John Edgar Park
1879 - 1956
Congregational
Biography
John Edgar Park (1879–1956) was an Irish-born American minister, educator, author, preacher, and hymn writer whose career moved from Presbyterian ordination into long service in Congregational institutions. Born in Belfast, he studied at Queen's College Belfast, the Royal University in Dublin, New College Edinburgh, and other European universities before completing theological study at Princeton Theological Seminary. He was ordained a Presbyterian minister in 1903 and later served Congregational churches in Massachusetts, including the Second Church in West Newton, where he ministered for nineteen years.
Park combined parish work with education and public preaching. During the 1920s he taught the theory of worship at Boston University School of Theology and served in leadership connected with Andover-Newton Theological Seminary. In 1926 he became president of Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, remaining until 1944. Wheaton credits his presidency with curricular modernization, continued campus development, and growing academic recognition during the Depression and the Second World War. He also delivered the Lyman Beecher Lectures at Yale in 1936 and served on Harvard's board of preachers.
His published work ranged from devotional and homiletical writing to fiction and Christmas literature, including The Wonder of His Gracious Words, The Disadvantages of Being Good, The Bad Results of Good Habits, and New Horizons. Hymnary indexes several texts by Park, among them We Would See Jesus, O Jesus, Thou Wast Tempted, and O Christ, Whose Love Has Sought Us Out. His hymn writing reflects the same concern for worship, Christian formation, and the person of Christ that marked his ministry and teaching.
Park combined parish work with education and public preaching. During the 1920s he taught the theory of worship at Boston University School of Theology and served in leadership connected with Andover-Newton Theological Seminary. In 1926 he became president of Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, remaining until 1944. Wheaton credits his presidency with curricular modernization, continued campus development, and growing academic recognition during the Depression and the Second World War. He also delivered the Lyman Beecher Lectures at Yale in 1936 and served on Harvard's board of preachers.
His published work ranged from devotional and homiletical writing to fiction and Christmas literature, including The Wonder of His Gracious Words, The Disadvantages of Being Good, The Bad Results of Good Habits, and New Horizons. Hymnary indexes several texts by Park, among them We Would See Jesus, O Jesus, Thou Wast Tempted, and O Christ, Whose Love Has Sought Us Out. His hymn writing reflects the same concern for worship, Christian formation, and the person of Christ that marked his ministry and teaching.
Hymns by John Edgar Park
We Would See Jesus
Role: Lyricist