Remembrance of Dr. Brian Bull
Dr. Brian Bull’s swift passing this last week is properly eulogized by Loma Linda University and Spectrum Magazine for his widely diverse and impactful contributions to the wide community of Loma Linda University and beyond. For these wonderful accountings of his life and service we encourage you to turn there for moments of reflection.
Here we remember him for the depth and immediacy of his lecture as we studied James Hayward’s Dinasaurs, Volcanoes and Holy Writ. Brian’s October 30, 2021 presentation on chapter 8, “Parsing the Word,” was engaging and well worth a good second look. But we especially remember him for returning in the following weeks to participate in other class presentations. And we will not forget that one week after geologist David Hanson’s lecture on Chapter 9, “Dividing the Earth,” Brian showed up carrying a large slice of earth, an encased artifact of an embedded prehistoric creature whose presence on two continents provided evidence of an earlier Pangaea. Those who were setting up the room for class will not forget his tall frame and almost boyish demeanor as he entered the room carrying the heavy case, well aware of the pedagogic value of his possession. It was placed on a table in the center of the lecture area during Dr. Leonard Brand’s presentation, and it became the focus of after-class discussion. On ensuing zoom meetings it was hanging on the wall behind him.
We are grateful also for the friendship he forged with the pre-eminent Adventist theologian Fritz Guy, a relationship which provided stimulation for Fritz to write productively during a time of lessened official church leadership support. And they collaborated in multiple book projects (God, Sky and Land; God, Land and the Great Flood, God, Genesis and Good News), providing foundation for the Christian who seeks to respect the work of science as well as the endeavor of faith.
So it is with a very recent memory of a fond series of engagements with Brian that we bid him goodbye. Thank you, Brian, for your candor, your willingness to share your extraordinary gifts and learning; thank you for sharing yourself with us.
The Sabbath Seminars Class of the LLU Church
Sabbath Seminars
Room 3208
Centennial Complex of Loma Linda University Sabbath Morning 10:30-12:30