November 1999
Back Issues

Contents

• Holland called to fill counseling position
• Walker bequest is largest estate gift to Emmanuel
• NACC 2000 Louisville
• From the President: As Resources Become Available
• Hylda Smith honored for service to Emmanuel
• Trustees approve tuition waivers for spouses
• Alumni graduate from Navy Chaplains School
• Archives receives Campbell communion chalice
• Cottage Construction Begins
• Farewell to Wayne Ashworth

Holland called to fill counseling position

Emmanuel is pleased to announce the call of Dr. Jack Holland of Denton, Texas, to the faculty as Assistant Professor of Christian Care and Counseling. Dr. Holland will begin his work at Emmanuel at the beginning of the Spring 2000 semester.

Dr. Jack Holland, Emmanuel's new Assistant Professor of Christian Care and Counseling

Dr. Holland, a lifelong member of the a cappella Churches of Christ, comes to Emmanuel from a fifteen-year ministry with the Singing Oaks Church of Christ in Denton, where he first served as youth minister, then associate minister, college minister, and adult education minister. The last three years at Singing Oaks he also served on the staff as marriage and family therapist. For three years he conducted a private therapy practice as well. Prior to his years at Singing Oaks, he had five years of youth ministry experience in churches in Greely, Colorado, and Canyon, Texas.

Dr. Holland is a graduate of Lubbock Christian College. He completed the M.S. in Marriage and Family Therapy at Texas Women’s University in 1995 and the Ph.D. in Family Studies in 1999. He has taken additional graduate studies at Abilene Christian University and West Texas State University.

Jack also has teaching experience, having been a graduate teaching assistant at Texas Women’s University for a semester and summer, an instructor for one course each semester in 1998 at Texas Women’s University, and an adjunct faculty member at North Texas State University for a year and a half. He is currently a visiting professor at Texas Women’s University.

Frank Thomas, his thesis supervisor who is also an adjunct faculty member at Brite Divinity School, says of Jack, “Dr. Holland is a capable scholar, a terrific teacher, and a skilled clinician… Above all, Jack Holland is a caring, compassionate Christian. When Jack speaks, people listen because of the respect they have for him as a man, a scholar, and a leader. He is a rare combination of competence and humility — a person I am honored to know as his clinical supervisor, thesis advisor, professor, and friend.”

Wayne Dockery, with whom he worked on the staff at Singing Oaks, says, “Jack’s faith and theology have been an active part of shaping his education in the social sciences. He is not a bifurcated psyche — dividing faith from academy — but rather an integrated one… There is a certain quietness and stability about him that comes from reflection and prayer. He is a counselor who possesses wisdom.”

The Holland family includes his wife Heather, who is a music teacher, and a five-year-old son Samuel.

Emmanuel School of Religion was honored as a beneficiary in the estate of Dr. Dorothy Keister Walker with a gift in trust of about $2,000,000 designated for endowment purposes. This is the largest estate gift in the history of Emmanuel School of Religion. Dr. Walker was the widow of Emmanuel’s founding president, Dr. Dean E. Walker. Dorothy died in August and until the time of her death remained a loyal supporter of the work and ministry of Emmanuel.

For ten years she was a member of the Jones-Keister Evangelistic Team, working with Dr. Medford Jones, a former professor at Emmanuel. She also led an evangelistic program for women in the church. This intensive program called “Mission to Women” was designed to help women recognize and assume a stewardship of their lives. Dorothy spent a total of 20 years taking the Mission to Women to churches throughout the United States. She married President Walker in 1962.In appreciation for the generosity of this gift, Emmanuel School of Religion is pleased to announce the “Dorothy Keister Walker Chair of Christian Education.”

Additionally, the School wishes to honor Dr. Walker by designating the connecting road between the present campus and the Emmanuel Village as the Dorothy Keister Way. Thus, Keister Way will connect Walker Drive on our main campus with Calvin Phillips Drive in the Village. Keister Way will then pass in front of The Fred and Dorothy Thompson Community Center. Mrs. Walker holds a prominent place of honor among those individuals who have led Emmanuel through these early years of its history.

The School is pleased and thankful to pay tribute to this gracious friend of the Seminary.

It’s not too early to mark your calendar for the Emmanuel Breakfast on Wednesday, July 12, 2000 at the Club Doubletree Hotel, Exit 15 off I-64 during the North American Christian Convention in Louisville, Kentucky

From the President
As Resources Become Available

One of the many documents that has found its way into the Emmanuel Archives is a copy of the contract between Milligan College and Dean Walker when he accepted the presidency in 1949. I was surprised to read that not only was he called to the presidency of what was then a struggling college, but he was also called to establish a graduate school of religion “as resources become available.” It would have seemed an adequately arduous task to bring stability and progress to Milligan in 1949, let alone accept the vision of establishing a graduate school. But, as Fred Norris said, “I doubt that Dr. Walker would have come to Milligan had there not been the possibility of a graduate school of religion.”

