William Turner Watkins was an American

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the

Methodist Episcopal Church, South The Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MEC, S; also Methodist Episcopal Church South) was the American Methodist denomination resulting from the 19th-century split over the issue of slavery in the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC). Disagreement ...

(MECS) and of The Methodist Church, elected in 1938. He also distinguished himself as a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

, as a

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

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 ...

, and as an

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...

Birth and family

William was born 26 May 1895 in

Maysville, Georgia Maysville is a town in Banks and Jackson counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 1,798 at the 2010 census, up from 1,247 at the 2000 census. History The Georgia General Assembly incorporated Maysville as a town in 1879. Geograph ...

, a son of Howell Davis and Sarah Jane (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Cochran) Watkins. William married Frances Edith Hancock 21 January 1914. They had children Howell Jackson, Lamar Hancock, William Turner Jr., Luther Tate, and John Scott.

Education

William earned the

Ph.B. Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's ...

degree in 1926 from

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

. He then studied at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

(1926–27) and at

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

(1927–28).

Ordained, academic and editorial ministries

The Rev. William Turner Watkins entered the

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

ministry of the North Georgia

Annual Conference A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main pu ...

of the MECS in 1914. He served various appointments as

between 1914 and 1930. In 1930 he became the professor of

church history __NOTOC__ Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual ...

in the School of Theology at Emory University. He served in this position until his election to the

episcopacy A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

. The Rev. Watkins was a delegate to MECS General Conferences in 1934 and 1938. He also served as president of the Board of Church Extension of his denomination. From 1932 until 1936, the Rev. Watkins also served as the editor of the ''Wesleyan Christian Advocate'', an important

periodical A periodical literature (also called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) is a published work that appears in a new edition on a regular schedule. The most familiar example is a newspaper, but a magazine or a journal are also examples ...

of his denomination.

Episcopal ministry

The Rev. William Turner Watkins was elected and

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

a bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South by the final General Conference of this denomination in 1938. In 1940, he was assigned the Columbia

episcopal area An episcopal area in the United Methodist Church (UMC) is a basic unit of this denomination. It is a region presided over by a resident bishop that is similar to a diocese in other Christian denominations. Each annual conference in the UMC is wit ...

of the (new) Methodist Church, serving until 1944. He then was assigned the

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

Area. His offices were at 1115 Fourth Ave., Louisville,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. Among other responsibilities, Bishop Watkins served as a member of the General Board of Missions and Church Extension, the General Board of Education, and the General Board of Hospitals and Homes, all of The Methodist Church. He also was a

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...

of Emory University.

Honors

Bishop Watkins was honored by Emory University with the degree ''

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

'' in 1939. He also was a member of the International Society of Theta Phi. There is a church on Westport Road in Louisville, Kentucky called Watkins United Methodist Church that is named after him.

Selected writings

* ''Out of Aldersgate'', 1938. *''The Christian Hope'', 1954. *''The Nature and Meaning of Christian Faith, 1960''

References

* Howell, Clinton T., ''Prominent Personalities in American Methodism'', Birmingham, Alabama: The Lowry Press, 1945. {{DEFAULTSORT:Watkins, William 1895 births 1961 deaths American Methodist bishops American newspaper editors Bishops of The Methodist Church (USA) Bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South Editors of Christian publications Emory University alumni Religious leaders from Louisville, Kentucky United Methodist bishops of the Southeastern Jurisdiction 20th-century Methodist bishops People from Maysville, Georgia Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Yale Divinity School alumni