Title: Barbara B. Zikmund Papers, 1830s-1977, 2007, n.d.

ID: RG 30/327

Extent: 3.55 Linear Feet

Barbara Brown Zikmund was born October 16, 1939. She graduated cum laude from Beloit College in 1961, receiving her B.A. with a major in Philosophy. In 1964, she obtained a B.D. from Duke Divinity School and in 1969 she went on to receive a Ph.D. with emphasis in American church history from Duke University Graduate School. Her dissertation was entitled, “Asa Mahan and Oberlin Perfectionism: 1835-1850.” Zikmund was certified from the ATS Institute for Theological Education Management in 1984. She received honorary D.D. degrees from Doane College (1984), Chicago Theological Seminary (1985), and Ursinus College (1989). In 1998 she was awarded an honorary L.L.D. from the University of Hartford.

Dr. Zikmund, known by many people as “BBZ”, has taught and been a leader in theological education in the United States for the past 25 years. From 1990-2000 she was the president of Hartford Seminary in Hartford, Connecticut – a progressive multi-religious graduate school with programs for Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders. Before that, from 1981-1990 she was the academic dean at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California. She was an assistant professor and Director of Studies at Chicago Theological Seminary from 1975-1980. She holds a professional theological degree and a Ph. D. from Duke University. She was ordained as a Christian minister in the United Church of Christ in 1964.

Since April 2001, Professor Barbara Brown Zikmund has been teaching in the Graduate School of American Studies at Doshisha Univeristy. At Doshisha she offers graduate courses in American religion, American thought, and women’s studies. She is also teaching one undergraduate course in theology entitled, “A Women and Contemporary Christian Theology.” She plans to retire in April of 2005, at which time she will return permanently to the United States. For the immediate future she will be Visiting Scholar at the Life Cycle Institute at the Catholic University of America.

Dr. Zikmund was the first female president of the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS). She also served as the president of the World Conference of Associations of Theological Institutions (WOCATI). She has served on the Programme on Theological Education of the World Council of Churches, and the Faith and Order commission of the National Council of Churches. At present, she is chair of the Interfaith Relations Commission of the National Council of Churches, returning to the United States twice each year for its meetings.

Dr. Zikmund has written and spoken extensively about religion in America, especially on the role of women and on the history of her denomination – the United Church of Christ. She is author of Discovering the Church (Westminster, 1983), editor of two volumes entitled the Hidden Histories of the United Church of Christ (Pilgrim Press, 1984, 1987), co-author of Clergy Women: An Uphill Calling (Westminster John Knox Press, 1998) and the general editor of a seven volume series The Living Theological Heritage of the United Church (1995-2005).

Dr. Zikmund has a deep commitment to understanding the changing role of religion in the world today. Her work as a Christian church leader, historian, educator and advocate for women has taken many forms. She is married to Joseph Zikmund II, who holds a doctorate in political science, and also teaches as an adjunct professor in the Graduate School of American Studies. They have one son, Brian Zikmund-Fisher, who is married and has one child and lives in Ypsilanti, Michigan. When the Zikmunds are not in Kyoto, they live near Washington, DC in Rockville, MD.

Sources Consulted

Barbara B. Zikmund provided information.

See Zikmund’s Curriculum Vitae for additional information.

Author: Cara McKibbin and Archives staff

Forms of Material (links to similar genres)

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Administrative Information

Scope and Contents:

The papers of Barbara B. Zikmund consist of materials and notes compiled for the writing of her Ph.D. dissertation Asa Mahan and Oberlin Perfectionism (Department of Religion, Duke University, 1969). While a good bulk of the material consists of photocopies or photostats of published writings or primary documents, the collection provides a corpus of documentation concerning Asa Mahan, Oberlin Perfectionsim, and other related topics. In addition, the collection provides evidence of the process of the research and the writing of a Ph.D. dissertation paper.

The Barbara B. Zikmund Papers are divided into five series: Series I. Files Relating to the Dissertation Prospectus and Research Process; II. Research Notes and Supporting Documents; III. Writings; IV. Non-Textual; and V. Talks.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series I. Files Relating to the Dissertation Prospectus and Research Process, 1964-1969 (5 folders, 0.2 l.f.)

This series consists of correspondence, 1964-1969, concerning Barbara Zikmund’s research visits and queries to archival institutions and libraries for materials related to Asa Mahan’s life, her Ph.D. review committee, and the compiling of her final manuscript of her dissertation. Also included is a rough draft of her dissertation prospectus, 3 March 1965, a bibliography for articles and books, and a research paper by Zikmund titled “Asa Mahan and Perfectionism at Oberlin, Chapter V, The Idea: Christian Perfection,” Duke University, 1965.

Series II. Research Notes and Supporting Documents (copies) c. 1830s-1969 (53 folders, 4 containers of index cards, 1.95 l.f.)

Consists of biographical information concerning Asa Mahan, and materials related to the history of early Oberlin, Ohio, 1830s and 1840s, Oberlin Perfectionism, and the Lane Seminary. Other files contain information about subjects such as adventism, abolitionism, moral reform, and revivalism. The materials consist of handwritten notes and citations and photocopies and photostats of archival holdings from Oberlin College, newspapers, libraries, and churches. Index cards, housed in Box 4, contain bibliographic citations organized by author and subject, and a chronology of Asa Mahan’s life and writings. The materials were compiled by Barbara Zikmund during the research and writing of her dissertation.

Series III. Writings (copies), 1835-1977, n.d. (100 folders, 1.40 l.f.)

The writings series is divided into two subseries: Subseries 1. Writings by Asa Mahan; and, 2. Writings by other authors (A-Z). Subseries 1 contains photostats and photocopies of published writings of Asa Mahan, 1830-1850, and includes topics such as science and natural theology, physical and moral law, perfection, and imperfection. Mahan’s writings are arranged chronologically. Subseries 2 contains photostats and photocopies of published writings of other authors and includes topics such as Oberlin history, Charles G. Finney, perfectionism, and Asa Mahan. Also included is a copy of the Asbury Seminarian (Oct. 1977) containing the article, “Asa Mahan and Oberlin Perfectionism,” by Barbara Zikmund. These writings are arranged alphabetically by author’s last name. Two copies of her dissertation, one signed by the examination committee, are stored in box 8.

Series IV. Non-Textual, 1966, n.d. (3 folders in box 7)

Consists of a photograph and illustrations of photographs (copies) of Asa Mahan, copies of drawings of Oberlin Memorial Arch and Art Museum by Walt Knapp, postcards with photographs and an illustration of Finney Chapel and the First Church of Oberlin, and color photographs of Asa Mahan’s tombstone and buildings in Eastborne, England.

Series V. Talks, 2007 (1 folder in box 8)

Consists of one copy of a talk given by Barbara Zikmund for the Conference Celebrating the 50^th Anniversary of Faith and Order in the United States, “On Being Christian Together,” July 19-23, 2007 in Oberlin, Ohio. The title of the talk is “The Legacy of this Place: Oberlin, Ohio.”

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