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Winter 2006 |
In This Issue
- Leadership & Mission
- Campaign Update
- St. Margaret’s Lecture: Give that Woman a Chair
- A Conversation with CDSP Students Ann Hallisey and Barry Beisner
- New Faculty
- New Dean of Students
- Faculty News
- CALL News
- Travelogue: Innovation and Renovation in the Pacific Northwest
- Epiphany West 2006
- CDSP Awards Honorary Degrees at Alumni/ae Convocation
- From the Desk of Ann Coburn
- Alumni/ae Happenings
- Upcoming Events
Leadership&
Mission
BY DONN MORGAN
President and Dean
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|
| Donn
Morgan President and Dean |
IS THERE A CONNECTION between Leadership and Mission? And if so, what is the nature and implication of such a connection? Given the popularity of leadership rhetoric in both church and society these days, it would surely seem strange if CDSP didn’t identify this aspect of ministry as important for theological education. Indeed we do! The CDSP mission statement, focusing on the educational context and priorities found at the seminary, is very explicit about the school’s intention to prepare people “for leadership in lay and ordained ministries in service of the Gospel.” The recent change in name of the Center for Anglican Learning and Life to the Center for Anglican Learning and Leadership is still another indication of the importance and centrality of leadership for our educational mission, both residentially and in the off-campus education we provide.
Good and effective leadership is always important, and even more so in times of serious division involving social and theological conflict, in times of economic instability, or in times of natural disasters and war. In such times we look to folks who have the capability to see the big picture with the ability and skills necessary to chart a responsible path toward agreed-upon goals. And in such times the question often arises: “Of what does education for leadership consist?” The answer to this is a thriving industry consisting of many books, institutions, and special programs from a few hours to a few years in length! Sometimes the focus is on “how” to be a leader, on acquiring the skills and abilities necessary for success. At CDSP these “how to” abilities range from learning to design and lead worship services and be pastoral leaders, to learning how to use a library (with all of its technological tools) to do research. At other times, the focus is on the “what” of the leader, dealing with virtues and values, with formation and character. At CDSP, this involves everything from immersion in the history and theology of spirituality to a regular worship life carried on the midst of studies, commutes, family responsibilities, and all the rest.
Focusing on both the character of the leader and the skills required for this role is very important for leadership education. Consider, for example, the many books that focus on leaders (good and bad) in the past. Attila the Hun, Abraham Lincoln, Moses, and Jesus are just the tip of the iceberg of this cottage industry! The pattern is almost always the same: to discern the “secrets” of leadership, sometimes focusing on values and formative issues, sometimes on the little “tricks of the trade” that compel people to follow. More often than not, the focus is on success, popularity, skillful analysis and management, fame, wealth, and authority. Good leaders, the ones worthy of our aspiration and allegiance, possess many of these characteristics.
In some ways, however, this focus on what it takes to be a successful leader can distract us from the most important question of why we want and need leaders at all! Leadership is a means to an end, and the end is finally not the fame or wealth of the leader, but rather living successfully into the mission of the institution or group which he or she leads. For CDSP, leadership is “in service of the Gospel,” suggesting that there is something special about theological education, a difference which is at the heart of our mission as a seminary.
Consider, for example, the case of David, King of Israel. David has often been set forth as a paradigm of leadership, both within the Bible and in subsequent Jewish and Christian writings. Indeed, one contemporary book, The Heart of an Executive: Lessons on leadership from the life of King David, by Richard D. Phillips, attempting to translate the ways in which David ruled ancient Israel into lessons for present day leaders, considers David as a CEO. While there are many ways in which David’s actions can serve as paradigms for us, there are surely many others where this is not the case, making David very much like all human leaders, a mixture of the very best and the very worst.
Finally, the biblical picture of David is less concerned with painting a picture of a successful leader and king than with a picture of God establishing a permanent connection with the people of Israel, first, with an earthly king; finally, with a Messiah. In the end, David’s achievements all count for nothing, except as enhancing a narrative of God’s intentions and love for the people. David was indeed an important leader, but almost in spite of himself—like Jacob, Joseph, Moses and a host of other biblical leaders. Theological education, as scripture does for our study of David, lifts up and puts the role of leader into dialogue with contemporary leadership and its values, requiring us to remember and learn of the ways in which God is active in our lives and ministries.
Yes, leadership is about skills— and David’s life surely points out and underlines some of these. Yes, leadership is also about character and formation — and we can glean something of this from David, as well. But ultimately, David’s leadership is in service to something which transcends skills and character, and which provides direction and perspective for the whole people, witnessing to the God who gives them direction. This is the business of theological education and mission here at CDSP.
Campaign Update:
CALL-ing all Donors!
BY JERRY CAMPBELL
Vice President for Advancement
 |
| JERRY CAMPBELL leads a tour of restoration work in Easton Hall. |
When I visit the Diocesan Conventions in Province 8, I meet some of these students when they come by the CDSP exhibit to say hello.
“I took two CALL classes last year, and they were both fabulous,” one student said as she picked up two CALL catalogs. Another CALL student came by to get a CDSP catalog and to talk about the residential degree programs that we offer. “Those CALL classes just left me hungry for more,” he said, before heading back to the convention floor.
Their voices linger in my heart as I step between the framing timbers to go from room to room. Already this space has a sacred quality to it because of the hopes, dreams and prayers of the people who imagined, funded, and built this ministry. I can feel the mission of CDSP pulsing in the sound of hammers and compressors and in the voices of the members of the building committee. They are now huddled in the unfinished guest rooms above me, assessing progress, and talking about everything that has to be done before we welcome guests to those rooms, and David, Theresa and Pam (the CALL staff) settle into these offices, surrounded by this broad network of seekers.
