June 1996
Back Issues

Contents

• Emmanuel Awards First DMin Degrees
• James A. Garfield Award Announced
• Library Receives Valuable Books
• From the Chancellor: Toward Spiritual Formation
• New Scholarships at Emmanuel
• Emmanuel Confers 22 Degrees
• 1996 Alexander Campbell Scholars Announced
• Students Chosen for Middle East Travel
• Dan Lawson Completes Planned Giving Program
• Emmanuel at the World Convention
• Emmanuel Represented at the NACC
• 1996–1997 Doctor of Ministry Class Schedule
• Summer School 1996

Emmanuel Awards First DMin Degrees

Emmanuel School of Religion presented its first two doctoral degrees during the Seminary’s thirtieth commencement on Sunday, June 2. Douglas Partin of Artesia, New Mexico, and Guthrie Veech of Anderson, Indiana, were the first graduates of the school’s Doctor of Ministry degree program.

Degrees were conferred on 22 students during the ceremony, held in the Mildred Welshimer Phillips Memorial Chapel. Seven students received the Master of Arts in Religion degree, while twelve received the Master of Divinity. One student was awarded the Master of Divinity with Concentration, and two received the Doctor of Ministry degree. Students from Brazil, Malaysia, and Kenya, as well as the United States, made up this graduating class. Many will continue in local church ministries, while some will pursue further graduate education, enter the mission field, or begin campus ministries.

James L. S. Collins, Emmanuel School of Religion trustee and President and Chief Operating Officer of Chick-Fil-A, brought the commencement message, “Encourage One Another.” Collins, who resides in Riverdale, Ga., has served on Emmanuel’s board of Trustees since 1988.

James A. Garfield Award Announced

Russell F. Blowers, minister of East 91st Street Christian Church in Indianapolis, Indiana, has been named the 1996 recipient of the James A. Garfield Award at Emmanuel School of Religion. The award was presented by President C. Robert Wetzel during Emmanuel’s Commencement on June 2, 1996.

Russ is the minister of East 91st Street Christian Church in Indianapolis, Indiana, a position he has held for 45 years, and he is a long-time Emmanuel Trustee. Russ and his wife, Marian, will be honored by the Russell F. and Marian J. Blowers Chair of Christian Ministries at Emmanuel when funding for this $500,000 project is complete.

The James A. Garfield Award is the highest citation bestowed by Emmanuel School of Religion. Candidates for this award have rendered noteworthy service to the church, whether it be through administration, benevolence, scholarship, pastoral ministry, or other forms of service.

Library Receives Valuable Books

Dr. and Mrs. Beauford Bryant presented the Emmanuel School of Religion Library with 27 volumes of the Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt and 349 volumes of the Bibliotheca Scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana (The Teubner Library of Greek and Roman Texts) monographic series on April 24, 1996, said Thomas E. Stokes, Director of Library and Learning Resources. The estimated value of the gift is more than $30,000.

The ANRW, or Rise and Decline of the Roman World, is a work of international cooperation in the field of historical scholarship. Its aim is to present all important aspects of the ancient Roman world, as well as its legacy and continued influence in medieval and modern times. This gift brings the Library’s collection of the ANRW to 55 volumes of a projected 85 volume set.

The Bibliotheca Scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana (The Teubner Library of Greek and Roman Texts) monographic series was initiated in 1824 by the German publishing house of Teubner as an effort to publish critical editions of the classics of Greek and Latin literature. These volumes support the work of scholars interested in any aspect of life in Greek and Roman antiquity. Few libraries in the United States contain the complete series, which currently runs to almost 400 volumes.

Dr. Bryant, Professor of New Testament Emeritus at Emmanuel, and his wife Dorothy are longtime supporters of the seminary’s library. A new wing of the Library currently in the planning stages will be named in his honor.

Emmanuel School of Religion’s Library now has over 105,000 holdings, making it one of the more important theological collections in the southeastern region of the country.

From the Chancellor:
Toward Spiritual Formation

What is a seminary? To some it is a sophisticated trade school, to some it is an elitist intellectual center, to some it is a research institution. We dare to believe that Emmanuel is more than any one or all of these. It is a community of faith with a holistic mission seeking to develop the whole person. And that complicates our task enormously.

Paul admonishes Timothy to “discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness” (1 Tim. 4:7). Strangely enough, the spiritual disciplines are not always easily maintained in a seminary setting. In fact, it may be quite difficult. Fulfilling reading and writing assignments, learning Greek vocabulary, tending family responsibilities, and ministering with a church can be quite a juggling act. Of course, ministers face the same challenge

Then, too, there is the temptation of seminarians, as well as ministers, to develop “an unholy familiarity” with the sacred. Someone asks, “Can anything be more tragic than for a minister to possess political savvy, managerial shrewdness and entrepreneurial expertise but have none of the savor of sainthood?” We seek to avoid this.

