Biography: F. Dale Bruner

Professor Emeritus
Theology Department, Whitworth University

Known, admired, and loved at Whitworth University, where he taught for 22 years, and throughout the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the American faith community, F. Dale Bruner returns to Spokane as a keynote speaker for the Whitworth Institute of Ministry.

Bruner graduated from Occidental College, in Los Angeles, in 1954; he then earned his M.Div. at Princeton Theological Seminary and his Dr. theol at Germany's Hamburg University. After teaching for 11 years at Union Theological Seminary in the Philippines, he came to Whitworth in 1975.

He is the author of A Theology of the Holy Spirit: The Pentecostal Experience and the New Testament Witness (Eerdmans, 1970) and Matthew: A Commentary (2 volumes; revised and expanded edition, Eerdmans, 2004). His commentary on John's Gospel is scheduled for publication by Eerdmans sometime this year. He also co-authored, with William Holdern, The Holy Spirit: Shy Member of the Trinity (Augsburg, 1983).

During his 22 years as George & Lyda Wasson Professor of Religion at Whitworth, Bruner touched the lives of countless students. His passion for teaching the biblical narrative, for scholarship and for church renewal made him one of Whitworth's most influential professors. Bruner's influence extends far beyond the generation of students he taught and mentored at Whitworth. In fact, during his tenure at the college, he spoke and taught at hundreds of churches all over the country. Here, too, his passion for the gospel and his utter belief in the healing power of the church was infectious, and he became one of the most sought-after speakers in the Presbyterian Church. He continues to have a vital teaching ministry in the PCUSA.

Bruner retired from Whitworth in 1997. He and his wife of 51years, Kathy, moved to Pasadena, Calif., where Bruner embarked on new studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. He is now working on a commentary on the fifth Gospel, Paul's Letter to the Romans. Acknowledging his single-minded, scholarly nature, he adds, "Most afternoons after work Kathy and I walk together in the park so that I can learn to 'chat,' my single major challenge in life." On Sunday mornings during the school year he enjoys teaching the Good News Sunday-school class with his wife and another couple at his home church, The First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood. He wrote us, "I am deeply grateful to God for the privilege of studying and teaching what I believe with the Church is the single most important subject in the world: the gospel of Jesus Christ."