In June 1970, Rev. Dr. Clyde J. Steckel joined United’s faculty as associate professor of Theology and Psychology. He was also asked to provide counseling, supervise communication groups, and facilitate the North Central Career Development Center. Originally from Indiana, Clyde earned his BD at Chicago Theological Seminary and his MA and PhD from the University of Chicago Divinity School. His connection with and myriad contributions to United, however, began a few years before that formal appointment and extended far beyond his official retirement.
In the mid-1960s, while working as a campus minister at the University of Minnesota, Clyde served as an interim professor of Psychology and Christian Faith. Clyde also provided important leadership on United’s Advisory Council during the 1960s.
In 1974–75, Clyde and Rev. Dr. Don White received Lilly faculty grants through The Association of Theological Schools (ATS) to investigate the feasibility of using competency education at a theological school. After Dean Tom Campbell’s death in 1979, President Dayton Hultgren appointed Clyde as interim academic vice president. He was the inaugural director of the DMin program and director of the MDiv program at the time. In 1980, Clyde became the permanent academic vice president (dean).
During the ten years he spent as dean, Clyde accomplished many things while serving as the person of continuity. In 1982, following Hultgren’s resignation, Clyde brought United through its accreditation. He also worked to relieve faculty of the burden of administrative detail and helped United make good on its commitments to women, feminism, LGBTQ+ students and faculty, and Native American students and faculty. In 1983, Clyde’s book Theology and Ethics of Behavior Modification was published.
He relinquished his position in 1989 to pursue his primary passions—teaching and writing. Many alums remember Clyde from his teaching days. As Rev. Michael Ciba (’92) asserted, Clyde “was the epitome of a pastor/scholar/teacher. I had four classes with him in my time at United. He graciously traveled to Ohio to preach at my ordination service. I am grateful that he answered God’s call throughout his whole life.” Rev. Terri Akkerman (’89) added “I’m so glad Clyde was a part of my theological education and training. And that I was able to claim him as a friend. Thanks be to God for his life and ministry.”
Others were won over by Clyde’s gentle soul, generous and curious spirit, and academic gifts. Rev. Dr. Christie Cozad Neuger (’80), Professor Emerita of Pastoral Counseling and Pastoral Theology, was Clyde’s student, colleague, and friend. As she reflected, “Clyde Steckel was a beloved teacher, scholar, musician, novelist, colleague, family man, and friend. He was a deeply spiritual person who devoted his life to the church. From a personal standpoint, Clyde was my teacher, my mentor, and my dear friend over the past almost 50 years. His stalwart encouragement gave me the confidence to pursue a life of teaching and scholarship in pastoral theology. It was an enormous personal and professional honor to become his colleague and then his successor at UTS in 1992. I, along with so many other friends, former students, colleagues, and fellow congregants, will miss him and grieve him deeply even as we experience profound gratitude for his life well-lived.”
Sue Ebbers (’78), Professor Emerita of Theological Bibliography, recalled, “Clyde was a wonderful teacher, combining his dry wit with thorough knowledge of his discipline and of the church.” Rev. Dr. Carolyn Pressler, Professor Emerita of Biblical Interpretation, noted that “Clyde embodied the best of UTS and the UCC. His death leaves a big hole…how his humor, wisdom, and brilliance enriched our lives.”
Though Clyde formally retired in 1995, he did not really leave. After a short break, he returned to teaching as an adjunct professor at United, writing, and participating in the life of the UCC. Clyde contributed chapters to various publications, including Theomusicology: A Special Issue of Black Sacred Music, Prism: A Theological Forum for the United Church of Christ, and Theology Today.
Clyde was also the interim conference minister in the UCC Minnesota Conference and an interim senior minister in local congregations. In New Ecclesiology and Polity: The United Church of Christ, published in 2009, Clyde argued that the UCC needs to reshape its ecclesiology and polity to ensure its future as a faithful and strong ministry in the post-modern world. In 2012, he completed a book about the Minnesota Conference titled Fifty Years of Covenant Keeping.
After serving as a United trustee three times between 1972 and 1979, Clyde returned as a trustee in 2017. In 2018, he wrote Finding the Church: A Personal Memoir. In 2023, he turned to fiction with Therefore, We Celebrate: Igitur, and in 2024, he published the more reflective Meditations on Aging.
His impact on the UCC and congregational leadership cannot be overstated. Rev. T. Michael Rock, Director of Contextual Education and Spiritual Direction, notes, “Rev. Dr. Clyde Steckel was the consummate United Church of Christ theologian and ecumenical scholar. He so believed in the experiment that began as the United Church of Christ that he always encouraged its evolution and alignment with following Jesus. Clyde loved his faith and the community gathered, and we were all blessed to witness that love.”
Through Clyde’s role on the board of trustees, his status as a major UCC theologian, and attendance at various events, many new students and faculty got to know the person some dubbed “Mr. UCC.” Tributes have poured in.
United faculty observed the loss as well. Dr. Demian Wheeler stated, “We have lost a true pillar of our seminary community.” Dr. Jennifer Awes Freeman added, “His wit, good humor, and warmth will be missed. May his memory be eternal!” Rev. Dr. Ry Siggelkow said, Clyde “was a wonderful man. Curious, faithful, and incisive.…And, my oh my, did he love United.” Rev. Dr. Andrew Packman asserted, “What a loss and what a witness. I’m so grateful to have known Clyde and to have caught a whiff of his supreme commitment to theological education. May his memory be a blessing.”
President Molly T. Marshall remembers Clyde, writing, “A consummate theologian, professor, and UCC ecclesiologist, Rev. Dr. Clyde Steckel was a colossus in the story of United. Bridging disciplines, understanding the intersectionality of all learning, and encouraging younger colleagues, Clyde embodied the vision of the fledgling UCC seminary throughout his long service from its first decade until the present (1970–2025). His more recent tenure as a board member bore witness to the best of that vision while embracing the necessary changes in education delivery, curricular innovation, and faculty development. We give thanks for his long presence with us and his enduring imprint on United.”
Remarking on his predecessor and colleague, Dean Kyle Roberts adds, “Dr. Clyde Steckel’s legacy and imprint upon the academic life and quality of United Seminary is profound and deep. As a faculty leader, a scholar of pastoral and practical theology and ecclesiology, a mentor to countless students, and the academic dean for a decade, Clyde helped shape United’s innovative, ecumenical, and integrative culture which continues to this day. For me personally, he offered invaluable wisdom and insight in generous conversations and through his faithful work on the Academic Committee of the Board. He will be missed, and his memory will be forever cherished.”
As we observe the passing of this transformational and stalwart United faculty member at the age of 96, we honor the blessed memory of Clyde and give thanks for all of the ways he mentored, taught, and inspired students at United and steadfastly supported the seminary. United grieves with his family for the loss of this brilliant and humble man and is truly grateful for the legacy of Rev. Dr. Clyde Steckel.
The memorial service for Clyde will take place at 1:00 PM CT on Saturday, February 15, 2025, at First Congregational Church of Minnesota (500 8th Ave SE, Minneapolis). Zoom information will be available at www.firstchurchmn.org a few days beforehand.
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