Chancellor Pullin Inauguration
On November 6, 2025, I had the opportunity to represent the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and especially the Christian Church in the Southwest at the Prayer Service for Chancellor Daniel Pullin’s inauguration day. The prayer service was organized by TCU’s Office of Spiritual Life and was hosted by University Christian Church, Fort Worth. Here were my prepared remarks.
Chancellor Pullin, I bring greetings on behalf of our General Minister and President, Rev. Terri Hord Owens; the Presidents of the General Ministries, the College of Regional Ministers and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the Southwest.
I am grateful for the TCU Chaplaincy Team for organizing a prayer service to begin this historic day and for inviting a representative from the Disciples of Christ. And to Dr. Peterman and UCC. The whole Disciples of Christ family congratulates you and celebrates with you on this important day.
In 1832, the “Christian” Restoration Movement, led by Barton W. Stone, and the “Disciples” restoration movement led by Alexander Campbell, merged the two movements into one. There was no creed, no contract, and no coercion. Just a covenant: the simple right hand of fellowship. The two movements disagreed on a number of issues. In fact, they only really agreed on one thing—that we can disagree with one another and still co-labor for God.
That's the origin story of the Disciples' commitment to intellectual freedom. We prefer libraries to cathedrals, persuasive essays over prescriptive missives. We host debates instead of convening councils. We don't have bishops, we have editors. For over two hundred years, we’ve been conducting an experiment built on this question: can a movement that grants the greatest latitude of freedom maintain the bonds of Christian unity?
Freedom and unity are each volatile compounds. Holding them together in such close proximity to one another is a challenge. Our experiment has been bumpy at times because we have been so devoted to authentic discourse and we have given broad tolerance of dissent. Feelings get hurt; people’s opinions are tested more than they are reinforced. There are reasons a Disciples-related school would say, “Give ‘em hell.” Reasons at the line of scrimmage and beyond.
We've also had moments success. Like when Preston Taylor, the leading African-American Disciple of the early 20th Century, persuaded his fellow African-Americans Disciples to remain connected with our fellowship. Not because the rest us were so enlightened on issues of racial reconciliation. But because he believed we could, with God’s help, prove the truth of our conviction by accepting as equals those persons we had been taught to disdain. Proof that we do not have to be in full agreement to be in full communion.
It makes sense, then, that a movement so committed to the free exchange of ideas would be devoted to higher education. Alexander Campbell founded Bethany College in West Virginia. Other Disciples schools include Hiram College in Ohio, once led by James Garfield, who would later become President of the United States, the only ordained clergy so far to hold that office.
Eureka College in Illinois, where President Ronald Reagan was educated. Important HBCUs like Tougaloo College in Mississippi and Jarvis Christian University here in Texas. Some fifteen bachelor degree-granting institutions. Along with five theological seminaries and multiple educational collaborations.
And of course, the flagship university among Disciples of Christ, Texas Christian University. We celebrate the visionary leadership of brothers Addison and Randolph Clark, but they did not act alone.
TCU was nurtured by Christian Churches in Fort Worth, Granbury, Thorp Spring, Waco, and really the whole association of the Christian Churches in Texas. University Christian Church here has been a constant companion to Texas Christian University as long as TCU has been in Fort Worth. TCU has been much more of a group project than a singular achievement.
It would be difficult to pinpoint precisely what separates TCU from its peers. It is not just because of its superior athletics (Go Frogs). I am convinced it has more to do with TCU’s rare combination of both breadth and depth. It is remarkable that a university can have both the leading nursing school and the leading business school in the state of Texas. TCU excels in fields as different as education and engineering; journalism and kinesiology.
The breadth and depth of TCU's commitments are reflected in the Office of Religious and Spiritual life where the TCU chaplains work faithfully to ensure that any student can find a spiritual home here. TCU has proven time and again that a university doesn’t require uniformity to be great.
The founders of our denomination would have liked you, Chancellor Pullin. It’s easy for me to say that—they’re not here to disagree with me. And at least one of them would disagree with me. I don’t know who. It’s just in our nature to disagree. But the contributions you have already made to Texas Christian University are notable. You could retire tomorrow—please don’t—but you would still be acknowledged as one of TCU’s finest leaders. Especially the Lead On initiative, with its emphasis on values over dogma, making a contribution over seizing control; it resonates with our Disciples ethos at our deepest levels.
We believe our capacity as Disciples and as TCU to be united and not uniform comes from the person and ministry of Jesus Christ himself. The Gospels narrate at least fifty debate texts where Jesus argued with one group or another. This year's lectionary readings only includes only one--it's this Sunday's Gospel reading. My point is, Jesus was much more comfortable with people who disagreed with him than most Christians today are. But on our best days, we follow in Jesus's steps and engage with difference rather than trying to eliminate it.
It is because of his call on our lives that we devote ourselves to stay in the covenant, in the debate, at the podium, in the laboratory testing the ideas, and most of all at the Table. We like to quote the first half of our identity statement often: “We are Disciples of Christ, a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world.” But the second half of that statement is arguably more important than the first: “We welcome all to the table of the Lord as God in Christ has welcomed us.”
Chancellor Pullin, we pray for your protection and your endurance. We pray God continues to grant you wisdom. We pray that you demonstrate resolve when resolve is necessary and flexibility when flexibility is called for, and that you be given the discernment to navigate the difference. We would only echo back to you the call you have placed before us: Lead On