Olive Winchester
Encyclopedia
Olive May Winchester was an American ordained minister and a pioneer biblical scholar and theologian in the Church of the Nazarene
, who was the first woman ordained by any Christian
denomination
in Scotland
, the first woman admitted into and graduated from the Bachelor of Divinity
course at the University of Glasgow
, and the first woman to complete a Th.D. (Doctor of Theology
) degree from the divinity school of Drew University
.
, April > 17 > Lusitania > 27. the oldest child of lawyer Charles B. Winchester (born August 8, 1851 in Corinna, Maine
; died October 2, 1892 in Yankton, South Dakota
), and Sarah A. "Sadie" Blackstone Winchester (born May 1, 1853 in Pownal, Maine
; died February 6, 1949 in Los Angeles, California
). Winchester's parents were married in Portland, Maine
on February 22, 1879 in the Methodist Episcopal Church
.
After June 25, 1880, the Winchester family left Monson, Maine
and by 1881 had relocated to Forestburg, in Sanborn County
in Dakota Territory
, where Charles taught school at upper Forestburg from its opening on November 7, 1881, until a permanent replacement started on December 26, 1881. Winchester's younger sister, Edith Elizabeth Winchester (born June 22, 1884 in Forestburg, Dakota Territory; died August 1885 in Forestburg) died in infancy. After 1885, the Winchester family moved to the territorial capital of Yankton
, where Charles purchased a small hotel. On October 2, 1892, Charles Winchester, who was the proprietor of a small hotel in Yankton, South Dakota
, was killed after an explosion in the hotel after he was spraying a room for bedbug
s. After the death of Winchester's father, Winchester and her mother moved to Lynn, Massachusetts
.
Winchester became a Christian in 1895, and became an early member of the Association of Pentecostal Churches of America, a holiness denomination established in 1895, which subsequently merged with the Church of the Nazarene
established by Phineas Bresee to form the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene in 1907. Winchester reported that she had been entirely sanctified in 1902.
Winchester never married, although former student Ross E. Price maintains that she was engaged to Ernest W. Perry, the dean of the Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (PCI), who drowned on Sunday 23 November 1902 before their engagement had been made public. Price claims:
Winchester a relative of Oliver Fisher Winchester
(born November 30, 1810 in Brookline, Massachusetts
; died December 11, 1880 in New Haven, Connecticut
), the manufacturer and marketer of the Winchester repeating rifle. He left Olive $25,000 from his estate. When her great-uncle's sole heir, daughter-in-law, Sarah Lockwood Winchester
, died in September 1922, part of the multi-million dollar estate was left to Olive Winchester. Additionally, Winchester was the beneficiary of 25% of a substantial estate of her maternal great uncle, Levi Merrick Stewart
(born December 10, 1827 in Corinna, Maine; died May 3, 1910 in Minneapolis, Minnesota).
Winchester died on 15 February 1947 at the age of 67. In her will, Winchester left $50,000 to Pasadena College for the building of the Howard Library.
(which was a division of Harvard University
in 1902 with a Bachelor of Arts
(A.B.) degree, where she majored in Hebrew and Arabic (Noble 37). (Raser) "Her Harvard instructor in Semitic
languages regarded her as “a student of exceptional ability.” (Ingersol, Foremothers, 4) While studying at Radcliffe, Winchester preached often. On one occasion "Sister Olive Winchester, a member of this church, and senior at Radcliffe College, spoke at the morning service with special unction. More than a dozen souls were at the altar.(Beulah Christian (March 1902)
(now Eastern Nazarene College
) then located at North Scituate, Rhode Island. Winchester travelled frequently on behalf of the college, raising money and holding services in small communities that lacked regular church services. Winchester arrived in Glasgow on June 29, 1908 as a passenger on the SS California
. On September 2, 1908 Winchester departed Southampton, England on the SS Majestic, arriving in New York on September 10, 1908. Winchester taught at PCI until 1909 before moving to Glasgow to study at the divinity school of the University of Glasgow
.
, accompanied by Rev. George Sharpe, the founder of the Pentecostal Church of Scotland, an indigenous holiness denomination later to merge with the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene
in 1915. While in Scotland, Winchester became a member of the Pentecostal Church of Scotland. From 1909 Winchester also taught in that denomination's Parkead Holiness Bible School (Smith 186-187).
On May 11, 1910, Winchester "advocated that a holiness periodical and college be organized to help perpetuate and strengthen the holiness work in Scotland." On the same day, Winchester was ordained in Parkhead
, Glasgow, Scotland by the Pentecostal Church of Scotland in their Fourth Annual Assembly, thus becoming the first woman ever ordained by any denomination in Scotland. (Noble 39); Ingersol, Foremothers, 4).
