H. Scott Matheney: A Celebration of 44 Years of Ministry with Students
Our dear friend, mentor, and colleague, Rev. Scott Matheney, announced his retirement as of August 2025 after serving forty-four years as a chaplain and campus minister first at Columbia University in New York City and for the last 26 years at Elmhurst University in Chicago.
We have all been touched by Scott’s remarkable ministry. Whether as students, faculty, administrators, or colleagues in the wider work of peace, justice, and reconciliation, Scott has been there for us as we navigated our paths at the intersection of faith, vocation, and commitment to making the world a better place. We all have our Scott stories of when he swooped in to celebrate with us in our joys, encourage us in our challenges, and hold us in our times of sorrow and loss. We give great thanks to God for the ministry of Scott Matheney in our lives and for the work of the Holy Spirit through Scott in the world.
We have all been touched by Scott’s remarkable ministry. Whether as students, faculty, administrators, or colleagues in the wider work of peace, justice, and reconciliation, Scott has been there for us as we navigated our paths at the intersection of faith, vocation, and commitment to making the world a better place. We all have our Scott stories of when he swooped in to celebrate with us in our joys, encourage us in our challenges, and hold us in our times of sorrow and loss. We give great thanks to God for the ministry of Scott Matheney in our lives and for the work of the Holy Spirit through Scott in the world.
Scott Matheney Fund for the Next Generation
To honor Scott’s presence in our lives and to ensure that his ministry continues long into the future, we seek to raise a permanent endowment fund, the income of this fund to be made available annually to support the preparation of Christian student leaders to transform the church, society and world and to support them as they explore the intersection of their faith, vocation, and commitment to making the world a better place.
All who have known Scott have been challenged to a deeper engagement with the world and its people, to recognize God’s preferential option for the poor, and to engage in movements, especially faith based movements, of empowerment and liberation for the marginalized and oppressed. Scott’s ministry has flung open the doors and proclaimed the radically inclusive nature of Jesus’s ministry. Scott’s ministry has been infused with a deep commitment to engaging the world. And his ministry has insisted that Christianity’s Biblical and theological traditions be made relevant for all of us as we explore our understandings of faith, vocation, and the transformation and healing of the world.
After graduating from college, in 1975-76, Scott spent a year in Salvador Bahia, Brazil, working in a local community and learning Portuguese. His time there was deeply influenced by the liberation theology of Archbishop Ernesto Cardenal and the struggles of the people of Brazil, especially the young people and students, including the Student Christian Movement of Brazil, against Brazil’s oppressive military regime. Many of his closest friends were forced to go underground as a result of their work. Scott’s experiences in Brazil influenced his decision to go to Princeton Theological Seminary to work with liberation theologian Dick Schaull. Early in his career at Columbia, Scott also became deeply engaged with the liberation struggle in South Africa, spending considerable time there and building alliances with key Christian leaders in the South African struggle against apartheid, among them Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Alan Boesak, and Steve DeGruchy. These global experiences, and the call from student Christian movements and Christians in the liberation struggles have shaped Scott’s entire ministry.
The Trustees of the World Student Christian Federation, where for nearly thirty years Scott has served and continues to serve on the board, has offered to host the Scott Matheney Fund for the Next Generation, and provide a programmatic engine to ensure the continuation of his work.
All who have known Scott have been challenged to a deeper engagement with the world and its people, to recognize God’s preferential option for the poor, and to engage in movements, especially faith based movements, of empowerment and liberation for the marginalized and oppressed. Scott’s ministry has flung open the doors and proclaimed the radically inclusive nature of Jesus’s ministry. Scott’s ministry has been infused with a deep commitment to engaging the world. And his ministry has insisted that Christianity’s Biblical and theological traditions be made relevant for all of us as we explore our understandings of faith, vocation, and the transformation and healing of the world.
After graduating from college, in 1975-76, Scott spent a year in Salvador Bahia, Brazil, working in a local community and learning Portuguese. His time there was deeply influenced by the liberation theology of Archbishop Ernesto Cardenal and the struggles of the people of Brazil, especially the young people and students, including the Student Christian Movement of Brazil, against Brazil’s oppressive military regime. Many of his closest friends were forced to go underground as a result of their work. Scott’s experiences in Brazil influenced his decision to go to Princeton Theological Seminary to work with liberation theologian Dick Schaull. Early in his career at Columbia, Scott also became deeply engaged with the liberation struggle in South Africa, spending considerable time there and building alliances with key Christian leaders in the South African struggle against apartheid, among them Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Alan Boesak, and Steve DeGruchy. These global experiences, and the call from student Christian movements and Christians in the liberation struggles have shaped Scott’s entire ministry.
The Trustees of the World Student Christian Federation, where for nearly thirty years Scott has served and continues to serve on the board, has offered to host the Scott Matheney Fund for the Next Generation, and provide a programmatic engine to ensure the continuation of his work.
Testimonials
Do you have a favorite memory or a story of how Scott has impacted your life? Share your testimonial using the form below, and it will be added here!