July 11, Anthony Elia, director of the Bridwell Library at SMU Dallas, for his commentary on the origins and future of the Methodist Museum historical artifacts now arriving at the Bridwell Library for installation over the coming months. Published in the Dallas Morning News with the heading: https://bit.ly/3hWDVjS
“Junaluska’s contributions to our cultural life will be as flexible and adaptable as the Christian spirit.”
In January 1950, Mason Crum, a professor of religion at Duke University, penned these final words to the preface of his book The Story of Lake Junaluska. The curious simplicity and beauty of the resort town in the western Carolina Smoky Mountains easily captivates the wayfarer, passerby, or motoring tourist.
Crum’s account is almost a hagiography of a town and region, something generally bestowed upon saints. But Junaluska was something clearly quite different. As Crum also noted, “For after all, Junaluska is an idea — not merely a place or an institution.”
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