Merritt Conrad Hyers (July 31, 1933 – March 23, 2013) was an American historian of religion and

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

minister. He taught for many years at Gustavus Adolphus College, and wrote multiple books on humor in religion and on

Zen Buddhism Zen (; from Chinese: '' Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka ph ...

Early life and education

Hyers was born on July 31, 1933, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. He earned a bachelor's degree at Carson–Newman University in 1954, and a bachelor of divinity from the Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1958. He then earned a master of theology from the

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a Private university, private seminary, school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Establish ...

in 1959, and completed his

doctor of philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

degree in

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and the

philosophy of religion Philosophy of religion is "the philosophical examination of the central themes and concepts involved in religious traditions". Philosophical discussions on such topics date from ancient times, and appear in the earliest known Text (literary theo ...

from the Princeton Theological Seminary in 1965.

Academic career

He taught the history of religion at

Beloit College Beloit College is a private liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1846 when Wisconsin was still a territory, it is the state's oldest continuously operated college. It has an enrollment of roughly 1,000 undergradua ...

and then, beginning in 1977, at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota. In 1986 he was the inaugural winner of the Gustavus Scholarly Accomplishment Award of the college, "the highest accolade a Gustavus faculty member can receive for distinguished scholarly achievements". He retired in 1997.

Personal life

In 1977 and 1978, after first arriving at Gustavus Adolphus, Hyers and his family rented an 1850-era house in St. Peter. His son, Jon Hyers, later produced a feature-length film, ''The Haunting of North Third Street'' (2007), "an independent docu-drama" alleging that the house was haunted. Hyers died on March 23, 2013, in East Fallowfield Township, Pennsylvania.

Books

* ''Holy Laughter: Essays on Religion in the Comic Perspective'' (editor, 1969) * ''Once-Born, Twice-Born Zen: The Soto and Rinzai Schools of Japanese Zen'' (1971) * ''The Chickadees: A Contemporary Fable'' (1974) * ''Zen and the Comic Spirit'' (1975) * ''The Comic Vision and the Christian Faith: A Celebration of Life and Laughter'' (1981) * ''The Meaning of Creation: Genesis and Modern Science'' (1984) * ''And God Created Laughter: The Bible as Divine Comedy'' (1987) * ''The Laughing Buddha: Zen and the Comic Spirit'' (1989) * ''The Spirituality of Comedy: Comic Heroism in a Tragic World'' (1996)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hyers, Conrad 1933 births 2013 deaths 20th-century American Presbyterian ministers 20th-century American Protestant theologians 20th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 21st-century American Presbyterian ministers 21st-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 21st-century American Protestant theologians American historians of religion American religion academics Beloit College faculty Carson–Newman University alumni Clergy from Philadelphia Gustavus Adolphus College faculty Princeton Theological Seminary alumni Presbyterian Church (USA) teaching elders