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Church Relations
Dr. Mike O'Neal, President of Oklahoma Christian University, announced a plan for leadership in the University's Office of Church Relations. A three-person team composed of Vice President for Alumni Relations Kent Allen, Senior Advancement Officer Bob Rowley, and Distinguished Professor of Bible Dr. Stafford North will oversee church relations efforts until such time as a full-time director is found to replace Dr. Nathan Mellor, who is leaving the University at the end of December.
Dr. O'Neal said, "I am very pleased that we have on the OC staff these three men who have such long-term ties with and deep love for the churches of Christ. They are highly respected among this fellowship and have many existing ties with churches. All of them are already involved with various parts of our church relations work and will continue with what they have been doing along with giving leadership to our program to connect with and serve churches. These men will work in collaboration with Dr, Alan Martin, Dean of the College of Biblical Studies, as they not only oversee our present church relations activities but also initiate some new ones, as part of the Church Relations Strategic Plan. Since we believe that continuity in this vital area at OC is essential, we have asked these men to step immediately into this work."
Allen, Rowley, and North will oversee the OC lectureship and will plan the monthly luncheons for preachers held on the OC campus. They will maintain contact with preachers and churches, and will seek to increase the number of preachers on the Oklahoma Christian staff who will be filling pulpits throughout the area. Their work will also include continuing the seminars on "evangelism" the University has been conducting in various locations in Oklahoma and surrounding states, and they will oversee a new initiative to present a series of seminars especially designed to help congregations in smaller locations to get ideas and to develop their plan for being more effective. They will also continue the "Good News" newsletter and the newsletter for prospective preachers called "Man of God," and will also oversee the OC church relations website.
O'Neal added, "Church relations is a vital part of our work at Oklahoma Christian. History has proven time and time again that colleges and universities which do not maintain and nurture strong ties with their founding fellowships most often drift away from their spiritual mission into secularism, and we are deeply committed to avoiding that natural and often unintended drift. Oklahoma Christian is a welcoming and nurturing place to people of many different faiths, and even those of little or no faith, but its relationship to the churches of Christ keeps us focused and diligent in our efforts to bring glory to God. I am most grateful to Kent, Bob, and Stafford for their passion for and willingness to work at strengthening our church relations efforts. Long-term we will seek a person to direct our church relations efforts, but for the present we are confident that this team of men can lead this area in an excellent way."
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