September 1999
Back Issues

Contents

• Library expansion dedication set for October 20
• Village site preparation underway
• Dorothy Walker, wife of first president, dies
• From the President: Samuel's Apocalyptic Insight
• Crouch establishes scholarship fund
• Professor Elolia recruits students to teach in Kenya
• Intersession 2000
• Staff member takes summer off to supervise archaeology dig
• Mission of the Church Lectures: Paul Negrut to Lecture at Emmanuel

Library expansion dedication set for October 20

The new Beauford H. Bryant Floor of the Emmanuel School of Religion Library will be dedicated Wednesday, October 20, at 11:00 a.m., in the Seminary’s Mildred Welshimer Phillips Memorial Chapel.

The newly finished third floor of the B.D. Phillips Memorial Building will provide space for 60,000 additional volumes in the Library’s main collection and thesis carrels, seen here.

The dedication service will include recognition of and tribute to the Bryant family and a history and description of the Beauford H. Bryant New Testament Seminar Library Collection. In addition, the project’s donors will be recognized and President C. Robert Wetzel will preside over a ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the opening of the Beauford H. Bryant Floor.

The ribbon cutting is the culmination of years of fund raising and months of construction. This summer, the Seminary’s unfinished third floor was remodeled, providing about 4,300 additional square feet of public stack space for the Library. This space will now house Dr. Bryant’s New Testament Seminar Library Collection and part of the Library’s Main Collection. Fifteen carrels also have been built for students working on their final projects. In addition, a number of study carrels will be strategically located on the Bryant Floor. An open classroom area will be furnished primarily for the use of upper-level courses in New Testament studies. Access to computer lines has been provided in both the thesis carrels and the library areas.

Dr. Beauford Bryant taught New Testament at Emmanuel from the School’s beginning in 1965 until his retirement shortly before his death in 1997. He succeeded in creating an outstanding New Testament theology library at Emmanuel that has received significant recognition.

Site preparation for the new student housing development known as The Emmanuel Village got underway in June as the land was cleared of trees and excavation and grading machinery was brought in. In addition, a road connecting Emmanuel’s student parking lot to the Village site has been excavated. Pipes for sanitary and storm sewers have been buried, and work is progressing on a drainage area adjacent to the site. Cottage sites are also being graded in anticipation of construction.

Funding for portions of this project is still needed. Donors interested in any part of the Emmanuel Village—cottages, courts, community center, child care center, or site preparation—are encouraged to contact Dan R. Lawson, Executive Director of Development, at (423) 461-1530.

Photos of the ongoing work in both the Village and the Library are available in the Development section of Emmanuel’s web site.

Dorothy Keister Walker died August 23, 1999, after a short illness. She was the widow of Dean E. Walker, former president of Milligan College and the first president of Emmanuel School of Religion. A native of Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, she had lived in Johnson City, Tennessee, since 1962.

Dorothy was well known among Christian Churches for her “Mission to Woman.” This intensive program held in the local church was designed to help women of the Church recognize and assume a Christian stewardship of their lives. For 20 years she traveled the United States conducting her Missions, ten of those years as a partner in the Jones-Keister Evangelistic Team. In 1962 she married Dean Walker and continued her ministry in addition to becoming the first lady of Milligan College.

Dr. Walker did her undergraduate degree at Lock Haven State Teachers College and the M.S. degree at Butler University. In 1962, Milligan College awarded her the Doctor of Divinity degree. She was a member of the Hopwood Memorial Christian Church where she served the congregation in many capacities.

Dorothy Keister Walker is survived by her sister, Helen Sumpter, and her brother, Schuyler. A memorial service was held Friday, September 3, in the chapel of Emmanuel School of Religion.

Memorial gifts may be made to the European Evangelistic Society, Emmanuel School of Religion, or the Hopwood Memorial Christian Church.