The Preserving Tradition — Building the Future Capital Campaign has secured $4,027,000 of the $6,600,000 needed to complete this project, and faculty, staff, and trustees are hard at work to secure the remainder. I urge you to consider underwriting one of the twelve guest rooms in Easton Hall. Three of these rooms have been dedicated and named by generous donors who have given $50,000 each. So there is still room for you, in Easton Hall. You can sponsor a room yourself, join with friends, or encourage your parish to name a room.
St.
Margaret’s Lecture:
Give that Woman a Chair
BY JOYCE HUYETT TURNER
Editor
THE
RT. REV. Bavi Edna “Nedi” Rivera, CDSP alum ’76, gave
the second annual St. Margaret’s Lecture, “Give that Woman
a Chair,” last October, at CDSP. Heartfelt, and rich with poignant
stories of women in her family, and women of the church, her speech was
warmly received by the large luncheon gathering. The second in a periodic
series, the lecture supports the effort to establish the St. Margaret’s
Chair for Women and Ministry at CDSP.
Bishop Rivera began the lecture with a powerful revelation from her own family history:
“I search for the women of my church…beginning with the women of my house.
One of my family stories is about how my grandfather Victor, his brother and all his seven sisters studied at the mission and seminary of the Church of Jesus founded by Don Manuel Ferrando, an ex- Roman priest, entrepreneur, and visionary. The family story is that my bisabuelo (my great grandfather) Pancho sent them all to this amazing mission center. What I learned as I prepared for today, is that it was my bisabuela, my great grandmother, who made this happen. On her deathbed she asked them all to join the mission. It had always been Abuelo Pancho’s story — now I know it is shared by Abuela… Abuela…Abuela who? I don’t even know her name. I have told you the one story I know (about her).”
Rivera bookended her talk with a personal challenge for each person there:
“So here is my challenge to you — it’s two-fold: First…take time at your tables to tell a story of one of the women of your family, of your church. Honor them by remembering them. Give them a place — a chair at your table.
Second, make it your task, before Advent, to tell one of your living spiritual forebears what they mean to you. Remind them of a story you share with them. Give them a chair in the university of your life.”
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|
| (Shown left to right) REBECCA LYMAN, BISHOP KATHARINE JEFFERTS SCHORI, BISHOP NEDI RIVERA, and CDSP Board Member ARDEEN RUSSELL QUINN. | |
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 |
| THE REV. PATRICIA WALKER-SPRAGUE greets E.J. HILLIARD at the luncheon. | BISHOP NEDI RIVERA, NAN WALDIE, and KIRSTIN PAISLEY share a moment during the event. |
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| ALDA MARSH MORGAN (far left) and fellow graduates of St. Margaret’s House, MARY MITCHELL and JUNE BONFIELD (far right), celebrate with BISHOP RIVERA at the luncheon. | |
With more than 200 attending the lecture, St. Margaret’s Chair Committee members were delighted with the turn-out. Co-chair The Rev. Dr. Katherine (Kitty) M. Lehman, M.Div. ’82 and D.Min.’99, Rector of St. Bede’s Episcopal Church, Menlo Park, noted “This lecture series has raised consciousness and awareness, as well as funds.” More than 40 percent of the $1.5 million needed to establish the St. Margaret’s Chair has been raised to date.
“The first chair of its kind, it will focus on the history and practice of women’s ministries in the church, a significant aspect of church history. It’s important that we have access to all of our history,” Lehman said. “Women’s studies are essential for the reformation of the church. This chair will unearth buried treasure,” she added.
“The Chair is vital for research, for teaching, for advocacy,” said CDSP Board of Trustees member, Ardeen Russell Quinn, who also serves on the St. Margaret’s Chair Committee. “This shows our commitment to education and equality for women and girls in the church—past, present and future,” she said.
This new Chair will continue the vision of St. Margaret’s House, founded in Berkeley in 1909. St. Margaret’s House trained women for the church work of the day— as deaconesses and lay church workers. As a permanent faculty position at CDSP focused on women’s lay and ordained leadership in the church, the St. Margaret’s Chair will ensure that the lessons of the ministries of women are not lost to future generations.
The first Latina bishop, Bishop Rivera was elected Suffragan in the Diocese of Olympia, in January 2005. She is the twelfth woman to be elected bishop in the history of the Episcopal Church in this country.
Bishop Rivera previously served as rector of St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church, in San Francisco, and in churches in Salinas, Ross, and San Rafael, California. The daughter of the Rt. Rev. Victor Manuel Rivera, who served as Bishop of the Diocese of San Joaquin, California, from 1968 to 1988, she has been active in ethnic ministry, faith formation, and evangelism.
The Episcopal Church was the first province in the Anglican Communion to ordain a woman as bishop when Barbara Harris was consecrated bishop suffragan of the Diocese of Massachusetts in 1989. Rivera is the 16th woman bishop in the history of the worldwide Anglican Communion of 70 million members.
Noted author Nora Gallagher gave the inaugural St. Margaret’s Lecture last fall. Gallagher is best known for her memoirs: Things Seen and Unseen: A Year Lived in Faith; and Practicing Resurrection: A Memoir of Work, Doubt, Discernment, and Moments of Grace.
A
Conversation with CDSP Students
Ann Hallisey and Barry Beisner
BY JERRY CAMPBELL
Vice President for Advancement
| CDSP Alums are engaged in a wide variety of ministries throughout the world. The Rev. Ann Hallisey (D.Min. ’05), National Coordinator for Fresh Start with the Church Deployment Office and the Rev. Canon Barry Beisner (M.Div. ’78), Canon to the Ordinary in the Diocese of Northern California, are married, and make their home in Davis, California. Our VP for Advancement, Jerry Campbell, caught up with them at Ann’s office in Davis and talked with them about life, ministry, CDSP and the mission of the Church. |
Jerry: I’d like to start by getting a little history. Ann, you attended CDSP in ’81?
