Christian History offers condolences on the death of Thomas C. Oden Sr.

Methodist theologian, patristics scholar, and ecumenist Thomas Oden died last Thursday night at the age of 85.

Over 20 years ago, when I was in seminary, my theology professor Dr. Steve Seamands (who is also my first cousin once removed in law, but that's another story) required us to read Oden's three-volume systematic theology as our textbook. My marginal notes attest to the fact that the encounter was a spiritual as well as intellectual one, not so much with Oden himself as with the tradition of the church that he channeled.

Later, I served as a librarian at Drew University for three years. As such, I attended Oden's retirement banquet as a representative of the library. Oden spent his early life as a liberal mainline Protestant. He remained a mainline Protestant and committed United Methodist, but his discovery of the riches of the church fathers (and mothers) set his life on what he termed a "paleo-orthodox" journey. His conservative turn had been difficult to handle for some of his colleagues there. It taught me something useful about academia to watch some faculty members who tolerated many other things try to tolerate him.

Four years ago, we got to work with and interview Oden at Christian History for my first full issue as managing editor, the one on early African Christianity. He was courteous and thought-provoking.

We here at Christian History would like to express our condolences to Oden's family, friends, and legions of former students.

You can read more here:

• ___LINK_START_2his official obituary___LINK_END_2
• an ___LINK_START_3obituary at the United Methodist Church website___LINK_END_3
• an ___LINK_START_4obituary in Christianity Today___LINK_END_4
• a CT tribute by ___LINK_START_5Timothy George___LINK_END_5
• ___LINK_START_6a tribute at Juicy Ecumenism___LINK_END_6
• ___LINK_START_7a review of his memoir in First Things ___LINK_END_7a few years ago which represents a good introduction to this thought
• the ___LINK_START_8Remembering Thomas C. Oden Facebook group___LINK_END_8

"Give rest, O Christ,

to your servant with your saints,

where sorrow and pain are no more,

neither sighing, but life everlasting.

You only are immortal,

the creator and maker of mankind;

and we are mortal, formed of the earth,

and to earth shall we return.

For so did you ordain

when you created me, saying,

'You are dust, and to dust you shall return.'

All of us go down to the dust;

yet even at the grave we make our song:

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia." (Greek Orthodox chant)