Timothy George, founding dean and distinguished professor of divinity at Samford University’s Beeson Divinity School, received the Lifetime Achievement award from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) on Nov. 17 during the 73rd annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS), which convened its annual meeting this year in Fort Worth, Texas, the home of SWBTS.
George, who served as the vice president of ETS this past year, is now its current president-elect.
SWBTS inaugurated a series of awards during its annual alumni and friends’ reception at ETS, naming George as the first recipient of its Lifetime Achievement award, which serves to recognize a person who has made “incredible contribution to the life of Baptist and evangelical scholarship,” said David S. Dockery, interim provost and vice president for academic administration at SWBTS.
“For the past four decades few Baptist scholars have made the impact that Timothy George has made as a faculty member at Southern Seminary (1978–1988) and as founding dean and distinguished professor of divinity at Beeson Divinity School," Dockery said.
A graduate of Harvard University, George came to Samford University from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1987 at the behest of then-Samford President Thomas E. Corts and benefactor Ralph Waldo Beeson to establish an interdenominational, evangelical divinity school. The school, named for its benefactor, opened its doors in 1988. After 32 years as dean, George transitioned to a full-time faculty position in 2019. He is the author of more than 20 books and the general editor of the 29-volume Reformation Commentary on Scripture series with InterVarsity Press.
“Recognized primarily for his work in historical theology and church history through his publications on The Theology of the Reformers, Reading Scripture with the Reformers and his key role as general editor of the Reformation Commentary Series, among many other works addressing Baptist and evangelical thought, Dr. George has been an exemplar of the best of what it means to be a scholar and churchman, a true ecclesial theologian,” said Dockery.
He continued, “We owe Timothy George a great debt of gratitude for his service to the academy, to the church, and to each one of us.”
Sources for this article came from SWBTS and The Baptist Paper.