Department of Religion History
DEPARTMENT OF RELIGION HISTORY
DEPARTMENT OF RELIGION HISTORY
by Charles A. Kennedy
by Charles A. Kennedy
The department of philosophy and religion may be the only department in the College that was formed as the result of a student survey. In the fall of 1950, spurred on by Paul Derring (for whom Derring Hall is named), Ryland Bailey, '51, president of the YMCA at Tech, conducted a survey to see how much student interest there was in having elective courses in religion, philosophy, and ethics added to the curriculum. With the favorable results in hand, they met with President Newman in the spring of 1951 to request his assistance in adding such courses. Another factor that contributed to the genesis of the department was the appearance of nationally recognized leaders in religion who came to the campus as the speakers in YMCA Religious Emphasis Week. Among those who came in 1950 was the Reverend Ernest deBordenave, Rector of Christ Church, Episcopal, Philadelphia. In the Virginia Tech for January 26, 1950, p. 1, he is quoted: "In some schools today religion departments have already been installed and they are important in helping man discover himself, and his part in the universe." A group at the Blacksburg Presbyterian Church decided to implement this program. The minister, Ellison Smyth, a Tech graduate in electrical engineering, and Paul Dyck, professor of physical education and chairman of the Student Work Committee of the church, were looking for a replacement for Robert Bluford, the Presbyterian minister to students. In consultation with President Newman, who was over time both a deacon and elder in that church, plans were made to solve the church's and the university's needs in a way that would avoid the church-state issue. Walter Newman had some misgivings about starting courses in religion in a state institution, and so, the story goes, he went to see Governor Stanley in Richmond to test the waters. The governor leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling and said, "If you ask me, I would have to say 'No."' It was agreed that Newman hadn't asked. The arrangements Newman made seem almost Byzantine in their complexity. The Blacksburg Presbyterian Church would hire a minister to students part-time while the university would hire the same person as part-time associate professor of philosophy and ethics. For the purposes of reporting this position to the state, the assignment was carried as a position in business administration. This last twist is not as strange as it sounds today: at that time, the department of business administration under T. W. Knote also did the teaching of history, political science, and public administration. Edward LeRoy Long, Jr., was hired in July 1951, to teach one course in philosophy each quarter starting in the fall. Dr. Long had a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary, New York, and a doctorate from Columbia University in philosophy of religion and ethics. The next stage in the development of the department was to seek funding to expand the course offerings and establish an independent unit. In the winter of 1954 a grant proposal was successfully submitted to the Danforth Foundation to support the program. Although Professor Long began teaching full-time, he was still paid with two checks: one from the state for his philosophy courses, and one from the Educational Foundation for his religion courses. Throughout this whole period Long was ineligible for state pension coverage, as technically he was a half-time employee. The new department was inaugurated in January 1955, with an office on the third floor of Williams Hall [editor's note: Commerce Hall?]. Student enrollments increased as the number of courses offered grew and it was evident within a year that additional staffing would be needed. Orrin Magill, a YMCA Secretary who had begun his career at Tech before going to China as a missionary, had returned to Blacksburg to retire. In the winter of 1957 he was hired as a part-time instructor. (Magill would stay on in Blacksburg to serve on the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors into his eighties.) With the Danforth grant about to expire, new funds were sought from the Old Dominion Foundation to insure a two-man department. In the end, Paul Mellon donated the funds personally rather than through his Foundation, and the department had a new lease on life. 1956-57 was a momentous year for the department. Long had no sooner hired Guy B. Hammond, a graduate student at Vanderbilt, to be the second member of the department, when Long himself accepted an invitation to move to Oberlin College. His replacement was Norman L. Grover, a recent Yale graduate who had been teaching at Hollins College. Both of these people were brought in as full-time professors of philosophy and religion and were so listed on the state records. This was Long's farewell gift to the department. No longer would it be necessary to be paid with two pay checks or to be denied employee benefits. The fall of 1957 saw the new department take its place in the School of Applied Science and Business Administration under Dean G. Burke Johnston. The following year Charles Foshee (Ph.D., Duke) was hired to teach part-time at Tech and part-time at Radford. In 1959 Foshee moved to Radford full-time and Palmer Tal butt, Jr., replaced