On April 30, 1910 Winchester departed from Glasgow on the S.S. Cassandra, and subsequently arrived inr Quebec, Canada on May 10, 1910, en route to the USA. Winchester arrived in Glasgow on September 10, 1910 on the SS Cassandra after embarking in Montreal, Canada. On April 18, 1911 Winchester departed from Liverpool on the SS Franconia and arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on April 26, 1911. Winchester and her mother arrived in Liverpool on September 10, 1911 on the SS Salaga from New York.
program." During this time Winchester won the "McFarlan and Cook Testimonial Prize of £21, for Examination in Greek, Moral Philosophy"(Glasgow University Calendar 580). Winchester graduated with honours. (Register 11)
, near the University of Glasgow, was purchased to house the relocated college. Classes commenced there in September 1913, with Winchester one of the teachers. Winchester resided in this home. (Noble 40)
On August 10, 1913, Winchester and her mother, Sarah, arrived in New York on the RMS Mauritania
from Liverpool, England. On September 24, 1913 Winchester arrived in Liverpool on the SS Laconia
.
In 1913 Winchester urged the creation of the missionary society of the Pentecostal Church of Scotland, and was elected its first president. As the Pentecostal Church of Scotland did not have its own missionaries, Winchester urged the support of missionaries of her previous denomination, the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene (Noble 180). For several years Winchester wrote to the leaders of the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene in Kansas City, Missouri
urging them to send representatives to Scotland to expedite a merger of the two denominations. (Smith 187) "Winchester’s involvement in the Pentecostal Church of Scotland helped it clarify its doctrine of the ministry, and in 1915, she played a role in facilitating the merger of that denomination and the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene."(Ingersol, ibid.)
, arriving in New York on April 14, 1914.
In June 1914, Winchester returned to the Pentecostal Collegiate Institute in North Scituate, Rhode Island. She was appointed vice-principal and head of the Theology department. After two years, Winchester resigned to move to Berkley, California to continue her post-graduate studies.
, where she received the S.T.M. (Master of Sacred Theology
) degree magna cum laude from the Pacific School of Religion
on May 3, 1917. While studying in Berkley, she became friends with H. Orton Wiley, pastor of the Berkley Church of the Nazarene and fellow student at the Pacific School of Religion.
at the invitation of its president Dr H. Orton Wiley
. (Smith 222) During her tenure at NNC, Winchester "contributed significantly to the success of the young college's academic development". Winchester also served as the founding pastor of the Marsing, Idaho
Church of the Nazarene from 24 March 1918 until 19 May 1918, until a permanent pastor was appointed.
Following an inheritance, in 1922 Winchester provided the funds to build a home for Wiley at Northwest Nazarene College.http://www.nnu.edu/1315/ According to Ingersol,
) degree from the divinity school of Drew University
in Madison, New Jersey
. (Ingersol, Schools, 3) for her dissertation entitled: "The Psychological Terms of the New Testament: Their Source and Content."
Winchester "excelled in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, and had a reading knowledge of French and German. Religious education and sociology were two additional fields of study that Olive specialized in, and both were largely learned through personal study and rigorous self-discipline."
Olive Winchester attended the Eighth General Assembly of the Church of the Nazarene in Wichita, Kansas
as a delegate from the Idaho-Oregon District. Winchester resigned from Northwest Nazarene College in 1935 due to differences with Wiley's successor, President Russell DeLong.
) where she taught until her death in 1947. She was appointed head of the graduate department by Wiley.
While at Pasadena College, Winchester served as one of the advisors for the Revised Standard Version
of New Testament
, that was published on February 11, 1946.
, who encountered Winchester as a freshman at Northwest Nazarene College." (Ibid.)
. (Hughes 360). According to Ingersol, "Winchester had earned high marks in biblical criticism
at Glasgow but was conservative in her application of this knowledge within the Nazarene context. Her books included studies of Moses
, the prophets, and the life of Jesus
. Her Crisis Experiences in the Greek New Testament (1953) stood in the linguistic
-exegetical tradition tradition pioneered by Daniel Steele, a Methodist scholar at Boston University
.
Winchester rejected the increasingly prevalent premillennial perspective. Reflecting the New England
tradition of Wesleyan-holiness biblical scholarship shaped by Daniel Steele, she was amillennial and interpreted the Book of Revelation
as a coded record of events that had occurred in the New Testament era, perhaps during Nero
’s reign, not predictions of the future. (Ingersol, Foremothers, 5)
In 1931, Winchester wrote a series on science and religion in The Young People’s Journal, a Nazarene publication for high school youth, where she had a regular column.
Winchester was quoted as saying: "When in a mental fog, attend to definitions."
is named in her honour.(Taylor 69)
Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged from the 19th century Holiness movement in North America with its members colloquially referred to as Nazarenes. It is the largest Wesleyan-holiness denomination in the world. At the end of 2010, the Church of the...
, who was the first woman ordained by any Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
denomination
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, the first woman admitted into and graduated from the Bachelor of Divinity
Bachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies....
course at the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
, and the first woman to complete a Th.D. (Doctor of Theology
Doctor of Theology
Doctor of Theology is a terminal academic degree in theology. It is a research degree that is considered by the U.S. National Science Foundation to be the equivalent of a Doctor of Philosophy....
