Education
A.B. Hope College, M.Div. Western Theological Seminary, Ph.D. Yale University
carol.bechtel@westernsem.edu
Courses
BF103 Old Testament Life and Ministry
BF110 Biblical Hebrew
BF111 Hebrew Translation and Interpretation
BF514 Seminar in Psalms
BF517 Wisdom Literature of the Bible
BF520 Esther
BF524 Ruth
BF525 Jonah
BF614 Hebrew Reading
CM529 Tuned for Praise
The Bible is more than just a collection of ancient stories about strange people in faraway lands. It is, in a very real sense, our story. Watching students come to that realization is one of the most exciting things about teaching the Bible
Background
Before joining Western's faculty in 1994, Carol Bechtel taught at the Presbyterian School of Christian Education in Richmond, Virginia. She has also served as a teaching fellow at Yale Divinity School and as interim pastor of Turn of River Presbyterian Church in Stamford, Connecticut. Dr. Bechtel preaches and teaches widely and is a General Synod Professor of Theology in the Reformed Church in America. She is currently serving as President of the RCA’s General Synod.
Dr. Bechtel has written several books, including:
- Esther: A Commentary for Teaching and Preaching (Interpretation, WJK, 2002),
- Glimpses of Glory (WJK, 1998)
- Life After Grace (WJK, 2003).
She served as the editor for and a contributor to Touching the Altar: The Old Testament for Christian Worship (Eerdmans, 2008). Dr. Bechtel has also published five Bible study curricula including:
- Hallelujah! The Bible and Handel's Messiah (Kerygma, 1995),
- Sowing Tears, Reaping Joy: The Bible and Brahms' Requiem (Kerygma, 1996),
- Job and the Life of Faith: Wisdom for Today's World (Kerygma, 2004),
- Above and Beyond: Hearing God’s Call in Jonah and Ruth. (Horizons, 2007), and
- Living in Community (Faith Alive Publications, 2008)
Dr. Bechtel grew up on a farm in Fulton, Illinois. She attended Hope College, Western Theological Seminary and received her Ph.D. in Old Testament from Yale University in 1992. She now lives in Holland, Michigan with her husband, Tom Mullens. They have four children: Elyssa, Andrew, Ian, and Ellen, and a grandson, Michael. Her hobbies include singing, cooking, gardening, and the Celtic harp.