To read the full obituary from Columbia Seminary, click here.
In the last days of Steve’s life, the Outlook asked some of his friends and colleagues to share brief tributes of Steve’s life and faith.
It is a marvelous thing to experience God calling the right person for the right call at the right time. Following the excellent leadership of our immediate past president, Laura Mendenhall, Columbia Seminary was positioned perfectly to move forward. That is when we called Steve Hayner to serve as the ninth president of the seminary. Steve came from among the faculty where he was serving as the Peachtree Professor of Evangelism and Church Growth. He loved students and loved teaching and was a favorite of our students. To be honest, he had to be persuaded to even consider serving as president. I was honored to serve on the presidential search committee as one of two faculty along with my colleague and friend, Christine Yoder, professor of Old Testament. It became clear to the search committee that Steve was being called to be president of the seminary before it was clear to Steve.
What Steve brought to the presidency was a clear and unapologetic evangelical faith. He possessed a deep and abiding love for Jesus Christ AND for Christ’s body, the church. He was not at all naive. He knew there were struggles and conflicts and challenges, but his faith in Jesus and his eagerness for the whole seminary and indeed, the whole church to participate in some way in the furthering of the Kingdom of God here on earth guided and compelled him.
In a day and time when we seem far too ready to vilify the other whether they be what we perceive to be “evangelical” or “progressive” or “liberal” or “conservative,” Steve stood dismissive of labels, he once told me, and was far more interested in persons and communities and how we are all being called to be more faithful to God. His humility was genuine and honest. I watched him be scolded and even excoriated by persons on all sides. Yet, he was able to stand because he would remind me that ultimately, it “was not about me” but “about Jesus and his gospel.” That position, along with the support of his family and friends, kept Steve refreshed and resilient.
An excellent scholar of the Bible, I once told him about a T-shirt I saw being worn by a young person at a conference. The shirt quoted Isaiah 58:12, which names the Hebrew people the “repairer of the breach.” Steve talked easily about how he loved that chapter – a sign of hope to the Hebrew people that because of their obedience and faithfulness, their light shall “break forth like the dawn” and God would restore them to their land and to their homes and call them “the repairer of the breach” and the “restorer of streets to live in.” That was what Steve Hayner was doing in our midst for all too brief a time. As our ninth president of Columbia Seminary, through his own obedience and faithfulness, his light broke forth like the dawn and he served as a repairer of the breach between persons of differing theological claims, backgrounds, experiences and expectations.
– Rodger Nishioka
Words are inadequate to describe my feelings for Steve Hayner and the impact he has had on me. For more than a decade Steve has been a friend and mentor in ministry and in life. Maybe the thing that Steve has taught me most is that both ministry and life must be lived “in alignment” with our beliefs and our values. “Alignment” has always been an important word for Steve. Are the actions of Christians being lived out in alignment with their core values? How about for a church, a denomination or a seminary?
Steve’s ministry was most certainly lived in alignment with his values. He once told me that his greatest hope in ministry was to be a joyful encourager of others. When we started our church plant, Kairos Church, Steve was a part of our core group and every couple of weeks he would meet with me to discuss how things were going. In those early days, with maybe 10 people in worship (if everyone showed up!), I had some pretty low moments. Steve would listen to my fears and despair, and then he would talk about the joy he felt at being a part of such a special community. He would remind me about the amazing things happening in our fellowship, how unique it was, and after a while I would find myself crawling out of the darkness and daring to believe that God might actually be at work. His joyful encouragement, what he most desired to offer as a pastor, ministered to me and kept me going when I needed it most.
Steve’s life was lived in alignment with a deep faith and love for Jesus. Steve was not a lover of Christian institutions so much as a lover of Jesus who found ways to serve within the institutions of his day. His faith was lived out before us all, until the very end, and now we surrender him back into the arms of the One he loved so passionately. In the midst of my grief this day, the thought of Steve healthy, whole, and face-to-face with Jesus brings a smile that will not fade away.
– Thomas Daniel
Steve continues to be an inspiration to all of us. He and Sharol are teaching us the true meaning of “joy” – not mere happiness, but rather well-being or “shalom” in the confidence that we are loved by God no matter what our present condition, and we can live in peace with that confidence. For me, Steve and Sharol personify Psalm 148, in which the whole creation in its many parts praises God: That’s what Steve and Sharol have done and are doing with their lives and words, even as Steve moves from treatment to hospice. With all creation we too join in praising God, particularly for blessing us with the lives, friendship and witness of Steve and Sharol Hayner.
– Bill Scheu
Last year, Leslie Scanlon wrote a feature article on Steve Hayner’s strong faith, despite his prognosis.
A website was set up to record words of thanks to Steve in the last months of his life: thankstoyousteve.com/
In 2009, Jack Haberer spent 20 minutes with Steve Hayner.
In 2007, Steve wrote an article for the Outlook on the story of the missional church.