) degree from the divinity school of Drew University
Drew University
Drew University is a private university located in Madison, New Jersey.Originally established as the Drew Theological Seminary in 1867, the university later expanded to include an undergraduate liberal arts college in 1928 and commenced a program of graduate studies in 1955...
.
Early life
Olive May Winchester was born on November 22, 1879 in Monson, MaineMonson, Maine
Monson is a town in Piscataquis County, Maine, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a population of 666. The town is located on Route 15 which is a somewhat major route north to the well known Moosehead Lake Region, to which Monson is sometimes considered a gateway...
, April > 17 > Lusitania > 27. the oldest child of lawyer Charles B. Winchester (born August 8, 1851 in Corinna, Maine
Corinna, Maine
Corinna is a town in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,145 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Bangor, Maine metropolitan statistical area.-History:...
; died October 2, 1892 in Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...
), and Sarah A. "Sadie" Blackstone Winchester (born May 1, 1853 in Pownal, Maine
Pownal, Maine
Pownal is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,491 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area. Pownal is home to Bradbury Mountain State Park....
; died February 6, 1949 in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
). Winchester's parents were married in Portland, Maine
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
on February 22, 1879 in the Methodist Episcopal Church
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...
.
After June 25, 1880, the Winchester family left Monson, Maine
Monson, Maine
Monson is a town in Piscataquis County, Maine, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a population of 666. The town is located on Route 15 which is a somewhat major route north to the well known Moosehead Lake Region, to which Monson is sometimes considered a gateway...
and by 1881 had relocated to Forestburg, in Sanborn County
Sanborn County, South Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,675 people, 1,043 households, and 732 families residing in the county. The population density was 5 people per square mile . There were 1,220 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile...
in Dakota Territory
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...
, where Charles taught school at upper Forestburg from its opening on November 7, 1881, until a permanent replacement started on December 26, 1881. Winchester's younger sister, Edith Elizabeth Winchester (born June 22, 1884 in Forestburg, Dakota Territory; died August 1885 in Forestburg) died in infancy. After 1885, the Winchester family moved to the territorial capital of Yankton
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...
, where Charles purchased a small hotel. On October 2, 1892, Charles Winchester, who was the proprietor of a small hotel in Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...
, was killed after an explosion in the hotel after he was spraying a room for bedbug
Bedbug
Cimicidae are small parasitic insects. The most common type is Cimex lectularius. The term usually refers to species that prefer to feed on human blood...
s. After the death of Winchester's father, Winchester and her mother moved to Lynn, Massachusetts
Lynn, Massachusetts
Lynn is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 89,050 at the 2000 census. An old industrial center, Lynn is home to Lynn Beach and Lynn Heritage State Park and is about north of downtown Boston.-17th century:...
.
Winchester became a Christian in 1895, and became an early member of the Association of Pentecostal Churches of America, a holiness denomination established in 1895, which subsequently merged with the Church of the Nazarene
Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged from the 19th century Holiness movement in North America with its members colloquially referred to as Nazarenes. It is the largest Wesleyan-holiness denomination in the world. At the end of 2010, the Church of the...
established by Phineas Bresee to form the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene in 1907. Winchester reported that she had been entirely sanctified in 1902.
Winchester never married, although former student Ross E. Price maintains that she was engaged to Ernest W. Perry, the dean of the Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (PCI), who drowned on Sunday 23 November 1902 before their engagement had been made public. Price claims:
"I know I am right that she was engaged to the young man. And I know that when he drowned she then decided never to marry but to give herself to teaching."
Winchester a relative of Oliver Fisher Winchester
Oliver Fisher Winchester
Oliver Fisher Winchester was an American businessman and politician.-Birth and marriage:He was the son of Samuel Winchester and Hannah Bates and was born in Boston on November 30, 1810. He married Jane Ellen Hope in Boston on February 20, 1834. Their children were:* Ann Rebecca Winchester who...
(born November 30, 1810 in Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, which borders on the cities of Boston and Newton. As of the 2010 census, the population of the town was 58,732.-Etymology:...
; died December 11, 1880 in New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
), the manufacturer and marketer of the Winchester repeating rifle. He left Olive $25,000 from his estate. When her great-uncle's sole heir, daughter-in-law, Sarah Lockwood Winchester
Sarah Lockwood Winchester
Sarah L. Winchester , was the wife of William Wirt Winchester and heiress to his estate and a 50% holding in the Winchester Repeating Arms Company following his death from tuberculosis in 1881...
, died in September 1922, part of the multi-million dollar estate was left to Olive Winchester. Additionally, Winchester was the beneficiary of 25% of a substantial estate of her maternal great uncle, Levi Merrick Stewart
(born December 10, 1827 in Corinna, Maine; died May 3, 1910 in Minneapolis, Minnesota).
Winchester died on 15 February 1947 at the age of 67. In her will, Winchester left $50,000 to Pasadena College for the building of the Howard Library.
Radcliffe Ladies College (1898-1902)
Winchester graduated cum laude from Radcliffe CollegeRadcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was the coordinate college for Harvard University. It was also one of the Seven Sisters colleges. Radcliffe College conferred joint Harvard-Radcliffe diplomas beginning in 1963 and a formal merger agreement with...
