John C. Wenger (December 25, 1910 – March 26, 1995) was an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
Mennonite
Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...
theologian
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
and
professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...
.
Life
He was the eldest of five children born to A. Martin Wenger (1884–1960) and his wife, Martha A. Rock (1889–1975).
He was born at the Reese H. White farm in
Honey Brook, Pennsylvania
Honey Brook is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population of the borough was 1,895 at the 2020 census. The borough is surrounded by Honey Brook Township, and both are referred to locally collectively as Honey Broo ...
, which his parents rented.
His family moved in 1923 to
Telford
Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in the same direction. With an est ...
, where his father had gotten the job of janitor at the
Rockhill Mennonite Church.
Wenger was baptized on May 11, 1924, at the age of 13.
He reported that he was disappointed when he did not feel a sense of "joy" and "Christian assurance" following the practice.
He attended
Sellersville High School in
Bucks County
Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...
.
He graduated in the class of 1928 as class president,
valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution.
The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...
, president of the
literary society
A literary society is a group of people interested in literature. In the modern sense, this refers to a society that wants to promote one genre of writing or a specific author. Modern literary societies typically promote research, publish newsle ...
, and captain of the
debate team
Debate is a process that involves formal discourse on a particular topic, often including a moderator and audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for often opposing viewpoints. Debates have historically occurred in public meetings, a ...
.
That fall, he found work at the Royal Pants company in South
Perkasie
Perkasie is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Perkasie is southeast of Allentown and north of Philadelphia.
Establishments in the borough early in the twentieth century included silk mills, brickyards, lumber mills, tile works, a stone c ...
.
He resigned in the spring of 1929 when his boss began asking him to pick up
whiskey
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden cask ...
for him (that was during
Prohibition
Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...
).
With the assistance of
Amos David Wenger, the president of the school, John was able to attend
Eastern Mennonite School (now
Eastern Mennonite University
Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) is a private Mennonite university in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The university also operates a satellite campus in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, which primarily caters to working adults. EMU's bachelor-degree holders ...
) for two years (1929–1931).
He attended
Goshen College
Goshen College is a Private college, private Mennonite Church USA, Mennonite Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Goshen, Indiana. It was founded in 1894 as the Elkhart Institute of Science, Industry and the Arts, ...
for the final two years of college (1932-1934).
One summer, he worked in the brickyard of
D.D. Derstine.
He was the vice-president of the junior class, president of the
Young People's Christian Association, and a director of the
Mennonite Historical Society.
Harold S. Bender helped instill in Wenger the desire to go to
seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...
.
Upon his graduation, there was an opening for a minister at Rockhill.
Wenger anticipated being given the position but was rejected because its bishops were uncomfortable with college education.
On 3 April 1937, Wenger married Ruth Derstine Detweiler (19 December 1906, Sellersville, Pennsylvania - 19 February 1992, Goshen, Indiana). They had four children: Daniel, John, Mary, and Elizabeth.
Career
In 1935, he was invited to write the history of the
Franconia Mennonite Conference
Franconia Mennonite Conference was a conference of Mennonite Church USA based in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, with 45 congregations in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Vermont, New York and California and 19 conference related ministries. In February 2020, Fr ...
between two years of study towards a
master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. at
Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary is a Protestant theological seminary in the Reformed theological tradition in Glenside, Pennsylvania. It was founded by members of the faculty of Princeton Theological Seminary in 1929 after Princeton chose to t ...
in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
.
In 1937, he embarked for
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
without his new bride.
He attended classes at the
University of Basel
The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...
and the
University of Zurich
The University of Zürich (UZH, german: Universität Zürich) is a public research university located in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 f ...
under
Emil Brunner
Heinrich Emil Brunner (1889–1966) was a Swiss Reformed theologian. Along with Karl Barth, he is commonly associated with neo-orthodoxy or the dialectical theology movement.
Biography
Brunner was born on 23 December 1889 in Winterthur, in th ...
and
Karl Barth
Karl Barth (; ; – ) was a Swiss Calvinist theologian. Barth is best known for his commentary '' The Epistle to the Romans'', his involvement in the Confessing Church, including his authorship (except for a single phrase) of the Barmen Declara ...
.
Ruth came to live with him on March 15, 1938.
He returned in 1938 with a
Doctorate of Theology
Doctor of Theology ( la, Doctor Theologiae, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equiva ...
from the University of Zurich.
Wenger had been invited to teach at Goshen college by President
Sanford Calvin Yoder Sanford Calvin Yoder (December 5, 1879 – February 23, 1975) was a Mennonite pastor, biblical scholar, moderator of the Mennonite General Conference from 1919 to 1921, and president of Goshen College from 1923 to 1940. He was also a leader in the M ...
in 1936, and in early September 1938, he began a teaching career there.
Also in 1938, he took the Westminster Examinations (which he had failed to do before leaving for Europe) and did badly.
Wenger joined the editorial board of the
Mennonite Weekly Review in March 1939.
He took summer courses at
University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
in 1939, 1940, and 1942, earning him an M.A. in Philosophy.
Wenger taught at Goshen College and
Goshen Biblical Seminary from 1938 to 1969.
When the Goshen Biblical Seminary moved to a new campus in
Elkhart, he went with and taught there from 1969 - 198].
Goshen Biblical Seminary then shared the Elkhart campus with
Mennonite Biblical Seminary. The two eventually merged into
Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary
Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) is an Anabaptist Christian seminary in Elkhart, Indiana, affiliated with Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite Church Canada. It was formerly known as Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary until its name ...
.
In 1965, Wenger was appointed to be a part of the
Committee on Biblical Translation.
The CBT met between 1965 and 1978 to oversee the translation the
New International Version
The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1978 by Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society). The ''NIV'' was created as a modern translation, by Bible scholars using the earliest an ...
.
Works
In addition to articles, booklets, and chapters in larger works, Wenger wrote 22 books
such as the following:
* ''History of the Mennonites of the Franconia Conference,'' 1937.
* ''Glimpses of Mennonite History and Doctrine,'' 1947.
* ''Separated Unto God'', 1951.
* ''Introduction to Theology'', 1954.
* ''The Mennonites in Indiana and Michigan'', 1961.
* ''Even Unto Death,'' 1961.
* ''Mennonite Church in America,'' 1966.
* ''God’s Word Written,'' 1966.
* ''Disciples of Jesus,'' 1977.
* ''The Book We Call the Bible,'' 1980.
Wenger also edited a number of books including:
* ''The Complete writings of Menno Simons,'' Translated by Leonard Verduin, 1956.
* ''They Met God: A Number of Conversion Accounts and Personal Testimonies of God’s Presence and Leading in the Lives of His Children,'' 1964.
The NIV is still used today.
Wenger wrote the chapter on
Mennonites
Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...
in the
Encyclopædia Britannica
The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...
and the
Encyclopedia Americana
''Encyclopedia Americana'' is a general encyclopedia written in American English. It was the first major multivolume encyclopedia that was published in the United States. With ''Collier's Encyclopedia'' and ''Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclo ...
.
Wenger's personal records are held at the
Mennonite Church USA Archives The Mennonite Church USA Archives was founded in 2001 under the denominational merger of the (old) Mennonite Church and the General Conference Mennonite Church. Prior to 2001, the two largest Mennonite denominations maintained separate archives: t ...
and can be foun
here
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wenger, J. C.
American theologians
1995 deaths
American Mennonites
American biblical scholars
Eastern Mennonite University alumni
1910 births
University of Michigan alumni
20th-century Mennonite bishops
People from Honey Brook, Pennsylvania
People from Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Anabaptist biblical scholars
Mennonite theologians