Ann: That’s right. I had taken my M.Div. from Yale Divinity School, so I refer to CDSP as my Anglican finishing school! I took courses with Massey Shepherd and Sam Garrett, getting ready for GOEs in ’82.
Jerry: Barry, you picked CDSP for your M.Div. work. Why did you do that?
Barry: I was in the discernment process in the Diocese of California. Bishop Kilmer Myers said that he believed CDSP was the best seminary in the Church. And that’s where he’d like to see me go. Since I was a Berkeley graduate, I was living in the East Bay at that time and enjoyed living in that area, and it wasn’t a hard decision to stay local, especially given my Bishop’s recommendation.
Jerry: You graduated in ’78?
Barry: Yeah, 27 years ago…which is half my life, now that I’m 54. And after all those years, I’m now in the D.Min. program.
Jerry: What’s the subject of your work?
Barry: I’m writing a critical history of the Shared Ministry program in the Diocese of Northern California. It really seems that now is the time to talk about what it was we set out to do, what we’ve done, and why we’ve done it.
Jerry: So, Ann, since you completed your Anglican finishing school at CDSP, you’ve taught here as adjunct faculty?
Ann: Yes, Arthur Holder asked both of us to teach field education so we taught that for several years. In that context, I got to use a lot of what I had learned about local churches, organization, and leadership.
Jerry: Ann, you got your D.Min. at CDSP. And Barry, you got your M.Div. from here. You’ve done Field Education instructional work together, and you’ve also worked, in recent years, with students concerning issues of deployment.
Barry: Yes, at Arthur Holder’s invitation, I designed and taught a class on Parish Leadership. It began as an intersession course, where I tried to cover everything that wasn’t being taught elsewhere in the curriculum concerning administration, management, leadership, and congregational development. After two or three years, the response from the students was positive enough, and Arthur and others were supportive enough that it was expanded to a full semester course.
Jerry: In light of your experience at CDSP and in the Church, what is your understanding of the role of the seminary in the Church and the broader community, and how well do you believe CDSP fulfills that vision?
Barry: Well, CDSP is a key resource center for training for ministry, and not only for the development of ordained persons. It’s so important to see how CALL has developed to be able to point people toward theological education. Someone who is working to be a deacon in the Eureka area — and not able to make the commute to the School for Deacons — needs other ways of being trained and educated. It is also true that most of the seminarians from this Diocese seeking ordination go to CDSP. Not all, of course, but it’s very important to us in terms of preparing people for ordained leadership. We also look to CDSP as a pivotal center in the life of the Church.
Ann: I think, also, that each of the seminaries has its particular charisma. I think that CDSP is distinctive in the church because here in the West we have to grapple with issues of diversity, and how that affects the mission of the church. It also affects the way we think about and do ministry, and how we go about evangelism.
Jerry: One last question. You have, together, 50 years of experience in ministry. What wisdom do you have about the Episcopal Church today and the trials that we’re facing as a denomination here in the US, and the Anglican Communion? Where are we going? How can we move forward in ways that are going to be in service to the gospel of Jesus Christ?
Barry: The main thing is to stay focused on the mission, and not be afraid of conflict; not be afraid of difference. Stay focused on the mission, and the demand to live with a lot of difference. Manage conflict as an occasion for growth. You know, I was ordained into a Church in turmoil, and I naively thought then that it was going to let up somehow along the way, and it never has. And I now think it never will. What an exciting time, what a privilege to be in leadership in the church. It’s not easy…
Ann: Not at all.
Barry: But, it really is a privilege. The Holy Spirit is at work in the Church in exciting and unexpected ways. I think our diversity as a Church has been a great strength and an incarnation of our genius. I’ve worked very hard at moving forward in a way that doesn’t lose that in terms of the mission.
Ann: And you know, the theological model for that is the Trinity, because there’s unity in diversity in the Trinity, and it is also part of the Anglican paradigm. So we need to be faithful to who we are. Like St. Paul says, we’ve been given all the gifts we need to be who we are, and Anglicans have amazing and remarkable gifts to bring to Christianity in a global context. We can meet this challenge that has been put before us — to stay together and preach the mission. Bill Andersen, the President of the Episcopal Church Foundation, talks about this all the time, about the importance of identity, vocation, mission, and vision. If you keep those things clear, the rest will be ok.
New
Faculty
BY JOYCE HUYETT TURNER
Editor
 |
| Sue Singer |
 |
| Dan Joslyn- Siemiatkoski |
And Dan and Sue have more in common. He’s a New Englander, having done a stint at Oxford, England. She hails from “old” England, having studied at Cambridge, and is currently working on her Ph.D. dissertation from Boston College. Dan also received his Ph.D. and his M.A. from Boston College. He was graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. from Gordon College, near Boston.
There is a Cambridge connection …of sorts, as well. In addition to receiving her M.Div. from CDSP in 1989, Sue earned her M.A. and B.A. degrees in English literature at Cambridge, England. Daniel served as a lecturer in Church History at Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, MA. Dan was overwhelmed when offered “the ideal job — teaching church history at CDSP, an Episcopal seminary, with the rich offerings of the GTU.” He sees his teaching as a “vocation for preparing people for what they are called to do next — pastoral [work], teaching, and more.”
CDSP is Sue’s “dream place to teach,” as Instructor in Ministry Development. She especially enjoys the opportunity to help students “pull things together” in her current class, “Faith and Ministry in Context.” As the course name implies, she helps her students “view the whole picture, looking at things in context…taking into account such factors as history, generational dynamics, congregational size, developmental stages, ethnicity and education.”
