A Plaque for My Father from Students at the Virginia Theological Seminary, 1981

 

Lutheran theological seminary humor from 1981, on a plaque for my father that I never saw before or heard him talk about. I discovered it in storage with some of his belongings only recently, after his death more than three years ago now.

Below is the text.

__

This is to certify that

The Rev. Dewey Diaz Wallace

Presbyterian Divine and Church Historian Extra-Ordinaire

Has Been Designated

An Honorary, Middle-of-the-Road Anglican

By the Church History 3 Class

Virginia Theological Seminary

Spring Semester, 1981

In Recognition Of

His abilities as an erudite, entertaining lecturer with an amazing grasp of the first, middle, and last names of all sorts of churchly notables, both historical and hysterical.

An uncanny ability to mention a certain seminary in Princeton, New Jersey, in every lecture, at least once.

And

His recall of, and willingness to share, as writer’s cramp sets in at noon on Fridays, his fund of stories regarding most unforgettable evangelicals and long-dead theologians.

Engaging in “The Jerks” and various other holy awakenings.

____

I discarded the plaque with its humor that is not even remotely like my father’s humor. The description in it though certainly does sound quite a bit like my father, which is why I have posted a photo of it here, and the complete text, for the sake of any relevant posterity.