him, chiefly to teach philosophy. The mid-60s saw a doubling of the department faculty. William Williams (1964) and Harlan B. Miller (1966) were added to teach only philosophy courses. In 1967, with another grant from the Danforth Foundation, Charles A. Kennedy became the first full-time professor of rel igion. Kennedy was hired to teach Bible and Asian religions with an additional assignment to develop interdisciplinary courses. This last led to his becoming advisor of the International Studies Program (1972-79). As the College expanded in the 70s, the faculty roster of the department grew. On the religion side Franke J. Neumann, Jr. (1970), was added to teach history of religions and phenomenology. Two years later Richard Edwards came to teach New Testament. In 1978 Errol McGuire was hired to replace Edwards and to develop religion and literature as a new area of interest. With his appointment the religion side of the department reached a plateau: there were resident specialists in the major areas of religious studies: philosophy of religion, theology, eastern religions, Bible, history of religions, and religion and literature. By 1975 a significant change had occurred in the department. The philosophy side had seen a growth in students and faculty positions that was beginning to surpass the religion offerings. This shift resulted in the hiring of a philosopher, Roger Rosenkrantz, to replace Norman Grover, who had served as head since 1957. Although Rosenkrantz stayed only two years, the signs were clear that philosophy and religion as disciplines were developing in divergent ways, a situation reflected in the subdivision of departmental committees into philosophy and religion subgroups with inevitable differences. With the departure of Rosenkrantz, Guy Hammond emerged as the consensus candidate to become head in 1979. After the 1982 departmental review and recommendations of both the external consultants and the faculty, the department of religion became a separate unit in July 1983. Hammond continued as head of religion, and both he and Grover opted to have their appointment changed to professor of religion, dropping the words "philosophy and." Kennedy and Neumann were already listed as religion only, as was Elizabeth Struthers Malbon, hired in 1980 to replace [McQuire, who had replaced) Edwards [for one year] in New Testament. Frank Burch Brown, a specialist in religion and the arts, had been added in 1979 as a joint appointment with the Center for Programs in the Humanities. All faculty in the department have taught or continue to teach in Humanities courses. In 1985 Hammond returned to full-time teaching and research after eight years as head, and Kennedy was appointed the new head by Dean Henry Bauer.
The department of philosophy and religion may be the only department in the College that was formed as the result of a student survey. In the fall of 1950, spurred on by Paul Derring (for whom Derring Hall is named), Ryland Bailey, '51, president of the YMCA at Tech, conducted a survey to see how much student interest there was in having elective courses in religion, philosophy, and ethics added to the curriculum. With the favorable results in hand, they met with President Newman in the spring of 1951 to request his assistance in adding such courses. Another factor that contributed to the genesis of the department was the appearance of nationally recognized leaders in religion who came to the campus as the speakers in YMCA Religious Emphasis Week. Among those who came in 1950 was the Reverend Ernest deBordenave, Rector of Christ Church, Episcopal, Philadelphia. In the Virginia Tech for January 26, 1950, p. 1, he is quoted: "In some schools today religion departments have already been installed and they are important in helping man discover himself, and his part in the universe." A group at the Blacksburg Presbyterian Church decided to implement this program. The minister, Ellison Smyth, a Tech graduate in electrical engineering, and Paul Dyck, professor of physical education and chairman of the Student Work Committee of the church, were looking for a replacement for Robert Bluford, the Presbyterian minister to students. In consultation with President Newman, who was over time both a deacon and elder in that church, plans were made to solve the church's and the university's needs in a way that would avoid the church-state issue. Walter Newman had some misgivings about starting courses in religion in a state institution, and so, the story goes, he went to see Governor Stanley in Richmond to test the waters. The governor leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling and said, "If you ask me, I would have to say 'No."' It was agreed that Newman hadn't asked. The arrangements Newman made seem almost Byzantine in their complexity. The Blacksburg Presbyterian Church would hire a minister to students part-time while the university would hire the same person as part-time associate professor of philosophy and ethics. For the purposes of reporting this position to the state, the assignment was carried as a position in business administration. This last twist is not as strange as it sounds today: at that time, the department of business administration under T. W. Knote also did the teaching of history, political science, and public administration. Edward LeRoy Long, Jr., was hired