Curtis Schofield
The first charge Bishop Hunt gave me was to represent the witness of the founder of the Foundation, the late Harry Denman, by preaching the gospel and expanding the influence of Wesleyan evangelism in Methodism. Another charge he gave me was to give encouragement and support to the donors, who financially make possible the ministry of the Foundation for Evangelism. A third charge he gave me was to design a development plan to enable the Trustees and the friends of the Foundation for Evangelism to endow a dream of the former president, Dr. Charles Kinder. The dream was to provide the needed funds to make it possible for each theological seminary that is training pastors and other church leaders for the United Methodist Church to have a highly qualified full-time Professor of Evangelism. A dream fulfilled by the Foundation and known today as the E. Stanley Jones Professors of Evangelism…
Everywhere I went there was excitement about the ministry of the Foundation for Evangelism. There were questions about the direction the Foundation might take under its new leadership. So, in conversations with Bishop Hunt I began to ask about his leadership philosophy. Even as I write this story I can hear him say, “In identifying leaders of the Christian Church the words ‘liberal’, ‘conservative’, and ‘evangelical’ are not best used as nouns.”
“Some want to know if I am a conservative. The word conservative is a good word, but when it stands alone there is nothing really Christian about it. I prefer to use the word as an adjective in describing the faith commitments of others. If you asked me if I am a conservative Christian, I would say ‘yes’. However, I would be quick to say, ‘I really refer to myself as an orthodox Christian’. The word orthodox means being committed to the basic faith affirmations of the Scriptures and to the carefully developed faith statements made by the early Church in the first four centuries. And for me it also means understanding the interpretations of the Christian faith from the sermons and notes of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. One of the most difficult problems we have in Methodism is many of our leaders were not adequately trained with a theological education. Too many of them are not well-schooled in the history of the orthodox doctrines of the faith. Too many of them do not have an adequate theology education, but they do have a very good education in religious sociology. Because of this, those leaders are handicapped when it comes to making a theological statement, especially when the statement is related to evangelism.”
“Am I an evangelical? I prefer to call myself an evangelical Christian. An evangelist is one who shares Good News. Jesus came preaching the gospel. He guided his disciples to be persons who shared this Good News. Recently, I went with some of my friends to eat at a local restaurant. When we parked, we saw signs on two cars next to us. The message on one car read, Life is a disappointment. A message on the next car read, You will find an open door at First United Methodist Church. We care for you! I pray everyday that I might be a disciple of Jesus Christ who shares Good News everywhere I go.”
Curtis R. Schofield served The Foundation for Evangelism as Vice President of Development from 1990 to 1993. A graduate of Hiwassee College, Tenn., Wesleyan College and Candler School of Theology, Emory Univeristy, he earned both a Master of Divinity degree and Doctorate in Sacred Theology. Dr. Schofield was responsible for starting the AC-70 program during his time serving at The Foundation for Evangelism. He is the Author of “Into All the World: Inspiring Mission Stories” and also has a website at http://curtschofield.blogspot.com
