The Memphis School of Preaching (MSOP) is a two-year collegiate institution devoted to the training of gospel preachers within the Church of Christ branch of Christian theology. It is overseen by the elders of the Forest Hill Church of Christ in Germantown, a suburb of Memphis, in the U.S. state of Tennessee.
Faculty
Since January 2013, MSOP has been under the direction of B.J. Clarke, who replaced Administrative Dean Bobby Liddell. Currently there are ten instructors, each having spent over a decade preaching for congregations and performing the work of a preacher, some even continuing in that work. The current instructors include B.J. Clarke, Billy Bland, Bobby Liddell, Daniel F. Cates, Kevin Rutherford, Gary Colley, Keith A. Mosher, Sr., Michael McDaniel, and T.J. Clarke.
History
The Memphis School of Preaching had its beginning in 1966 at the Getwell church in Memphis, Tennessee, being first known as "Getwell School of Preaching." Roy J. Hearn, an experienced educator and Bible teacher at two Christian colleges, saw the need for such a school to train preachers for the churches of Christ. It was felt that a two-year, intensive program of study would be the most effective way to equip a man to become a Christian preacher. He was encouraged in this endeavor by others such as N.B. Hardeman. There have been over 1,000 men who have graduated in the annual graduation exercises.
On the last Sunday in March, 1967, the first Memphis School of Preaching Lectureship took place and continued through Thursday of that week. This lectureship now continues to take place annually during that same week in March.
In March, 1969, it was decided that the school move from Getwell to the Knight Arnold Church of Christ. Classes were held in the various classrooms of the church building, and the auditorium was used for a chapel. Makeshift offices were set up in other rooms for Hearn and other instructors.
In 1972, a two-story building to the rear of the church auditorium was erected, which included classrooms, equipment, offices, and a library. In 1978, the church auditorium was "stretched" to seat twice as many, or 724 people. With the annual lectureships growing, as well as the Knight Arnold congregation, additional space was necessary to accommodate everyone. The auditorium was redecorated, with new carpets and pews installed.
In 1982, Curtis A. Cates joined the school as a faculty member and eventual successor to Hearn as school director. Hearn had expressed a wish to the elders of Knight Arnold that he would just like to study, teach, and write, so he was relieved of his administrative duties while he continued to teach for a time.
Curtis A. Cates had academic training and administrative experience in teaching in Christian colleges, as well as having a teaching doctorate. He was known to many of the early graduates who took extension courses under him while he was with Alabama Christian School of Religion (formerly Southern Christian University, now Amridge University). Through these contacts with Amridge and other Christian colleges and universities, many of the brethren within the church of Christ had developed a high regard for the caliber of the instruction MSOP had given them.
As the new millennium approached, so too did the need to move the school to its present location. The school moved to the city of Germantown. This provided the school a backdrop that was more rural and less laden with crime, and which had plenty of room for growth. So the Knight Arnold Congregation decided to move its ministry and the MSOP to its present location in Germantown, changing the congregation's name to Forest Hill.
At the beginning of 2007, the eldership at Forest Hill announced that Cates would be stepping down from the position of director to become the director emeritus. As of March 27, 2007, Bobby Liddell, who graduated from MSOP in 1979, would become the third director. It was also announced that Cates would continue to teach at the school but would, in passing on his position, have more time to travel and write.
During 2012, Bobby Liddell expressed his desire to take up a more active role in teaching and in local preaching. Effective January 1, 2013, B.J. Clarke became the fourth and current director of the school. He arrived in 2006 as an instructor and also served as dean of admissions during that time. Bobby Liddell remains as a faculty member teaching classes and serving as administrative dean.