From the President
Samuel's Apocalyptic Insight

We first met Jerry and Vun Eng in Birmingham, England. They had come from different parts of Malaysia to prepare for careers in accounting. In Birmingham they found the Chinese Christian Fellowship, and through the Fellowship found each other. They were also finding a call to Christian service, and it was this call that led them to prepare for ministry at Springdale College where I served as President.

The Engs did not own a car when their first baby was due. I remember well the day we rushed to their home to take Vun to the hospital. Vun was quite calm about the situation, but Jerry expressed a certain humorous anxiety. He sat beside her in the back seat imitating that distinctive sound of a British ambulance. We arrived at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in good time, and Bonnie and I were able to play surrogate grandparents to the newly born Rachel Eng.

Samuel & Rachel Eng

Upon graduation from Springdale, the Engs returned to Malaysia to serve the Klang Baptist Church. Eight years passed. The church doubled in size. Knowing of Jerry’s desire for a seminary education, the leaders of the Klang Church granted him a sabbatical which enabled him to come to Emmanuel School of Religion. When the Engs arrived at Emmanuel, Rachel was nine years old. She now had a younger brother, Samuel, who was six. Hence we became Auntie Bonnie and Uncle Bob to Rachel and Samuel.

Through the miracle of e-mail we have been able to keep in touch with Rachel and Samuel. Not only did we receive a card on Grandparents Day, we received an animated Fourth of July greeting with fireworks and an American flag. But it was a recent letter from Samuel that has occasioned this article. Both children give us a regular account of their activities. It was in the candor of a child that I recognized a budding theologian in Samuel. After asking how life was “over there,” he said, “Here it’s pretty boring. School is still here. I wish Jesus would come soon!!”

Ever since the Thessalonians decided to quit work and wait for the Second Coming there have always been those end-time prophets who have assured us that the return of Jesus is scheduled for a date in the immediate future. I doubt a year has gone by since the apostolic age that was not designated for the Second Coming. Our age is no exception! With the end of the millennium in sight we have been swamped with predictions that Jesus will return at the end of 1999. It has always struck me as somewhat audacious that these would-be prophets claim to know more than the angels do, and even more than the Lord Jesus himself [Matt. 25:36].

The Second Coming is, in fact, an integral part of Christian faith. We do believe that Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead. Of course, we do not know when. He may surprise me and come at the end of 1999. But then he may come before I finish writing this article!

I think Samuel Eng has it right. Our longing for the immediate return of the Lord is often out of boredom with the present state of affairs. Living the Christian life and serving the church faithfully under difficult conditions can become just plain hard work, and prolonged hard work can become boring. After all, we are a culture that expects excitement and we are willing to pay big bucks in order to be titillated by images of extraordinary action.

The sheer beauty of the life of Christ and the power of the Gospel message is more than enough to sustain a vital and fulfilling Christian life. Believers should not have to live in a world of fantasy, be that fantasy created by end-times enthusiasts or money driven Hollywood producers.

What will we be doing at Emmanuel School of Religion on December 31, 1999? Since it occurs on a Friday, I suppose students and faculty will be putting the finishing touches on sermons and lessons for Sunday, January 2. And we will be preparing for the Winter Intersession that begins on January 4 and for the Spring Semester that begins on February 1. In other words, we will continue to fulfill the purpose for which Emmanuel School of Religion was founded, i.e. preparing men and women for service in the church. And, given the privilege of serving God by serving the students who come to us, boredom is hardly a problem.

— Dr. C. Robert Wetzel, President

Crouch establishes scholarship fund

Dr. and Mrs. Owen Crouch of Johnson City have established the Owen L. Crouch Preaching Ministry Scholarship Fund to assist preaching ministry students at Emmanuel who have an unusual aptitude and love for the study of the Greek New Testament.

Dr. Crouch is a retired teacher and author. He has published several books, including nine Greek-related textbooks that are available on the Internet at http://members.tripod.com/greekbooks.

