Covenanter Witness Vol. 55 - Rparchives.org

In Memoryof Paul ColemanAdopted by the Synod of 1955The roll of our Synod again has been reduced,and the company of heaven has been increased.Another soldier of the cross has heard and answeredthe call of his Captain to promotion into the higherranks.Paul Coleman, the second son of William Johnand Elizabeth Sarah (George) Coleman, was bornJuly 27, 1884 at Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania and departed this life June 13, 1955 at Kansas City. Deathcame as a welcome release after a period of declining health and severe sickness which stretched backover a period of five years. Through it all, he "endured hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ."The type of home from which he came made itnatural for Paul Coleman to give his loyalty to,and spend his life in, the Covenanter Church.In his youth, he united with the Allegheny Congregation under the pastorate of his father. Hisearly education was received in the elementaryschools of Allegheny. He received his B.A. degreefrom the Western University of Pennsylvania (nowthe University of Pittsburgh) in 1905, and laterin 1911 his M.A. degree from Columbia. Just priorto the later date, a year was spent in Harvard.Throughout all of his educational training he ranked high in scholarship, was outstanding in oratory,and in 1905 was college candidate for the CecilRhodes Scholarship to Oxford.His special training for the ministry was takenin the Reformed Presbyterian Seminary (then inAllegheny) from which he was graduated in 1909.The summers of 1907 and 1908 were spent at theIndian Mission at Apache, Oklahoma.He was licensed to preach by Pittsburgh Presbytery in April 1908. In 1912 he accepted a call fromthe Long Branch congregation of the ReformedPresbyterian Church at Blanchard, Iowa; and onFebruary 15 of that year, he was ordained to theGospel ministry by Kansas Presbytery,and installedpastor of this congregation. Here he served faithfully until released on December 7, 1923 to take upa new charge in Kansas City, where for thirty-oneyears he has been a faithful and beloved undershepherdto that group. On account of increasingweakness, he was forced to give upthe pastorateand was released, with deep regret, on July 31, 1954.During this pastorate he took post-graduate workin the Baptist Theological Seminary of Kansas Cityand earned the degree of Doctor of Theology in1936. He was also honored with the degree ofDoctor of Divinity by Geneva College in 1945. OnJune 8, 1955, five days before his Master's Call,he was elected Honorary Moderator of the Synod(in absentia) the only one, we believe, to have everreceived this honor.On January 11, 1912, he was united in marriagewith Margaret Hastings Fenwick in Cambridge,Massachusetts and through all the years she has166been a worthy help-meet in their work together forthe Lord. The children that have shared in the benefits and blessings of their home rise up to call themblessed. For all bereaved ones we pray God's sustaining grace.Although serving in only two pastorates, theother services of Paul Coleman have been wide andvaried. In the earlier years of his ministry he lectured extensively in Iowa on Reform questions. In hislater years he was a strongsupporter of the Christian Amendment Movement. He spent two summers in the Indian Mission. At varying times, andfor extended periods, he has served on the ChurchErection Board, the Publication Board, the Boardof Christian Education, Synod's Committee on BibleReading, the Temperance Committee, the Committee on Evangelism, and on other committees ofSynod and Presbytery.He was a consistent worker through the yef rs,and from his consecrated mind came the tract, "ThePsalms as a Means to a Srarit-filled Life," and manyworthwhile articles published in the CovenanterWitness.Paul Coleman was a man of marked characteristics. He will be remembered by many for hisearnestness, and sincerity, and carefully thoughtoutjudgments. Some of us remember him as a sortof mediator. He had a well-controlled temper, andwas marked for his calmness and composure whenthe going was rough. He was a master of courtesy,frequently remembering the little niceties whichothers of us forget. With all he was very human.His influence was far-reaching, and his upliftingtouch has been felt by many lives.Paul Coleman loved the Lord His Word HisWork His Church His People. He has served hisgeneration well, and has now fallen asleep in Christ.But, "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord,"for as they rest from their labors, their worksdo follow them.P. D. McCrackenIN SYMPATHYKansas City congregation extends deepest sympathy to Mrs. Coleman and the children, in the passing of Dr. Paul Coleman on Monday afternoon, June13. Dr. Coleman served this congregation as ourPastor for upwards of thirty years. Many of us,he led to Christ. He declared to us the whole counselof God from His Word; instructed us in Christiantruth; ministered to us in times of difficulty, sickness, and sorrow; led us in the work of the Kingdom; and by the example of his own life, encouraged us in high ideals of Christian living. We areconfident that "the seed of the Word of God" whichhas shown during his life and ministry among uswill continue to bring forth fruit to the glory ofGod and the advancement of the cause of Christ,even to generations yet unborn.COVENANTER WITNESS