AMARILLO BIBLE CHAIR
at Amarillo College
What is a Bible Chair?
The term “Bible Chair” is an adaption of a term commonly used in colleges and universities. A “chair” can be established in any department to draw students due to the subject matter or the professor teaching in that position. In Amarillo the Bible Chair is not directly on campus but nearby and funded entirely by churches and individuals. Students can obtain an associate degree in religion accredited by Amarillo College. Amarillo Bible Chair is the only Chair at Amarillo College that teaches Bible courses for credit toward a religion degree. The academic classes are taught by William Mural Worthey. These students can then transfer to a university and pursue a bachelor’s and/or master’s degree in religion.
The History of the Amarillo Bible Chair
The Amarillo Bible Chair was founded in 1972 by Gordon Downing and the San Jacinto church of Christ in Amarillo. Brother Downing directed the activities of the Bible Chair for four years, and the San Jacinto church has continued their support of the work for almost fifty years (1972-2022). We have had three churches in Amarillo oversee the Bible Chair over this period. They are San Jacinto church of Christ, Comanche Trail church of Christ, and Bell Avenue church of Christ. We have had a number of directors over the years. Following Gordon Downing, they are Dean Morgan, Wayne Wilks, Jerry Klein, Wyatt Fenno, Mark Johnson, Bobby Boaldin, Frank Bellizzi, Jerry Klein (second term), and Mural Worthey.
The Amarillo Bible Chair facility is located at 2501 S Jackson Street, across the street from Amarillo College. The building is used for students to gather for Christian fellowship, counseling, devotionals, lectures, Bible classes, fellowship meals, and to extend our presence and Christian influence among Amarillo college students, staff and community. We also host a Christian Club on campus known as Kappa Chi, which stands for Christian fellowship. William Mural Worthey is the director of the Amarillo Bible Chair.
Norma and Mural Worthey (pictured at left). Mural has been the Bible Chair Director since the summer of 2017. Mural serves as sponsor of Kappa Chi, our Christian club on campus; he teaches Bible classes at the Bible Chair and also is an instructor in the Philosophy Department of AC.
Director's Report
We are already ending our third week of Spring 1, 2025. I am teaching seven classes during both 8-week sessions with 86 students registered for these classes so far. Last week when we had one snow day due to an unusual amount of snow for us and frigid temperatures, we were able to continue our classes online.
I want to tell you about one of our religion majors who is a junior in high school. Due to dual credit classes at his high school, he is far ahead of other juniors. He is attending Amarillo College as a sixteen-year old and taking our Bible classes classified as honor classes. This means that he is completing assignments beyond what is required of other students. Last semester he wrote a paper on the canon of the New Testament. In our present class, Introduction to the Old Testament, he is doing research on the book of Esther. In our class this morning, I asked him to give the class a summary of his approach to this study. He related some of the background of this important book of the Old Testament with details that often are omitted when discussing Esther.
This is why I enjoy teaching Bible classes. Occasionally, you have a remarkable student like this one. I look forward to reading his research. I want to keep up with him in the future as he continues his studies in the Scriptures.
Those who Stay by the Stuff (1 Sam. 30:23-25)
After a battle with the Amalekites, two hundred of David’s warriors did not want to share the spoils of war with those who did not go to battle with them. David rebuked them saying, “But as his part is that goes down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarries by the stuff; they shall share alike.” (1 Sam. 30:24, 25)
David was not establishing some new ordinance or statute in Israel concerning spoils of war. It was in fact a very old statute. See Numbers 31:25-47 and Joshua 22:8. Some of the plunder was given as a contribution to the Lord. It was He who have given them the victory!
In our spiritual battles, some today do not want to acknowledge the good that others do when they “stay by the stuff.” Each member of the body has different gifts. (1 Cor. 12:4) The hand should not be made to feel guilty because it cannot do what the eye does. Not every member is an evangelist. Not everyone can be an apostle. (Eph. 4:11, 12) Every member will share alike, whether they go to battle the enemy or whether they “stay by the stuff.”
Kappa Chi
Kappa Chi has a strong presence on the Amarillo College campus, currently averaging 40 members. Kappa (K) is the first letter in the Greek word for fellowship, and Chi (X) is the first letter in the Greek word for Christ. Thus, Kappa Chi stands for “Fellowship in Christ.”
Membership is open to any AC student who wants to be a member. There are no dues; but the members are expected to help pay for the parties, retreats and trips in which they choose to participate. Club t-shirts are available for purchase. Send an email to amarillobiblechair@gmail.com if you would like to join the club. . Mural Worthey is the faculty sponsor.
On Tuesdays of the regular semester, we have a lunch meal for our Kappa Chi students and enjoy fellowship with one another. This gives us an opportunity to talk about biblical subjects. New students often ask about the meaning of a Bible Chair and how we function on a state college campus.
Our 2024 Fall graduation was held in the Civic Center in Amarillo on Friday evening, December 13. We honored one of our graduates at the Bible Chair on Saturday. Norma prepared a meal for her family and afterward we took pictures with Donna Warner. I expressed to her family that we appreciated her dedication in her biblical studies. For the past several years she completed her studies at AC while battling cancer. She introduced several of her family members to the Bible Chair and our classes. Some of these have plans to enroll for Spring 2025.
I want you to know of my appreciation for your support of the Bible Chair. I let my classes know how the Bible Chair exists at a State Community College. From them, thank you!