NEWS
The American Scientific Affiliation
By
now you should not only have the program of the 1972 NATIONAL
MEETING
of the
AMERICAN
SCIENTIFIC AFFILIATION in hand, you should have your reservation at Winters
College of YORK UNIVERSITY, TORONTO, ONTARIO, or at a nearby motel. The four-day
program, AUGUST 21 - 24, should be thoroughly rewarding. Chairman Russell
Heddendorf has done a fine job of blending scholarly speakers from different fields
into a unified theme, "A Christian Response to the Presuppositions of Science."
Local arrangements chairman Doug Morrison
has been hard at work, too, but it doesn't
show in advance. You can savor the intellectual treat by reading the printed program, but you have to attend an Annual Meeting to sample the hospitality and warm
fellowship ASA affords.
Many ASA members make the National Meeting an occasion for a family vacation each
August. A helpful pamphlet, "Traveling in Ontario," on request from the Department
of Tourism and Information, 185 Bloor Street East, Toronto 5, Ontario, Canada, will
make you want to leave plenty of time before or after the meeting to visit Toronto
and the rest of Ontario.
An added reason for attending this year's Meeting is the opportunity to meet our
new full-time Executive Secretary, Bill Sisterson, and give him your ideas for the
future of ASA. An even more important reason is to thank Harold Hartzler in person
for his dedicated service as our long-term part-time triple-threat Executive Secretary. (For Harold, part-time really meant part-pay/full-time on the job.
DON'T FORGET TO VOTE
Election day comes in November, but long before that you should have responded to
the Dialogue in the June 1972 Journal of ASA. Send in the Response Form on p. 77
of that issue to participate in the discussion initiated by Russ Maatman and Dick
Bube on "Inerrancy, Revelation, and Evolution." Polls close November 1, jus efor(
that other election day.
Editor Bube says responses have been slow coming in and he doesn't want readers to
forget or give up over the summer. (We suspect a lot of people are like us, not
wanting to chop up a single page of their favorite publication. If you do send in
a
it
reasonable facsimile" instead of clipping out p.77, don't forget to suggest
other Dialogues as requested on the reverse of the Response Form.)
THE EX- IN THE ASA_E_QUATION
At the time of the May Council meeting, the American Scientific Affiliation had
total of 1,765 members (139 Fellows; 1,389 Members; 237 Associates). That shows
healthy growth over the past five years. But in that period about 500 others
failed to renew their membership. Harold Hartzler sent all these ex-members a
double postcard to find out why they had dropped out of ASA. As a result, eight
memberships were renewed, and a total of 153 cards were returned.
Tabulation of reasons for non-renewal indicated 41 persons whose interests had
shifted to other areas, 13 who could no longer afford the dues, and 33 who felt
their views to be incompatible with the ASA viewpoint. Seven of the 33 regarded
themselves as more liberal, 21 as more conservative, one sought a more technical
and two a less technical approach. Several had moved out of the U. S., including
one who thought it might be interpreted as illegal to receive anything contrary to
the Moslem faith in the country where he now lives. The 56 cards returned with
specific comments and criticisms are being studied by the Executive Council. But
cheer up, fellas. Remember there are 1,765 of us who think you're doing a great
job!
HOW TO START SOMETHING No. 13. JACK BALSWICK
Choosing a church in a university community can mean painful compromise. We are not
surprised to find some churches spiritually warm and others cold, or to find some
intellectually stimulating and some stultifying. But why, with the resources at
hand, must we choose between moribund intelligence on one hand and fervent ignorance on the other? And what can be done about it?
The situation in Athens, Georgia, may never have been that bad. It is certainly better now, thanks to the efforts of six faculty members and students at the University of Georgia. We are indebted to
Jack Balswick, associate professor of sociology for an account of the founding of "The University Church" of Athens, and for ideas
others may be able to use in their own communities.
In the summer of 1970 this small group determined to form a dynamic fellowship presenting evangelical Christianity to the university in an intellectually respectable
though personally relevant way. The preamble to the church constitution they drew
up says: "We, as Christians, finding ourselves part of the University community,
commit ourselves to the spiritual welfare of that community. Thus, in order to
promote the integration of historic Christian faith with intellectual integrity and
social concern, and to promote responsible Christian witness in the academic
Community, we pledge ourselves to the service of God under this Constitution."