Context is also important to Dan. “I enjoy teaching church history; it’s useful for people to understand their past as a way to understand the present,” he said. “Studying the history of Christianity is an act of compassion. Understanding why they thought and acted as they did…provides the necessary framework to understand the church today.”
As an alum, Sue relishes being back on campus. “CDSP has always been close to my heart. The faculty is magnificent — same as before,” she notes. And she means that literally. She points out that Donn Morgan was her Old Testament professor, Bill Countryman taught New Testament, and she studied Liturgics from Louis Weil. “They’re all still here!” she exclaims. But she has noticed a few changes, and is especially pleased to see courses with an emphasis on Anglican tradition, and observes, “Students are much younger now.” While most of the students were “midcareer” in the late ‘80s, today she sees many students who are just embarking on their career journey.
Her past experience, as Education Program Coordinator for the Diocese of California from 1997 to 2002, has served her well, and prepared her for her new position at CDSP.
“As a diocesan education officer, dealing with all kinds of groups, and congregations, I have learned how to meet them ‘where they are’. I know how to read context, and help people discern what kinds of ministry development and education programs serve them best within their context.”
Sue’s husband, Dave, is a computer scientist. They have a son who is studying both computer science and music at the University of Chicago. “He inherited our passions,” Sue says. She loves singing, and going to symphony concerts. Other passions include travel, cooking and reading. Books on her nightstand include Practicing Discernment with Youth by David White, Theories of Culture by Kathryn Tanner and Consuming Religion by Vincent Miller.
Sue is inspired by a vision: “The vision of the body of Christ, alive, healthy and vital…Making that a reality in some small way, inspires me,” she says.
Dan’s wife, Jennifer Joslyn- Siemiatkoski, specializes in education and prevention of sexual assault and violence on school campuses. When they married, Dan believed that if she were to take his name, then it was only fair that he take hers, hence the hyphenated result.
They love the Bay Area, its diversity of cultures, great restaurants, and the campus community, and the “good old-time music scene in Berkeley.” His taste in “old-time” music runs from the Grateful Dead, to Johnny Cash, the Carter family, and Bill Monroe.
Their beloved cat, K.C., has the run of the house, and has adjusted well to the move. (Drop by Dan’s office and ask him what K.C. means.)
He enjoys vacation time at his wife’s family cabin in Northern Minnesota.
Reading is another passion, and he recommends, The Rise of Western Christianity, by Peter Brown.
Who or what inspires him?
“My best friend, Greg MacDonald, who encouraged me to follow this path,” he said. “He was killed in Iraq in 2003. His tenacity and his belief in me was inspiring to me. He was a reservist, trying to get into international affairs work. Greg was against the war… He’s my saint,” Dan said.
Meet
The Rev. Canon Jan Smith Wood
New Dean of Students
BY JOYCE HUYETT TURNER
Editor
THE
REV. CANON Jan Smith Wood has come full circle. After receiving her M.Div.
from CDSP nearly 20 years ago, she has returned to the seminary —
not as a student this time, but as Dean of Students.
“It’s a deep blessing and grace to be back,” she says.
In the 1990s, Wood served for a term on CDSP’s Board of Trustees and Alumni/ae Council. She delights in seeing concepts that were incubated many years ago, now fully-grown and thriving as part of the seminary life. Concepts such as CALL and on-line learning were “emerging ideas,” she says. “It’s exciting to see how they’ve become reality, and part of the fabric of life here.”
She relishes the “liveliness and community dynamic” of campus life within the Graduate Theological Union; the sense of being part of the larger international community of the Pacific Rim, and the energy of the Episcopal Church in the West. She appreciates the rich diversity of prayer life and intellectual inquiry, including 16 liturgies each week, and a community eager to wrestle with big questions. Wood is happy to renew friendships with other staff and faculty members who are also alums, as well as friends on the faculty and Board of Trustees.
For the past 15 years, Wood served as Canon Educator for the Diocese of El Camino Real, where her work in program development, congregational support, pastoral care, and faith formation will serve her well in her new role. She received her B.A. degree in Spanish from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and her M.Div. from CDSP in 1986; she also attended Universidad de las Americas, in Cholula, Puebla, Mexico.
In her new position, Wood enjoys “exploring how we are knit together as a community, and seeing where we might need to provide more support, even a safety net.” She cites her top priority simply as, “helping people find the resources they need, enabling them to do what they’re called to do.”
“I’ve learned we have to depend on the grace of God, and the grace and gifts of others,” Wood says. “What unfolds is greater and richer than anything we could imagine.”
When asked what inspires her, she says, “Right now? Oh, right now it’s the Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers — wise older women from all over the world who are focused on the next generation, how we can live in peace, and stop the destruction.” Their web sites: www.forthenext7generations.com and www.grandmotherscouncil.com.
Faculty
News
BY LINDA CLADER
Dean of Academic Affairs
Linda Clader has been working on articles for the forthcoming “New Interpreter’s Bible Handbook on Preaching,” to be published by Abingdon Press in 2007. She will be writing on “Metaphor,” “Preaching on Special Occasions,” and, perhaps most notably, “Anxiety.”
Bill Countryman participated in a symposium on “Love, Sex, and Marriage in Scripture and Tradition” at Florida Southern College, October 27-28.
This past summer, George Emblom attended the Association of Anglican Musicians Conference in Baltimore and was honored for ten years of service as Organist-Choir Director of Temple Sinai, Oakland, with a two-and-a-half- week trip to Israel and Petra. He also sang with the choir of Trinity Church, Indianapolis, during their one-week residency at Durham Cathedral, as well as at weekend services at Bristol Cathedral. At St. Mark’s in Berkeley, where George has served as Director of Music since 1992, the choir is in full swing, having recently completed their yearly retreat at the Bishop’s Ranch in Healdsburg, and offering the Requiem by Gabriel Fauré on All Souls’ Day and the Missa O Quam Gloriosum by Victoria on All Saints’ Sunday. The parish choir is preparing for their 2007 tour to England which will include a one-week residency at Lincoln Cathedral.
