Oates, Wayne Edward

Born into a poor family in Greenville, South Carolina , in June 1917. He lost his father in infancy; he was taken care of by his grandmother, sister and mother, who worked in a cotton mill. At the age of fourteen, he ended up in a small group of poor teenagers who, as “gifted children,” were accepted to serve in the House of Representatives of the United States of America . He was very happy about this, and this turn of events inspired him to decide, first of his family, to get a higher education. He studied at Mars Hill College of Youth, at Wake Forest University, at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, at the United Theological Seminary and at the University of Louisville (“medical school”). After graduating from Southern Seminary with a Ph.D. in religion psychology, Oates entered the School of Theology in 1947 as a professor of psychology of religion and pastoral practice. He held this position until the time when he moved to the University of Louisville (medical school) in 1974.

The interdisciplinary approach used by Oates combined psychological models with pastoral sensitivity and biblical teaching. As a result, the previous approaches to counseling within the framework of the modern pastoral care movement have changed. Oates developed the “triadological” form of pastoral counseling: communication between the mentor, the mentor, and the Holy Spirit .

The first of his 57 books was a small work entitled "Alcohol in and out of the Church" (1940). Then a rather long break followed, and in 1951 his doctoral dissertation, “The Importance of the Sigmund Freud Case for the Christian Faith,” was published. The “triadological concept” was revealed in the work “The Presence of God in Pastoral Care”.

After the publication in 1971 of a book entitled “Confession of a workaholic”, the neologism “ workaholic ” was introduced into general use, and soon this word was included in the Oxford English Dictionary .

In 1984, the American Psychiatric Association awarded Oates the Oscar Pfister for his contribution to the development of the relationship between psychiatry and religion.

He was married to Pauline; they had two sons. They lived in Louisville, Kentucky , until his death in October 1999. Oates was buried in the Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville.

• Alcohol in and out of the Church (1940).
• Christian Pastor (1951).
• Enough Grace (1951).
• The revelation of God in human suffering (1952).
• The Bible in Pastoral Care (1953).
• Fear in the Christian experience (1955).
• Religious factors in mental illness (1955).
• Foreword: A. Graham Aykin. “New Concepts of Medical, Psychological, and Religious Cure” (1956).
• Where to go for help? (1957).
• The religious dimension of personality (1957).
• What psychology says about religion (1958).
• Introduction to Pastoral Counseling (1959).
• Christ and individuality (1961).
• Protestant pastoral counseling (1962).
• Confession of a workaholic (1971).
• The Psychology of Religion (1973).
• Workaholics, do an unpleasant job for you! (1978).
• Transition to silence in the center of noise (1979).
• Handbook of the Pastor (1980).
• Your Private Sorrow (1981).
• The struggle for freedom (1983).
• Stress Control (1985).