The church began meeting on Sunday mornings in one of the university buildings.
Even though the church has grown, they still meet in a room in the student union to
be more accessible to students. From the start, services have been designed to be
as informal as possible and to encourage active participation of all those attending. An opening one-hour worship service is followed by a coffee break and an hour
of informal discussion. The order of worship has been as experimental as the group
considered Scripture to allow. (Having women speak at the worship services was
" conscience-stretching" to some of the members, Jack says.)
The church began with a great asset in the person of Dan Orme, a PhD candidate in
history who already had a B.D. from Covenant Theological Seminary. Dan has worked
on regular tasks of organization and also carried about half of the load of speaking at the worship hour. In keeping with the goal of encouraging full participation of all, other members have spoken on alteruate SiinAays. Although various contemporary topics have been handled during the first hour (the Jesus People Movement,
Christian sensitivity groups, women's liberation etc.), this service is primarily
a worship service centered on Biblical exegesis ~y a speaker. The second hour has
been reserved for discussions of relevant issues for those who desire this, with
other groups meeting for a Bible study or a discussion of the morning sermon.
The most enthusiastic student response has been to discussions on "Christianity and
Zen Buddhism," "Christian Social Concern," "A Theological Study of Romans," "A
Christian Approach to Counseling," and "Christianity and the Social Sciences."
Each of these series extended over several weeks and attracted both Christian and
non-Christian students and faculty. The discussions were led by Christians personally involved in the subject and were based upon academic evidence and Biblical
truth. Despite the Christian orientation of the leaders, they stressed their commitment to an attitude of openness and respect toward those with differing viewpoints.
One of the most successful experiments of the church has been the establishment of
a semi-annual theological conference centering around one major area of theology.
Members of the congregation research a specific topic and present 15- to 30-minute
lectures on the topic. At the last conference (on Christology), some of the topics
were "Theories of the Atonement," "The Deity and Humanity of Christ," "Importance
of the Logos Idea," and "The Historicity of Christ and its importance."
Presently the church is seeking the most beneficial ways to extend its outreach beyond Sunday morning services. They have tried both open discussion forums in a hon2o
on Sunday evening and more formal evening Bible studies. They have
also met during
the week for lunch and prayer in the office of one of the members on the faculty.
The church is open to any change that might help them meet the needs of university
students and faculty and varies its methodology as new needs arise or are made known.
They have even made printed evaluation forms available for members or allyone in attendance to criticize what they are doing and to suggest changes.
Clearly, it is not only the informality of its worship service and its adherence to
the doctrines of the historic Christian faith that make the University Church unique
in the Athens community. It is their willingness to act on the belief that the
Christian position is intellectually defensible, encouraging open discussion by
those of any persuasion, Jack feels they have generally been able to maintain a
truly open forum where diverse ideas are not suppressed but rather confronted: Ne
believe that this openness to discussion and the honest intellectual effort on the
part of church members to confront questions involving Christianity and the various
academic pursuits are the major assets of the church."
An attractive little printed folder used for advertising the church includes this
excellent paragraph:
KWIL radio announcements 3
Indirectly via a friend who heard of meeting 4
2. Tapes of 1971 National Meeting sessions at Whitworth College, Spokane, Washington
are available from the Mankato office at $3 per tape. (It's a lot more fun to
attend the meetings in person, although maybe slightly more expensive.)
3. Location of 1975 Annual Meeting has been confirmed as the campus of the University of California at San Diego. (For those who plan that far ahead! Meanwhile, keep in mind Geneva College, Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, for 1973; Bethany Nazarene College, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for 1974.)
4. Plans are to move the National Office of the ASA to Elgin, Illinois approximately
September 15. (This includes the office secretary.) The address will be
5 Douglas. Mail will still reach us if addressed to the Mankato address.
H. David Kay is completing his PhD in immunobiology at Iowa State University. This
fall Dave begins postdoctoral work as a research associate at the U. of T.'s M. D.
Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute in Houston, Texas. (Just in time to be
counted a charter member of the new ASA local section there, right?)
Max L. Frazier, Jr., is now pastor of the Winneshiek Evangelical Free Church, R. R.