Dr. Crouch recently decided to turn over the earnings on his books to Emmanuel. This thoughtful gift will perpetuate himself and his love for the Greek biblical text in the lives of students who also share this love and the call to ministry for many years to come.

We are grateful for his dedicated life of Christian teaching and scholarship.

Emmanuel professor Dr. Samuel “Kip” Elolia and students Danny Johnson and Rand Winter will spend two weeks in Kenya next July teaching courses at the AIC Missionary College in the city of Eldoret.

Dr. Kip Elolia	Danny Johnson	Rand Winter

Danny Johnson, a graduate of San Jose Christian College who now ministers at Thankful Baptist Church in Johnson City, will teach a course on one of his favorite subjects, preaching. Rand Winter, a former attorney who lived in Key West for several years, will teach an introduction to theology. He now ministers with the Unicoi Christian Church in Tennessee.

“The AIC Missionary College currently offers a diploma in missions which is the equivalent of an associate degree,” Dr. Elolia said. “They would like to offer advanced courses in missions that would lead to the bachelors degree.”

Elolia became involved with the AIC Missionary College through Edward Limo, a Christian who donated land on which the college’s 50-acre campus was built. The college, which is near Elolia’s hometown, approached him with the idea of bringing students from Emmanuel to teach in July. “When I mentioned it in class at Emmanuel one day, several students were immediately excited about the idea and volunteered to be involved,” he said.

According to Dr. Elolia, the Missionary College is affiliated with the African Inland Church. They currently have about 20 students. Most indigenous church groups in Africa do not have their own educational institutions to teach theology, thus the AIC Missionary College is open to students from all Christian denominations. Graduates of the college, most of whom are natives of Kenya, go to work in other ethnic groups in Africa. Elolia says they would eventually like to send missionaries Europe and the United States.

Elolia says that the AIC Missionary College wants to continue offering the July classes every year and hopes to partner with other institutions around the world who wish to send their students for cross-cultural experience in Kenya.

For more information on the AIC Missionary College’s July 2000 programs contact Dr. Kip Elolia at (423) 461-1504, or via email at eloliak@esr.edu.

Intersession 2000

In January, 2000, Emmanuel School of Religion will continue its tradition of offering intense two-week courses between the semesters of the school year.

Tuition prices for each course are $205 per credit hour, or students may choose to audit for $102.50 per hour. Call the Office of the Dean at (423) 461-1520 for more information.

With the exception of the church planting seminar, all classes meet 8:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday the first week and Monday through Friday at the same time the second week.

January 4-14

Small Group Leadership: A consideration of the small group movement, its place in Christian education, and the leadership skills necessary to develop strong small groups. The class will be constructed as a small group using small group principles. CME 7040. 3 credit hours.

• Eleanor A. Daniel, B.A., M.A., M.Ed., Ph.D., Dean and Professor of Christian Education

The Church and the Dramatic Arts is a step-by-step approach designed to teach the fundamentals of developing a drama ministry in the local congregation. From organizing the drama team to creating scripts, the course will help participants resolve issues of integrating meaningful artistic experiences in church worship. CD 7950/CMP 7910.

• Richard Major, B.A, M.F.A., Professor of Theater and Chair of the area of Performing, Visual, and Communicative Arts at Milligan College

January 18-28

Contemporary Issues in Christian Care and Counseling: Ministry to the Dying will be an experiential and practical exploration of Christian ministry to the dying, combining personal inventories, case studies, role-plays, field trips, and interaction with assigned resources. Among the topics covered will be sudden death, the cancer patient, the dying child, the critical care patient, the patient with AIDS, and ethics issues at the end-of-life. The instructors have a combined 50 years in ministry to the dying in church, hospital, hospice, and home settings.

• Ruby J. Metros, M.S. in Social Work, University of Tennessee

• Carl F. Petering, M.Div. Concordia Seminary, M.A. in Education University of Missouri — Kansas City; certified supervisor in the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education. Currently Director of Pastoral Care for the Mountain States Health Alliance.

