Olive Winchester

Olive May Winchester (22 November 1879—15 February 1947) 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.

Contents

Early life

Olive May Winchester was born on November 22, 1879 in Monson, Maine,[1][2] the oldest child of lawyer Charles B. Winchester (born August 8, 1851 in Corinna, Maine; died October 2, 1892 in Yankton, South Dakota),[3][4] and Sarah A. "Sadie" Blackstone Winchester (born May 1, 1853 in Pownal, Maine; died February 6, 1949 in Los Angeles, California).[5][6][7][8][9] Winchester's parents were married in Portland, Maine on February 22, 1879 in the Methodist Episcopal Church.[10][11]

After June 25, 1880,[12] 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.[13] Winchester's younger sister, Edith Elizabeth Winchester (born June 22, 1884 in Forestburg, Dakota Territory; died August 1885 in Forestburg) died in infancy.[14] After 1885,[8] 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 bedbugs.[15][16] After the death of Winchester's father, Winchester and her mother moved to Lynn, Massachusetts.[7]

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.[17]

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[18] 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."[19]

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[20] from his estate.[21] 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.[22][23] 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).[24]

Winchester died on 15 February 1947 at the age of 67.[25] In her will, Winchester left $50,000[26] to Pasadena College for the building of the Howard Library.[27]

Education and ministry

Winchester financed her own education.[28]

Radcliffe Ladies College (1898-1902)

Winchester graduated cum laude from Radcliffe College (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) [28]

Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (1902-1909)

After graduation from Radcliffe College in 1902, Winchester taught at the Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (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.[28] Winchester arrived in Glasgow on June 29, 1908 as a passenger on the SS California.[29] On September 2, 1908 Winchester departed Southampton, England on the SS Majestic, arriving in New York on September 10, 1908.[30] Winchester taught at PCI until 1909 before moving to Glasgow to study at the divinity school of the University of Glasgow.

Parkhead Holiness Bible School (1909-1913)

Winchester arrived in Liverpool, England on September 14, 1909 on the RMS Lusitania, accompanied by Rev. George Sharpe,[31] 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."[28] 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.[32] Winchester arrived in Glasgow on September 10, 1910 on the SS Cassandra after embarking in Montreal, Canada.[33] On April 18, 1911 Winchester departed from Liverpool on the SS Franconia and arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on April 26, 1911.[34] Winchester and her mother arrived in Liverpool on September 10, 1911 on the SS Salaga from New York.[35]

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 Divinity 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.[36] A terrace house located at 1 Westbourne Terrace, Kelvinside, 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.[37] On September 24, 1913 Winchester arrived in Liverpool on the SS Laconia.[38]

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.) [39]

Pentecostal Collegiate Institute (1914-1916)

On April 11, 1914 Winchester departed Liverpool, England on the RMS Lusitania, arriving in New York on April 14, 1914.[40] 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.[36]

Pacific School of Religion (1916-1917)

Winchester's education continued at Berkeley, California, 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.[41] 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. [17]

Northwest Nazarene College (1918-1935)

In 1918 Winchester became the professor of biblical literature and theology professor at Northwest Nazarene College in Nampa, Idaho 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".[42] 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.[43]

Following an inheritance, in 1922 Winchester provided the funds to build a home for Wiley at Northwest Nazarene College.[1] 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 education. 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 sociology 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 sagebrush 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 Theology) degree from the divinity school of Drew University in Madison, New Jersey.[44] (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."[28]

Olive Winchester attended the Eighth General Assembly of the Church of the Nazarene in Wichita, Kansas as a delegate from the Idaho-Oregon District.[45] 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 University) 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,[46] 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 Wynkoop, 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 theology. (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.

Steele defended the doctrine of entire sanctification by a study of the Greek aorist, and Winchester appropriated his agenda and attempted to develop it further, though this approach has since fallen out of favor with many Wesleyan-holiness biblical scholars. (Ingersol, Foremothers, 4-5)

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.

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."[47]

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 Peru is named in her honour.(Taylor 69)

Publications

Books

Articles

Further reading

Archives

Winchester, Dr. Olive. Writings, correspondence, classroom materials. In the Archives of Point Loma Nazarene University, San Diego, California.

