Mark Hillmer
Louise Grunow Professor of Old Testament
Emeritus
Mark Hillmer enjoys theater — so much so that he sometimes acts in local community productions. He believes that the theatrical experience can be taken as a metaphor for the Christian life. "We're given the script," he says, "and we act ourselves into the role of children of God."
Hillmer serves as a kind of director in his Old Testament classes, setting the stage for the student's engagement with the Scriptures. "If I'm responsible to God as I know Him, I will strive to involve people with the text, to open their eyes. What they see is not up to me," he says.
Ordained in 1964, Hillmer received his Ph.D. from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati. His studies there allowed him to understand the Jewish view of Christianity and made him more appreciative of his Lutheran faith.
Archaeological field work in Caesarea, Dan and Taanach underscored for him the historicity of events in the Old Testament, but also convinced him of the need for interpretation. By themselves, he says, "stones are mute."
Hillmer reveres and is guided by two theological lights, Martin Luther and C.S. Lewis. He admires Luther's "thorough focus on Jesus Christ and the implications of the Gospel." In C.S. Lewis, he finds a "thoroughly modern man, able to believe and defend orthodox Christianity." Both write in a way that is "readable and life-giving."
When students leave Hillmer's class, he hopes they will carry with them "a cheerful knowledge of the details of that wonderful book," and an understanding of how the texts of the Old Testament point to the full revelation of God in Christ. He also wants them to think about how the texts might apply to their own lives. His goal, in other words, is not pedantry, but passion for "the best script anyone has ever been given."
Mark Hillmer Biography
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“ If I’m responsible to God as I know Him, I will strive to involve people with the text, to open their eyes. What they see is not up to me.”
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