Morning Worship

The Reverend Dr. Echol Lee Nix, Jr. was born in a family of four to Rev. Dr. Echol and Mrs. Annie Mae Nix. He grew up in Montgomery, Alabama and attended George Washington Carver High School. At the age of 13, he began his work in the church and served as an usher and a junior deacon before announcing a call to ministry. After high school, he went to Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in History.  During his sophomore year at Morehouse, he was licensed to preach at 19 years old and ordained by his father at 21 at the Everdale Baptist Church in Montevallo, AL.

Believing that the call to ministry is a call to preparation, he received a Master of Divinity degree at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. In 1999, he traveled to the Holy Land and visited Jerusalem, Galilee, Jericho, Bethany, and several other places in Israel.  Dr. Nix later attended Boston University and pursued a second Master’s degree and a Ph.D., both in Theology. He was in the same Ph.D. program as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and due to his outstanding academic work and community service at Boston University, he was awarded a full fellowship to Frankfurt University in Germany. For almost three years, he traveled throughout Germany and France learning European culture, history, and languages and spoke at Protestant churches, military chapels, and elementary schools.

For ten years, Dr. Nix worked at Furman University and he now teaches in the Department of Humanities at Claflin. He has also served as a minister at Baptist, Presbyterian, Cumberland Presbyterian, and non-denominational churches in Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Massachusetts, and South Carolina.

Dr. Nix is a member of several professional organizations, including the American Academy of Religion and the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History. He is the author of three books and many scholarly articles. Furthermore, he  serves as a counselor at Miracle Hill Ministries, helping young people develop life skills, complete their education and overcome personal challenges.

For two years, he worked in a program affiliated with the South Carolina State Department of Education as a tutor to Hispanic children in grades K through 12. In addition to being a professor, published author, and counselor, he is a proud father to his daughter, McKenzie Grace Nix, a third grade honor student in Greenville. Dr. Nix’s personal motto is: “If I can help somebody as I pass along, then my living shall not be in vain.”