MEMORIALS: CARL FERDINAND HOWARD HENRY

Carl F. H. Henry was born on January 22, 1913, in New York City, the eldest of eight children born to German immigrant Karl Henry. he graduated from high school on Long Island in 1929. Though he had attended an Episcopal Sunday School as a boy, Carl came to faith in Christ only after the persistent witnessing and prayers of fellow workers and friends in the newspaper business. His career in journalism was exchanged for a life of service for Christ.

In 1935 Carl moved to Wheaton College where he received his B.A. and M.A. degrees. he taught typing and journalism to support himself. While in the Chicago area, Carl also earned his B.D. and Th.D. degrees at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, and was ordained to the Gospel Ministry.

On August 17, 1940 Carl married Helga Bender in Chicago. She was born of missionary parents in Cameroon, West Africa, but grew up in Watertown, WI, where her father pastored First Baptist Church for many years. Two children, Paul and Carol, were born to this union.

Carl taught theology at Northern Baptist Seminary in Chicago, and was instrumental in the founding of the National Association of Evangelicals in 1942, serving on its board and editing its magazine, United Evangelical Action. Carl graduated with a second doctorate, a Ph.D., from Boston University in 1949, while also serving as a visiting professor at Gordon Divinity School and Wheaton College.

Carl joined the Evangelical Theological Society on December 28, 1949, the 14th one to be numbered as a member on the day the society formed, and he continued his membership for 54 years until his death. he presented papers in the early years, served on the society's editorial committee from 1949-55, and was a plenary speaker at a number of annual meetings. At the time Carl joined ETS, he had already written several books, including, The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Fundamentalism, Remaking the Modern Mind, Notes on the Doctrine of God, The Protestant Dilemma, and Giving a Reason for Our Hope.

In 1947, Carl joined the first faculty of Fuller Theological Seminary as its acting dean, teaching philosophy of religion and theology, while living at 400 N. Hudson Avenue in Pasadena, CA. Eight years later, Carl became the initial editor of Christianity Today, a position which he held until 1968. In that capacity, he used his wisdom and wit to spar with liberals, fundamentalists, and new evangelicals.

Carl Henry later founded the Institute for Advanced Christian Studies and taught at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wynnewood, PA, then served as a lecturer for World Vision beginning in 1974. he traveled extensively worldwide, touching and shaping the lives of evangelicals on every continent. he was also a visiting professor of Christian Studies at Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, MI. While Carl was living in Arlington, VA, he served on the boards of Prison Fellowship, the Institute for Religion and Democracy, and the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His six-volume work, God, Revelation, and Authority, appeared in 1984. Some of his other works include, Confessions of a Theologian, Twilight of a Great Civilization, The Identity of Jesus of Nazareth, Toward a Recovery of Christian Belief, Evangelical Affirmations, Christian Mindset in a secular Society, and Dictionary of Christian Ethics.

In late 1992, Carl and Helga left Virginia for Watertown, WI, where Helga grew up as a child. They enjoyed eleven years there in the scenic pastoral rolling hillsides. Carl was at their earthly home on Hus Drive when he passed into the presence of his Lord on December 7, 2003. he lived 90 years, 11 months, and 15 days. Left to mourn his passing are his wife, Helga of Watertown, WI; Karen, the widow of his son, former Congressman, Paul Brentwood Henry, who died in 1993, and their children Kara Beth of Chicago, Jordan of Los Angeles, and Megan of Washington, D.C.; daughter Carol, and her husband, William Bates of Columbia, SC, along with their son, Stephen, a student at Wheaton College; and three sisters, Isabella, Johanna, and Eleanor. Carl was a member of the Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, B.C.

Copyright Evangelical Theological Society Mar 2004
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