O.S. Hawkins, “Criswell: His Life and Times,” (Nashville: B&H Publishing, 2024). 256 pages. $20.49.
Some readers may not know much about W.A. Criswell, the renowned pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. Those who were around in the 1950s to the 90s most certainly remember this preacher who left a huge mark on the Southern Baptist Convention. Criswell served the church as pastor for five decades.
A biography of Criswell has been penned by O.S. Hawkins, who was among several pastors who have succeeded Criswell at the First Baptist Church of Dallas. Hawkins later was president of GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. He was a lifelong companion of Dr. and Mrs. Criswell, growing up in the church and even accompanying them on many vacations. His biography would have to be considered quite sympathetic to the Baptist statesman, although he does delicately discuss some of the mistakes Criswell freely acknowledged as he neared the end of his life.
Hawkins takes the reader through Criswell’s birth in 1909 in El Dorado, Okla., and subsequent childhood in the panhandle of west Texas. His mother took a keen interest in Criswell’s education and carefully sheltered him as he moved through his secondary education in Texline and Amarillo and then moved with him to Waco to help him through his freshman year at Baylor University. He was a studious young man and had little interest in dating or socializing. He studied, preached in country churches and read with a voracious appetite for knowledge of classic literature and sciences. His mother arranged for him to have lessons in elocution, and he became a very eloquent preacher, with a vocabulary that impressed but was thoroughly saturated in Bible exposition. He moved on to The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., where he met and married his wife, Betty. They had one daughter, Mabel.
Criswell excelled in his seminary education at Southern, receiving a Masters of Divinity degree and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1937. He then served as a pastor of churches in Chickasha and Muskogee, Okla. Along the way he had caught the attention of Southern Baptist leaders in Nashville. When the First Baptist Church of Dallas began seeking a pastor after the death of their longtime leader, George W. Truett, Criswell’s name eventually rose to the the top of the list.
Following Truett was not an easy task for the young preacher. There were many in the stately, downtown Dallas church who were uncomfortable with the changes the young Oklahoma preacher was bringing, rocking the boat of the church whose former pastor had served since the turn of the century. Criswell weathered some storms, and the church began to grow and became a dynamic family church, located in the heart of the city. It grew to become the largest church in the Southern Baptist Convention in the 60s and 70s.
Criswell enjoyed a ministry that seemed unparalleled in those days. He led the church to become very focused on their urban community with activities and Sunday school ministries that reached the Baby Boomer generation of families all across the city. The church weekly attendance swelled to over 4,500 with a membership three times that. A Christian elementary and high school was established, and later a Bible college was started. A radio station was begun, and mission churches all over Dallas were sponsored. The church bought up several blocks of the downtown area and expanded their physical footprint extensively for educational and parking facilities.
In the late 1960s Criswell was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). His conservative voice was an influence in the SBC. In those days the convention was drifting toward liberal theology and there was much discontent with the teachings young preachers were encountering in the SBC seminaries. His book, “Why I Preach the Bible Is Literally True,” was published during his presidency. Hawkins notes that it was reportedly one of several factors that led to the groundswell in 1979 that became known as the SBC’s Conservative Resurgence.
Hawkins said Criswell never engaged personally in the political and theological wrangling of the SBC, preferring to encourage others such as Paige Patterson, who was at that time president of Criswell College and who became one of the architects of the Conservative Resurgence.
But after 45 years of solid ministry and with a “Baptist statesman” reputation, the elderly Criswell began moving toward retirement. That did not come about easily. Joel Gregory, a dynamic preaching professor and pastor in Ft. Worth, was tapped to come alongside Criswell and become his successor. But less than two years later he suddenly resigned, saying later he was never really allowed to become pastor of the church, due to interference from Criswell and his wife.
Later, the author, O.S. Hawkins, was tapped to lead the church during the retirement years of Dr. Criswell. Hawkins enjoyed a fairly easy transition and served there several years before becoming president of GuideStone.
There were three mistakes that Criswell acknowledged and were chronicled by Hawkins.
One was his early stand in favor of segregation and opposition to school integration in the 1950s. He went along with the race relations struggles of many of the Southern states as he opposed school integration initially. He even spoke before the South Carolina state legislature urging them to cease efforts to integrate schools. He later recanted of this position and threw open the doors of the Dallas church to all races. He regretted his earlier stance.
He was not a good family man, according to his own statements, quoted by Hawkins. His wife and daughter did not see nearly as much of him as they should have, and there was a rocky family relationship that ensued because of his unbalanced commitment to the Dallas church.
He also said that he did not plan well for his succession as he neared retirement. It was obvious that the Joel Gregory transition did not go well and could have been handled much better than it was.
Criswell died in 2002 after being retired for nearly eight years.
The story is compelling and related in a very personal way by Hawkins. As a teenage boy, Hawkins was tapped as one of several “preacher boys” Criswell saw as up and coming leaders.
Pastors who are of a “certain age” will be very interested in this biography. Perhaps younger ministers and church leaders will also enjoy this story from back in the last century. Truly he was a man who left a big mark on the city of Dallas and the Southern Baptist Convention. But more importantly he was a “prince of preachers,” who preached the Bible eloquently and conservatively for 50 years. An online repository of his sermons is available at www.wacriswell.com.
Personal note from the reviewer
As a young seminarian in Ft. Worth in the early 1980s I heard Dr. Criswell preach on the radio almost every Sunday morning as I drove to north Texas to serve in a small church. He would introduce his message and begin to delve into the Scriptures and use terminology and phrases that captivated my imagination. His oratory style was grand and eloquent.
One night I visited his church in Dallas. He spoke with me after the service and said, “Young preacher, someday when I get ready to lay this mantle down, you come along and pick it up.”
My family, standing nearby, asked me what he said. I quipped, “I’m not sure, but I think I am going to be the next pastor of First Baptist, Dallas!”
That didn’t happen, and I understand that he also said something similar to Rick Warren and probably to a host of other young preachers.
I have admired this man most of my adult life. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this biography, and I recommend you pick up a copy of it, as well.