Contents

Sarah graduated from Colorado Christian University in 2001 with an accounting degree. Matt studied in psychology and criminal justice at The Metropolitan State College of Denver, graduating with a degree in psychology in 2002. He had begun earning a business degree when he felt the call to enter the ministry.

Matt and Sarah met while growing up in the Southeast Christian Church in Parker, Colorado. For a time, Matt served as the youth minister at Southeast and the couple was married there in 2002.

According to Matt, the draw of Emmanuel was simple, “The spouse scholarship is the biggest reason we came to Emmanuel.” The program grants a full tuition scholarship to anyone whose spouse is currently enrolled full time at the school.

Coming from a university rather than a Bible college background has brought its share of difficulties for the couple. They say introductory seminary classes were more difficult than expected since they had not already learned about historical and critical thinking. While Hebrew and Greek have been particularly challenging, Matt and Sarah realize their importance. The couple says the classes they have had at Emmanuel make them look at both sides of issues and form concrete beliefs. “Then these beliefs become our real faith,” Sarah says.

Their advice for someone coming to seminary from a university: “Get involved with a church while you are in college,” said Matt, “even in a volunteer position.” He currently works in the Student Ministry department of Johnson City’s First Christian Church, with nearly 130 youth attending on Wednesday nights. Sarah is putting her accounting knowledge to use as a teller at a local bank and assisting Matt in his ministry.

The move to East Tennessee from the big city was an adjustment for Matt and Sarah. “The hardest thing for me was coming from a completely different life,” says Matt. “Coming from a city to a small town is different.”

But, they add, they enjoy most of those differences. They especially appreciate the friendliness of the people and the beauty of the mountains.

And though they miss watching and playing ice hockey, life in the Emmanuel Village seems to suit them well. “We like the sense of community and sharing,” Sarah said.

As far as the education at Emmanuel, they couldn’t be happier. “We are being challenged by what we are learning at Emmanuel,” says Sarah. “It is giving us a good foundation.” They especially enjoy Dr. David Marwede, Lecturer in Languages, “He takes an interest in all the students, and he is so humble,” said Matt.

While many members of the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ are familiar with the annual North American Christian Convention and National Missionary Convention, most are not aware of another significant convention of the churches in the Stone-Campbell heritage: The World Convention of Churches of Christ.

There are churches of the Restoration Movement in 169 countries, and every four years, members of these churches convene for fellowship, preaching, and teaching. The first World Convention was held in Washington, D.C., in 1930.

In 2000 the World Convention was in Brisbane, Australia. In the summer of 2004 it will be in Brighton, England. 2008 will bring the convention to the United States.

Emmanuel President Dr. C. Robert Wetzel has long been associated with the Convention as an attendee and as a leader in the event, and in 2008 will serve as President of the Convention.

Dr. Wetzel recalls being asked to serve: “I received a phone call two years ago from a prominent Disciple who is a member of the Convention’s Nominating Committee. He asked if I would allow my name to go forward to serve as First Vice-President with a view of becoming President of the World Convention. This would mean serving the four years from the close of the 2004 Convention and then presiding at the 2008 Convention.”

Wetzel says it had been assumed that when the Convention came to the United States the president would be a Disciple. However, the Convention’s nominating committee felt that the time had come for someone from the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ to serve in that position.

“On that basis,” Wetzel said, “I accepted the nomination with a view to encouraging our congregations to have a greater share in the World Convention.”

The next World Convention will be held in Brighton, England, July 28–August 1, 2004. Pre- and post-convention tours of Great Britain, led by President Wetzel, Emmanuel professor Dr. Paul Blowers, and others, will be offered.

To learn more about the World Convention of Churches of Christ, or the associated tours, contact Lyndsay and Lorraine Jacobs at 4800B Franklin Road, Nashville TN 37220, or visit www.worldconvention.org.

With a theme that recognizes the supreme Lordship of Christ, Restoration Forum XXI gathered on the campuses of Emmanuel School of Religion and Milligan College. The opening session was held at First Christian Church in Johnson City on Sunday evening, October 12.

Last year when I attended Restoration Forum XX in Lubbock, Texas, I found myself thinking, “Fifty years ago I could not have imagined such a gathering.” People from Christian Churches, Churches of Christ and Disciples of Christ had come together to break bread at the Lord’s Table, to learn from each other, and simply to enjoy Christian fellowship. It happened again this year in East Tennessee.

One hundred and ninety-three people from 20 states registered for the three-day meeting. It would be gratifying to the late Don DeWelt were he able to see what he and his colleagues had started twenty years ago. His heir, Chris DeWelt, as well as his spiritual heir, Victor Knowles, play a decisive role in perpetuating what has now become the longest running unity effort in the Stone-Campbell Movement.

It is natural that Emmanuel School of Religion and Milligan College should partner with each other for such occasions. Not only are we geographically contiguous, we share a common concern to serve a broad spectrum of churches that find their roots in the Restoration Movement. Emmanuel School of Religion was established with the purpose of serving churches “known as Christian Church, Churches of Christ or Disciples of Christ.” Although the great majority of our students and support come from Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, we have always had some students and support from a capella Churches of Christ and Disciples of Christ. Hence in hosting the Restoration Forum we were seeing a growing development of what had been envisioned by the Founders of Emmanuel School of Religion.

A copy of the program and participants for Restoration Forum XXI can be found on the Emmanuel web site (www.esr.edu), and tapes from individual sessions can be ordered through Milligan College.

Restoration Forum XXII is scheduled for October 15-17, 2004, in the Detroit area. It will be co-hosted by Rochester College and Great Lakes Christian College. For more information contact: Dr. Melvin Storm at mstorm@rc.edu.

It was good to have Reggie Thomas here for the Forum. When I gave a tour of the Emmanuel Village he came along with the group. While at “The Cross of Our Risen Lord” I was pointing out how the cross with its imprint of the body of Jesus illustrated so well the synthesis between the Roman Catholic crucifix and the Protestant empty cross. It is at this point in my lecture that I always refer to an old pamphlet entitled, “Neither Catholic nor Protestant but ….?” I attributed the pamphlet to the pen of P. H. Welshimer. Later in a conversation with Reggie he mentioned that he had preached for a chapel service at Midwest Christian College in the early 1950s. As a matter of fact I was a student there when he preached for us. He said that a Midwest teacher, Prof. C. V. Dunn, had given him a brochure that he had written. It was entitled “Neither Catholic nor Protestant but…” Reggie later sent me a photocopy of the brochure. C. V. Dunn, not P.H. Welshimer, was the author. Here I had been giving credit to the very well-known P. H. Welshimer when it should have gone to the little-known C.V. Dunn, one of my first teachers in Bible college. Prof. Dunn was a good teacher and a Christian gentleman. I will apologize to him when I see him in heaven. Thanks, Reggie.