Greenville College Annual Report 2000-2001

Campus Profiles

New Program Builds on Jewish Roots of Faith

In an effort to help students more deeply appreciate the elements of Judaism in their own faith and culture, Greenville College is developing the Shapiro Chair for Jewish-Christian Studies. This fall, Karen Strand Winslow was hired to a joint history/religion position in Jewish-Christian Studies representative of the planned chair.

Once it is fully developed, the interdisciplinary chair, which will serve both the religion/philosophy and history departments, will be the first endowed chair at Greenville College. It is the intention of this project that the scholar holding the position would provide leadership in positioning Greenville College as a model campus in helping faculty and students respect the Jewish roots of their faith.

Winslow, of Seattle, was selected as the first professor to serve in this role. She graduated from Seattle Pacific University (SPU) with a bachelor of arts degree in religion and English. She earned a master of arts degree in biblical literature from Asbury Theological Seminary before teaching at SPU from 1987 to 1999.

In 1994, she took a leave from teaching full-time at SPU and began a doctoral program in Near and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Washington (UW). While continuing to teach part-time at SPU, UW, and Fuller Seminary, Winslow focused her course work and exams on Jewish texts and history through the departments of Jewish Studies, Comparative Religion, and Near Eastern Language and Civilization.

“Professor Karen Strand Winslow brings to GC a life-long interest in Judaism and the Jewish roots of our Christian faith,” said Karen Longman, vice president for academic affairs. “Her doctoral preparation at the University of Washington, combined with her role as an ordained Free Methodist elder, equips her to contribute to our campus in significant ways.”

As part of her responsibilities, Winslow is teaching discipline-specific courses such as Hebrew, Pentateuch & Prophets, the History of Judaism in the Western World, and interdisciplinary courses such as the Implications of Anti-Semitism and Christian Responses to the Holocaust.

Winslow is also identifying resource persons who can enrich the campus and community on topics related to Judaism such as Anti-Semitism, the Holocaust, and the Middle East. She is networking with Jewish communities in St. Louis and Chicago with a goal of enhanced Jewish-Christian dialogue and understanding.

The Shapiro Foundation, the primary funding organization of this project, agreed to provide the salary for the new religion/history faculty position, filled by Winslow, for three years. They also promised to match funds raised by the college, up to $250,000, to establish the planned endowed chair. In her role, Winslow will work closely with President V. James Mannoia, Jr. and the college advancement staff in identifying potential sources of these additional funds.

“I hope not only to educate Christians about Jews and Judaism, but also to visit Jewish communities of faith for mutual dialogue and education,” Winslow said.

Last updated: January 16, 2002