3, Freeport, Illinois. In June he received an M.A. in Old Testament from Wheaton
Graduate School, with a thesis on "The Background of Marriage Customs in the Old
Testament."
David Gill has left secondary school teaching to devote full time to editing Rig t
On and developing a study center/institute for the Berkeley area to bring together
evangelical faith and sound scholarship in a wide variety of fields. Dave spent
July 6-16 in Miami Beach, covering the Democratic National Convention for Right
On. He had conversations with notables Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Ralph Abernathy,
Benjamin Spock, and Julian Bond. With three other brothers from CWLF (Christian
World Liberation Front), Dave dished out a lot of food and love for people camping
in the park and saw more than a dozen confess Jesus as Lord. (For Dave's full account, see the August issue of
Right On. $3/yr, from CWLF, Box 4307, Berkeley, CA_
94704; or $6 if you want to be a "Friend of Right On.")
Elmer Hartgerink is employed by Miles Laboratories. He has been plant manager of
the corn wet milling plant at Granite City, Illinois. Now Elmer is director of corporate environmental control at company headquarters in Elkhart, Indiana, with responsibility for 47 plants, world-wide.
Edwin A. Karlow, assistant professor of mathematics and physics at Columbia Union
College, Tacoma Park, Maryland, has been named acting chairman of his department.
Ed received his PhD in physics from Washington State University in June 1971. A
paper based on his dissertation, "Optical and Magnetic Studies of Tripositive
Thulium in Octahydrated Sulfate Crystals," was published in the Nov. 15, 1971, issue
of the Journal of Chemical Physics.
A note has been received from David 0. Moberg asking us to make an address correction in the Newsletter. Mail does reach him at the address given in the new membership directory but it is not complete. The addition of Dept. of Soci. & Anthro.
will make it complete.
John Roscoe has resigned his position as professor of educational research and head
of the Department of Foundations of Education at Kansas State University. He is
currently (1) attending Conservative Baptist Theological Seminary in Denver, (2)
teaching a course in statistical methods at the U. of Colorado, (3) revising Fundamental Research Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences,
and (4) wrestling with page
proofs of The Funstat Package, a new book on computer applications in behavioral
research.
Albert C. Strong has returned to the USA and is temporarily residing in Hillsboro,
Oregon. His 21 years in Ethiopia (p. 6, April ASA News) were climaxed by a personal
audience with H.I.M. Haile Selassie I to present the Emporor with some results of
Al's publication and literacy work. Al shared with us a newspaper account of his
work from the May 28 Ethiopian Herald of Addis Ababa.
Charles B. Thaxton is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of the History
of Science at Harvard University. A letter to the editor from Charlie on "Presuppositions and Catastrophism" appears in that May issue of Pensee devoted to Immanuel
Velikovsky, mentioned on the back page of the last ASA News (and advertised in Science,
23 June).
Orville S. Walters, psychiatrist all- Methodist Hospital of Central Illinois, Peoria,
sent us a reprint of his interesting historical study of "The Concept of Attainment
in John Wesley's Christian Perfection" from Methodist History 10 (3), 12-29 (April,
1972).
Edwin M. Yamauchi of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, is speaking at a conference of
Japanese Christians in the Chicago area this month. Ed's article on "Christianity
and Cultural Differences" appeared in Christianity Today 16, 5-8 (23 June 1972).
NEW A. S. A. MEMBERS
California
Raymond C. Lee, 5275 Soledad Rancho Ct., San Diego, Calif. 92109. Scientist IV for
Science Applications, Inc. BA, MA Rice Institute; PhD U. of Tennessee - all in
Chemistry and Physics. Rank: Member
N. Solomon Raju 3041 Susan Dr., San Bruno, Calif. 94066. Assoc. Prof. & Chairman
Dept. of Science at Simpson Bible College, San Francisco. PhD in Marine Biology.
Rank: Member
leroy W. Harding, USS Southerland, DD 743, FPO San Francisco, Calif. 96601. Communication Officer for U. S. Navy. BS Eastern Nazarene College in Physics, Math.;
MS Univ. of Mass. in Physics. Rank: Member
Scott L. Hattersley, 8243 Billowvista Dr., Playa del Rey, Calif. 90291. Student in
Physical Therapy at Calif. State University, Long Beach. Rank: Associate
William W. Klein, 105 Forrest Avenue, Los Gatos, Calif. 95030. Minister to Young
Adults at Calvary Baptist Church, Los Gatos. BS Wheaton College in Math.; M.Div.