In our Formation for Ministry class we deal with many aspects of ordering one’s life as a minister. For example we deal with time management, money management and conflict management. But the primary emphasis and the primary interest of the students lies in the development of one’s inner life. Our goal is “that Christ may be formed in you” (Gal. 4:19).

We recognize that a legalistic observance of certain disciplines does not create godliness. Yet one does not develop a prayer life without discipline. The Bible does not become the bread of life without a disciplined reading and meditation program. And so it is of all the disciplines. (One helpful list is found in Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline.)

Working with our Supervised Ministerial Experience program and, in particular teaching the Formation for Ministry class, has given me a new and wonderful appreciation for the depth of our students’ desire to have Christ formed in them. In their spiritual journals, in their spiritual autobiographies and in their papers on the spiritual disciplines they have bared their souls, revealing their struggles and aspirations. In so doing they have revealed a remarkable level of spiritual maturity. For some their pilgrimage has been marked by a “radical dysfunction” and for some a “radical continuity” to borrow a phrase from Bread for the Journey. They understand that Christian life must be lived from the inside out-that a lifetime of ministry begins with the inner person.

One tangible evidence of this came in the student request to establish a prayer room. Our chapel was frequently used for prayer, but it was deemed to be too public and as having too many scheduled activities. The Student Government Association took the initiative in developing a prayer room, and in a moving April chapel service, the newly prepared room was appropriately dedicated in memory of the late Professor Rex Jones. Dr. Jones’ own devotional life and teachings on prayer and other disciplines left a profound impression on students and faculty.

What then is a seminary? For us it is a community of faith in which our goal is that our students may “be strengthened with might through his Spirit in the inner person and that Christ may dwell in their hearts through faith” (Eph. 3:16,17).

—Calvin L. Phillips, Chancellor

New Scholarships at Emmanuel

Elmer E. Stewart and J. James Coffey Memorial Scholarship:
Jim and Jan Coffey of Greenwood, Indiana, are funding a scholarship to honor their fathers who made a lasting impression on their lives. The Elmer E. Stewart and J. James Coffey Memorial Scholarship will aid students at Emmanuel preparing for ministry in a local church in the area of preaching, evangelism, Christian education, or youth ministry. The Coffeys are pleased to perpetuate the memory of their fathers through this endowed scholarship and at the same time help worthy students at Emmanuel prepare for a life of service to the Church.

Lyle E. and Bertha M. Olmstead Scholarship:
Wishing to honor her late husband and at the same time give assistance to needy students at Emmanuel School of Religion, Mrs. Bertha Olmstead has established an endowed scholarship fund, the Lyle E. and Bertha M. Olmstead Scholarship. The purpose of the scholarship is to aid needy students at Emmanuel in their effort to obtain a graduate level theological education. Her son, Lee, was instrumental in helping facilitate the negotiations. Because of her generosity and responsible stewardship, students at Emmanuel will be blessed in perpetuity.

Emmanuel Confers 22 Degrees

1996 Alexander Campbell Scholars Announced

Students Chosen for Middle East Travel

Five students from Emmanuel School of Religion have been selected for participation in the 1996 Middle East Travel Seminar. The Parker and Pittulloch Foundations of Atlanta are the primary sponsors of the project. This is Emmanuel’s fifth year of participation.

The students chosen are: Brett Miller, Rochester, Minn.; Miriam Perkins, DeRidder, La.; Rob Rigsbee, Fullerton, Calif.; David Tulley, Fairburn, Ga.; and Wade Wilson, Davisonville, Ga.

The students, under the guidance of Dr. Gerald Mattingly, Professor of Old Testament at Johnson Bible College in Knoxville, Tenn., and Dr. Max Miller of Candler School of Theology in Atlanta, joined others from Duke University Divinity School in Durham, N.C., and Union Theological Seminary of Richmond, Va., for a three-week tour of Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Israel, and Greece in May.

Student candidates for the tour were nominated by the Emmanuel faculty, recommended by the Dean, and chosen by an interviewing committee from the foundation on the basis of their potential for leadership and their promise of contributing to the overall experience of everyone on the tour.

The seminar not only provides an opportunity for Emmanuel students to see lands of the Bible, but it also helps build the bonds of friendship between various Christian groups and schools.

Congratulations to the participants of the 1996 Middle East Travel Seminar!

