Theodore H. Epp (January 27, 1907 – October 13, 1985) was an American
Protestant Christian clergyman, writer, and
radio evangelist
Televangelism (wikt:tele-, tele- "distance" and "evangelism," meaning "Christian ministry, ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are minister ...
. Epp was the founding director of the ''
Back to the Bible'' radio broadcast and speaker on the program from 1939–1985. As of 1999 the program was heard worldwide on over 800 stations in eight languages.
Early years and education
Epp was born in
Oraibi, Arizona, the son of
Russian Mennonite immigrants.
His parents were missionaries to the
Hopi
The Hopi are a Native American ethnic group who primarily live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona, United States. As of the 2010 census, there are 19,338 Hopi in the country. The Hopi Tribe is a sovereign nation within the Unite ...
Indians there. After graduating from
Oklahoma Bible Academy, Epp attended
Hesston College
Hesston College is a private college in Hesston, Kansas, United States. It is associated with the Mennonite Church USA and has an enrollment of about 400 students who typically come from about 30 states and 15 other countries.
History
In 1909, t ...
,
Hesston, Kansas, and the Bible Institute of Los Angeles (now
Biola University
Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It has over 150 programs of study in nine schools offering bachelor's, ...
). Epp received a
ThM
THM, Thm, thm or ThM may refer to:
*Turbo-Hydramatic, GM vehicle transmission
*Ton of heavy metal in a nuclear power plant
*Ton of hot metal in the steel industry
*Trihalomethanes in chemistry
*Therm, a unit of heat energy
* Technische Hochschule ...
degree in 1932 from
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in
Fort Worth, Texas.
Ministry
Epp started his ministry as a pastor and radio preacher in
Goltry, Oklahoma, and then relocated to
Lincoln, Nebraska, where he established the ''Back to the Bible'' radio program.
It was first broadcast May 1, 1939, on a local station and was eventually
syndicated as a daily 30-minute program to more than 800 radio stations worldwide by the time of his retirement in 1985.
Under Epp's direction, the broadcasts were also noted for music by the Back to the Bible Choir and the Back to the Bible Quartet. Several popular recordings were made by the choir in the 1940s and 1950s. ''Back to the Bible'' also had a weekly youth program, featuring a youth choir and serialized adventures with a Christian theme. Both the music and the youth programs have since been discontinued. Epp wrote nearly 70 books and magazine articles.
Theodore Epp died in 1985 in Lincoln, Nebraska, and is buried at Lincoln Memorial Park there.
The ''Back to the Bible'' program he founded was led after his death by
Warren W. Wiersbe
Warren Wendall Wiersbe (May 16, 1929 – May 2, 2019) was an American Christian clergyman, Bible teacher, conference speaker and a prolific writer of Christian literature and theological works. Wiersbe is perhaps best known for his series of 50 b ...
, later followed by various successors. The program remains headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska.
References
External links
Back to the Bible Online*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Epp, Theodore
American evangelicals
American Mennonites
American radio personalities
Hesston College alumni
Biola University alumni
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary alumni
Mennonite ministers
People from Alfalfa County, Oklahoma
Writers from Lincoln, Nebraska
1907 births
1985 deaths
People from Navajo County, Arizona
20th-century Anabaptist ministers