20 Feb The Paul R. Fetters Prayer Chapel at HU

The prayer chapel in Huntington University’s new residence hall will be called the Paul R. Fetters Chapel after Dr. Paul Fetters, who has spent his career serving the United Brethren in Christ Church as a pastor and in the Graduate School of Christian Ministries.

The Huntington University Board of Trustees adopted the resolution naming the chapel Jan. 26. President G. Blair Dowden (left, congratulating Dr. Fetters) shared the news with the campus community February 15 at the annual Honors Convocation.

“It is my privilege to recognize a colleague who epitomizes Christ-centeredness in his scholarship, his teaching, his ministry, and his personal life,” Dowden said.

Enrolling at Huntington in 1951, Fetters earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1955, followed by a Bachelor of Divinity from the Huntington College Theological Seminary in 1959. He earned a Master of Divinity from Eastern Baptist, now Palmer, Theological Seminary in Philadelphia; a Master of Education in Counseling from the University of St. Francis in 1975; and a Doctor of Ministry from Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena. During the past 10 years, his studies have continued at the University of British Columbia, Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Joining the faculty in 1960 as a part time instructor in the Huntington College Theological Seminary, he filled several adjunct faculty positions during his 18 years of pastoral ministry. Later in 1972 as a full-time professor of practical theology, he was instrumental in the seminary transformation into the Graduate School of Christian Ministries, serving as director and dean from 1972 until 1997.

A contributor to a variety of denominational publications, religious periodicals and journals, Fetters served as general editor of several UB-related books, including Trials and Triumphs: History of the Church of the United Brethren in Christ and Theological Perspectives: Arminian-Wesleyan Reflections on Theology. He has taught in many of the countries where you’ll find UB churches, including Canada, Sierra Leone, Honduras, Jamaica, and Hong Kong.
He continues to invest himself in the students of Huntington University as a professor in the Bible and Religion Department and through mentoring young adults at College Park Church in Huntington, Ind.

The prayer chapel will be housed in the new residence hall, Livingston Hall, named after the historic dormitory of the same name. The building was demolished in 1988, and RichLyn Library was constructed on the site.

“What an honor!” Fetters said. “The chapel located in Livingston Hall will perpetuate the memories of the early beginnings of the Graduate School of Christian Ministries, which was housed in the original Livingston Hall, 1977-1987.”