Walter Capps was a Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara for over 30 years. He later was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Walter was an anti-war activist during the 1960s and became known for his book "Religious Studies: The Making of a Discipline".

He passed away in 1997 of a heart attack. The University of California has honored him with the Walter Capps Center for Study of Ethics, Religion and Public Life at its Santa Barbara campus.