Collections : [Yale University -Divinity School Library]

Minutes, reports and proposals document the development and activities of the Commission, including its participation in the Associated Commissions for the Development of the Rural Church in New England. Correspondence focuses on Luther A. Weigle's involvement in the Commission. The Interseminary Commission for Training for the Rural Ministry was established in 1929, with funding from John D. Rockefeller, Jr., as a cooperative effort to provide more adequate preparation for ministers working in town and country fields. The activities of the Interseminary Commission included summer institutes, research seminars, supervised fieldwork, and courses offered in connection with the seven participating seminaries: Andover Newton Theological School, Auburn Theological Seminary, Boston University School of Theology, Bangor Theological Seminary, Hartford Theological Seminary, Union Theological Seminary and Yale Divinity School.

The papers contain extensive documentation of Latourette's personal life, scholarly activities, and involvement in various organizations. Latourette was a professor of missions and Oriental history at Yale University. He held leadership positions in the American Baptist Convention and Foreign Mission Society, American Historical Association, Far Eastern Association, International Committee of Y.M.C.A.'s, Japan International Christian University Foundation, United Board for Christian Colleges in China, World Council of Churches, and Yale-China Association.

The papers document Pope's career and thought. They are primarily related to his professional work, but personal insights are also available, particularly in the correspondence with his wife and friends. The collection provides information about theological education in the United States, the activities of the ecumenical movement during the 1950s, the relationship of the church (particularly the Congregational denomination) to social concerns such as labor and race relations during the 1950s. Liston Corlando Pope was born on September 6, 1909 in Thomasville, North Carolina. He was educated at Duke University (A.B., 1929; B.D., 1932) and Yale University (Ph.D., 1940). He served as pastor of churches in North Carolina and New Haven, Connecticut (1932-1938), professor of Social Ethics (1938-1973) and Dean (1949-1962) of Yale Divinity School, author and editor. He was active in the Congregational Christian Churches denomination (1850-1960) and the ecumenical movement, particularly the World Council of Churches, and in organizations involved in theological education. He died in Norway in April, 1974.

The collection includes agendas, notes and working drafts that document the Committee's progress in its translation revision work. There is a small amount of material related to Committee procedures and publicity material. There is interesting documentation of public reaction to the new Revised Standard Version. The Standard Bible Committee was organized in 1929 by the International Council of Religious Education. The Committee was authorized in 1937 to proceed with the revision of the English translation of the Bible. The Committee's work resulted in the Revised Standard Version of the Bible. The Revised Standard Version of the New Testament was published in 1946, the entire Bible in 1952, and the Apocrypha in 1957. The work of the Committee was ongoing, to provide for future translation revisions.