Th.D., Union Theological Seminary, 1944
Theology and Religious Thought

Rev. Dr. Lauren E. Brubaker, Jr., long time Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of South Carolina, died on September 22, 2010 at the age of 95. He came to the University of South Carolina in 1948 to inaugurate the Department of Religious Studies, and remained the sole member until 1968, when a few additional faculty members began to be added.

Dr. Brubaker, or Bru, as he was familiarly known, was a beloved member of the Carolina community. A Presbyterian minister, with a Th.D. from Union Theological Seminary in New York City, he also held the title of University Chaplain, and headed the work of the campus chaplains.

While his discipline was theology, he taught in many different subject areas, especially when he was the sole member of the Department. He established the focus of the department of religious studies as an interdisciplinary enterprise using, as appropriate, historical, comparative, philosophical, and cultural analyses of religious phenomena, hiring four more faculty in his 30-plus year tenure. He held national stature as a President of the American Academy of Religion in the 1960s.

A few years after the death of his wife, Leonte, and his retirement in 1980, he moved to Maryland, where he married Patricia Barnett, who survives him. He also leaves behind two sons, Edward and Lauren and numerous grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at the Rutledge Chapel on the campus of the University on October 19, 2010 at 4:00.

Memorial contributions may be made in his honor to the Department of Religious Studies at the University.