(which was a division of Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1902 with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
(A.B.) degree, where she majored in Hebrew and Arabic (Noble 37). (Raser) "Her Harvard instructor in Semitic
Semitic
In linguistics and ethnology, Semitic was first used to refer to a language family of largely Middle Eastern origin, now called the Semitic languages...
languages regarded her as “a student of exceptional ability.” (Ingersol, Foremothers, 4) While studying at Radcliffe, Winchester preached often. On one occasion "Sister Olive Winchester, a member of this church, and senior at Radcliffe College, spoke at the morning service with special unction. More than a dozen souls were at the altar.(Beulah Christian (March 1902)
Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (1902-1909)
After graduation from Radcliffe College in 1902, Winchester taught at the Pentecostal Collegiate InstituteCollegiate institute
A collegiate institute is a term that can refer to a school either of secondary education or of higher education. It has a complex definition that varies regionally, and has been largely unused outside of Canada since the early 20th century.-Canada:...
(now Eastern Nazarene College
Eastern Nazarene College
The Eastern Nazarene College is a private, coeducational college of the liberal arts and sciences in Quincy, Massachusetts near Boston, in the New England region of the United States. Known for its strong religious affiliation, distinctive liberal arts core curriculum, and excellence in science...
) then located at North Scituate, Rhode Island. Winchester travelled frequently on behalf of the college, raising money and holding services in small communities that lacked regular church services. Winchester arrived in Glasgow on June 29, 1908 as a passenger on the SS California
SS California (1907)
The twin screw steamer California was built by D & W Henderson Ltd, Glasgow for the Anchor Line Ltd in 1907 as a replacement for the aging ocean liner Astoria, which had been in continuous service since 1884...
. On September 2, 1908 Winchester departed Southampton, England on the SS Majestic, arriving in New York on September 10, 1908. Winchester taught at PCI until 1909 before moving to Glasgow to study at the divinity school of the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
.
Parkhead Holiness Bible School (1909-1913)
Winchester arrived in Liverpool, England on September 14, 1909 on the RMS LusitaniaRMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by John Brown and Company of Clydebank, Scotland. The ship entered passenger service with the Cunard Line on 26 August 1907 and continued on the line's heavily-traveled passenger service between Liverpool, England and New...
, accompanied by Rev. George Sharpe, the founder of the Pentecostal Church of Scotland, an indigenous holiness denomination later to merge with the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene
Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged from the 19th century Holiness movement in North America with its members colloquially referred to as Nazarenes. It is the largest Wesleyan-holiness denomination in the world. At the end of 2010, the Church of the...
in 1915. While in Scotland, Winchester became a member of the Pentecostal Church of Scotland. From 1909 Winchester also taught in that denomination's Parkead Holiness Bible School (Smith 186-187).
On May 11, 1910, Winchester "advocated that a holiness periodical and college be organized to help perpetuate and strengthen the holiness work in Scotland." On the same day, Winchester was ordained in Parkhead
Parkhead
Parkhead is a district in the East End of Glasgow. Its name comes from a small weaving hamlet at the meeting place of the Great Eastern Road and Westmuir Street. Duke Street and Springfield Road also meet there, to form a turreted Edwardian five-way junction at Parkhead Cross...
, Glasgow, Scotland by the Pentecostal Church of Scotland in their Fourth Annual Assembly, thus becoming the first woman ever ordained by any denomination in Scotland. (Noble 39); Ingersol, Foremothers, 4).
On April 30, 1910 Winchester departed from Glasgow on the S.S. Cassandra, and subsequently arrived inr Quebec, Canada on May 10, 1910, en route to the USA. Winchester arrived in Glasgow on September 10, 1910 on the SS Cassandra after embarking in Montreal, Canada. On April 18, 1911 Winchester departed from Liverpool on the SS Franconia and arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on April 26, 1911. Winchester and her mother arrived in Liverpool on September 10, 1911 on the SS Salaga from New York.
University of Glasgow (1909-1912)
According to Ingersol, "More impressive was her record at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, where she broke a gender barrier as the first woman admitted to and graduated from (1912) the Bachelor of DivinityBachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies....
program." During this time Winchester won the "McFarlan and Cook Testimonial Prize of £21, for Examination in Greek, Moral Philosophy"(Glasgow University Calendar 580). Winchester graduated with honours. (Register 11)
Pentecostal Bible College (1913-1914)
In 1912, the Sixth Annual Assembly of the Pentecostal Church of Scotland, the delegates voted to establish a ministerial training college. A terrace house located at 1 Westbourne Terrace, KelvinsideKelvinside
Kelvinside is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde and is bounded by Dowanhill, Hyndland and Broomhill to the South with Kelvindale and the River Kelvin to the North...