Dr. Dean E. Walker, Attorney Robert Banks, and Dr. Joseph Dampier at the groundbreaking for Emmanuel’s B.D. Phillips Memorial Building in 1971.

In 1961 a charter was granted by the State of Tennessee for the creation of Emmanuel School of Religion. It was to be four more years before the first class was received. This accounts for the enigma of recognizing 1965 as the beginning of Emmanuel even though the School seal shows 1961. Today Emmanuel School of Religion is building upon the diligent ministry of its founders, and Milligan College is stronger than I have ever known it to be. These are good times for both schools.

On September 21, 1999, one of Emmanuel’s founding trustees died. Robert Banks was a distinguished attorney in nearby Elizabethton. He served both Milligan College and Emmanuel for many years. At his funeral his son Tom said to me, “Father regarded writing the charter for Emmanuel School of Religion as his proudest achievement as an attorney.” Today two of Bob’s sons, John and Tom, continue the family law practice. They have both given many hours of service to Emmanuel.

Dean Walker and Bob Banks were among a group of visionaries who believed that the seminary should strive for excellence from the outset. It was not an easy task, but they persevered and achieved. In that achievement God was glorified and the standard was set for those of us who follow them.

— Dr. C. Robert Wetzel, President

Hylda Smith honored for service to Emmanuel

Hylda Smith of Piney Flats, Tenn., has been awarded the 1999 Emmanuel School of Religion Distinguished Service Award for her work in establishing the Fig Tree Fellowship 25 years ago. The Distinguished Service Award is presented to an individual or couple who have exhibited outstanding voluntary service to Emmanuel.

In 1974, Emmanuel faced a serious financial crisis. Although the school was paying salaries, there was no money to equip the Library or other areas of the new B.D. Phillips Memorial Building. Hylda Smith gathered a small group of friends in her kitchen in Aurora, Illinois, to pray for Emmanuel. They discussed ways to help the small Seminary grow, and decided to ask friends around the country to help. The result was the Fig Tree Fellowship, which to this date has given over half a million dollars for Library books, scholarships, lectureships, and other items for Emmanuel.

Hylda and her husband Frank have been married for over 55 years. After a 27-year ministry in Aurora, Ill., the Smiths moved to Johnson City to minister at Grandview Christian Church. They remained there until Frank’s retirement ten years later.

In addition to founding the Fig Tree Fellowship, Hylda has worked in Emmanuel’s Library and was secretary to Librarian Tom Stokes for a time.

At their annual meeting in October, Emmanuel’s Trustees approved a program granting tuition waivers to spouses of all full-time masters degree students. It was proposed with the purpose of involving both husband and wife in preparation for ministry. Dean Eleanor A. Daniel said that the program will emphasize Emmanuel’s understanding of ministry as a team effort, adding, “Our concern is that the spouse also be prepared to render ministry.”

Presently, spouses are able to freely audit courses in which their husband or wife is enrolled. Under the new plan, spouses of full-time students will be able to study toward and receive either the M.A.R. or M.Div. degree from Emmanuel, regardless of which courses their spouse is enrolled in. This program will begin in the Spring 2000 semester.

Alumni graduate from Navy Chaplains School

Three Emmanuel alumni were among the 52 chaplains who graduated from Navy Chaplains School in Newport, R.I., in July. Perry Haagen (MDiv 98) and Michael Bigelow (MDiv 94) are full-time active duty Naval Chaplains, while David Mills (MDiv 90) is a chaplain with the Naval Reserves who pastors near Toledo, Ohio. Haagen is assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 40 in Port Hueneme, Calif., and Bigelow is assigned to Amphibious Group 2 in Norfolk, Va.

Haagen said, “I cannot help be impressed that three graduates from the same seminary were attending the same Chaplains Basic Class, particularly when one considers the relative size of Emmanuel compared to some larger and more well-known seminaries.”

Below is a list of Emmanuel alumni and students who are serving or who formerly served in military chaplaincy. If you know of anyone who should be listed here, send an email to alumninews@esr.edu with the chaplain’s name, Emmanuel degree or years attended, and the branch of the service in which he or she serves.

Archives receives Campbell communion chalice

By Clint Holloway, MAR ’98

The Restoration Movement Archives at Emmanuel School of Religion recently received a significant artifact of the Stone-Campbell Movement, a silver chalice that once belonged to Alexander Campbell. It was donated by Dr. Dorothy Keister Walker, widow of Emmanuel’s founding President, Dr. Dean E. Walker, before her recent death.