Dan Lawson Completes Planned Giving Program

Dan R. Lawson, Executive Director of Development at Emmanuel School of Religion, completed a series of eight planned giving seminars offered by the National Planned Giving Institute at the College of William and Mary.

The curriculum includes the following seminars: “Designing Your Gift Planning Program,” “Communicating Gift Planning Opportunities Through Marketing,” “Funding Major Current and Deferred Gifts with Non-Cash Property,” “Taxes and Giving,” “The Plans of Giving” and “Building Future Gift Income Through Charitable Gift and Estate Planning.”

“NPGI graduates are helping to increase professionalism of those encouraging philanthropic support of American’s worthy nonprofit institution,” said Robert F. Sharpe Sr., executive director of the Institute.

“Our graduates can help balance the needs of the donor and that of the institutions they work with donors and their advisors when making major current and deferred planned gifts,” said Sharpe.

The NPGI, founded in 1967 by Robert F. Sharpe Sr., is the nation’s leading provider of instruction in charitable gift and estate planning for gift planners.

Revenues from the Institute are used to fund a distinguished professorship in philanthropy. The professorship will become part of the College’s American Studies Program at the graduate level and will focus on all kinds of giving, including the gifts of time, money and property, and on philanthropy’s history and effect on American society.

Emmanuel at the World Convention

The 1996 World Convention of Churches of Christ is July 30–August 4 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

President C. Robert Wetzel will represent the Seminary, as will Dr. Bruce E. Shields, Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program.

Emmanuel is hosting a luncheon on Thursday, August 1, at 12:30 p.m. at Stampede Park. Tickets are available now at $10 (US) and $12 (Canadian). You may order tickets by writing to the Office of the President, Emmanuel School of Religion, One Walker Drive, Johnson City TN 37601.

For registration and information brochures about the World Convention of Churches of Christ and about Calgary, please contact Lyndsay Jacobs, WCCC. 1101 19th Avenue S., Nashville TN 37212, or phone 1-615-321-3735, or Email: worldconv @aol.com.

Emmanuel Represented At the NACC

When at the North American Christian Convention in Dallas, be sure to stop by the Emmanuel School of Religion exhibit booth, #225–324. Emmanuel representatives include Robert Wetzel, Calvin Phillips, Eleanor Daniel, David Fulks, Dan Lawson, Shirley Marshall, Fred Norris, Fred Thompson, and Robert Hull. Greg Tatum (MDiv ’90), President of Emmanuel’s Alumni Association, will also be at the booth from time to time. Please stop by and visit.

The Hyatt Regency Dallas will be the site of Emmanuel’s annual breakfast on Wednesday, July 3, at 7:30 a.m. Dr. Bruce L. Smith (MDiv in Honors ’72), minister of Central Christian Church in Richardson, Texas, will be the featured speaker. Special music will be provided by harpist Koula Hazell from Durant, Oklahoma. Tickets are $15 and reservations may be made by sending a check to the Office of the President, Emmanuel School of Religion, One Walker Drive, Johnson City, TN 37601.

During the convention, representatives of Emmanuel will participate in the following activities:

• Dr. Calvin Phillips will present the Walker Lectures at the European Evangelistic Society breakfast on Thursday at 7:30 a.m.
• Dr. Robert Hull will teach the morning Bible study on Friday at 8:30 a.m.
• Dr. Fred Norris will speak at the theological forum on Friday at 2:00 p.m.

Emmanuel will also be represented in Dallas by a host of alumni participating in a variety of workshops, sessions, and special events.

1996–1997 Doctor of Ministry Class Schedule

*Registration for Doctor of Ministry degree classes must be completed three months prior to the beginnings of the class in order to prepare reading assignments. All classes meet at Emmanuel School of Religion with the exception of the Northwest course.
 

Summer School 1996

SEMINAR IN PREACHING
June 4–14
Dr. Myron Taylor

A basic course in the principles and practice of preaching with a specific slant toward the twenty-first century. How will the new century be different? What will be the same? What factors will most affect us? How can we prepare our congregations to enter the new century with hope and enthusiasm? How can we lead people who are accustomed to looking backward to begin to look forward? Attention will be given to the process of preaching, from the selection of the text to the delivery of the sermon. CMP 794, 2 hours.

THE RESURGENCE OF ECCLESIOLOGY
June 18–28
Dr. Phillip Kenneson

This seminar will explore the growing theological consensus, fueled by currents in numerous academic disciplines, that ecclesiology be understood as the fundamental starting point for any understanding of Christian thought and practice. CD 795, 2 hours.