Congratulations Dr. Trueman!

November 17, 2011

The Paul Woolley Chair of Church History

Congratulations to Rev. Dr. Carl Trueman, who will be the first occupant of the Paul Woolley Chair of Church History!  Concurrent with receiving this honor, Dr. Trueman will be retiring from his role as academic dean at the end of June 2012, to focus his attention on writing and teaching.

Message from Dr. Trueman:

November 1, 2011

As some of you may know, on the recommendation of the Faculty, the Board last week elected me to the Paul Woolley Chair of Church History. I am greatly honoured by this distinction and believe that it provides the perfect occasion for me once again to make my teaching and my writing a priority. For this reason, I am writing to let you know that I will be retiring as academic dean at the end of June 2012, in order to return full-time to faculty duties.

When I assumed the Deanship (first in an Acting capacity in 2006 then as confirmed in 2007), I made it clear to President Lillback that I would be willing to serve as long as necessary to pilot the institution through the re-accreditation process. With the successful visit of ATS three weeks ago, that commitment has been fulfilled. I am convinced that the time is now right for me to return to my first academic loves: teaching and writing – the very things I originally came to Westminster to do. The Woolley Chair provides the perfect opportunity for me so to do.

I have offered to continue in my role as Director of the London Program and, if the next Dean wishes, to continue to oversee accreditation issues.

It has been an honour to serve Peter as his dean these many years. We are not just colleagues; we have become good friends as well. Yet I believe the time has come for me to move back to doing what I love best.

Dr. Paul Woolley was one of the founding professors of Westminster Theological Seminary. He was professor of church history from 1929 to 1977, and was also a minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian from its beginning in 1936 until his death in 1984. His publications include, Family, Church, and State: God’s Institutions (1965), The Significance of J. Gresham Machen Today (1977), and (with Ned Stonehouse) The Infallible Word (1946). He received an honorary doctorate from Geneva College, and a festschrift was written in his honor: John Calvin: His Influence in the Western World (1982).