John William Dale served as the pulpit minister at Glendale Road Church of Christ in Murray, Kentucky, one of the Church of Christ's largest congregations. His tenure began July 5, 1973 and he retired in 2012. He is married with two children and two grandchildren. He is a Kentucky Colonel and was named to the Board of Trustees of Freed-Hardeman University during their February 2001 annual meeting. His birthday is January 31. Audio recordings of many of his sermons are made available on the Internet, together with recorded devotionals from local AM radio station WNBS. Sunday morning sermons are longer and more in depth than the evening sermons and radio devotionals: in the latter, Dale may choose a brief text or simple concept to explore for purposes of reflection and exhortation. Education John Dale attended Freed-Hardeman University, Oklahoma Christian University, Murray State University, and Vanderbilt University. He was named "Mr. Freed-Hardeman" in 1966, graduating the same year. He was named Most Outstanding Senior Ministerial Student in 1968. His M.S. degree was conferred by Murray State University in 1970, with graduate work at Vanderbilt University and Louisiana Baptist University (an unaccredited institution). Theology In his pulpit sermons, Dale presents a mainstream conservative Church of Christ viewpoint. Creation Though not insisting on a 24-hour day of the Creation story of Genesis, Dale says he believes in it, and that those that believe in its impossibility have a great theological problem. He states that the universe was created with the "appearance of age." Dale also denies theistic evolution. Test of faith While Dale was still young, his mother was confined to a mental institution. Shortly after her discharge, she committed suicide. Although Dale rarely speaks of this in sermons, he has acknowledged in interviews that the tragedy resulted in significant soul-searching (particularly on the question of whether his mother was condemned to Hell). He ultimately decided that God is the only fair and just judge of people's souls, a determination that strengthened his faith. Community involvement John Dale is a hands-on minister in his community, officiating at many weddings and funerals in the area. He is well known and respected in the public sphere of the broader community outside the congregation in which he is employed (he is a member of the local Hospice Board), and enjoys good relations with other sectors of the clerical community, with the notable exception of vocal critics