References

  1. ^ Ancestry.com. California Death Index, 1940-1997. Place: Los Angeles; Date: 15 Feb 1947; Social Security: 0. However, it erroneously lists her birthplace as South Dakota. However, she was born in Maine, and lived at Monson, Maine. See 1880 United States Federal Census Record for Ollie M. Winchester; Maine > Piscataquis > Monson > District 70 > 16.
  2. ^ April > 17 > Lusitania > 27.
  3. ^ Henry Fritz-Gilbert Waters, The New England Historical and Genealogical Register (NEHGR), Vol. 79 (New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1925):140.
  4. ^ "Charles Winchester", http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/23095517/person/1353872189
  5. ^ Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census. Census Place: Pownal, Cumberland, Maine; Roll: M653_437; Page: 12; Image: 969; Family History Library Film: 803437.
  6. ^ Ancestry.com. 1870 United States Federal Census. Census Place: Pownal, Cumberland, Maine; Roll: M593_542; Page: 349B; Image: 25; Family History Library Film: 552041.
  7. ^ a b 1900 United States Federal Census Record for Olive M Winchester. Year: 1900; Census Place: Lynn Ward 4, Essex, Massachusetts; Roll: T623_644; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 379.
  8. ^ a b South Dakota Territorial Census, 1885 Record for Ollice Winchester. Sanborn > District 93 > 3
  9. ^ Ancestry.com. California Death Index, 1940-1997. Place: Los Angeles; Date: 6 Feb 1949; Social Security: 0.
  10. ^ Source Information: Ancestry.com. Maine Marriage Records, 1705-1922. Maine State Archives; Cultural Building, 84 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0084; Pre 1892 Delayed Returns; Roll #:105.
  11. ^ Another source indicates they were married in 1880. See Who's Who, 848.
  12. ^ 1880 United States Federal Census Record for Ollie M. Winchester; 1880 United States Federal Census Maine > Piscataquis > Monson > District 70 > 16.
  13. ^ South Dakota Historical Collections and Report, Vol. 26, (State Pub. Co., 1953):75.
  14. ^ "Edith Elizabeth Winchester", http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/23095517/person/1398282456
  15. ^ "Another Bedbug Martyr", The Indian Chieftain (Vinita, Indian Territory) (October 06, 1892):1, Image 1; http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83025010/1892-10-06/ed-1/seq-1/
  16. ^ "Hotelkeeper Burned to Death", Chicago Daily Tribune (October 4, 1892):9.
  17. ^ a b Rebecca Laird, Ordained Women in the Church of the Nazarene: The First Generation (Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1993):94.
  18. ^ "Three Canoeists Drown" New York Times (24 November 1902) THREE CANOEISTS DROWN. - Two Men and a Woman Perish in a Rhode Island Lake During a Squall. - View Article - NYTimes.com; "Three Bodies Recovered in Lake", New York Times (30 November 1902). Three Bodies Recovered in Lake. - View Article - NYTimes.com
  19. ^ Ross E Price, Letter, 11 September 1962, in Rebecca Laird, Ordained Women in the Church of the Nazarene: The First Generation (Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1993), n.34, 159.
  20. ^ (worth approximately $480,000 today)
  21. ^ Rebecca Laird, Ordained Women in the Church of the Nazarene: The First Generation (Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1993):, n.32, 159.
  22. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A647877
  23. ^ UnMuseum - Winchester Mansion
  24. ^ "Merrill v Winchester (113A)", Atlantic Reporter: Cases Argued and Determined in the Courts of Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Vol. 113 (West Publishing Company., 1921):263.
  25. ^ Ancestry.com. California Death Index, 1940-1997. Source Citation: Place: Los Angeles; Date: 15 Feb 1947; Social Security: 0.
  26. ^ worth approximately $466,000 today
  27. ^ Rebecca Laird, Ordained Women in the Church of the Nazarene: The First Generation (Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1993):97.
  28. ^ a b c d e Rebecca Laird, Ordained Women in the Church of the Nazarene: The First Generation (Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1993):92.