, near the University of Glasgow, was purchased to house the relocated college. Classes commenced there in September 1913, with Winchester one of the teachers. Winchester resided in this home. (Noble 40)
On August 10, 1913, Winchester and her mother, Sarah, arrived in New York on the RMS Mauritania
RMS Mauretania (1906)
RMS Mauretania was an ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson at Wallsend, Tyne and Wear for the British Cunard Line, and launched on 20 September 1906. At the time, she was the largest and fastest ship in the world. Mauretania became a favourite among...
from Liverpool, England. On September 24, 1913 Winchester arrived in Liverpool on the SS Laconia
SS Laconia
A number of ships have been named Laconia, a Cunard ocean liner torpedoed and sunk on 25 February 1917, a Cunard ocean liner torpedoed and sunk on 12 September 1942, a Greek cargo ship in service 1948-65...
.
In 1913 Winchester urged the creation of the missionary society of the Pentecostal Church of Scotland, and was elected its first president. As the Pentecostal Church of Scotland did not have its own missionaries, Winchester urged the support of missionaries of her previous denomination, the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene (Noble 180). For several years Winchester wrote to the leaders of the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene in Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
urging them to send representatives to Scotland to expedite a merger of the two denominations. (Smith 187) "Winchester’s involvement in the Pentecostal Church of Scotland helped it clarify its doctrine of the ministry, and in 1915, she played a role in facilitating the merger of that denomination and the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene."(Ingersol, ibid.)
Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (1914-1916)
On April 11, 1914 Winchester departed Liverpool, England on the RMS LusitaniaRMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by John Brown and Company of Clydebank, Scotland. The ship entered passenger service with the Cunard Line on 26 August 1907 and continued on the line's heavily-traveled passenger service between Liverpool, England and New...
, arriving in New York on April 14, 1914.
In June 1914, Winchester returned to the Pentecostal Collegiate Institute in North Scituate, Rhode Island. She was appointed vice-principal and head of the Theology department. After two years, Winchester resigned to move to Berkley, California to continue her post-graduate studies.
Pacific School of Religion (1916-1917)
Winchester's education continued at Berkeley, CaliforniaBerkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
, where she received the S.T.M. (Master of Sacred Theology
Master of Sacred Theology
The Master of Sacred Theology is a second-level graduate degree for those who wish to pursue a year of more advanced coursework focusing on a particular discipline....
) degree magna cum laude from the Pacific School of Religion
Pacific School of Religion
Pacific School of Religion is an ecumenical seminary located in Berkeley, California. It maintains covenantal relationships with the United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church and the Disciples of Christ, providing all necessary expectations for candidates to their ordained ministries....
on May 3, 1917. While studying in Berkley, she became friends with H. Orton Wiley, pastor of the Berkley Church of the Nazarene and fellow student at the Pacific School of Religion.
Northwest Nazarene College (1918-1935)
In 1918 Winchester became the professor of biblical literature and theology professor at Northwest Nazarene College in Nampa, IdahoNampa, Idaho
Nampa is the largest and the fastest growing city in Canyon County, Idaho, USA. The population of Nampa was 81,557 at the 2010 census. Nampa is located about west of Boise along Interstate 84, and six miles west of Meridian. Nampa is part of the Boise metropolitan area...
at the invitation of its president Dr H. Orton Wiley
H. Orton Wiley
Henry Orton Wiley was a Christian theologian primarily associated with the followers of John Wesley who are part of the Holiness movement...
. (Smith 222) During her tenure at NNC, Winchester "contributed significantly to the success of the young college's academic development". Winchester also served as the founding pastor of the Marsing, Idaho
Marsing, Idaho
Marsing is a city in Owyhee County, Idaho, United States. The population was 890 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Boise City–Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Marsing is located at ....
Church of the Nazarene from 24 March 1918 until 19 May 1918, until a permanent pastor was appointed.
Following an inheritance, in 1922 Winchester provided the funds to build a home for Wiley at Northwest Nazarene College.http://www.nnu.edu/1315/ According to Ingersol,
Throughout her tenure at Northwest Nazarene, Winchester taught her specialties: Biblical language and literature. But she also grew interested in the whole idea of religious education in the local church, and at Northwest Nazarene she developed and taught the initial courses in religious educationReligious educationIn secular usage, religious education is the teaching of a particular religion and its varied aspects —its beliefs, doctrines, rituals, customs, rites, and personal roles...
. She spurred further interest in that emerging discipline by contributing frequent articles on religious education to church papers and curriculum resource manuals.(Foremothers, 4)
Later she added sociologySociologySociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
and Christian education to her teaching load. President Wiley, who appreciated good talent and Olive Winchester, made her vice president of the College in 1922, and the following year she was appointed academic dean as well, holding both positions simultaneously until her resignation in 1935. ... A history of Northwest's first quarter-century summarized her administrative role in a sentence: "She contributed very much to the development of the right attitude toward scholastic standards, as vice-president and dean of the college had much to do with the internal organization of the institution."...At the center of her legacy stood the undeniable fact that she was a pivotal figure in the transition of Northwest Nazarene College from a sagebrushSagebrushSagebrush is a common name of a number of shrubby plant species in the genus Artemisia native to western North America;Or, the sagebrush steppe ecoregion, having one or more kinds of sagebrush, bunchgrasses and others;...
academy to a sound academic institution."