Nancy Eswein attended the Anglican Theological Review board meeting, held at Seabury-Western Theological Seminary in Evanston, IL. Nancy then traveled to the annual Seminary Consultation on Mission (SCOM) meeting, held at Nashotah House in Nashotah, WI. Nancy will visit two programs in 2006, for SCOM: In January, she will visit a program for U.S. Episcopal seminarians at the Centro de Estudios Teológicas in Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic); in June, she is scheduled to attend the Panama Project in Panama City and outlying areas (a project started by our own John Kater).
David Gortner has completed coproduction of a documentary video on young adult ministry, entitled “Feast in the Desert.” It outlines different approaches to ministry by and with young adults. David is currently writing the book for which the video is a companion piece. (See also David’s Travelogue about his journey this summer, in the CALL News section of this issue of Crossings.)
Marion Grau submitted the galleys for a volume of essays, ‘Interpreting the Postmodern: Responses to “Radical Orthodoxy,”’ which was co-edited with Rosemary Radford Ruether. The book is scheduled to be published by T&T Clark/Continuum in January 2006. In early October, she attended a symposium on “Ground for Hope: Faith, Justice, and the Earth: An Interfaith Conference” at Drew University, where she gave a brief presentation on “Athabascan Episcopalians and the Greed for Oil in Alaska.” Marion has been invited to develop this presentation into an essay for a forthcoming collection on the intersection of ecology and theology. Marion also continues her work on a steering committee that has been charged with drafting a program unit for Women’s Studies in Religion at the GTU.
Dan Joslyn-Siemiatkoski is currently working on revising his dissertation (“The Maccabean Martyrs in Medieval Christianity and Judaism”) for publication. In December, he participated in a discussion of the movie “Kingdom of Heaven” at Canterbury House, the Episcopal ministry at UC Berkeley, with a professor from the Islamic studies department at Cal. They led reflections on the importance of Jerusalem in Christian and Muslim history and belief.
In September, John Kater officiated at the closing ceremony for Academia Teológica Latina, a three-year, Spanish-language theological education pilot program, offered by CALL for the Diocese of California. In October, John offered a workshop as part of a conference on “Theological Education in Latin America” held in Panama City, Panama. He also preached and lead forums at St. Mary’s-by-the-Sea in Pacific Grove, CA, and St. John’s Church in Ross, CA.
Lizette Larson-Miller was a busy author this fall. Her new book, “Anointing of the Sick,” was published by Liturgical Press in October, and featured at a fascinating book forum on campus December 1, with The Rev. Kevin F. Tripp and The Rev. Dr. Louis Weil as responders. She also has a chapter on Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Eastern Orthodox Funeral Rites in the new collection “Death and Religion in a Changing World,” published by M.E. Sharpe. Lizette gave presentations on sacred space on November 10 at St. Bede’s Parish in Menlo Park, and at St. Alban’s Parish in Los Angeles in December. She also will give a presentation in San Diego in early January on “Incubation Rites in the Early Church” (at the North American Academy of Liturgy), and a plenary presentation at our own Epiphany West 2006 (January 24-28) on “Welcoming Mystery, the Theology of Place.” Lizette will be on sabbatical during the spring semester while she finishes a book on the theology of space (with financial assistance from a Lilly Research Grant). During this time she will be in residence at St. Mary’s Parish, Battersea (London), where the vicarage will be a base for necessary research excursions in exchange for a Lenten adult education series on liturgy.
Donn Morgan will be on sabbatical leave for the spring semester. He will reside at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, where Fred Borsch (former dean of CDSP) now teaches, from February to June, working on a book on biblical diversity and its impact on contemporary church and society. Donn will attend General Convention in Columbus, OH in June 2006 before returning to Berkeley.
Sue Singer published an article on “Educating for Commitment: Insights from Postmodernity.” in the Summer 2005 issue of “Religious Education.” She continues work on her dissertation, the working title of which is “‘We Break This Bread ...’: Educating for Christian Identity in a Postmodern World.”
Louis Weil has been busy completing writing commitments. He penned an article on “Eucharist” for Christianity: A Complete Guide, edited by John Bowden, published by Continuum in London. The volume also contains an article by Rebecca Lyman on “Heresy”. This is an important new publication for all levels of Christian education, and has been received with great enthusiasm by reviewers. Louis also attended the fall meeting of the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music in Detroit on October 17-20. The focus of the committee’s work at this time is the preparation of materials for General Convention in June 2006.
Recommended Reading
Keeping current?
CDSP ALUMNI/AE have indicated they would like to know what new books our faculty have added to the required reading list. We’ll start with Marion Grau. Her reply to our request follows:
Within the last year, three new books have made it onto the Constructive
Theology reading list. First, there is the long-awaited Constructive
Theology: A Contemporary Approach to Classical Themes (Serene Jones
and Paul Lakeland, editors, Fortress Press), co-edited by theologians
from all over the U.S., which explains the history, purpose and method
of Constructive Theology and then looks at several different doctrines
(God, Humanity, Creation) to exemplify the practice. Despite the many
contributors, this volume has a cohesiveness to it that is only enhanced
by the many perspectives it features. The second book I have added, and
already used last year, is Eleazar Fernandez’ Reimagining the
Human: Theological Anthropology in Response to Systemic Evil. This
book is the best attempt I have seen so far to address and respond to
the complex combined scourges of sexism, racism, classism, and environmental
degradation, in ways that speak both about personal and social dimensions
of participating in and overcoming these forms of evil. An immensely helpful
book, and a hopeful one. The last book I have added is James Perkinson’s
White Theology: Outing Supremacy in Modernity, a book by a Euro-American
male taking on racism from his particular location, and responding with
transformative action to the challenges of James Cone’s black theology.