Conservative Baptist Seminary, Denver in Missions. Rank: Member
Warren Wai-Hong Lai, 964 Menlo Ave. #301, Los Angeles, Calif. 90006. Student at
Univ. of So. California. BS at UCLA in System Science; MS at USC in System ScienceRank: Member
Connecticut
Douglas R. Flanagan, Box 244C, RFD 2, Willimantic, Connecticut 06226. Asst. Prof.
School of Pharmacy at Univ. of Connecticut. Rank: Member
Illinois
Raymond Tibe, 3729 N. Neva Ave., Chicago, Illinois 60634. Campus Staff - Campus
Crusade for-Christ. BS Univ. of Illinois in Math., Geology. Rank: Member -
Missionary.
Daniel T. Law, 9101 N. Kilpatrick, Skokie, Ill. 60076. Asst. Prof. of Biology at
Trinity College, Deerfield, 111. Rank: Member
Indiana
Stephen L. Barnhart, 41112 N. Sheridan, Alexandria, Indiana 46001. Associate Minister
at Frankton Christian Church. BA Ball State University in Biology, Chemistry.
Rank: Member
Gordon E. Fish, Rt. 8, Lamp Post Manor, Warsaw, Indiana 46580. Graduate student,
University of Illinois. BS Wheaton College in Physics, Math. Rank: Member
Iowa
Leonard A. Brooks, 11, 1906 Broadway, Apt. 28, Iowa City, Iowa 52240. Asst. Re-
search Biologist - Cardiovascular Research Lab., Dept. of Int. Med., Univ. of Iowa
Hospital. BA Univ. of Iowa in Zoology. Rank: Member
Maryland
John H. Miller, 22 Madeline Ave., Baltimore, Maryland 21206. Criminalist - Baltimore City Police Crime Laboratory. BS Washington College in Physics, Chem. Rank:
Member
Michigan
Ruth M. Brend, 715 S. Forest #208, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104. Assoc. Prof. of Linguistics at Mich. State University. Also private research with Prof. Kenneth L.
Pike. AM, PhD Univ. of Michigan in Linguistics; MA Univ. of Manitoba in Arts.
Rank: Member
Thomas M. Seller, 18331 Lahser Rd., Detroit, Mich. 48219.
Edison Co. - was Staff Engineer, Electrical System Performance.
in Math., Physics, Chemistry. Rank: Member
Kenneth B. Aring, Mackinac College, Mackinac Island, Michigan 49757. Asst. Prof. of
Physics and Math. at Mackinac College. BA Univ. of Calif., Riverside in Physics,
Math.; PhD at Cornell Univ. in Physics, Math.
Minnesota
Rank: Member
Candice C. Jierree, 3723-27 Avenue S., Minneapolis, Minn. 55406. Student at Univ.
of Minnesota. BA Univ. of Minn. in Biology, Radiation Physics. Rank: Member
New York
Guenther K. Richters, 2006 Oakwood Ave., Merrick, New York 11566. Direct Support
Detachment Commander - U. S. Army. BA at Lehigh Univ. in Chem., German; MS Adelphi
Univ. in Chem., Math. Rank: Member
Ohio
Paul E. Hooley, Oakhill Medical Center, W. Liberty, Ohio 43357. M. D. This is a
reinstatement of membership. Rank: Member
Dennis A. DeRight, 716 S. College Ave., Apt. 23, Oxford, Ohio 45056. Grad. student
at Miami University, Oxford. BS Houghton College in Physics. Rank: Member
Oklahoma
W. Eugene McBride, 704 E. Drive, Edmond, Oklahoma 73034. Chairman of Sociology
Dept. at Central State University. BA Hardin-Simmons Univ. in Soc., Rel. Ed.; MRE
Southwestern Baptist Sem. in Ed., Rel. Music.; MSS Univ. of Okla. in Soc.,
Anthro.
Will complete PhD from Okla. State Univ. this summer in Soc. Rank: Member