| |
|
Standing Up
A reflection from President Ferlo
|
|
|
Our Lady of Ferguson, icon written by Mark Dukes, commissioned by Mark Bozutti-Jones, Trinity Church Wall Street
|
"What I'm trying to cultivate is not blind optimism but what the philosopher Jonathan Lear calls radical hope. 'What makes this hope radical,' Lear writes, 'is that it is directed toward a future goodness that transcends the current ability to understand what it is.' Radical hope is not so much something you have but something you practice; it demands flexibility, openness, and what Lear describes as 'imaginative excellence.' Radical hope is our best weapon against despair, even when despair seems justifiable; it makes the survival of the end of your world possible."
Last Saturday, I had the privilege of offering the homily at the Bexley Seabury Eucharist, in the presence of the 15 or so seminary students and faculty assembled for a weekend liturgy class. I have preached many sermons in the past three decades, on many challenging scripture texts. But in the light of the events of the past few weeks, I found the two texts assigned for the day particularly problematic. In the first one (2 Corinthians 8:7-15), Paul urges the Corinthians to be generous in support of their fellow Christians in Jerusalem. "I am testing the generousness of your love," he says, "looking for a fair balance between your present abundance and the needs of others." The
Gospel reading was even more troubling (Luke 6:35-38): "Love your enemies...do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven."
Given the signs of the times, I now include these two passages in my growing collection of what Biblical scholars call, rather dispassionately, "hard sayings."
|
|
As Seen in the ENS Newsletter...Part 1
Apply now to begin a DMin in Preaching in June
Interested? Click on the ad for details.
|
Study Up...Coalesce Your Team...January 2016 Courses
Great options for you, colleagues, and friends
>> STRATEGIC SOLUTIONS FOR YOUR MINISTRY CONTEXT
Congregational Systems: Jan. 9-13, 2017
Learn how principles of systems and organizational theory can lead to new possibilities for your congregation or organization. Emlyn Ott leads this highly praised course.
More information
Making Mission Possible in Tough Times: Jan. 9-13, 2017
Learn new strategies and new tools for leading your congregation through periods of rapid change and uncertainty. Suzann Holding leads this valuable course.
More information
Diversity and Context: Jan. 16-20, 2017
Take a week to increase your intercultural competency. A great course for to take with key team members, led by Eric Law.
More information
>> MORE CREATIVE & COMPELLING PREACHING
The Art of Preaching: Jan. 23-27, 2017
Rethink your role as a preacher and how to tap a range of artistic disciplines to enliven sermons. Open to beginning, intermediate, and advanced preachers. Led by John Dally. More information
>> APPROACHING A THESIS
Two hands-on seminars, each 3 days, both led by Suzann Holding and Ellen Wondra, designed for DMin students:
|
|
As Seen in the ENS Newsletter...Part 2
Apply now to begin a DMin in Congregational Development in June
Interested? Click on the ad for details.
|
New for 2017
A second "Learning from London" opportunity, May 20-26
Looking for ways to take your congregation to the next level? Consider our "Learning from London: Mission and Evangelism in the 21st Century" travel course.
This popular course immerses participants in the lively and varied church culture that continues to enliven congregations in one of the world's most vibrant cities.
Our January class is fully booked, so we've added a second class, May 20-26, 2017. However, the May class is filling quickly.
Send an email to Jason Fout at your first opportunity if you might be interested.
|
Help Us Make a Difference
Your gift to the Annual Fund helps us form more leaders for ministry
 THANK YOU for your ministry and
all the ways that you support
Bexley Seabury.
With God's help and yours, Bexley Seabury is realizing its goal of creating a 21st century seminary "beyond walls" for a 21st century church.
Please consider a gift to our Annual Fund to support our efforts on behalf of our students as they prepare to take the Gospel into their communities.
All of us at Bexley Seabury are determined to forge a new direction for theological education and formation, one that will make a lasting difference.
With God's help, and yours, we can make a difference together.
All gifts are welcome and help us increase scholarship support for our students.