in July 1951, to teach one course in philosophy each quarter starting in the fall. Dr. Long had a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary, New York, and a doctorate from Columbia University in philosophy of religion and ethics. The next stage in the development of the department was to seek funding to expand the course offerings and establish an independent unit. In the winter of 1954 a grant proposal was successfully submitted to the Danforth Foundation to support the program. Although Professor Long began teaching full-time, he was still paid with two checks: one from the state for his philosophy courses, and one from the Educational Foundation for his religion courses. Throughout this whole period Long was ineligible for state pension coverage, as technically he was a half-time employee. The new department was inaugurated in January 1955, with an office on the third floor of Williams Hall [editor's note: Commerce Hall?]. Student enrollments increased as the number of courses offered grew and it was evident within a year that additional staffing would be needed. Orrin Magill, a YMCA Secretary who had begun his career at Tech before going to China as a missionary, had returned to Blacksburg to retire. In the winter of 1957 he was hired as a part-time instructor. (Magill would stay on in Blacksburg to serve on the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors into his eighties.) With the Danforth grant about to expire, new funds were sought from the Old Dominion Foundation to insure a two-man department. In the end, Paul Mellon donated the funds personally rather than through his Foundation, and the department had a new lease on life. 1956-57 was a momentous year for the department. Long had no sooner hired Guy B. Hammond, a graduate student at Vanderbilt, to be the second member of the department, when Long himself accepted an invitation to move to Oberlin College. His replacement was Norman L. Grover, a recent Yale graduate who had been teaching at Hollins College. Both of these people were brought in as full-time professors of philosophy and religion and were so listed on the state records. This was Long's farewell gift to the department. No longer would it be necessary to be paid with two pay checks or to be denied employee benefits. The fall of 1957 saw the new department take its place in the School of Applied Science and Business Administration under Dean G. Burke Johnston. The following year Charles Foshee (Ph.D., Duke) was hired to teach part-time at Tech and part-time at Radford. In 1959 Foshee moved to Radford full-time and Palmer Tal butt, Jr., replaced him, chiefly to teach philosophy. The mid-60s saw a doubling of the department faculty. William Williams (1964) and Harlan B. Miller (1966) were added to teach only philosophy courses. In 1967, with another grant from the Danforth Foundation, Charles A. Kennedy became the first full-time professor of rel igion. Kennedy was hired to teach Bible and Asian religions with an additional assignment to develop interdisciplinary courses. This last led to his becoming advisor of the International Studies Program (1972-79). As the College expanded in the 70s, the faculty roster of the department grew. On the religion side Franke J. Neumann, Jr. (1970), was added to teach history of religions and phenomenology. Two years later Richard Edwards came to teach New Testament. In 1978 Errol McGuire was hired to replace Edwards and to develop religion and literature as a new area of interest. With his appointment the religion side of the department reached a plateau: there were resident specialists in the major areas of religious studies: philosophy of religion, theology, eastern religions, Bible, history of religions, and religion and literature. By 1975 a significant change had occurred in the department. The philosophy side had seen a growth in students and faculty positions that was beginning to surpass the religion offerings. This shift resulted in the hiring of a philosopher, Roger Rosenkrantz, to replace Norman Grover, who had served as head since 1957. Although Rosenkrantz stayed only two years, the signs were clear that philosophy and religion as disciplines were developing in divergent ways, a situation reflected in the subdivision of departmental committees into philosophy and religion subgroups with inevitable differences. With the departure of Rosenkrantz, Guy Hammond emerged as the consensus candidate to become head in 1979. After the 1982 departmental review and recommendations of both the external consultants and the faculty, the department of religion became a separate unit in July 1983. Hammond continued as head of religion, and both he and Grover opted to have their appointment changed to professor of religion, dropping the words "philosophy and." Kennedy and Neumann were already listed as religion only, as was Elizabeth Struthers Malbon, hired in 1980 to replace [McQuire, who had replaced) Edwards [for one year] in New Testament. Frank Burch Brown, a specialist in religion and the arts, had been added in 1979 as a joint appointment with the Center for Programs in the Humanities. All faculty in the department have taught or continue to teach in Humanities courses. In 1985 Hammond returned to full-time teaching and research after eight years as head, and Kennedy was appointed the new head by Dean Henry Bauer.