Jesse Lee Prize Awarded to Doug Tzan
The General Commission on Archive and History (GCAH) of The United Methodist Church announced the 2015 winner of its highly sought-after Jesse Lee Prize: The Rev. Dr. Douglas Tzan (pictured), elder and full member of the Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference. Tzan’s award winning manuscript is titled “The World His Circuit: The Methodist Odyssey of William Taylor.”
This work is a case study of a Methodist preacher, missionary, author, evangelist and bishop who not only mobilized the then Methodist Episcopal Church across the American frontier but brought the same energy, organization and enthusiasm across six continents. William Taylor (1821-1902) introduced American revivalism in places other missionaries disregarded, growing churches among marginalized populations, especially in South Africa and India. Forged in American Methodism, his global encounters with different cultures, languages and religions shaped the ways and means of the entirety of Christian mission outreach for generations.
The Jesse Lee Prize, awarded once every four year is named for United Methodism’s first historian (1758-1816) and given for serious manuscripts about the denomination’s history, including studies of antecedent Methodist churches or its missions. The $2,000 prize is granted by GCAH to assist authors with publication of their manuscript related to Methodist history.
The Rev. Dr. Tzan currently serves on the staff of the Sykesville Parish (St. Paul’s and Gaither UMC) in Sykesville, Maryland. He holds a PhD. in the field of the History of Christianity from Boston University where his extensive research of William Taylor began. Tzan continued his research utilizing materials at the United Methodist Archives and History Center in Madison, New Jersey. Tzan is a graduate of Iliff School of Theology and The University of South Carolina. He teaches at Wesley Theological Seminary and Boston University School of Theology.
GCAH is pleased to sponsor the Jesse Lee Prize awarded next in 2019. Information about various awards, grants and prizes for scholarly work in Methodist History can be found at http://gcah.org/research/grants-and-awards .