Baylor Mourns Death Of Chip Conyers

by Larry D. Brumley

Dr. Abdah Johnson (Chip) Conyers, one of George W. Truett Theological Seminary's first faculty members, died early Sunday, July 18, in Houston following a long struggle with cancer. He was 60.
Funeral services for Conyers will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 21, at First Baptist Church, Waco, 500 Webster. Burial will follow at Oakwood Cemetery in Waco. Visitation will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, July 20, at the family's home at 500 N. Park Ave. in Waco.
Memorials can be made to the A.J. "Chip" Conyers Scholarship Fund at Truett Seminary, One Bear Place #97050, Waco, TX 76798-7050.
"Chip was not only a valued colleague and member of the Baylor family, but also a dear friend," said Baylor President Robert B. Sloan Jr., who hired Conyers while serving as Truett's first dean. "He possessed a rare combination of gifts - a wonderful ability to teach, to write and to relate as a mentor to students. He was compassionate and gentle, yet had very high standards and expected much from his students. Chip was constantly thinking theologically in the best possible sense. He was always asking how the Christian faith could impact living. One of the great gifts he left at the end was to be very vulnerable and transparent with his colleagues and students about the process of facing death and the gracious providence of God in it all. He will be dearly missed."
Before joining Truett as professor of theology in 1994, Conyers served as chairman of the department of religion and philosophy at Charleston Southern University in South Carolina. He held the A.B. degree from the University of Georgia and earned his master of divinity from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and his Ph.D. from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
His books include "The Eclipse of Heaven: The Loss of Transcendence in Church and Society"; "A Basic Christian Theology," a theology textbook; "The End: What Jesus Really Said About the Last Things"; "God, Hope, and History: Jürgen Moltmann's Christian Concept of History"; "The Long Truce: How Toleration Made the World Safe of Power and Profit"; and "Last Things: The Heart of New Testament Eschatology." His essays have appeared in Christian Century, Christianity Today, First Things, Touchstone, Modern Age, Books and Culture, as well as a number of academic journals.
A frequent talk-show guest and columnist in the local and national media, he also was a regular speaker at churches, civic groups and academic conferences throughout the country.
Conyers was a former member of Baylor's Faculty Senate and served on a number of Seminary and University committees. He was a member of First Baptist Church, Waco, and is survived by his wife, Debbie; a daughter, Emily; a son, A.J. IV; and one grandson, Paul.