< Back | Home

Visiting Assistant Professor of Humanities and History Ted Booth blends his faith and love of learning in his renewed scholarly pursuits.

Professor Profile: Ted Booth

By: Will Clark

Posted: 2/1/08

To the average person, the Latin phrase "fides quaerens intellectum" is probably just that-a Latin phrase. Popularized by St. Anselm of Canterbury, it means "faith seeking understanding" and serves as a concise summary of his belief that in order to truly understand, one must first believe the truth of God. However, for Visiting Assistant Professor of Humanities and History Ted W. Booth II, it is far more than just some philosophical idea recorded in a dead language-it is the theme of his life.

Booth has taught classes ranging in topic from freshman humanities to medieval Chinese history at Milligan for the past three years.

Teaching has become an important part of Booth's life not only because he enjoys it, but because he sees learning as a complement of faith, rather than an opposite. It makes sense, then, that he believes teaching is an opportunity to minister to others. He has taught in some fashion since his college years, when he served as a youth minister at Colonial Heights Christian Church.

"I try to revel in the wonder and awe of God," he said. "I find God in my study of history, in a library, or in a cathedral, but I have realized that I need to quiet my own life in order to hear him more. He has led me through some really tough times but he has always pulled me through."

A quick survey of the trappings of Booth's office will reveal that although the self-described Anglophile is a serious scholar, he is by no means a mere academic. Latin dictionaries and books on such topics as the Protestant Reformation and Queen Elizabeth I neatly line his bookshelves; a small Celtic cross stands on his desk next to a model of an English telephone booth. A colored rubbing of an Irish gravestone bearing part of the ancient poem "St. Patrick's Breastplate" hangs on his wall, and high atop a large shelf sits a small toy Smokey-the blue-tick hound mascot of his beloved University of Tennessee Volunteers.

In addition to professorial duties and working on his dissertation, Booth serves on the Board of Directors of Appalachian Christian Camp, volunteers for children's programs at his church and enjoys the simple pleasure of spending time with his two dogs-Maybelle Carter and Elvis-and, above all, with his wife of one year, Kristen. Marriage to her, he maintains, is the greatest achievement of his life; it is a source of inspiration for teaching his students, another integration of his faith, life and love of learning.

"With my wife, Kristen, (God) has shown me his heart and his love and most of all his faithfulness so I want to show that back to my students," said Booth. "I want them to know history but I also want them to know that God values them and loves them and will fight for them."

Booth, a native of Johnson City, graduated from Milligan in 1990 with a degree in history. From there he went to study at the University of Tennessee for a Master of Science in social work. In 2001, Booth graduated from Emmanuel School of Religion with a Master of Arts and Religion degree. He is currently working on a doctorate from the University of Tennessee in "early modern European intellectual and religious history."

For ten years he served as an ordained pastor in the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ before he began teaching at Milligan. The last seven of those years he filled the role of Minister of Adult Education at Avoca Christian Church in Bristol, Tenn., where he and his wife, an occupational therapist, currently attend. However, his fondness for teaching and attachment to Milligan, its professors and lifestyle led him to decide to quit full-time pastoral work and return to his alma mater, this time as a professor.

"Most of why I ended up (back) at Milligan was just my pure love of Milligan," said Booth. "I wanted to again be a part of this community and felt that I was most effective in ministry in teaching. So to me it was a better fit than church ministry."

Booth said he was drawn to teaching partly because of the example of his own college professors. Recalling in particular his interactions with Professor of History and Humanities Tim Dillon, he said Dillon "felt as much of a friend to me as a professor. He was 'Tim' from day one." Booth also described how he was "impressed by (the willingness of) Milligan faculty to open their homes, open their lives" to their students.

The continuation of this close relationship between students and teachers is something he would like to see continued. "Get to know your professors," he suggested. Coming from a man who claims to be boring, this may seem odd. However, if he can take the 900-year old sentiment of a dead philosopher and transform it into a vibrant display of the goodness and faithfulness of God, one must question just how boring such a man can be.