of the school will be given. Professor Jack Holland will present a special message. Tickets for the breakfast, which are $15 each, may be ordered by sending a check to the Office of the President, Emmanuel School of Religion, One Walker Drive, Johnson City TN 37601. Questions may be sent via email to the Office of the President. We look forward to seeing you in Tampa!
In early December I wrote the most forthright appeal letter in my six and a half years as president of Emmanuel School of Religion. It was one of those good news, bad news situations. On the one hand, the School was nearing the completion of 26 cottages for student housing in the Emmanuel Village. Designated contributions and commitments for this project were at an all time high. Even though construction loans had to be negotiated to complete the Village, commitments made through the Heritage of Excellence Campaign would cover most of what had been borrowed. Therefore, since the beginning of the fall semester, students have been moving into the cottages as construction was completed on each court. It has been gratifying indeed to see students and their families comfortably and inexpensively housed in the Village. Shortly after Dedication Day several of us who had worked on the Village project found potted plants on our desks. You can imagine how I felt when I read the note from the student body that said, “For appreciation for all your hard work in making the dream of the Emmanuel Village a reality.” Yes, the first phase of the Emmanuel Village is reality. But it has come at a cost, a cost that many generous friends of the School have committed themselves to bear. But there has been a secondary cost that is the bad news of this good news, bad news report. And that is the General Fund! For 15 years in a row Emmanuel School of Religion has been able to report that its General Fund finished in the black — always with difficulty, but in the black. But I honestly do not see how that is going to happen for the 2000–2001 fiscal year, short of a miracle that God works through His people. At the end of December the General Fund was $390,000 behind. Given the downturn in the national economy, it is quite extraordinary to see the faithfulness of the friends of Emmanuel in their level of giving. And even though our Development staff and I must be all the more persistent in presenting the current need of the School, we would want to insure the friends of the School of our gratitude for what they have already done. I concluded my annual Christmas poem this year with a line from the Spanish philosopher, Miguel Unamuno: “May God deny you peace, but give you glory.” I can assure you that there is not much peace in dealing with the kind of shortfall currently facing the School. But then, we have seen God’s glory in His mighty works before, and we live in the confidence that we shall see it again.
Paul Sampley to Deliver Kershner Lectures in March
Lectures will take place at 10:45 a.m. each day in the Mildred Welshimer Phillips Memorial Chapel on the campus of Emmanuel School of Religion. Topics will include: 1. The Problem and an Initial Sortie, 2. One Model: Switch Social Patterns as Needed; 3. Another Model: Adopt at Times, Adapt at Times; 4. The Problem’s Key: Paul’s Apocalyptic (Dis)en-gagement. Dr. Sampley, who holds degrees from Duke, Perkins, and Yale, taught at Drew University and Indiana University before coming to Boston University. He has written several monographs on the letters of Paul (his area of particular interest) and coauthored the pedagogical and research tool Pauline Parallels. His current interests center on Pauline ethics and the relation of Paul to the Greco-Roman world that was the setting for his mission. His most recent book is Walking Between the Times: Paul’s Moral Reasoning. His pastoral experience in Charlemont, Massachusetts, has intensified Professor Sampley’s commitment to training for informed ministry. An ordained United Methodist minister, he received the United Methodist Church’s Scholar/Teacher of the Year award in 1991. For more information, contact the Office of the President at (423) 461-1510, or by email at the Office of the President.
Student Finds Call as Church Planter When Mike Decker began
his studies at Emmanuel in 1992, he knew that God was calling him to After a semester of classes at Emmanuel, an opportunity arose to help plant a church in Lenoir City, Tennessee, with Carlos Fields and the Smoky Mountain Christian Men’s Fellowship. The plan was for Mike to help in the establishment of the church and then remain as the Senior Minister once Carlos moved on to the next church plant. During this time, Mike developed a passion for planting churches. His mentoring by Carlos taught him much about ministry and much about church planting. Mike says, “I will always be indebted to Carlos for his investment in my life.” Through Carlos, Mike was introduced to John Wasem (M.Div. ’87), who is well known in church planting circles for his successful plant of the SunCrest Christian Church in St. John, Ind. It was also through Carlos that Mike met Tom Jones (M.Div. ’82), who was then the lead planter of the Princeton Project. As it would turn out, these two men have been instrumental in the work Mike now pursues. Mike was able to continue his studies at Emmanuel again in 1998, though he remained on the board of the Smoky Mountain Christian Men’s Fellowship and chaired the Long Range Planning/New Works Committee. The following year the Fellowship was approached by a family in South Carolina about the possibility of planting a congregation in the Spartanburg area. Mike was sent to investigate the opportunity. After much research and prayer, he and his wife, Kathleen, knew they were being called to help plant a church in South Carolina. Along with Greg Pitner, Mike assembled the strategic plan for the plant and presented it to the South Carolina Evangelizing Association, calling it the “Three Strands Project.” The proposal was actually presented at a church planting class taught by Tom Jones and John Wasem at Emmanuel. This class was the final bit of confirmation that church planting was the area of ministry God had in mind for Mike. The SCEA liked the proposal and decided to partner with the Smoky Mountain Christian Men’s Fellowship for this work. In the spring of 2000, the Smoky Mountain Christian Men’s Fellowship hired Mike as their evangelist and will be sending him on indefinite loan to South Carolina. Since January, Mike has been working full-time on the Three Strands Project, raising funds and making arrangements to move to the field in June, after his graduation from Emmanuel with the Master of Divinity degree. Many other people with Emmanuel ties have had involvement in the Three Strands Project. The management team for the plant is comprised of Dr. Robert Wetzel, Emmanuel’s President, faculty member Dr. Tom Jones, Rick Grover (M.Div. ’93 and D.Min. ’98), Stan Lawhon (M.Div. ’78), and Bob Emmert (father of current student John Emmert). The plan is to host interns from Emmanuel who are interested in church planting starting as early as next winter. Three Strands (now the church’s name) is scheduled to launch in early winter of 2001. Currently they have a staff of three: Mike, Greg Pitner, and Kathleen Decker, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who will head the counseling ministry. They continue their search for a worship minister and children’s minister. Mike wasn’t sure that he would ever have the opportunity to finish his studies at Emmanuel, but it is obvious that this was a part of God’s plan. Mike’s experience at Emmanuel has proved invaluable preparation for his new ministry, and he is grateful for all that he has learned. As Mike put it, “I came to Emmanuel because of its academic reputation, but I found much more than an opportunity to increase in knowledge. Emmanuel has enhanced my understanding and appreciation of scripture as well as the mission and tradition of the church. It has given me more of the tools to be what Christ calls each of us to be as Christians, ministers, or church planters — salt and light.”