In 1847, the chalice was given to Campbell for use as a communion cup while he was imprisoned in Glasgow, Scotland, on charges of slavery. The silver cup stands about seven inches high and is decorated with a bas-relief pattern of children playing in the snow and floral motifs. After Campbell’s return to America, the cup was regularly used for worship services at the family mansion. As was the custom, all visitors to the home joined in these family worship times. It can be speculated that notable visitors such as Presidents James A. Garfield and Jefferson Davis, Attorney General Jeremiah Black, and early leaders of the Movement such as Walter Scott, Thomas Campbell, J.W. McGarvey, and Robert Milligan may have partaken of the Lord’s Supper from this cup.

Following Campbell’s death in 1866, the house and all of its contents remained in the care of the Campbell family. In 1910, Decima Campbell Barclay, Alexander’s tenth child, sold the home with its “pictures, furniture, and historic curios” to Earl W. Ogelbay, who in turn presented it to Bethany College. Decima continued to live in the home until her death in 1920. Intending the home and its mementos to stand as a “Campbell-Barclay Museum,” Decima was dismayed when she later learned that Bethany College sought to turn the farm into a home for the aged.

In 1916, Wilmer R. Walker and his family left Canton, Ohio, and the recently closed Phillips Bible Institute to teach New Testament and Homiletics at the newly proposed graduate School of Religion at Bethany College. Walker’s son, Dean, enrolled as an undergraduate at Bethany. The Campbell Mansion is located about three-quarters of a mile from the College, so it was natural that the Walker family would develop an acquaintance and friendship with the matriarch of the mansion. Decima Campbell Barclay must have been impressed by young Dean E. Walker and may have seen in him some of the spirit of her venerable father and grandfather. On one visit, Decima presented the historic communion cup to Dean Walker. It may have been this generous attitude that saved the cup for posterity. Shortly after her passing, two of Decima’s sons, disgruntled at the College, built a bonfire in front of the Mansion and burned many of the Campbell relics, including letters, diaries, manuscripts and personal possessions of the family. Many more Campbell artifacts were lost in a later fire that destroyed Peace Point, the home of Campbell descendant Magarey Barclay.

For seventy years Dean and Dorothy Walker treasured the Campbell communion cup. It is with great honor that Emmanuel School of Religion is the recipient of such a meaningful and historic relic of our heritage.

For more information about the Restoration Movement Archives, or if you have a significant piece of our heritage that you would like to present to Emmanuel, contact Librarian Thomas E. Stokes at (423) 461-1186.

Cottage Construction Begins

Site preparation for The Emmanuel Village has finished several weeks ahead of schedule, and construction of cottages and courts has begun! The builder has expressed confidence that many of the cottages in this student housing complex will be ready for occupancy for the Fall 2000 semester.

Once the housing is complete, construction will begin on the Thompson Center, a 10,000 square foot community center. That facility will house the Dean Fireplace Room that will serve as a large living room for The Village. Also planned for the Center is Alumni Hall, a fellowship and recreation area for the Village. The Center will also house a child care facility for the children of Emmanuel students.

The Emmanuel Village project is being funded through commitments to the Heritage of Excellence campaign. As of this writing, the School has received $3,750,882 in commitments with additional requests to be made. Of the commitments, $3,037,715 is designated for The Emmanuel Village. The remaining amount is designated for library expansion, scholarships, and staff positions, or is undesignated.

We have commitments for 24 cottages, 6 courts, half of the community center, and we are within $60,000 of covering the cost of site preparation and the maintenance building. Additional commitments are still needed for completion of the community center and for ten other cottages and three more courts that are ultimately planned for the village site. The campaign is winding down, but as yet is not complete.

Donors interested in funding the projects that remain in The Village are encouraged to contact President C. Robert Wetzel or Dan R. Lawson, Executive Director of Development.

Farewell to Wayne Ashworth

It is with regret that Emmanuel announces the resignation of Dr. Wayne Ashworth, Associate Director of Development. Wayne and his wife Beverly have decided to return to Southern California to be near their family.

Wayne joined Emmanuel’s development staff in January of 1997 as the School was in the initial stages of the Heritage of Excellence campaign. He worked tirelessly to enable us to reach our financial goal for the campaign. Consequently, he leaves with the confidence of a job well done. Wayne represented the School in the middle states — Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and others — and traveled extensively to visit donors there. He also was active in editing the Clipboard newsletter, coordinating Emmanuel’s phonathons, and submitting grant proposals to charitable foundations.

Our prayers are with Wayne. We are indeed thankful for the service he has rendered to the School and pray God’s blessing on his future endeavors of service for Christ and His church. Emmanuel School of Religion is a better school because of the service of Dr. Wayne Ashworth.