Glen Stassen

{{Short description|American ethicist and Baptist theologian (1936–2014)}}

'''Glen Harold Stassen''' (February 29, 1936 – April 26, 2014) was an American [[Christian ethics|ethicist]] and [[Baptist]] [[theologian]]. He was known for his work on theological ethics, political philosophy, and social justice and for developing<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-glen-stassen-20140430-story.html | title=Glen Stassen dies at 78; took a biblical approach to peace activism | website=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=29 April 2014 }}</ref> the Just Peacemaking Theory regarding the comparative ethics of war and peace.<ref>{{Cite web| title=Just Peacemaking: Ten Practices for Abolishing War | publisher=Pilgrim Press | date=August 1998 | url=http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/unitedchurchofchrist/legacy_url/6534/Just-Peacemaking-practices.pdf?1418431403 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508161328/https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/unitedchurchofchrist/legacy_url/6534/Just-Peacemaking-practices.pdf?1418431403 | archive-date=2021-05-08}}</ref> Glen Stassen helped define the social justice wing of the Christian evangelical movement in America.<ref>[http://justpeacemaking.org/the-history/ The Origin of the Just Peacemaking Ethic] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130914192751/http://justpeacemaking.org/the-history/ |date=2013-09-14 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=http://intersecting.weebly.com/blog/memorial-day-just-peacemaking |title = Memorial Day: Just Peacemaking}}</ref> Stassen died in [[Pasadena, California]] at the age of 78.<ref name=christianitytoday>Died: Glen H. Stassen http://www.christianitytoday.com/gleanings/2014/april/died-glen-h-stassen-baptist-ethicist-just-peacemaking.html</ref> He was the son of former [[Minnesota]] governor [[Harold Stassen]]. His work pushed the advancement of nuclear disarmament in America.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/08/us/glen-stassen-theologian-who-champion-nuclear-disarmament-dies-at-78.html?_r=0 | title=Glen Stassen, Theologian, Dies at 78; Championed Nuclear Disarmament | work=The New York Times | date=7 May 2014 | last1=Vitello | first1=Paul }}</ref> The last project he was committed to before his death was the destruction of chemical weapons, according to his blog.<ref name=christianitytoday/>

==Education== He received his BA in Physics from [[University of Virginia]], his BD from [[Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York]], and his PhD from [[Duke University]].<ref name=":0">[http://www.fuller.edu/provost/faculty/dbsearch/final_record.asp?id=81 ] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061013200036/http://www.fuller.edu/provost/faculty/dbsearch/final_record.asp?id=81 |date=2006-10-13 }}[http://www.fuller.edu/academics/faculty/glen-stassen.aspx Glen H. Stassen] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130518185443/http://www.fuller.edu/academics/faculty/glen-stassen.aspx |date=2013-05-18 }}[http://www.fuller.edu/provost/faculty/dbsearch/final_record.asp?id=81 ] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061013200036/http://www.fuller.edu/provost/faculty/dbsearch/final_record.asp?id=81 |date=2006-10-13 }}</ref> He was a visiting scholar at [[Harvard University]], [[Duke University]], [[Columbia University]], and the [[University of Heidelberg]] in [[Germany]].

==Career== Stassen held teaching posts at Duke University, Kentucky Southern College, Berea College, and [[Southern Baptist Theological Seminary]] (at SBTS for 20 years).<ref name=":0" /><nowiki> He served as the Lewis B. Smedes Professor of Christian Ethics and the Executive Director of the Just Peacemaking Initiative at </nowiki>[[Fuller Theological Seminary]] in [[Pasadena, California]]. Stassen contributed to [[Sojourners Magazine]] and frequently appeared in the media, including the [[the Los Angeles Times|Los Angeles Times]] and [[The O'Reilly Factor]]. Stassen engineered a limited ban on nuclear testing with the Soviet Union during U.N.-sponsored [[Cold War]] disarmament talks in 1957. The initiative was unsuccessful, but in 1963 the U.S., Soviet Union and Britain agreed to ban above-ground testing.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-glen-stassen-20140430-story.html | title=Glen Stassen dies at 78; took a biblical approach to peace activism | website=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=29 April 2014 }}</ref> Stassen filled the position of a liaison between the [[Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign]] and multiple European groups working towards disarmament during the early 1980s.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.fuller.edu/microsites/be-inspired/our-voices/glen-h--stassen-leaves-legacy-of-passionate-commitment-to-social-justice-and-peacemaking/ |title=Glen H. Stassen Leaves Legacy of Passionate Commitment to Social Justice and Peacemaking |access-date=5 August 2024 |archive-date=1 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101205414/https://www.fuller.edu/microsites/be-inspired/our-voices/glen-h--stassen-leaves-legacy-of-passionate-commitment-to-social-justice-and-peacemaking/ |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>