Summer School Courses Scheduled All sessions meet Tuesday through Friday the first week and Monday through Friday the second week from 8:00 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. Pre-registration will be conducted from April 30 until May 4. Registration cards may be picked up in the Dean’s Office Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Course syllabi will be available at that time.
The goal of this course is to study Jewish and non-Jewish archaeological remains of the Graeco-Roman period, which illuminate and clarify the world and the message of the New Testament. Dr. Richard E. Oster Jr. is Professor of New Testament at Harding University Graduate School of Religion. B.A., M.A., Ph.D.
A basic course in the principles and practice of preaching. Consideration will be given to the nature of preaching and how we can learn to do it better. Attention will be given to the focus, function, and form of the sermon, as well as the steps in the process of forming the sermon. Style and delivery will be discussed. We want to make this a real workshop on preaching. Dr. Myron Taylor is Adjunct Professor of Preaching and Minister Emeritus of Westwood Hills Christian Church, Los Angeles, Calif. B.A., M.Div., D.D.
Discover the needs and interests of children in your church and how the Bible may be effectively taught to them. Develop a philosophy of learning and evaluate children’s learning experiences. Determine the purpose for children’s Christian education. Dr. Billye Joyce Fine is an Early Childhood Children’s Training Specialist. B.A., M.Ed., Ed.D. For more information, contact the Office of Admissions, Emmanuel School of Religion, One Walker Drive, Johnson City TN 37601, (800) 933-3771, AdmOffice@esr.edu.
|
became
chairman of the Emmanuel Trustees in 1975. What is equally
extraordinary is that Dr. Sims was only the second trustee chairman
since the opening of the School in 1965. Dr. Harold Hockley served in
that position from 1965 until 1975. Prior to that time, Dr. Joseph
Dampier chaired the organizing committee that brought the School into
existence.
Dr.
J. Paul Sampley, Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at
Boston University School of Theology, will bring the annual Kershner
Lectures March 20–23, 2001, at Emmanuel School of Religion. The
lecture title is “Living in an Evil Age: Paul’s Ambiguous Relation
to Culture.”
minister
in His name. But Mike had no idea what direction his ministry would
take, and he had no way of knowing the interesting events that would
take him in that direction.
The
Ben and Estelle Schiller Fig Tree
Fellowship Endowed Scholarship was established by
their family and friends. Ben died in 1982 and Estelle passed
away in 1998. They served churches in North Hollywood and Los
Angeles, California, and taught for twelve years at Ozark
Christian College. For several years they served as missionaries
in Bilaspur, India. Estelle moved to the Appalachian Christian
Village after Ben’s death and found many ways to serve Christ
in the Village, through her church, and as a supporter of Fig
Tree Fellowship. Recipients of this scholarship will be chosen
on the basis of their academic record by members of the Fig Tree
Board.
obtain
a graduate level theological education. The Hamptons’
children, Rebecca and William Plumer of Elizabethton, Tennessee,
and Mary and Tim Phillippe of Lincoln, Illinois, are funding the
scholarship to honor their parents. The family is particularly
interested in helping students specializing in the study of
linguistics. Wanda was a part of the faculty at Emmanuel during
the 1970s and taught elementary and intermediate Greek. Roy
taught mathematics and physics at Milligan College for 16 years.
Previously, he taught at the United States Naval Academy in
Annapolis, Maryland, and served churches in Tennessee, Maryland
and Pennsylvania.
children
and grandchildren the values she holds dear. As the scriptures
have said, “… they will rise up and call her blessed.”
Thus the children and grandchildren of Eva Schnelle have funded
a scholarship in her honor to show their appreciation for her
model of Christian stewardship. The Eva
Schnelle Scholarship at Emmanuel will be used to help
students who have successfully completed thirty hours of classes
and are pursuing a Master of Divinity degree with a
concentration in Christian Education, or are recommended by the
professor occupying the Dorothy Keister Walker Chair of
Christian Education.
Archaeology
of the New Testament
Seminar:
Principles and Practices of Preaching
The
Church’s Ministry to Children
HOME
. Glance . Academics
. Admissions . The
Campus . News &
Events . Library .
Publications &
Directories . Donor
Relations . Site Map
. Email
Webmaster