Baptist luminary Chafin dies
___By Marv Knox
___Editor
___HOUSTON--Baptist pastor, professor, evangelist and strategist Kenneth Chafin died Jan. 3 of leukemia. He was 74.
___Chafin enjoyed one of the most varied and influential careers of any Baptist minister in
the 20th century. He taught at the Southern Baptist Convention's two largest seminaries, served as pastor of two influential inner-city congregations, directed the convention's evangelism efforts and worked with international evangelist Billy Graham.
___He first taught at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, where he was instructor in preaching, 1957-59, and associate professor of evangelism and head of the evangelism department, 1960-65. Later, he taught at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., where he was associate professor and held the Billy Graham Chair of evangelism, 1965-69, and professor and held the Carl Bates Chair of preaching, 1984-87.
___Chafin led Southern Baptists' outreach efforts as director of evangelism for the SBC Home Mission Board, 1969-72. His long association with Graham included serving as dean of the Billy Graham Schools of Evangelism, held in conjunction with crusades around the globe, 1967-83.
___He was pastor of South Main Baptist Church in Houston, 1972-84, and Walnut Street Baptist Church in Louisville, 1988-92.
___Chafin also was known for his denominational leadership. He was a member of the Southwestern Seminary board of trustees and served as its chairman. He has been a trustee of Houston Baptist University and also served on the Executive Board and Administrative Committee of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
___Chafin provided leadership for moderate Baptists, particularly during the 20-year controversy between so-called conservatives and moderates.
___He was a leader of the "Gatlinburg Gang," a group of pastors who organized the first resistance to the "conservative resurgence" in the SBC in the late 1970s and early '80s. The group pleaded with SBC agency leaders to join in the resistance but was criticized by moderates and conservatives alike for "politicizing" the convention.
___A decade later, after conservatives gained control of the national convention, he helped organize the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, a para-denominational organization for moderates disaffected by the emerging SBC leadership.
___News of Chafin's death prompted admiration from Baptist leaders who have known him for decades.
___"I would call him one of those watershed people in Baptist life in the South who saw transitions in the old Southern Baptist Convention and spoke about them before a lot of people did and who paid dearly for it at times," said historian Bill Leonard.
___"He was not only an outstanding pastor, but he was a grand teacher," added Leonard, dean of Wake Forest University's divinity school and a former colleague of Chafin's at Southern Seminary. "I'll remember him as a person who mentored several generations of students in Texas and Kentucky."
___Leonard said one thing he loved about Chafin is "there was not a passive-aggressive bone in his body."
___"He said it straight and direct, but gently. You always knew where he stood," Leonard said. "And that terrified some people."
___Charles Wade, executive director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, noted how Chafin shaped his own life, both as a professor and a friend.
___"Dr. Chafin helped me greatly in his class on personal evangelism," said Wade, who was a student of Chafin's in the 1960s. "He was a man of enormous conviction and courage. Baptists everywhere have lost a great friend."
___Words that describe Chafin's life and ministry include "calling, commitment, creativity, courage, compassion and consistency," said Roy Honeycutt, former president of Southern Seminary.
___"He bound all life together with unswerving commitment to Jesus Christ and his church," Honeycutt said. "He was a man for all seasons, a Renaissance person for a generation in transition."
___A native of Oklahoma, Chafin was a graduate of the University of New Mexico and Southwestern Seminary, where he earned two degrees.
___He wrote six books, including volumes on evangelistic witnessing, marriage enrichment and biblical commentary.
___In retirement, he became a published poet and wrote devotionals for "The Daily Guidepost." He also founded a Sunday School class for young couples at South Main Baptist Church.
___Chafin is survived by his wife, Barbara, of Houston; two daughters, Nancy Chafin of Boulder, Colo., and Ellen Wavro of Houston; a son, Troy, of Austin; and a grandson, Daniel Wavro, of Houston.
___Funeral services were held Jan. 7 at South Main Baptist Church in Houston. He was buried Jan. 6 in a cemetery adjacent to the family farm, Windy Hill, near Brenham.
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The Baptist Standard
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