The Dead Sea Scrolls will focus on reading the Dead Sea Scroll texts in English with the view of understanding the theology and religion of the Qumran community. Special attention will also be given to the relationship of the Qumran community to other Jewish groups that either preceded or were contemporaneous to it. Finally, the course will investigate the value of the Scrolls for understanding early Christianity. OT 6220.

• Rodney A. Werline, B.A., M.Div., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Old Testament

January 24-28

Planting New Churches in a New Millennium is a week-long intensive seminar presented by a veteran church planter that will provide a comprehensive overview of what it will take to start a church in the next century. This class meets from 10:00–12:30 and 2:00–5:00 on Monday, from 8:00–12:30 and 2:00–5:00 on Tuesday through Thursday, and from 8:00–12:30 and 1:00–4:00 on Friday.

• Thomas F. Jones Jr., B.A., M.Div., D.Min., Assistant Professor of Christian Ministries and Director of Supervised Ministerial Education.

Staff member takes summer off to supervise archaeology dig

John Mark Wade, Assistant Librarian at Emmanuel School of Religion, joined the staff of an archaeological excavation at al-Mudaybi’ in Jordan for five weeks this summer.

John Mark Wade, standing in the grain storage pit, explains the stratigraphy to one of the volunteers.

His work was part of the Karak Resources Project, which began excavating al-Mudaybi’ in 1997. This site, one of over 400 occupation sites in the region of ancient Moab, was originally surveyed by Dr. Max Miller. It was chosen for this dig because of the well-preserved Iron Age II (900–600 BC) occupation debris. Wade worked on the project with 40 other volunteers under the direction of Dr. Gerald L. Mattingly from Johnson Bible College.

Wade served as an Area Supervisor. He was responsible for coordinating the work of three volunteers and three local workers in Field C, Area H13. He also described the excavation process and drew both top plans and balk drawings that were kept in his field notebook.

The goal of this summer’s work in Field C was to determine the use of this part of the site and to delineate a clear stratigraphic sequence of diagnostic pottery. Archaeologists study the changing shape of pottery because it is useful for determining the date of the stratigraphy. The Iron Age II sequence of Moab is not clearly defined at this time.

The results of excavating suggest that Area H13 was an open courtyard during most of its use. In the southwest corner of the area a large, stone lined grain storage pit was discovered which dates to the earliest occupation of the site. The storage pit was abandoned and filled during the second phase of occupation and a very compact surface was laid over the top of the pit. Why the storage pit was abandoned is not known. Future seasons will be needed to clarify this part of the site.

Mission of the Church Lectures:
Paul Negrut to Lecture at Emmanuel

Emmanuel School of Religion announces the 1999 Mission of the Church Lectures featuring Dr. Paul Negrut of Oradea, Romania. The lectures will be held November 9–12 in the Mildred Welshimer Phillips Memorial Chapel on the Emmanuel campus.

A native of Romania, Dr. Negrut currently serves as president of Emanuel Bible Institute and Seminary and pastor of the Second Baptist Church in Oradea. He has also served as a psychologist, lecturer, and university president during his long career.

After graduating from the University of Bucharest with a degree in Psychology, he became interested in researching ideas that linked philosophy with theology and psychology. Because of his country’s political and ideological sphere at the time, he was not able to publish any research until after the events of 1989. He then received the Ph.D. in theology from Brunel University in London in 1994.

Along with pastoral and teaching activities, Dr. Negrut has researched and published a total of 57 works in Romania and abroad. He has held several volunteer positions including president of the Romanian Evangelical Fellowship, adviser to the Romanian Baptist Union executive committee, Vice-President of the Evangelical Committee of the World Baptist Alliance, Vice-President of Christian Solidarity International in Romania, member of the international committee of World Evangelical Fellowship, member of the international board of the European Missionary Alliance, and Vice-President and President of the Romanian Baptist Union.