O. W. Polen collection
Scope and Contents
This collection includes seven series. Series One, O.W. Polen, Office files: miscellaneous reports, acknoweldgemnts, a brochure and consultation files; Series Two, O.W. Polen, Editorials: published editorials from the Evangel from 1970 to 1986 as editor-in-chief; Series Three, O.W. Polen, Sermons: evangelical sermons written or preached by Reverend Polen; Series Four, O.W. Polen, Correspondence: contains three letters recieved by Reverend Polen from death row immates from different states; Series Five, O.W. Polen, Photographs: seven photographs, three of which reside within the same locality but with different poses with Reverend Polen in them, and one of the Star-Spangled Banner; Series Six, O.W. Polen Notes and slips: miscellaneous jottings, reminders, entries and cutouts; Series Seven, O.W. Polen, Objects, contains honors and plaques awarded to Reverend Polen for his services to the Church of God.
Dates
- 1956–1990
Conditions Governing Use
This material may be protected under U. S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S. Code) which governs the making of photocopies or reproductions of copyrighted materials. You may use any digitized or otherwise copied material from our holdings for private study, scholarship, or research. Though the Dixon Pentecostal Research Center has physical ownership of the material in its collections, in some cases we may not own the copyright to the material. It is the patron's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in our collections.
Biographical / Historical
Born on December 29, 1920 as Olly Polen, Reverend Polen was raised a Baptist in Ohio, but converted to the Pentecostal faith at the age of 11, joining the Church of God in 1941. The next year he began his formal ministry and married Neva Grace, the woman who would be his partner in ministry for the next 64 years until her death in 2006 at the age of 87. Neva gave birth to two daughters, Janet and Connie. Elected national Sunday school and youth director in 1956, he spearheaded in 1957 a program called Youth World Evangelism Appeal, which, in conjunction with the Missions Department and the Evangelism Committee, aimed at making the youth of the church more conscious of missionary work. In 1970, Polen became editor-in-chief of the Evangel magazine, the primary Church of God serial publication. His tenure as editor-in-chief made the Evangel circulation a principle cause in his labors, doubling and then trippling the previous range of circulation of twenty thousand to twenty-five thousand, reaching a high of 76,389 in April 1976. His notable dedication, astound literary skills and spirtual guidance would earn him the name "Mr. Evangel" throughout his years in the office, and then "God's Man" throughout his life. He ended his tenure as editor-in-chief for the Evangel in 1988 after eigtheen years, the longest service recorded yet. He was succeeded by Hoyt Stone. Two years earlier, in 1986, Reverend Polen sat as member of the Centennial Commission, which was formed to organize the Church of God's centennial year celebration. He still remained an active participant in the Church of God in his post-Evangel years. Reverend Polen died on Saturday, October 16, 2010 in a Cleveland health care facility at the age of 89.
Extent
2.5 Linear Feet (3 containers)
Language of Materials
English
Metadata Rights Declarations
- License: This record is made available under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Creative Commons license.
Bibliography
O.W. Polen. Living by the Word. Cleveland, Tennessee: Pathway Press, [1977]. O.W. Polen provides a skillfully short, informative handbook for adolescents on how to cultivate an inspiring spiritual awakening using the Word of God and biblical teachings. As a former leader state youth leader and as a national youth leader, O.W. Polen uses his fourteen years of experience and knoweldge to foster a simple yet comprehensive guide for adolescents in their daily journeys and lives as Christians. O.W. Polen was editor-in-chief for the Church of God Publications when publishing this book. Call number: Church BV4531.2 .P64
O.W. Polen. Pastoral Pointers. Cleveland, Tennessee: Pathway Press, [1975]. O.W. Polen provides a miscellaneous list of sermons preached by experience, capable ministers of the Church of God and offers evidence, or "pointers" as Polen as come to call them, for the practical and easily offered guidance to successful pastoral ministry. His pointers range from pastor's prayers, pastoral hospial visitations, pastoral ministry, funerals, pastoral counseling, his attire, the church council, pulpit ethics, sermon preparations, pastorial library, a pastor's family, weddings, and a minister's voice. O.W. Polen was editor-in-chief for the Church of God Publications when publishing this book. Call number: Church BV4017 .P28
O.W. Polen. Workers' Training Course, No.2: The Sunday School Teacher. Cleveland, Tennessee: Church of God Sunday School and Youth Deptartment, [1956]. O.W. Polen, as National Sunday School and Youth Director, writes this book to describe the five series of training course prepared for annual training classes for Sunday School teachers of the Church of God. Polen describes the revered position of a Sunday School teacher, their aims, their call, their burden, offering teaching methods and an evalution of Sunday school teaching. He also includse the Teacher's Pledge, a poem, "The Builder", and a self-examination for teachers. O.W. Polen was 36 at the time of writing this book. Call number: Church BV1534 .P64 1956
- Title
- O.W. Polen collection
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Logan Williamson
- Date
- 2021
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Hal Bernard Dixon Jr. Pentecostal Research Center Repository
Dixon Pentecostal Research Center
260 11th Street NE
Cleveland TN 37311 USA
423-614-8576
dixon_research@leeuniversity.edu