Roy Hunter Short (19 October 1902 – 2 July 1994) was an American

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of The Methodist Church and the

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...

, elected in 1948.

Birth and family

Roy was born in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, the son of Jesse Peters and Minnie L. (Badders) Short. Roy married Louise Clay Baird of

Jeffersonville, Indiana Jeffersonville is a city and the county seat of Clark County, Indiana, Clark County, Indiana, United States, situated along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It lies directly across the Ohio River ...

1 September 1926. They had three sons: Hunter Baird, Murray Malcolm, and Riley Phillips.

Education

Among his eight earned academic degrees, Roy graduated from the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...

in 1924 with an

A.B. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree. He completed both a B.D. (1927) and a

Th.M. Master of Theology ( la, Theologiae Magister, abbreviated MTh, ThM, or MTheol) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a PhD program or as a stand ...

(1929) from the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He also earned a

Doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

from

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

. Roy was a member of

Theta Phi Theta (, ; uppercase: Θ or ; lowercase: θ or ; grc, ''thē̂ta'' ; Modern: ''thī́ta'' ) is the eighth letter of the Greek alphabet, derived from the Phoenician letter Teth . In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 9. Gr ...

honorary fraternity. He was also honored with the

D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

degree by

Kentucky Wesleyan College Kentucky Wesleyan College (KWC) is a private Methodist college in Owensboro, Kentucky. The college is known for its liberal arts programs. Fall 2018 enrollment was 830 students. History Kentucky Wesleyan College was founded in 1858 by the Kent ...

in 1939.

Ordained ministry

Rev. Short was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

in 1921 and received into the Louisville

Annual Conference A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main pu ...

of the

Methodist Episcopal Church, South The Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MEC, S; also Methodist Episcopal Church South) was the American Methodist denomination resulting from the 19th-century split over the issue of slavery in the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC). Disagreement ...

. He pastored the following appointments: Jefferson Circuit (1921–22), Mt. Holly, Mill Creek (1922–26), Oakdale Church, Louisville (1926–28), Marcus Lindsey Church, Louisville (1928–30), Greenville (1930–36). He was the Superintendent of the Elizabethtown District (1935–37) and of the Louisville District (1937–41). He was appointed to the St. Paul Church in Louisville (1941–44), then became the Editor of

The Upper Room The Cenacle (from the Latin , "dining room"), also known as the Upper Room (from the Koine Greek and , both meaning "upper room"), is a room in Mount Zion in Jerusalem, just outside the Old City walls, traditionally held to be the site of t ...

in 1944. He was elected a delegate to the General Conference of the M.E. Church, South in 1938, the Uniting Conference of The Methodist Church in 1939, and of Jurisdictional and General Conferences of The Methodist Church, 1940–48. He also was a member of the General Commission on Evangelism (1938–40), and the Secretary of the Louisville Conference since 1931. He was also involved in the development of the new '' Book of Discipline for The Methodist Church''. Rev. Short also was a member of

Kiwanis International Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. Since 1987, the organizatio ...

Episcopal ministry

Dr. Short was elected a Bishop by the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference of The Methodist Church, June 1948. His first assignment was as the

Resident Bishop A bishop is a senior role in many Methodist denominations. The bishop's role is typically called the "episcopacy", based on the Greek word ''episkopos'' (), which literally means overseer. Superintendent is another translation of ''episkopos'' but i ...

of the Jacksonville Episcopal Area. From 1952 until 1964 he was assigned to the Nashville, Tennessee Area, and from 1964 to 1972 to the Louisville Area. At the request of the

Council of Bishops A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

of the United Methodist Church, Bishop Short provided episcopal supervision to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Central Conference in the interim between episcopal elections (1972–74). Bishop Short has also traveled extensively, including trips to

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. Bishop Short has also served in many administrative capacities: President of the College of Bishops of the Southeastern Jurisdiction (1956–64), Secretary of the Council of Bishops of the Methodist Church (1956–68), Chairman of the Joint Committee on Christian Education in Foreign Fields (1956–64), and Chairman of the Methodist Interboard Commission on the Local Church (1956–64). In retirement, Bishop and Mrs. Short resided in

Hermitage, Tennessee Hermitage, Tennessee, is a neighborhood, located in eastern Davidson County, adjacent to – and named in honor of – The Hermitage, the historic home of Andrew Jackson, seventh President of the United States. Although the area is incorporated ...

Selected writings

* ''Your Church and You'' (a membership manual for Methodist boys and girls), 1943. * lessons in ''Adult Student'', 1939–40. * ''Evangelistic Preaching,'' 1956. * ''Evangelism Through the Local Church,'' 1956. * ''My Great Redeemer's Praise,'' 1957. * ''One Witness in One World'', (the study book for the 1964–68 quadrennium). * ''United Methodism in Theory and Practice,'' 1974. * ''Chosen To Be Consecrated: The Bishops of the Methodist Church, 1784–1968,'' 1976. * ''The History of the Council of Bishops, 1939–1979,'' 1984. * ''The Leadership Role of the Council of Bishops,'' 1984. * ''Methodism in Kentucky.''

Biographies

* Hunt, Earl Gladstone Jr, ''Aspects of our Methodist heritage: With particular focus upon one of its distinguished transmitters'', Bishop Roy Hunter Short, 1972.

References

;Sources * Howell, Clinton T., ''Prominent Personalities in American Methodism,'' Birmingham, Alabama: The Lowry Press, 1945. * ''Roy H. Short Papers,'' MSS 039, Archives and Manuscripts Dept., Pitts Theology Library, Emory University.SHORT, ROY H. (ROY HUNTER), 1902-1994
/ref> * Short, Roy Hunter, Bp., ''History of the Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church 1939–1979,'' Nashville, Abingdon, 1980. ;Notes

External links

Roy H. Short Papers, 1925–1984
at Pitts Theology Library,

Candler School of Theology Candler School of Theology is one of seven graduate schools at Emory University, located in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia. A university-based school of theology, Candler educates ministers, scholars of religion and other leaders. It is also one ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Short, Roy Hunter 1902 births 1994 deaths 20th-century American historians American male non-fiction writers American religion academics Bishops of The Methodist Church (USA) Emory University alumni American historians of religion Kentucky Wesleyan College alumni Methodist theologians Methodist writers Religious leaders from Louisville, Kentucky United Methodist bishops of the Southeastern Jurisdiction Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary alumni 20th-century American biographers People from Hermitage, Tennessee 20th-century American male writers