A challenging, helpful antidote for those struggling with ‘white
guilt’ and how to move from guilt to change.
—MARION GRAU
Anglican
Learning, Leadership and the Challenge of Conflict
BY DAVID T. GORTNER
Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology
Director, Center for Anglican Learning & Leadership
LOOK
FOR some surprising new developments from CALL this coming year! In addition
to our ever-expanding array of online courses and speaker series, The
Center for Anglican Learning and Leadership at CDSP is launching several
significant new endeavors in 2006.
CALL’s Summer Session at CDSP
In July 2006, CALL will offer its first summer session of on-campus courses. With a focus on strengthening the leadership and ministry capacities of our clergy and laity, we are offering five week-long courses for our first summer session:
July 17-21
1) Crossing Lines and Bending Notes: A Practicum on Imaginative Preaching — a course for preachers, led by Linda Clader
July 24-28
2) Churches with an Impact: Community Organizing for Church Leaders — a training course for congregations, led by the Pacific Institute for Community Organizing
3) Get Your Hands Dirty: An Immersion Training for Church Planters — a training course for laypeople and clergy interested in church-planting and evangelism, led by Charles Fulton
July 31–August 4
4) Making a Home for Difference: Working through Implications from ECUSA’s General Convention 2006 — a conference providing space to work on implementation and think through implications of ECUSA decisions, led by Donn Morgan and various invited discussants
Date To Be Determined
5)Strengthening Discipleship in Your Community — for Latino laypeople and clergy, a course in Spanish on building strong communities of faith in Spanish-speaking contexts, led by Jean-Paul Andrieu
These courses represent some of the interests expressed by clergy and laypeople alike. Each weeklong course will run for five days, for three and a half hours each day. With the completion of Easton Hall, the seismic retrofitting of Gibbs Hall, and dorm space available in the summer, we will have accommodations for 45-50 people during each week of the summer session.
CALL’s Summer Session at CDSP represents a bold new venture for all of us. With the GTU-wide shift from a joint Summer Session to independent summer programs at each school, CALL is responding to this tremendous opportunity. Through CALL, CDSP is working collaboratively with various GTU schools in developing, advertising, and coordinating this new Summer Session. Our faculty, students, alumni, and trustees have been enthusiastic in their support, and we hope for a strong turnout in our first year. Look for more information from us this winter!
A New Approach
In January and February 2006, CALL will launch two pilot courses that set the stage for a new approach to online learning. Thanks to a grant from the Evangelical Education Society of the Episcopal Church, Teresa Brown has been working with the Dioceses of Nevada and Spokane to develop a new “hybrid” model of learning. This “hybrid” approach begins with an intensive weekend training conference in each diocese and continues with five weeks of online education. The first two hybrid courses will be taught by Linda Clader and Teresa Brown. Linda will teach and direct a hybrid course on preaching for the Diocese of Nevada, beginning with classes in two different locations — Reno and Las Vegas — and then bring the two groups together through continuing online coursework. Teresa will teach a course in Old Testament theology for the Diocese of Spokane.
We are excited about this hybrid model for online education. Recent research by the Association of Theological Schools suggests that this hybrid approach is particularly effective, combining the advantages of face-toface classroom interaction with flexible self-paced learning on line. We believe that by bringing people together, this approach will help them form stronger bonds in their learning community, and deepen their investment in continuing their learning and training through online interactions. We anticipate that the learning communities created by this approach will continue well beyond the duration of the online courses. This community-building and educational depth is particularly attractive to dioceses like Nevada and Spokane, where consistent training over a wide geographic span is often quite challenging.
These two pilot courses will give us a clear sense of the potential the hybrid model holds as a new way to serve the continuing education, ministry development, and lifelong learning needs of the Church. We anticipate that this model will address important education and training goals of dioceses and provinces throughout the Church, and we look forward to growing partnerships.
Expanding Partnerships
Thanks to Fred Vergara’s leadership from the Episcopal Church Center, CALL is rapidly expanding its online course offerings in partnership with Episcopal Asian-American Ministry. Fred’s course on Asians in the Episcopal Church has been a popular first offering, and Fred is actively planning new courses with Teresa Brown for Spring and Summer of 2006.
The Academia Teológica Latina (ATL), co-sponsored by CALL and the Diocese of California, has new leadership in Jean-Paul Andrieu. Jean-Paul is working in collaboration with John Kater to map out new and expanded offerings from ATL. This remains a unique program in the Episcopal Church and at the GTU, and other GTU schools have expressed interest in possible partnerships.
CALL is working with Province VIII leadership to help strengthen provincial networks by providing both online discussion-boards and a location (Easton Hall) for more frequent meetings.
These are just a few of the expanding partnerships developing with CALL. We are excited by these emerging and growing opportunities. No doubt CALL will continue to emerge, evolve, and expand to become a leading source for ministry and leadership development in the Church.
The Academia Teológica Latina is celebrating its first graduates. This unique three-year program, co-sponsored by CALL and the Diocese of California, provides Spanish-speaking students with theological education and preparation for various forms of Christian ministry and leadership in the many Latino/a communities around the Bay Area. Their graduation ceremony and celebration is scheduled for September 10 here at CDSP.
As I assume this daunting role of directing CALL, I am following John Kater’s initial strategy. When he helped start CALL, he was still a newcomer to the West. He adopted a simple strategy for getting to know churches and dioceses in Province VIII: drive everywhere. I am adopting this same strategy. This summer, my wife, daughter, and I are “on the road,” focusing on making contacts and getting to know communities, churches, and dioceses in the Northwest. We will be visiting over 20 churches in seven dioceses. We enjoy these driving trips together.