(Ingersol Roots 11)
Drew University (1924-1925)
In 1925 Winchester was the first woman to complete a Th.D. (Doctor of TheologyDoctor of Theology
Doctor of Theology is a terminal academic degree in theology. It is a research degree that is considered by the U.S. National Science Foundation to be the equivalent of a Doctor of Philosophy....
) degree from the divinity school of Drew University
Drew University
Drew University is a private university located in Madison, New Jersey.Originally established as the Drew Theological Seminary in 1867, the university later expanded to include an undergraduate liberal arts college in 1928 and commenced a program of graduate studies in 1955...
in Madison, New Jersey
Madison, New Jersey
Madison is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, in the United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the population was 16,530. It also is known as "The Rose City".-Geography:Madison is located at ....
. (Ingersol, Schools, 3) for her dissertation entitled: "The Psychological Terms of the New Testament: Their Source and Content."
Winchester "excelled in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, and had a reading knowledge of French and German. Religious education and sociology were two additional fields of study that Olive specialized in, and both were largely learned through personal study and rigorous self-discipline."
Olive Winchester attended the Eighth General Assembly of the Church of the Nazarene in Wichita, Kansas
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
as a delegate from the Idaho-Oregon District. Winchester resigned from Northwest Nazarene College in 1935 due to differences with Wiley's successor, President Russell DeLong.
Pasadena College (1935-1947)
Wiley invited her to teach at Pasadena College (now Point Loma Nazarene UniversityPoint Loma Nazarene University
Point Loma Nazarene University is a Christian liberal arts college. Its main campus is located on the Point Loma oceanfront in San Diego, California. It was founded in 1902 as a Bible college by the Church of the Nazarene.-History:...
) where she taught until her death in 1947. She was appointed head of the graduate department by Wiley.
While at Pasadena College, Winchester served as one of the advisors for the Revised Standard Version
Revised Standard Version
The Revised Standard Version is an English translation of the Bible published in the mid-20th century. It traces its history to William Tyndale's New Testament translation of 1525. The RSV is an authorized revision of the American Standard Version of 1901...
of New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
, that was published on February 11, 1946.
Evaluation
"Winchester was not the only woman to teach religion at Nazarene colleges during her lifetime.... But Winchester far surpassed them in academic background and achievement, paving the way for other professional female theologians in the church,' (Ingersol, Foremothers, 5) including Mildred Bangs WynkoopMildred Bangs Wynkoop
Mildred Olive Bangs Wynkoop was an ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene, who served as an educator, missionary and theologian, and the author of several books...
, who encountered Winchester as a freshman at Northwest Nazarene College." (Ibid.)
Beliefs
Winchester was "committed to the “hermeneutic of holiness”"(Hughes 354) and has been described as "the descriptive-doctrinaire approach" to teaching biblical theologyBiblical Theology
Biblical theology is a discipline within Christian theology which studies the Bible from the perspective of understanding the progressive history of God revealing Himself to humanity following the Fall and throughout the Old Testament and New Testament...
. (Hughes 360). According to Ingersol, "Winchester had earned high marks in biblical criticism
Biblical criticism
Biblical criticism is the scholarly "study and investigation of Biblical writings that seeks to make discerning judgments about these writings." It asks when and where a particular text originated; how, why, by whom, for whom, and in what circumstances it was produced; what influences were at work...
at Glasgow but was conservative in her application of this knowledge within the Nazarene context. Her books included studies of Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
, the prophets, and the life of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
. Her Crisis Experiences in the Greek New Testament (1953) stood in the linguistic
Natural language
In the philosophy of language, a natural language is any language which arises in an unpremeditated fashion as the result of the innate facility for language possessed by the human intellect. A natural language is typically used for communication, and may be spoken, signed, or written...
-exegetical tradition tradition pioneered by Daniel Steele, a Methodist scholar at Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
.
Steele defended the doctrine of entire sanctification by a study of the Greek aoristAoristAorist is a philological term originally from Indo-European studies, referring to verb forms of various languages that are not necessarily related or similar in meaning...
, and Winchester appropriated his agenda and attempted to develop it further, though this approach has since fallen out of favor with many WesleyanWesleyanismWesleyanism or Wesleyan theology refers, respectively, to either the eponymous movement of Protestant Christians who have historically sought to follow the methods or theology of the eighteenth-century evangelical reformers, John Wesley and his brother Charles Wesley, or to the likewise eponymous...
-holinessHoliness movementThe holiness movement refers to a set of beliefs and practices emerging from the Methodist Christian church in the mid 19th century. The movement is distinguished by its emphasis on John Wesley's doctrine of "Christian perfection" - the belief that it is possible to live free of voluntary sin - and...
biblical scholars. (Ingersol, Foremothers, 4-5)
Winchester rejected the increasingly prevalent premillennial perspective. Reflecting the New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
tradition of Wesleyan-holiness biblical scholarship shaped by Daniel Steele, she was amillennial and interpreted the Book of Revelation
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
as a coded record of events that had occurred in the New Testament era, perhaps during Nero
Nero
Nero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death....
