Remembering Shirley C. Guthrie

by Andy Acton

Shirley C. Guthrie would jangle the coins in his pocket wherever he walked and whenever he began pacing back and forth in the classroom as he discussed theology. He would stand behind the lectern like a flamingo whenever he was making a point or wrap his wiry legs around a chair when he got settled into a conversation. His favorite color was blue, and he was rarely seen around the campus of Columbia Theological Seminary without a blue dress shirt and an old beloved blue sweater. And there never seemed to be anyone Dr. Guthrie didn’t enjoy talking to about a theological issue, a class they were taking, a topic they were teaching or their own life.

Colleagues and students of Dr. Guthrie, professor emeritus of systematic theology at Columbia who died from cancer on October 23 at his home in Decatur, Ga., say they’ll always remember a man who had a passion for teaching people about God’s love and who shared that love with others.

“When you were in a class with Dr. Guthrie you knew you were in this class with a great teacher but there was this humble vibe about him,” said Lindsey Wade, a senior in the M.Div program, from The Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley. “He was learning with us too. He didn’t act like he had all the answers although we thought he did. He had a sense that God is love and that God loves us above everything else, and that God is not judging us but loving us. Dr. Guthrie seemed to really believe that and live that and not just teach it.”

Kate McGregor Mosley, a senior in the M.Div program and from Middle Tennessee Presbytery, said Dr. Guthrie made theology come alive. “The way in which he shared his own personal faith story as he taught was meaningful and made me realize that theology is personal more than it is academic,” she said.

Beth Johnson, professor of New Testament Language, Literature and Exegesis, said Dr. Guthrie always reached out to his colleagues. She recalled moving next door to his office when she arrived at Columbia in 1998. “He welcomed me and made feel like I belonged. There was something about having a next-door neighbor who always asked me how it was going. He was thoughtful about teaching and helping me think theologically in the classroom,” she said. “When we taught a workshop for the 2003 Colloquium I sat there thinking this entire audience is here to just hang out with Shirley and hear his off-the-cuff remarks. I didn’t know why I needed to speak. But he said to me that what I had to say was important…He was always clear about his own position but at the same time he was welcoming of other people’s opinions and perspectives.”

Mark Douglas, assistant professor of Christian Ethics, said he was always amazed at how a guy who studied under the theologian Karl Barth would be interested in the work of a young ethics professor. “The fact that he was always interested in what I was doing and reading things I wrote and saying that he was learning too goes to his sense of humility about the impact he had,” he said.

Guthrie, an Austin, Texas native who received a Th.D. from the University of Basel Switzerland under the tutelage of Barth, made a huge impact on contemporary Protestant theology with his book Christian Doctrine, published first in 1968 and revised in 1994. Guthrie is remembered throughout the denomination and other faith traditions as a voice for love and justice of all of God’s people through teaching, preaching and mission work.

Even as he was dying, Guthrie still challenged himself to get as much as he could out of life. He listened to classical and jazz music, watched the season change from summer to fall from his window, spent time visiting with family and friends and reading cards and notes from hundreds of people across the country, and watched the movie Chicago for the first time. He filled out an absentee ballot for this year’s presidential race. He also enjoyed visits from old friends and colleagues who would talk about their classes and raise theological questions. And as always he would give affirmation with his trademark line, “There’s something right about that.” Dr. Guthrie remained true to the theology he taught and practiced, said Douglas.

“The continuity and integrity with which he held his faith and beliefs is something we can all continue to learn from,” he said.