In addition, Teresa Brown is presenting CALL online education opportunities in a variety of locations. Our relationship with the North American Association for the Diaconate is becoming progressively stronger, as more bishops and Commissions on Ministry learn about CALL as a resource for ministry and leadership preparation. We are continuing to develop unique partnerships with several dioceses to support training for mutual ministry. Teresa and I are both networking with leaders throughout Province VIII, presenting CALL as a resource for systematic continuing education for clergy.
The programs for 2005-2006 are very exciting, exploring a wide range of issues and topics. Watch your mail for the CALL catalog, and pay close attention to the array of programs and events offered. I would particularly recommend our speaker series (“Evenings With…” and “CALL on the Peninsula,”) as well as some of our new online courses (for instance, “So You’re a New DRE [Director of Religious Education]”). And Epiphany West (January 24-28, 2006), with its focus on Theology, Space and Place, promises to be stellar.
We remain deeply committed to CALL’s mission and vision: to strengthen the ministry of the Episcopal Church through collaborative education and training. Continuing our current pattern of programs and events, we aim to expand our work in three major areas: clergy continuing education, spiritual formation and leadership development for all people, and the strengthening of youth and young adult ministry efforts. Please do not hesitate to call us with your interests, insights, and ideas. CALL is an ongoing shared creation, and I look forward to continuing its creation and development with each of you.
Travelogue:
Innovation and Renovation in the Pacific Northwest
BY DAVID T. GORTNER
Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology
Director, Center for Anglican Learning & Leadership
THIS PAST SUMMER, Heather, Cassie and I drove over 2,000 miles through the Pacific Northwest. Part vacation and part networking trip, we drove through the western parts of Northern California, Oregon, and Washington, up to Vancouver in British Columbia, and back again. During our travels, we visited 10 different congregations, several diocesan centers, and the gathering of Province VIII for its Convocation in Portland.
We were excited by the vibrancy, creativity and commitment we found in congregations and dioceses across the Northwest. I also saw clearly how congregations and clergy were contributing in amazing ways to each others’ spiritual development and vision for ministry. Emphasizing the vision and mission of CALL, I asked for their wish lists for continuing education. Many thanks to the clergy and layleaders who generously gave of their time and hospitality to meet with me and provide a glimpse of the liveliness of the Episcopal Church in the Northwest. This is a brief “travel log” of the stories of innovation and renovation I encountered.
Eugene, Oregon: St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church
Seattle, Washington: Church of the Ascension
Dorian Mulvey, rector at Ascension, had us over for lunch. With new life and growth in the congregation, outreach and family ministries are blooming. Ecumenical partnerships allow for expanded ministries, such as short-term housing for families in need and a joint senior high youth program with the Lutherans. Programs like Godly Play are drawing new families to the church. Dorian brings strengths and interests in family ministry to the congregation. Her wish-list for continuing education includes leadership training for clergy — especially in how to develop and strengthen lay leadership for collaborative ministry.
Seattle, Washington: Church of the Apostles (COTA)
This joint Lutheran-Episcopal church-plant in the city near the University district has garnered national attention as a leading example of Emerging Church approaches to forming faith communities. Part intentional community, part coffeehouse, part church, COTA is committed to making deeply-rooted disciples in a post-modern world. Karen Ward, a Lutheran pastor, is the community’s “Abbess,” and has demonstrated remarkably effective lay leadership development — young adults quickly take on leadership roles at COTA, and a number of them are ready for moving into ordained leadership. The community produces CDs of its music, runs a coffeehouse, and directs faith searchers into spiritual practices from across the Christian traditions. Karen’s wish-list for clergy continuing education includes fundraising, church planting, and spiritual practices.
With the support of Jerry Shigaki’s leadership, the development of ethnic ministry and mission in the Diocese of Olympia includes a thriving Cambodian congregation and a steady stream of postulants coming from ethnically diverse communities. Commissions on Ministry throughout Province VIII are rethinking their processes of encouragement and selection for ordained ministry and are expressing renewed interest in young people’s vocational discernment. Congregations and CDSP alumni clergy along the Oregon coast continue to reach out to fisher communities and Latin American residents, work creatively with regional artists and theaters, offer outposts for an alternative to fundamentalism, and, in general, build bridges between church and community.
These are just a few of the congregations and diocesan programs that excited us in our travels in the Northwest. We returned from our trip with a renewed sense of joy and hope for the Episcopal Church. With so many communities of faith dedicating themselves to renewal and to the development of creative ministries, I return to CDSP with stronger commitment to this often-strained Church of ours — because it is also full of life.
Epiphany
West 2006
BY
JAN PARKIN
Donor Relations and Communications Officer
Sacred space has often been treated as the theological “icing on the cake”—nice, but irrelevant to the real meaning of what we do. But our environment, built by human hands or inherited through nature, profoundly affects us as church and people; the buildings we shape also shape us in return, in ways either positive or negative. Epiphany West 2006 will explore the meaning of buildings and other places in liturgy, in aesthetics, in social and political contexts, in theology and as primary vehicles of evangelization.
CDSP
Awards Honorary Degrees
at Alumni/ae Convocation
BY
JOYCE HUYETT TURNER
Editor
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| DON and CAROL ANNE SMULLIN BROWN | |
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| Like father, like daughter: RIVERAS. |
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| KATHERINE L. WARD |
“Ministry is not simply about faithfully and steadfastly focusing on presently well-defined tasks, on received visions and clearly articulated missions, but also about being open to the ‘new,’ open even to change and transformation, even to turning around if need be,” said President and Dean Donn F. Morgan. “Our (honorary degree recipients) lift up this priority, each in their own way.”
