IN MEMORIAM: Percy “Lin” Urban ‘48
Received by the Alumni Office from his widow, Mrs. Ann C. Urban
The Rev. Dr. Percy Linwood “Lin” Urban, Class of 1948, passed away on January 29, 2021 at The Quadrangle Sunrise Senior Living Community in Haverford, PA, age 96. He had been dealing with Parkinson’s for years, which had become increasingly more difficult. Despite those challenges, he retained his trademark cheerfulness until the end.
Lin was a loving and thoughtful husband, father, and grandfather, professor, clergyman, peacemaker, shepherd of the poor and dispossessed, author, gardener, historian, crossword puzzle aficionado, and master of satire, dry humor, and plain speak. His deep abiding faith helped him face the challenges life gave him with acceptance, grace, and hope. His sense of humor, occasionally bordering on downright silliness, was an overarching theme for his life.
Lin was born on April 12, 1926 in Philadelphia, PA to Percy Linwood Urban and Mary Robinson Hodge Urban. The eldest of three children, he spent his childhood in North Haven, CT. He loved his family dearly and enjoyed recounting humorous tales of the escapades and adventures of his siblings (Margaret and Bayard) and parents.
After graduating from Choate Rosemary Hall in 1942, Urban earned his A.B. in philosophy at Princeton University in 1946. He then earned his S.T.B., S.T.M., and Th.D. at General. While studying at General, he served as assistant rector of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Chelsea, and then as chaplain at Leake and Watts Foundation, a children’s home for orphan boys in Yonkers, New York.
On June 6, 1951, he married Ann Frances (Nancy) Coward at the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer in Bryn Mawr, PA, who was a close friend of his sister Margaret. They spent their early married life in Manhattan and Yonkers, before moving to Swarthmore, PA in 1957 when he took a job at Swarthmore College. They lived a long and happy life in Swarthmore raising their three children and participating as active members of Trinity Episcopal Church. In 2002, Lin and Nancy moved to a retirement community, The Quadrangle, in Haverford, PA. While at the Quadrangle he remained active, helping organize a lecture series for residents.
Lin began teaching at Swarthmore College in 1957. He was passionate about academia and the college and loved teaching and interacting with his students. Known for, in the words of one colleague, his gift for satire, clarity, and patience, he helped found the Department of Religion and served on numerous committees throughout his years at Swarthmore. Others have observed that no one person has chaired more crisis committees at the college than he, including one he formed in spring 1969 when students took over the Admissions Office, demanding a change in admissions policy, and one formed to resolve a tenure dispute that rocked the campus during the 70s.
He also helped establish Partners in Ministry at Swarthmore College, which was founded with local Protestant churches and the Friends meeting to support the continuing presence of a Christian and interfaith ministry of spiritual nurture on the campus. He retired in 1992 as the Charles and Harriett Cox McDowell Professor Emeritus of Religion. He is the author of two books: The Power of God, edited with Douglas N. Walton and A Short History of Christian Thought.
He was also active in the Episcopal Church Diocese of Pennsylvania, serving on numerous committees and as a temporary pastor as needed at various churches. He served as Dean of the Delaware Deanery for the Diocese of Pennsylvania for six years.
Lin is preceded in death by his parents, his two siblings Martha Urban Johnson and Hugh Bayard Urban, and two children Catherine Jacobs Urban and Richard Urban. He is survived by his wife Ann Coward Urban; his children Margaret Joan Urban, Swarthmore, PA, David Linwood Urban (Molly), Shaker Heights, OH, and Ann Crenshaw Urban (Mark Glen), Winston-Salem, NC; and grandchildren James Linwood Urban (Courtney Mazur), Daniel Asher Urban, Nathaniel David Clark Urban, and Emma Louise Glen.
The family would like to thank the staff in the Skilled Nursing unit at The Quadrangle for their kindness and care over the last two and a half years.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Partners in Ministry, c/o Swarthmore College, 500 College Avenue, Swarthmore, PA 19801.
Urban was buried in the Memorial Garden at Trinity Episcopal Church in Swarthmore, PA. A memorial service will be held at a later date.