Dr. Lester Ruth
Lily May Jarvis Professor of Christian Worship
Expertise:
- History of Christian Worship (particularly Early Methodism)
- Creativity with the Sacraments
- Contemporary Worship
Education:
- B.B.A., Stephen F. Austin University, 1981; M.Div., Asbury Theological Seminary, 1985; Th.M., Emory University, 1988; M.A., University of Notre Dame, 1994; Ph.D., University of Notre Dame, 1996.
Prior to joining the Asbury Seminary faculty the fall of 2000, Dr. Ruth was the Assistant Professor of Liturgical Studies at Yale University’s Institute of Sacred Music and Divinity School from 1998-2000. He has also served as an adjunct faculty member at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary and at Tyndale Theological Seminary. Dr. Ruth, an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church, pastored three churches in Texas from 1984 to 1996. He is the author of four books, A Little Heaven Below: Worship at Early Methodist Quarterly Meetings (Kingswood Books, 2000), Accompanying the Journey: A Handbook for Sponsors (Discipleship Resources, 1997), Creative Preaching on the Sacraments (with Craig Satterlee; Discipleship Resources, 2001), and Early Methodist Life and Spirituality: A Reader (Kingswood Books, 2005). A Little Heaven Below was awarded the Jesse Lee Prize by the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History. Dr. Ruth has written articles for periodicals such as Worship, Sacramental Life, The Wesleyan Theological Journal, Reformed Liturgy and Music, and Methodist History, while also contributing essays to Worship Matters: A United Methodist Guide to Worship Work (Discipleship Resources, 1999) and The Complete Library of Christian Worship (Star Song, 1994). His most recent work has been on looking at the theological content of the most used contemporary worship songs. Dr. Ruth is a John Wesley fellow and a member of the International Society of Theta Phi. He and his wife, Carmen, have two daughters: Charissa (16) and Rebekah (13).