(left to right)
The Rev. Willie Beasley, Dean Jones, Dr. Loyd Melton, and the Rev. Tony
Caldwell
Famed Actor And Erskine Seminary Professor Speak At Pastors' Conference
Hollywood actor Dean Jones and longtime Erskine Seminary professor Dr. Loyd Melton spoke at a recent Comprehensive School for Clergy Leadership at Epworth By The Sea, St. Simons Island, Ga., and the Rev. Tony Caldwell, a 1999 Erskine Seminary graduate, served as dean of the school, according to an Oct. 17 article by Ann T. Pierce in the Wesleyan Christian Advocate.
"Though their professional lives are vastly different, both men are devout disciples of Jesus Christ," Pierce said of Jones and Melton. "Together, they left a lasting impression on South Georgia preachers enrolled in the Comprehensive School For Clergy Leadership and over 500 local guests attending the closing event at Epworth By The Sea."
Pierce described Jones, known for his roles in such Disney films as "The Love Bug" and "That Darn Cat," as "a born-again Christian living out his faith in Van Nuys, Calif., only a stone's throw away from the largest producers of pornography in the world."
According to Pierce, Jones told pastors there is "a cost to being a Christian" in Hollywood. "It's no secret, they are not sympathetic to the church," he said.
Jones encouraged pastors to focus on people rather than on church buildings. "Pray that you will be filled so that you can build the church; not to build big churches but to build big people," he said. "Equip your laity to do ministry. It's not the preacher's job to do everything."
A member of The Church On The Way in Van Nuys, Jones is president of Christian Rescue Committee, which helps transport to safety Jews, Christians and others who are being persecuted for their faith. "I believe we must go outside the walls of the church," he said. "Going out after the people is the heritage of the United Methodist Church."
Jones presented his one-man production, "Saint John in Exile," to more than 500 people in Strickland Auditorium at the conference center, and gave a testimony of his faith following the performance. "I heard about Jesus in a Methodist church in Alabama," he said. "I left home and the church at age 15 and did not return until I was 43."
The turning point for Jones came when he had everything, including a home, family and lucrative career, but was "totally empty," he said. "I could not enjoy any of my success. My life was meaningless.
"A professing atheist alone in a motel room in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, I gave up and prayed for God's help," said Jones. "I was a depressed man one minute and filled with the peace of Christ the next."
Also at the conference, Melton, who has taught at Erskine Seminary since 1983, read from the Greek New Testament, translating as he read, and explaining the first-century political circumstances that form the backdrop of the Book of Revelation.
The Rev. Hale Bishop, a member of the Erskine Seminary Class of 1999 and pastor of Tybee Island United Methodist Church, said, "Melton teaches that Revelation is a book of hope in a hopeless world. Because we already have the victory, the battle is not important, it was all settled on Easter morning."
“The outstanding teaching of Dr. Melton and faithful testimony from Dean Jones made this a spirit-filled time of enlightenment and worship,” Caldwell said. "God was surely present in our efforts, and God was faithful in putting it all together."
Pierce said of Dean and Melton, "Both men offered their personal experiences and in-depth biblical knowledge in creative and dramatic ways.
"Together they have generated spiritual momentum in South Georgia—influencing both clergy and laity to share the gospel of love set forth in Revelation by leaving the walls of the church and going out into a needy world filled with hurting people."
Pierce serves as public relations director of Epworth By The Sea, a United Methodist conference center.
