Princeton, NJ, November 7, 2011–Dr. Thomas W. Gillespie, president emeritus of Princeton Theological Seminary, died at Princeton Medical Center on November 5, 2011. He was 83 years old.

thomas gillespieGillespie was appointed as the fifth president of the Seminary, the first theological seminary established by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church and the largest Presbyterian seminary in the country, in 1983 and served as president and professor of New Testament until his retirement in 2004.

During his presidency, Gillespie strengthened the Seminary faculty with the addition of three African American professors, eleven women professors, and the first professor of science and theology, Dr. Wentzel van Huyssteen of South Africa. Gillespie’s tenure saw the establishment of the Kyung-Chik Han Chair in Systematic Theology, held by Professor Sang Lee and the first chair at an American seminary to honor an Asian church leader.

During Gillespie’s presidency, Princeton Seminary constructed several new buildings, including Luce Library, Scheide and Templeton Halls, the Witherspoon Apartments, and a new parking garage. Erdman Hall was completely redesigned and renovated as the Seminary’s state-of-the-art continuing education center, and Miller Chapel underwent a major restoration, including the installation of the Joe. R. Engle Organ.

Under his leadership, the Seminary established the Institute for Youth Ministry, one of the foremost educational programs in support of the theology and practice of youth ministry in the country.

Gillespie also led in the development of a significant partnership with Pew Charitable Trust and Lilly Endowment Inc. to provide an office for the Hispanic Theological Initiative, a national initiative to support and train Ph.D.-level Hispanic/Latina(o) scholars and teachers.

Gillespie was the author of The First Theologians: A Study in Early Christian Prophecy, published by William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company in 1994.

But it was as a pastor that Gillespie was most known and valued by the Seminary community and alumni/ae. He regularly preached in chapel during his presidency, and often provided pastoral care to students, faculty members, and staff.  He once said that “there is no work in the world that is more interesting, more challenging, and more gratifying than the work of pastoral ministry. Among the honors that have come to me, I can think of none greater than when a member of my congregation has introduced me to a friend by saying, ‘I would like you to meet my pastor.’”

Gillespie understood the Seminary as being in service to the church, and served on many denominational committees and bodies of the Presbyterian Church (USA), and of San Francisco and New Brunswick Presbyteries. After his retirement, he served as a member of the General Assembly Council, the PCUSA’s national governing council.

Gillespie graduated from Pepperdine University in 1951 and from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1954. Prior to assuming his position as president of Princeton Seminary, he began a new church in Garden Grove, California, and served as its pastor from 1954 to 1966. In 1966 he was called to be pastor and head of staff of the First Presbyterian Church in Burlingame, California, and served there until 1983. He earned a Ph.D. from Claremont Graduate School in 1971.

Gillespie is survived by his wife of 58 years, Barbara; his son William Gillespie of London, England, and daughter-in-law Angela Im; his daughter Robyn Glassman of Denver, Colorado, and son-in-law Kenneth Glassman; and his daughter Dayle Gillespie Rounds of Princeton, New Jersey, and son-in-law Stephen Rounds; and his grandchildren William, Trevor, and Hilary Glassman, Isla Gillespie, and Emilia and Alexandra Rounds.

The memorial service for President Gillespie will be held at Nassau Presbyterian Church in Princeton on Monday, November 14, 2011, at 1:00 p.m., followed by a reception in the Main Lounge of the Mackay Campus Center on the Seminary’s main campus. Parking at the Seminary will be limited. There will be a private burial preceding the memorial service.

Memorial gifts may be made to the Thomas W. Gillespie Scholarship Endowment Fund and sent to the Office of Seminary Relations, Princeton Theological Seminary, 64 Mercer Street, Princeton, NJ 08540.  Online donations can be made as well. Click here to give online. On the donation page under the “other” category, enter “Gillespie Scholarship” and the amount of your gift.

Princeton Theological Seminary was founded in 1812 as the first seminary established by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. It is the largest Presbyterian seminary in the country, with more than 500 students in six graduate degree programs.