In Memoriam: Shunji Forrest Nishi, 1917-1999 (1999)

On 27 May 1999 theological education lost a good friend and tireless supporter. Shunji Nishi had been involved in education, most of it in seminaries, for half a century. From his Master of Divinity work at CDSP and ETS, to his time as a doctoral student at Harvard and then with Paul Tillich at Columbia (tutoring many along the way at General), to his deanship of Central Theological College in Tokyo, to his time as chaplain at the Iolani School in Hawaii, to his campus ministry at the University of California at Berkeley, to, finally, his years as Professor of Philosophical Theology at the Church Divinity School-in all of this Shunji was first and foremost a consummate educator. Over his long career as chaplain, dean, and professor, Shunji Nishi was always a teacher. Sometimes seen as inscrutable by students and peers alike, he is remembered as one who asked hard questions and one who expected the same from those around him. Though he never encouraged followers or disciples, Shunji did welcome partners in the task of asking serious theological questions about the world we live in and the Christian tradition which the Church lifts up as a resource for our faith. His own breadth of knowledge and his lively interest in a wide variety of fields, from the physical sciences to aesthetics, often resulted in daunting but very valuable conversations! Shunji sought to have people understand their own theological perspectives and to develop the ability to speak theologically about the Church and culture. Shunji was always an advocate for dialogue. Theology for him was not the task of professional theologians alone, but rather an activity which needed to take place in any number of contexts: in the parish (from the sermon, to the adult forum, to the classroom, to the library), in the university and the broader academy found there, in the foreign mission field, in any number of other educational settings outside the institutional Church. Indeed, Shunji's own ecumenical and interfaith interests always pushed for a theology and a theological dialogue informed by the past as well as by the many non-church settings such a dialogue was both appropriate and necessary. Mission and Anglicanism were central parts of Shunji's interests. This is testified to by his experience in Japan and elsewhere, his work with the World Council of Churches, his leadership and support of the Seminary Consultation on Mission in its early days, and his service on innumerable Episcopal Church commissions and committees. Shunji's theological vision for the Church was very large. He was hopeful that through an openness to other faiths and to the breadth of Christian tradition we would finally be better able to understand God and God's intentions for us in this world. Shunji never gave up his teaching. He was a friend and a colleague to many, asking only that-we face theological issues squarely and honestly, never satisfied with easy answers, Many have written me to express their sadness about Shunji's death, and they testify to the friendship at the bedrock of Shunji's teaching. Shunji touched many during his lifetime as a systematic theologian, as an educator, a friend, a priest, and a colleague. We remember him not for what he wrote, but for the way he lived and the way he encouraged us to live, asking questions faithfully and living into the answers with courage. Love the Questions .... Live into the answer. Shunji Forrest Nishi: Remembered and Preached St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Berkeley, California, 31 May 1999 We gather here today, first, to remember and give thanks for the life of Shunji Nishi, a life of service and faithfulness, a life which touched many deeply. We also gather to think on the relationship of life and death, of the question where is God in all of this? We may not always deal with such questions in funerals, though they are always there, but with Shunji, in life and in death, such questions are mandatory! …