==Awards and honors== Stassen was recognized for his excellence in teaching with Fuller's 1999 All Seminary Council Faculty Award for Outstanding Community Service to Students, as well as the Seabury Award for Excellence in Teaching at Berea College and the Weyerhaeuser Award for Excellence in Teaching.<ref name=":0" /><nowiki> He was named as a 2013 recipient of the Baptist World Alliance Denton and Janice Lotz Human Rights Award</nowiki><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.abpnews.com/ministry/people/item/8277-ethicist-glen-stassen-wins-bwa-award#.UdJkQFOE5Ym |title=Ethicist Glen Stassen wins BWA award |access-date=2013-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130526171054/http://www.abpnews.com/ministry/people/item/8277-ethicist-glen-stassen-wins-bwa-award#.UdJkQFOE5Ym |archive-date=2013-05-26 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and named the 2012 Baptist of the Year by EthicsDaily.com.<ref>[http://www.ethicsdaily.com/baptist-of-the-year-glen-stassen-cms-20328 Baptist of the Year: Glen Stassen]</ref>

His book ''Kingdom Ethics: Following Jesus in Contemporary Context''<nowiki>, co-authored with David Gushee, was awarded Best Book of the Year in the Theology/Ethics category by </nowiki>[[Christianity Today]] in 2004.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/2004/june/3.34.html |title=''Christianity Today'' Book Awards 2004 - Christianity Today magazine - ChristianityTodayLibrary.com |access-date=2006-12-12 |archive-date=2006-12-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061216011926/http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/2004/june/3.34.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> His last published book, ''A Thicker Jesus: Incarnational Discipleship in a Secular Age'' (2012), was named a top ten book by ''[[The Christian Century]].''<ref>[http://www.ethicsdaily.com/stassens-book-named-to-christian-magazines-top-10-cms-20355#sthash.T3IvnzjY.dpuf Stassen's Book Named to Christian Magazine's Top 10]</ref>

==Books== * ''Journey into Peacemaking'' (1982) * ''Just Peacemaking: Transforming Initiatives for Justice and Peace'' (1992) * ''Authentic Transformation: A New Vision of Christ and Culture'' (with [[John Howard Yoder]] and Diane Yeager) (1996) * ''Capital Punishment: A Reader'', editor (1998) * ''Just Peacemaking: Ten Practices for Abolishing War'', editor (1998) * ''Kingdom Ethics: Following Jesus in Contemporary Context'' (with [[David P. Gushee]]) (2003) * ''Living the Sermon on the Mount: A Practical Hope for Grace and Deliverance'' (2006) * ''Peace Action: Past, Present, and Future'', editor (with [[Lawrence S. Wittner]]) (2007) * ''Just Peacemaking: The New Paradigm for the Ethics of Peace and War'', editor (2008) * ''The War of the Lamb: The Ethics of Nonviolence and Peacemaking'', editor (2009) * ''A Thicker Jesus: Incarnational Discipleship in a Secular Age'' (2012)

==Notes== <references/>

==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20100924070918/http://justpeacemaking.org/ Official website of the ongoing Just Peacemaking project]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stassen, Glen}} [[Category:Baptist theologians from the United States]] [[Category:Duke University alumni]] [[Category:University of Virginia alumni]] [[Category:Duke University faculty]] [[Category:Harvard University faculty]] [[Category:Columbia University faculty]] [[Category:2014 deaths]] [[Category:Christian ethicists]] [[Category:Fuller Theological Seminary faculty]] [[Category:Harold Stassen]] [[Category:Union Theological Seminary alumni]] [[Category:1936 births]]