(left
to right) Dr. William Evans and Dr. John Carson
Dr. William Evans Installed As Younts Professor Of Bible At Erskine
Dr. William Borden Evans, who has taught at Erskine College since 1993, was formally installed today as the Eunice Bell Younts and Willie Camp Younts Professor of Bible during a ceremony held in Lesesne Auditorium. The Younts Professorship was established in 1973 by Dr. Charles R. Younts in memory of his mother, Eunice Younts, and in honor of his wife, Willie Younts, "to ensure that the Bible will always be taught at Erskine College in such a way that students will be led to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior."
Erskine College president Dr. John Carson recognized Evans's family and friends as well as Harry Walker of Vero Beach, Fla., chairman of the Camp-Younts Foundation and the nephew of the late Willie Younts. "There is probably not a building on this campus that does not bear the imprint of this generous family," said Carson.
Erskine Vice President and Dean of the College Dr. Donald Weatherman noted that at Erskine College, teaching is the primary responsibility of faculty members who hold endowed professorships. "Endowed professors at Erskine are outstanding teachers who qualify for the rank of full professor and have an established record as researchers," said Weatherman. "Their academic life integrates scholarship or artistic activity."
Evans delivered an installation address entitled, "A Tale of Two Pieties: Nurture and Conversion in American Christianity" in which he described two contending styles of Christianity that have been at work in the United States for generations.
In the "nurture" form of piety, children grow up in the church and are nourished by its teaching and sacraments, but may not be able to point to a definite conversion experience, while in the "conversion" model, each Christian is expected to undergo a decisive and datable experience of transformation.
"The trouble is that American Christians grow up immersed in one of these approaches and we tend to think that people who take a different approach are simply wrong," said Evans. "The two groups speak different languages of piety."
Evans said it is important for Christians in the "nurture" and "conversion" traditions to learn as much about each other as they can. "Presbyterians and Baptists need to converse with each other, for example," he said. "We need to be alert to the strengths as well as the weaknesses and blind spots in our traditions."
Following Evans's address, the Younts Chair of Bible was bestowed on Evans by Carson. Responding briefly to Evans's remarks, Carson noted that his father had been an Associate Reformed Presbyterian and his mother a Baptist. "I guess that explains something about my upbringing," Carson said.
"The Camp and Younts families in giving generously to Erskine have touched and affected the future of the institution," said Erskine Vice President for Development Lee Logan. "A scholar like Bill Evans is what the Younts family had in mind."
"The contributions of the Younts and Camp families over the years have been extraordinary," said Evans. "For example, they made possible the construction of the College infirmary. I'm pleased that the chair I now occupy bears their names. I am grateful to them and to Erskine College."
Evans is a native of Greensboro, N.C., and was educated at Taylor University, where he earned the bachelor's degree; Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, where he earned the M.A.R. and Th.M. degrees; and Vanderbilt University, where he was awarded the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees. An ordained minister in the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, he is married to the former Faith Anne Cooley and they have two children, Andrew and Rebecca. Evans serves as Chair of the Department of Bible, Religion and Philosophy at Erskine College and as Adjunct Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at Erskine Theological Seminary.
Prior to joining the Erskine faculty in 1993, Evans served as a research associate at the Freedom Forum First Amendment Center in Nashville, Tenn., and as assistant editor of the New Geneva Study Bible. He has written for a number of publications, including the ARP Magazine, the Dictionary of Christianity in America, and the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society.