The Very Rev. Dr. Donald G. Brown served as dean of Trinity Cathedral, in Sacramento, for eighteen years. During his tenure, the congregation more than doubled in size. Under his leadership, the Cathedral served as the catalyst for ecumenical and inter-religious cooperation in addressing the city’s social problems.
“Donald Brown amply demonstrates how a vocation to parish ministry can touch a community, a city, a diocese, a national church, a global communion,” said Morgan.
A graduate of Willamette University and Episcopal Theological School, Brown served congregations in Salem and Lake Oswego, Oregon, and Longview, Washington, before he became dean of Trinity Cathedral in 1987.
He has held numerous posts in three dioceses, including service on both the Commission on Ministry and the Standing Committee of the Diocese of Northern California. Founding Board President of River City Community Services, the Sacramento Interfaith Housing Network, and Sacramento Area Congregations Together, Brown also served on the Board of Loaves and Fishes of Sacramento. He is a Senior Fellow of the American Leadership Forum.
Brown has represented his diocese as a deputy at the last five General Conventions. He co-chairs the Lutheran-Episcopal Coordinating Committee, and is a member of the Episcopal Church’s Standing Commission on Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations. He is an active member of the Compass Rose Society, which supports the work of the Anglican Communion. Last year, the Archbishop of Canterbury appointed Brown to chair the Council of Advice to the Anglican Observer at the United Nations.
Brown served on CDSP’s Board of Trustees for eleven years, chaired the Board’s Development Committee, and served as a member of its Executive Committee.
The first Latina bishop, The Rt. Rev. Bavi Edna Rivera (Moore), Suffragan of Olympia, carries on a family tradition, with a twist. She knows the Church from the kitchen table to the Holy Table. Her father was an Episcopal priest and Bishop of the Diocese of San Joaquin. Bishop Rivera is the twelfth woman to be elected bishop in the history of the Episcopal Church in this country. Previously, she served as Rector of St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church, in San Francisco and in churches in Salinas, Ross, and San Rafael, California.
Active in ethnic ministry, faith formation and evangelism, Bishop Rivera served for many years as a deputy to General Convention, and a delegate from Province VIII on the Executive Council.
Drawing on the inspiration of the women in her family, Rivera recently gave the second annual St. Margaret’s Lecture at CDSP. The periodic lecture series supports the effort to establish the St. Margaret’s Chair for Women and Ministry at CDSP.
“Not only is she a dynamic leader in the present, she makes all of her educators and nurturers of the past look stellar,” said Steve Huffman, CDSP Board Chair.
The Rev. Dr. Katherine L. Ward’s dedication to education led her to work for the advancement of her students in public schools, first in Mississippi, then in California. In the Oakland Unified School District, she rose from teacher to counselor to principal, and finally, central office administrator. Following her retirement, she was graduated from CDSP with an M.Div. in 1994, and was ordained to the priesthood the following year. She was Rector of St. Augustine’s Parish, Oakland, for eight years. Ward has also served as President of the Diocese of California Standing Committee, a Board member of St. Paul’s Episcopal School, and was the African-American Network Coordinator for Province VIII. Presently, she is Interim Pastor at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, in Oakland.
Ward remains actively involved in furthering many causes including the Union of Black Episcopalians, the Center for Anglican Learning and Leadership (CALL) at CDSP, the Episcopal Women’s History Project, and the Oakland Alliance of Black Educators.
From the Desk
Of...
BY ANN COBURN ’77
Director of Alumni/ae and Church Relations
THIS
IS a wonderful time to be in an academic community. The energy level is
at an incredible high as first year students arrive bringing with them
an eagerness to engage in a process that has them growing and stretching
in new and profound ways, and as continuing students begin to fine-tune
their learning and skills in the work of field education, resume writing,
and elective courses. Into the mix, this October, came alums and friends
for Alumni/ae Convocation and the second annual St. Margaret’s Luncheon
and Lecture. It is always wonderful when these two worlds come together
and learn from one another.
Alumni/ae, family and friends from near and far gathered at All Souls Church in Berkeley to celebrate with Don Brown, Nedi Rivera, and Katherine Ward as they were honored by the seminary for their extraordinary gifts of ministry used for the spread and advancement of the Gospel. Donn Morgan preached a wonderful and moving sermon that wove the lives of the honorees with the life of Sam Garrett, teacher, mentor, alum, and Gibbs Society member, whose death last June we marked. With a couple of members of Sam’s family in attendance, we were reminded how this wise and grace-filled man touched so many lives. The celebration continued with a reception and feast back at the campus where the Refectory was filled to overflowing.
As we look forward, the next opportunity for alums to return to campus in a significant way is Epiphany West, January 24-28, 2006. At the same time, the Classes of 1999, 2000, and 2001 are invited back to the Colin Campbell Reflection Conference. With studies showing us that many clergy are leaving parish ministry, and in some cases ordained ministry all together, after ten years, it is vital that we find ways to help support and mentor clergy in these early years, so they can better cope with the issues of isolation, loneliness, financial hardship, burn-out, and disillusionment that may arise in parish settings.
Taking time to reflect and reconnect at CDSP is one way to help find the tools and resources to keep each of us spiritually and mentally fit for working in God’s vineyard, whether we have been out of seminary for four, twenty-four or forty years. Continuing education classes, like those offered by Epiphany West, help the growing and stretching continue long after the diplomas are handed out.
You are always invited to return to CDSP, and it would be a joy for us to welcome you back whenever you can come. In a few short months we will once again have places for you to stay on campus as the renovation work in Gibbs and Easton comes to a close. Are you feeling a need for refreshment and re-creation? Do you need a change of scenery or a change of heart? Remember we are here for you.
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CDSP CROSSINGS Editor Executive Editor Editorial Board Writers Design & Production Feature Photography Printer Crossings is published by the Communications Office at CDSP. For additional copies: 510/204-0755. |
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