Ed Dobson

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Northern Irish-American pastor and author (1949–2015)

title: "Ed Dobson" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1949-births", "2015-deaths", "20th-century-apocalypticists", "20th-century-evangelicals", "21st-century-apocalypticists", "21st-century-evangelicals", "21st-century-writers-from-northern-ireland", "american-male-writers", "21st-century-american-theologians", "british-theologians", "cornerstone-university", "deaths-from-motor-neuron-disease-in-the-united-states", "irish-christian-theologians", "male-non-fiction-writers-from-northern-ireland", "neurological-disease-deaths-in-michigan"] description: "Northern Irish-American pastor and author (1949–2015)" topic_path: "philosophy" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Dobson" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Northern Irish-American pastor and author (1949–2015) ::

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Edward George Dobson (29 December 1949 – 26 December 2015) was a long-serving Northern Irish-American pastor, a University of Virginia Ed. D. in higher education, a popular founding dean of Liberty University, He was a nationally known author and speaker on Christian and other issues, including after being diagnosed with ALS in 2000.

Early life and education

Born Edward George Dobson on 29 December 1949, in Northern Ireland, Dobson was a pastor's son and came to the United States in 1964 at the age of 14.

Dobson earned a BA (1970) and an MA (1972) from Bob Jones University, and an Ed. D. (1986) in higher education from the University of Virginia.

Career

As Dean Merrill stated in Christianity Today in 1997,[Dobson] arrived in Lynchburg at age 23. His first job was to be Liberty University’s dean of men, but before long he was also teaching New Testament survey, coaching the soccer team, and taking on more administrative duties. In time, Dobson was named vice president for student life as well as associate pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church. When the Moral Majority was organized [by Jerry Falwell] in June 1979, he was on the board.

As a founding dean of Liberty University, Dobson was popular [with students and colleagues].

By the late 1980s, Dobson had expressed what he acknowledges as disillusionment toward Christian participation in the political process, and he moved away from fundamentalism toward mainstream evangelicalism. He decided that the rationale behind the Moral Majority had been wrongheaded - that to a significant degree cultural problems could not be remedied through the political process.

In 1987, Dobson left Liberty. He took the position of senior pastor at Calvary Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he would remain for eighteen years (1987–2005).

Later life

Dobson was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease) in 2000. Dobson continued in the pastorate of Calvary Church until 2005, wrote the memoir, Prayers and Promises when Facing a Life-Threatening Illness, published by Zondervan in 2007, and served as an advisory editor for Christianity Today.

Publications

  • Abraham: The Lord will Provide (1993).
  • Blinded by Might (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1999) with Cal Thomas.
  • Daniel: Making the Right Choices (1994).
  • Finding God in the face of evil (2002)
  • King James Bible Commentary (1999).
  • The Knowing Jesus Study Bible, NIV (2000) with Ed Hindson.
  • Mastering Conflict and Controversy (1992).
  • Prayers and Promises When Facing a Life-Threatening Illness (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007).
  • Simplicity (1996)
  • Starting a Seeker-Sensitive Service (1993).
  • What the Bible Really Says about Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage (1986).
  • The Fundamentalist Phenomenon (1st edition 1980, 2nd edition 1986) with Ed Hindson and Jerry Falwell.
  • The End: Why Jesus Could Return by A.D. 2000 (1997).
  • The Year Of Living Like Jesus (2009).
  • Seeing through the Fog: Hope When Your World Falls Apart (2012).
  • Ed's Story (2001–2015).

Awards and recognition

In 1993, Moody Bible Institute named Dobson "Pastor of the Year". In Spring 2008, Grand Rapids Theological Seminary dedicated a "Dobson Study Center" in its classroom building to honor Dobson's long pastorate and television ministry in Grand Rapids.

Personal life

Dobson lived for much of the latter part of his life in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He was married to Lorna Walker and his family included two sons, Kent and Daniel.

A short video was made of Dobson's struggle with his ALS.

Ed Dobson died on 26 December 2015, at age 65.

Altruism

Dobson was a Corvette enthusiast, and participated in a cross-country drive on Route 66 to raise money for ALS research, an event that drew "40 friends and a dozen Corvettes" and raised approximately $275,000; he stated, at the time, "I’m just praying this trip will... lead to greater awareness and... research to find a cure, probably not for me but for others".

Personal criticisms

As noted in his obituary, some religious conservatives had earlier criticized Dobson "for his decision to have an occasional beer while testifying about his Christian faith".

Family publicity

Dobson's son, Kent, became pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church (formerly pastored by Rob Bell, whom Ed Dobson had mentored) but resigned in November 2015, telling the congregation that he was "not drawn to the orthodox or the mainstream or the status quo."