THANK YOU.
|
|
| |
| |
| |
|
On and Off Campus
Alums
 The protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline continues at Standing Rock Sioux Nation with unrelenting leadership from John Floberg (Bexley Hall '91). As one example of his commitment to protect the Sioux Nation, their sacred grounds, and their access to clean water, John organized the recent Clergy Standing at Standing Rock campaign effort that resulted in more than 500 interfaith allies to joining protest onsite on November 3. John is supervising priest for the Episcopal congregations on the North Dakota side of Standing Rock, where he has served for 25 years. John is also a member of Executive Council.
Dan Sheid (Seabury-Western '06) was filmed recently for a Trinity Institute video on the growing challenge of access to safe water. Dan was interviewed about his work in the prolonged campaign to secure safe water for the residents of Flint, Mich. He calls the water crisis there "environmental racism." Dan is rector, St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Flint.
|
|
 |
| Troy Preston with Bishop Singh |
|
Troy Preston (BSSF Anglican Studies '16
) is the new rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Corning, NY.
He was formally inducted at a gala ceremony by the Rt. Rev. Prince G. Singh, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester. At that same ceremony Troy was ordained to the priesthood. He has been a deacon since last April.
More than 400 clergy and parishioners from throughout the Episcopal diocese of Rochester, and from Corning area churches of all faiths, attended the service.
The homilist was David Hefling
(Seabury-Western '03)
, rector of St. John's Episcopal Church in Canandaigua, N.Y. Preston received an MDiv from Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School. He and his spouse, Kevin Hillman, own and operate Fran's Landing, a restaurant near Addison, NY.
Steve Lawler
(Seabury-Western '84) a priest, professor, and psychologist serving as rector of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Ferguson, Mo., has been selected to serve as the founding director of the Walker Leadership Institute at Eden Theological Seminary. Eden is a seminary of the United Church of Christ in St. Louis. Lawler is a 1981 graduate of Eden. He has taught courses on leadership, sustainability, and organizational development at Washington University since 2004, and he has also run a successful consulting firm providing business counsel for clients like The Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts and BJC HealthCare, The Redemptorists Denver Province, and Liguori Publications. He will teach congregational leadership at Eden.
After a full career in education, teaching art at levels ranging from elementary school through university and then advancing in administration as a fine arts college presidency,
Phyllis Gillie Jaffe (MTS '07, CATS '05 Seabury-Western ) responded to a call to ordained ministry in the United Church of Christ. The
response took her in search of connecting factors between art and spirituality. She
served as Hospital Chaplaincy at the National Institute of Health, Bethesda, Md., and Sibley Memorial Hospital and George Washington University Hospital, Washington, D.C. Throughout her professional career, she produced and exhibited art at the local and national levels. Friends, colleagues, and a few art museums own her work. Retired, she paints and writes, while remaining active in regional arts organizations. She and her husband divide their time between Washington, D.C., and Salisbury, Md. Here is a link to her website
Staff and Faculty
Our staff and faculty members have participated in four diocesan conventions this month.
Jason Fout
joined the people of the Dioceseof Western Michigan Nov. 4-5;
Jaime Briceño
represented the seminary at the Diocese of Ohio convention while
KJ Oh
traveled to the Diocese of Southern Ohio Nov. 11-12. Jaime, Lynn Bowers, Ron Fox, President Ferlo, and resident clergy
John Dally and
Suzann Holding
were with colleagues and friends of the Diocese of Chicago who met in convention on Nov. 18-19.
TUNING IN TO THE POWER OF ICONOGRAPHY...Do you wonder about the imagery of the Jesus' death? Have you considered the power ascribed to certain images when the church (or individuals) pronounce them as sacred and present them as emblematic of what we believe? Professor of Theology and Culture John Dally is presenting weekly webcasts this fall on The Writing of "The Death of the Beautiful Young Man: The Erotics of Redemption." Tune in live through Facebook Tuesdays at 11:30 a.m. Central Time, or watch on your own schedule here. Each webcast lasts 10-15 minutes. Binge watching encouraged!
|
|
|
|
| |
|
