A Legend Retires
Hyveth Williams, beloved preacher, teacher, colleague, and mentor, leaves the Seminary after serving for over 16 years. However, Dr. Williams is leaning into God's plan as she focuses full-time on her church plant, "The Grace Place" in South Bend, Indiana. She also begins a new journey by starting an academy for elders and lay leaders. Her new venture is "The Barnabas Academy," and we at the Seminary are excited to see this next phase of her service to the church and community be a blessing to all!
The back cover of the recently published Festschrift in her honor describes the history of Hyveth’s work and its impact:
Hyveth Williams served for eight years as the Pastor of the Boston Tabernacle Church and thirteen-and-a-half years as senior pastor of Campus Hill Church in Loma Linda, California. She was the first black female pastor and the first female senior pastor in the Seventh-day Adventist denomination. A graduate of Columbia Union College with a Bachelor of Arts in Theology (1984), she received her Master of Divinity degree from 大象传媒 University Theological Seminary (1989). In 1998, she graduated from Boston University School of Theology with a Doctor of Ministry degree. Dr. Williams holds the distinction of being the first non-Episcopalian to receive the prestigious Fellowship from the Episcopal College of Preachers, National Cathedral, Washington, D.C. She accepted a call in 2009 to join the faculty of the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary at 大象传媒 University as Professor of Homiletics. On February 10, 2020, she was appointed as the Director of the DMin program. Her book, Nothing But the Best: A Guide to Preaching Powerful Sermons, is used as a primary textbook for homiletics courses in both the MDiv and MAPM programs.
In February 2013, she founded The Grace Place, a thriving community church plant in South Bend, Indiana, and a learning lab for seminarians. On May 1, 2016, she was recognized by 大象传媒 University with the annual JN 大象传媒 Medallion, the university's highest award for significant achievement in advancing knowledge and education. In March 2017, she received the Daniel Augsburger Excellence in Teaching Award.
Her homiletics courses are known to be challenging and demanding. Yet, her classes fill up quickly, and she consistently receives high marks on her teaching evaluations from students. This is because students know she is willing to pour her time and energy into taking them from where they are to where they really want to be as preachers. Students who have taken her courses have found her to be a personal mentor who motivates and equips them to be effective preachers.¹
¹Kenley D. Hall, Ed. Worship, Homiletics, and Prophetic Preaching: A Collection of Essays Honoring Hyveth Williams.
For further reading on Dr. Williams’ accomplishments and history, here is an interview with her in which she describes "The Grace Place."