’s reign, not predictions of the future. (Ingersol, Foremothers, 5)
In 1931, Winchester wrote a series on science and religion in The Young People’s Journal, a Nazarene publication for high school youth, where she had a regular column.
In the second essay in the series, Winchester described three scientific theories on the origins of the universe, identifying her own view as the “planetismal theory,” which held that the observable universe developed as gravitational forces caused matter to coalesce over long eons of time. Nazarene theologian A. M. Hills embraced the identical view when he discussed the Christian doctrine of creation in his 2-vol Fundamental Christian Theology. While neither believed in biological evolution, Winchester and Hills embraced cosmic and geological evolution without compunction. (Ingersol, Bedfellows, 21-22)
Winchester was quoted as saying: "When in a mental fog, attend to definitions."
Honours and awards
Each year Northwest Nazarene University presents the Olive M. Winchester Religious Essay Award. The Olive Winchester Memorial Church of the Nazarene that ministers to the Aymara people of PeruPeru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
is named in her honour.(Taylor 69)
Books
- A Brief Survey Of The Old Testament: Moses and the Prophets. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House, 1941.
- Christ's Life and Ministry. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House, 1932.
- Crisis Experiences in the Greek New Testament: An Investigation of the Evidence for the Definite, Miraculous of Regeneration and Sanctification as Found in the Greek New Testament, Especially in the Figures Emphasized, and in the Use of the Aorist Tense.. Edited Throughout, With Final Chapter By Ross E. Price. Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press, 1953. Includes good bio summary of Winchester's Life by Price.
- Principles of the Interior or Hidden Life: Designed Particularly For The Consideration Of Those Who Are Seeking Assurance Of Faith And Perfect Love, by Thomas Cogswell Upham. Abridged By Olive M. Winchester. Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press, 1946.
- The Story of the Old Testament. (Revised edition of Moses and the Prophets), by Olive M. Winchester and W.T. Purkiser. Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill, 1960.
Articles
- "Angel Sentinels" in Bondservants of the Japanese by Robert B. Hammond. Sheffield Press, 1943; 8th ed. Voice of China & Asia, 1957. Poem Dedicated to Robert and Helen Hammond (founders of the Voice of China & Asia (VOCA) mission) by Olive M. Winchester.
- "Our Inheritance In Heaven". The Preacher's Magazine 4:10 (October 1929).
- "Precepts For Christian Living". The Preacher's Magazine 4:10 (October 1929).
- “Qualifications of an Interpreter,” Nazarene Messenger (November 1921):5, 11.
- "Sin in the Light of To-Day," Bibliotheca Sacra 76 No. 302 (April 1919): 152-164.
- "Steps In A Soul's Departure From God". The Preacher's Magazine 4:10 (October 1929).
- "Studies In The Sermon On The Mount". The Preacher's Magazine 4:10 (October 1929).
- "Women in the Teaching Ministry." Herald of Holiness (2 July 1945):5.
Further reading
- Balmer, Randall Herbert, ed. Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism. Baylor University, 2004. See pages 752-753 for article on Winchester.
- Barnard, Tom. "Leaders and Institutions". [home.snu.edu/dept/churchrel/Tuesday%20Morning%20Articles/TM%20-%208A%20-%20NOT%20SOMEHOW.doc] References Winchester: "Theologian Olive Winchester was another Radcliffe graduate who made a significant impact on Christian higher education during the first half of the 20th century."
- Bowman, George E. and Nellie C. Ryan, eds. Who's Who in Education: A Biographical Directory of the Teaching Profession. Who's Who, 1927. See article on Winchester.
- Cameron, James R. Eastern Nazarene College: The First Fifty Years 1910-1950. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene, 1968. Details Winchester's ministry as professor at Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (1902–1909, and 1914–1916).
- Cameron, Nigel M. De S., ed. The Dictionary of Scottish Church History & Theology. T&T Clark; IVP, 1993. Article re Winchester indicates she was first woman ordained by any denomination in Scotland.
- Cook, Robert Cecil, ed. Who's Who in American Education. New York: Robert C. Cook Company, 1928. See page 848 for entry for Winchester.
- Fletcher, Russell Holmes. Who's Who in California. Who's Who, 1941. See page 994 for bio data on Winchester.
- Ford, Jack. In The Steps of John Wesley: The Church of the Nazarene in Britain.: A Historical and Comparative Study. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene, 1968. This is the published version of Ford's Ph.D. dissertation for the University of London. See page 55 for the account of Winchester's ordination; page 56 for her role at the Parkhead Holiness School; and pages 57–58 for her ministry at the Pentecostal Bible College.
- Gresham, L. Paul. Waves Against Gibraltar: A Memoir of Dr. A. M. Hills, 1848-1935. Southern Nazarene University Press, 1992.
- Hughes, Richard T. and William B. Adrian, eds. Models for Christian Higher Education: Strategies for Survival and Success in the Twenty-First Century. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1997. See chapter on Point Loma Nazarene College, especially reference to Winchester (354-360).
