My interest in the field of psychology of religion/pastoral care developed in a "back door" experience in the graduate school of The Southern Baptist Seminary. When I finished the B.D. degree (I will use the "old" terminology which will date me, but also make my comments real to others as well as me), I did not know exactly which direction to take. So as is true for many folks in the same situation, I decided to enter graduate school at Southern Seminary. In those days, students were required to have five areas of study; usually one area would be outside of the person's main field of concentration. I discovered quickly that the program I was interested in, Christian Ethics, had in addition to the 4 areas of ethics, an area of psychology of religion. I quickly discovered that the professors in pastoral care required a great deal of work, both in the reading of books and in the practice of what the books and professors said. With my brand new B.D. degree in hand (and not much else) I set off for Western State Hospital in Hopkinsville, Kentucky for a summer of work in the chaplain's department with Don Reeves. This was in 1957. Clinical Pastoral Education (C. P. E.) had not been set up formally at Southern at that time, as I recall, but in addition to that summer at Western State, I worked for one summer at a children's home and additional semesters at a medical hospital and another mental hospital. By this time I was supposed to fill the role of graduate assistant even though I was still examining the field myself. Gradually I began to see relationships between the field of ethics and pastoral care; e.g., there were many ethical issues in the "care of souls" and pastoral issues in the field of Christian ethics. Patients in mental hospitals were receiving new drug treatments in addition to (or as replacements for) more traditional approaches, and soon the whole field of biomedical ethics would blossom.

This rather lengthy introduction sets the stage for remembrances of Dr. Wayne Oates. When I entered graduate school I had completed only the basic, required course in psychology of religion, Ps.R. 151. The course impressed me as interesting and helpful; most of all I began to appreciate Dr. Oates. His knowledge and experiences seemed limitless. In the early days of graduate school I was so awed by his very presence that I probably did not take full advantage of my contacts with him. But gradually I experienced not only his great insight and also his approachableness. Along with Dr. Southard and others in pastoral care, Dr. Barnette, Dr. Howington and others in Christian ethics, Dr. Oates became a skillful mentor. I'll not belabor the difficulties graduate students faced at Southern in the late l950's and early l960's, but some of you who might read these words will remember the situation.

I also remember many experiences with the professors I have mentioned. If I thought for a while, many anecdotes concerning Wayne Oates would come to mind. I recall in one class when we were discussing perhaps vocation or God's will, Wayne held up his hand to make the point that choices are sometimes limited by some physical attribute or some situation which was beyond our control. As we viewed the hand with its stub of a finger, Dr. Oates observed that God did not intend for him to be a concert pianist! Another incident I recall vividly although I'm not sure why except that I did work for a time on the Seminary grounds crew for Mr. Pryor. By this time I was attending other classes in psychology of religion/pastoral care, either as a graduate assistant or just an auditor. We could look out the windows of Norton Hall and see a good bit of the Seminary space. Perhaps Dr. Oates on that particular day was discussing healthy and unhealthy personality traits or some related topic as two Seminary grounds keepers were leaning on their shovels, probably enjoying the day and solving all the theological issues of the universe. To put it tactfully, they had not yet set any records for work accomplished as far as the class could tell. Dr. Oates called our attention to the two fellows, and then remarked that all Seminary workers at some time or another rest from their labors--that is normal. But if a Seminary (or other) worker always "rested" and did not work at all, that is not normal and could be a sign of real difficulties. I was amazed that he could take a common incident, on the spur of the moment, and turn it into a "teachable moment."

Dr. Oates was very supportive of my decision to take a position on the Seminary's library staff in l963. I don't think he understood fully why I would make this choice, but he affirmed the choice and wished me well. I realized that my future would not be the same as some of my fellow graduate students who have found very great opportunities in the pastoral care field. However, I have always been grateful for the experiences in pastoral care/psychology of religion. Several years ago, I was employed on a part-time basis at Crescent Hill Baptist Church as a minister to the homebound ("shut ins" in those days). The pastoral skills I had learned, many of them from Wayne Oates, served me well in that endeavor and were a blessing, I trust, to others.

One time Dr. Oates conducted a mini-workshop at Crescent Hill on the general area of Christian witnessing. After beginning by stating that this was an area which many folks talked about but few actually did much about (which I thought was quite honest), he recommended the "hang around" approach, or a term similar to that. He suggested that after a church committee meeting or some other church function that it might be well to "hang around" for a while and just listen to what people were really concerned about in their lives. Committee meetings (especially unnecessary or unproductive ones) have never been my favorite activity, and Wayne's observation seemed so simple and yet so workable. I found an application of this suggestion in a little different setting in the Seminary library. Most of the workers, other than the professional librarians, were the spouses of Seminary students. It did not take any particular insight to recognize that some of the paraprofessionals were encountering just about every problem known to the human race. Some colleagues suggested that the paraprofessionals were hired to perform certain tasks and that what happened at home or other places was not of concern to the supervisors in the work place. I did not agree, and without being overly inquisitive or trying to violate the person's privacy, I found that on occasions, a version of the "hang around" provided an open door for pastoral care. For example, it seems unrealistic and uncaring to expect a person to work a full day when her spouse has just left home in order to be with another individual without the situation affecting the work tasks.

To acknowledge all the gifts Wayne Oates has given me would be on the order of the proverbial assignment of draining the Pacific Ocean with a teacup-somewhere between exceedingly difficult and totally impossible. I value his insight on open-eyed prayer, and creative listening. He was a tower of strength to me in the difficult days of the past two years, and I treasure beyond words the adventure of assisting him with one of his last writing endeavors.

An appropriate way to end this tribute, which has become too lengthy perhaps, is to note that in the process of writing this, I received a phone call from an individual I have never seen although we have talked many times. The first calls to the Seminary library from this person were for specific information, usually of a Biblical nature. But over the years, by "hanging around", I have discovered that along with the need for information, he needs someone to listen to what is going on in his life and to offer a word of hope from God and others. I wonder sometimes how Wayne Oates would handle this type of ministry situation--with more insight and skill than I have to offer, certainly. But if God's Spirit is able to shine forth in this or any other opportunity I have and help that person along the way, I feel a deep sense of gratitude to many who have guided me, and certainly to Dr. Wayne E. Oates.