  29. ^ Ancestry.com. UK Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960. Class: BT26; Piece: 313; Item: 25.
  30. ^ Ancestry.com. New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 Year: 1908; Microfilm Serial: T715; Microfilm Roll: T715_1140; Line: 19; Page Number: 111.
  31. ^ Ancestry.com. UK Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960. Class: BT26; Piece: 384; Item: 6.
  32. ^ Ancestry.com. Border Crossings: From Canada to U.S., 1895-1956.
  33. ^ Ancestry.com. UK Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960. Class: BT26; Piece: 412; Item: 21.
  34. ^ Ancestry.com. Boston Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1943. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at Boston, Massachusetts, 1917-1943; Microfilm Serial: T938; Microfilm Roll: 162.
  35. ^ Ancestry.com. UK Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960. Class: BT26; Piece: 475; Item: 7.
  36. ^ a b Rebecca Laird, Ordained Women in the Church of the Nazarene: The First Generation (Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1993):93.
  37. ^ Ancestry.com. New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 Year: 1913; Microfilm Serial: T715; Microfilm Roll: T715_2153; Line: 16; Page Number: 35.
  38. ^ Ancestry.com. UK Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960. Class: BT26; Piece: 559; Item: 24.
  39. ^ L. Paul Gresham, Waves Against Gibraltar: A Memoir of Dr. A. M. Hills, 1848-1935 (Southern Nazarene University Press, 1992):113.
  40. ^ New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 Record for Olive M Winchester. 1914 > April > 17 > Lusitania > 27.
  41. ^ J. Matthew Price, We Teach Holiness: The Life and Work of H. Orton Wiley (1877-1961) (Holiness Data Ministry, September 29, 2006):133, http://wesley.nnu.edu/fileadmin/imported_site/hdm/2600/2601-2700/HDM2607_01.pdf
  42. ^ Merle W. Wells and Arthur A. Hart, Idaho, Gem of the Mountains (Windsor Publications, 1985):216.
  43. ^ Bill O'Connor, "Marsing Nazarene Celebrates 90 years", Idaho Press-Tribune (March 8, 2008), http://www.idahopress.com/community/article_3ee5d6f4-7021-5700-8b3c-b3eeca2964a2.html
  44. ^ John E. Riley, From Sagebrush to Ivy: The Story of Northwest Nazarene College 1913-1988 (Nampa, Idaho: Northwest Nazarene College, 1988):72, http://wesley.nnu.edu/fileadmin/imported_site/hdm/2600/2601-2700/HDM2607_01.pdf.
  45. ^ Stan Ingersol, "The Women of the Eighth General Assembly", Herald of Holiness (August 1993):7, http://www.whwomenclergy.org/articles/article24.php
  46. ^ Luther Allan Weigle, An Introduction to the Revised Standard Version of the New Testament (International Council of Religious Education, 1946):71.
  47. ^ Olive Winchester, in A. Elwood Sanner and Albert Foster Harper, Exploring Christian Education (Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1978 ):12.
  48. ^ http://wesley.nnu.edu/wesleyctr/books/0201-0300/HDM0270.PDF
  49. ^ http://wesley.nnu.edu/wesleyctr/books/2601-2700/HDM2615.PDF
  50. ^ http://wesley.nnu.edu/wesleyctr/books/0701-0800/HDM0702.PDF
  51. ^ http://www.vocamissions.com/Founders.html
  52. ^ a b c d http://wesley.nnu.edu/wesleyctr/books/0201-0300/HDM0257.PDF
  53. ^ http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/bsac/1919_152.pdf
  54. ^ Wesleyan/Holiness Women Clergy
  55. ^ http://www.nazarenepastor.org/cms/Portals/0/pdf/wcbib.pdf
  56. ^ http://www.nazarenepastor.org/cms/Portals/0/pdf/NH/2002febmar.pdf
  57. ^ http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/Strange%20Bedfellows%20The%20Nazarenes%20and%20Fundamentalism.pdf
  58. ^ http://www.nazarene.org/files/docs/Why%20These%20Schools%20%20Historical%20Perspectives%20on%20Nazarene%20Higher%20Education.pdf
  59. ^ http://www.nazarene.org/files/docs/women_daughters.pdf
  60. ^ Messiah College
  61. ^ http://wesley.nnu.edu/wesleyan_theology/theojrnl/16-20/16-16.htm
  62. ^ http://wesley.nnu.edu/fileadmin/imported_site/hdm/2600/2601-2700/HDM2607_01.pdf
  63. ^ Messiah College
  64. ^ http://wesley.nnu.edu/wesleyctr/books/2501-2600/HDM2593.PDF
  65. ^ UCME - Clergy Development - Some of Our Best 'Men' Are Women, by Dr. Fletcher Tink
  66. ^ Caroline Soule