- Ingersol, Stan. "Nazarene Roots: Pressing the Vision: Olive Winchester and Northwest Nazarene College." Herald of Holiness (April 1988): 11.
- Ingersol, Stan. "Nazarene Women and Religion Sources on Clergy and Lay Women in the Church with antecedent and related materials." Nazarene Archives and Clergy Services of the Church of the Nazarene, March 2003.
- Ingersol, Stan. "Our Nazarene Foremothers: Woman in a New World: Olive Winchester’s Life in Theology and Higher Education." New Horizons: Resources for Nazarene Clergywomen (February/March 2002):4-5.
- Ingersol, Stan. "Strange Bedfellows: The Nazarenes and Fundamentalism." Wesleyan Theological Journal (Fall 2005). Discusses Winchester's views on evolution and creation.
- Ingersol, Stan. "Why These Schools? Historical Perspectives on Nazarene Higher Education". Discusses Winchester, her qualifications and contributions to Northwest Nazarene College.
- Ingersol, Stan. "Winchester, Olive Mary". In The Westminster Handbook to Women in American Religious History, by Susan Hill Lindley and Eleanor J. Stebner. Westminster, John Knox Press, 2008. Page 237.
- Ingersol, Stan. "Your Daughters Shall Prophesy: Nazarene Women and an Apostolic Ministry".
- Kirkemo, Ronald B. For Zion's sake: A History of Pasadena/Point Loma College. Point Loma, CA: Point Loma Press, 1992. Details Winchester's years teaching at Pasadena College (1935–1947).
- Laird, Rebecca. Ordained Women In The Church Of The Nazarene: The First Generation. Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1993. Includes a chapter on Winchester.
- MacDonald, Lesley Orr. A Unique and Glorious Mission: Women and Presbyterianism in Scotland 1830 to 1930. John Donald, 2000.
- Maddox, Randy. "The Use of the Aorist in Holiness Exegesis." Wesleyan Theological Journal 16. Critiques Winchester's understanding of the aorist and its subsequent misuse by holiness exegetes.
- New England Historical & Genealogical Register Repository: Media: Book Page: 79:140. Records details of Winchester's birth.
- Noble, T.A. Called to be Saints: A Centenary History of the Church of the Nazarene in the British Isles: 1906-2006. Manchester, UK: Didsbury Press, 2006. See pages 37–40 for Winchester in Scotland, page 44 for photograph, 67, 69, 159, 180, and 201.
- Pacific School of Religion. Annual Register of the Pacific School of Religion. Berkeley, CA, 1919. See page 11 for Winchester bio details.
- Price, Ross. “Some Data on Miss Olive Winchester,” pp. 7–8, in the Olive Winchester profile folder, Olive Winchester Collection, Nazarene Archives, Kansas City, MO.
- Price, J. Matthew. We Teach Holiness: The Life and Work of H. Orton Wiley (1877-1961). Holiness Data Ministry, Digital Edition (June 29, 2006).
- Price, Ross Eugene. H. Orton Wiley: Servant and Savant of the Sagebrush College: A Survey of his Ten Years of Service at Northwest Nazarene College as its President and its Spiritual-Intellectual Leader. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene, 1967. Details H. Orton Wiley's leadership at NNC (1916–1926), and Winchester's ministry at NNC (1918–1926).
- Raser, Harold. "Women Ministers in the Holiness Movement—Where Have They All Gone?: There Were More 50 years Ago than There Are Today." Illustrated Bible Life (March–May 1994): 59-62.
- Riley, John E. From Sagebrush to Ivy: The Story of Northwest Nazarene College, 1913 to 1988. NNC, 1988. Details Winchester's years at NNC (1918–1935).
- Smith, Hedley. The History of Scituate, R.I. The Committee, 1976. History of town where PCI was located from 1902.
- Smith, Timothy L. Called Unto Holiness: The Story of The Nazarenes: The Formative Years. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene, 1962.
- Taylor, Lucille L. Tribes and Nations From the South. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene, 1960. Page 69 references Olive Winchester Memorial Church of the Nazarene.
- Thayer, William Roscoe, et al., eds.The Harvard Graduates' Magazine. Page 489 records: "Olive Winchester, '02, is a fully matriculated student in the Faculty of Theology of the University of Glasgow, the first woman to study in that..."
- Tink, Fletcher. "Some of Our Best ‘Men’ Are Women". Supports position that Winchester was first woman ordained in Scotland.
- Whiteford, Jean. "Olive Mary Winchester". Trinity College Bulletin 14 (1997). Glasgow, Scotland.
- Who's Who in American Education. 12th ed. 1945-1946.
- Wright, David F. and Gary D. Badcock, eds. Disruption to Diversity: Edinburgh Divinity, 1846-1996. T&T Clark, 1996. Page 247 confirms Winchester as first woman to be admitted in the BD at Glasgow, and first to be ordained in Scotland. But cf. claims that Caroline Soule (1824–1903), who was ordained in 1880 by the Scottish Universalist Convention was actually first. Perhaps the Christian orthodoxy of the Universalists was disputed.