In May 2013, Dobson's son Daniel, a U.S. Army veteran of the Iraq war, came out publicly as gay.

References

References

  1. Blair, Leonardo. (30 October 2017). "Michigan Megachurch spent £28.5m on expansion so people can be more merciful and hospitable".
  2. Merica, Dan. (18 February 2012). "Facing Death, A Top Pastor Rethinks What It Means To Be Christian". CNN Belief Blog.
  3. . ["Edward Dobson"](https://www.ofieldfuneralhome.com/obituary/Edward-Dobson).
  4. Lee, Morgan. (29 December 2015). "Died: Ed Dobson, Pastor and One-Time Moral Majority Leader". [[ChristianityToday.com]].
  5. Banks, Adelle M.. (29 December 2015). "Ed Dobson, Retired Pastor and Onetime Moral Majority Leader, Dies at 65". [[Religion News Service]].
  6. Dobson, Edward (Ed) G.. (1986). "An Analysis of the Environmental Perceptions of Undergraduate Students In Evangelical and Fundamentalist Bible Colleges and Liberal Arts Colleges".
  7. Marquis ''Who's Who'', 2008.
  8. Merrill, Dean. (August 11, 1997). "The Education of Ed Dobson, Part I".
  9. PBS Staff & Dobson, Ed. (15 October 2009). "Interview: Ed Dobson". [[PBS.org]].
  10. Pickering, Ernest D.. (1 March 1986). "Should Fundamentalists and Evangelicals Seek Closer Ties?".
  11. . ["Should Fundamentalists and Evangelicals Seek Closer Ties"](https://baptistbulletin.org/the-baptist-bulletin-magazine/should-fundamentalists-evangelicals-seek-closer-ties/).
  12. Lanting, James. (5 January 1999). "Christian Political Activists Concede Defeat in the Cultural War - Advocate New Strategy of Separation". Volume 75, Issue 15.
  13. Nelson, Brad. (1 December 2010). "The Year of Living like Jesus".
  14. While pastor there, Dobson mentored a number of young men who had recently entered the ministry or were considering doing so, including [[Rob Bell]], Michael Hidalgo, Jim Samra, Brett Werner, and Marvin Williams.{{citation needed. (December 2024 During Dobson's pastorate, Calvary planted [[Mars Hill Bible Church]], which would be led by [[Rob Bell]].[http://ctlibrary.com/le/2004/spring/1.24.html ''Christianity Today'' website] {{Webarchive). link. (28 July 2006 .)
  15. [http://www.liberty.edu/media/1612/alumni_page/Summer%2005%20Single%20Page%20newsletter.pdf Liberty University website] {{Webarchive. link. (1 September 2006 .{{better source needed). (December 2024)
  16. Dobson, Edward G. (2007) ''Prayers and Promises when Facing a Life-Threatening Illness'', Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
  17. . ["Edward G. Dobson"](https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/578554.Edward_G_Dobson).
  18. . ["Edward G. Dobson"](https://www.betterworldbooks.com/author/edward-g-dobson/4863008?srsltid=AfmBOopWU1MrlsF2K6ruHZxP4TvVXgvjrHZSyVH-nPAIBiGGnk4z5Dp9).
  19. . ["Finding God in the face of evil"](https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B002RYA0DE).
  20. . ["Edward G. Dobson"](https://www.amazon.com/stores/Ed-Dobson/author/B001IQXLQ0?ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true).
  21. Dobson, Edward G. & Zondervan Staff. (2008-06-18). "Edward G. Dobson". Zondervan.com.
  22. "Campus & Grand Rapids - Grand Rapids Theological Seminary".
  23. "Ed's Story".
  24. Fenton, Heidi. (23 August 2012). "Mars Hill Bible Church Names Rob Bell's Successor: Kent Dobson". Religion News Service.
  25. (2008-03-23). "Profile: Mars Hill Bible Church pastor Rob Bell". MLive.com.
  26. Lamb, W. Scott. (2015-11-30). "Megachurch Pastor Decides Being a Pastor 'Is Not Really Who I Am'". [[The Washington Times]].
  27. Honey, Charley. (29 May 2013). "Daniel Dobson, Son of Prominent West Michigan Minister, Talks About Being a Gay Christian". Grand Rapids Press.

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1949-births2015-deaths20th-century-apocalypticists20th-century-evangelicals21st-century-apocalypticists21st-century-evangelicals21st-century-writers-from-northern-irelandamerican-male-writers21st-century-american-theologiansbritish-theologianscornerstone-universitydeaths-from-motor-neuron-disease-in-the-united-statesirish-christian-theologiansmale-non-fiction-writers-from-northern-irelandneurological-disease-deaths-in-michigan