John G. Gammie was once hailed as the “Sherlock of Scholars” because he disputed the existing theory about the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The University of Tulsa professor of religion was not satisfied with existing scholarship, and he suggested his own ideas, based on his research. His work eventually led to a short course: “Vision of the End: An Introduction of the Apocalyptic.”
It was that kind of independent thinking that likely prompted Gammie’s appointment to the editorial board of the Journal of Biblical Literature and to his success as the Emma A. Harwell Professor of Biblical Literature at TU.
Dr. Gammie taught at TU for 26 years. He had previously served as pastor of a Presbyterian church, and for two years as a U.S. Army chaplain in Korea. His credentials included a bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College and a bachelor of divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary. He had attended universities in Germany, Switzerland and Scotland, earning a PhD at the University of Edinburgh. He wrote many articles about the Old Testament, authored the book Holiness in Israel, and co-edited two other books. The Southwest Commission on Religious Studies honored his work with the John G. Gammie Distinguished Scholar Award, which is given annually.
Gammie also was instrumental in getting a Phi Beta Kappa chapter established at TU. Although the university had long had other academic honor societies, including Mortar Board, Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Gamma Kappa, founding a Phi Beta Kappa chapter would bring additional distinction to the university and to qualifying students. In the fall of 1985, TU faculty and staff began petitioning the national organization. In October 1988, delegates to the 35th Triennial Council voted to affirm a charter for the TU chapter. On May 4, 1989, The University of Tulsa became the Beta Chapter of Oklahoma and the 240th institution to earn such recognition. More than 100 people attended the first gathering, at which the chapter installed 16 new members.
Regrettably, Professor Gammie died just seven months after the chapter was established. Not long after, in recognition of his scholarship and service, Beta Chapter created the Phi Beta Kappa Endowment Fund for the John G. Gammie Symposium Series and Related Programs with gifts from Professor Gammie’s family, friends and former students. Through the support of this fund, TU hosts a triennial symposium that covers diverse subjects of scholarly interest. In 2005, for example, the son of the late Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev spoke on the political backdrop of art in post-Stalinist Russia. The 2014 symposium explored the ethics of human medical research, and the 2017 symposium featured a keynote lecture by journalist Rebecca Traister regarding her book, All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation. In her talk, Traister explored the fact that unmarried women have been some of the most successful writers, activists and thinkers throughout history.
The University of Tulsa is grateful for this endowed symposium fund, which fortifies scholarship at TU while paying tribute to a distinguished and popular professor.
