Ouachita Stories

Faculty members of Ouachita Baptist University’s Chesley and Elizabeth Pruet School of Christian Studies (PSCS) attended the Evangelical Theological Society’s national conference in Providence, R.I. 

Representing their departments and the university were PSCS faculty Dr. Terry Carter, Dr. Joey Dodson, Dr. Scott Duvall, Dr. Ray Franklin, Dr. Danny Hays, Dr. Scott Jackson and Dr. Doug Nykolaishen as well as OBU associate professor of church music Dr. Rob Hewell and OBU director of campus ministries James Taylor.

In addition to the faculty members, eight students were granted the opportunity to attend through scholarships provided by the Pruet endowment. Each of the students are Christian studies majors and members of OBU’s chapter of Theta Alpha Kappa national honor society for religious studies and theology.

While attending the conference, three OBU professors presented papers.

Dr. Scott Duvall, J.C. and Mae Fuller Professor of Biblical Studies, presented his paper, “Integrating Biblical Studies and Spiritual Formation: A Practical Proposal from a ‘Spiritual Formation’ Outsider.”

“This paper is a practical proposal for integrating essential elements from biblical studies into the design of a course on spiritual formation at the college level,” Duvall explained. “The paper offers a practical option for those who teach spiritual formation courses on a regular basis.”

Duvall also recently published a book, Experiencing God’s Story of Life and Hope: A Workbook for Spiritual Formation (Kregel).

“The book helps readers think about what they believe, how they behave, and who they are becoming—three essential considerations in spiritual growth,” Duvall said.

Dr. Danny Hays, dean of the Pruet School and professor of biblical studies, presented his paper, “The Old Testament Prophetic Theme of Justice and a Narrative Reading of Luke 18:1-19:10.”

“The paper reflects an attempt to study a New Testament passage from an Old Testament perspective,” Hays noted. “I argue that the Old Testament prophets form a strong background for understanding Jesus and the Gospels.”

Hays and Duvall’s book, Grasping God’s Word, was also recently translated into Spanish as Hermeneutica: Entendiendo la Palabra de Dios (Zondervan).

“We are thrilled that Grasping God’s Word has been translated into Spanish,” Hays said, “and we pray that it will make a positive contribution toward encouraging and edifying the Spanish-speaking church.”

Dr. Joey Dodson, assistant professor of biblical studies, also presented a paper at the conference titled “Personification, Solution and Plight in the Book of Wisdom and the Letter to the Romans.”

Dr. Doug Nykolaishen, assistant professor of biblical studies, and Dr. Marvin Pate, Elma Cobb Professor of Biblical Studies, also have recently been published.

Nykolaishen’s essay, “The Restoration of Israel by God’s Word in Three Episodes From Ezra-Nehemiah,” was published in Unity and Disunity in Ezra-Nehemiah: Redaction, Rhetoric and Reader (Sheffield Phoenix Press).

“Many English Bible readers are unaware that in all the earliest Hebrew manuscripts we currently possess, Ezra and Nehemiah are presented as a single book, not two separate books,” Nykolaishen said. “I hope the essay will help readers to appreciate the artistry of Ezra-Nehemiah, as well as to see more clearly the practical emphasis on the Lord’s sovereignty in working through both ordinary and exceptional events.”

Dr. Marvin Pate’s article, “Reading Revelation: A Comparison of Four Interpretive Translations of the Apocalypse,” was published in What the New Testament Authors Really Cared About: A Survey of Their Writings (Kregel).

“There is something here for all interpreters of Revelation—and then some,” Pate said. “The reader of this work will see that the message of Revelation—Jesus is Lord—is a timely one for all generations.”

Additionally, Pate’s book, Communities of the Last Days (Methodist Theological University Press), was recently translated into Korean.

by Emory Jacobs