Running Toward the Place Where God Calls Us—A Reflection from President Jackson
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My family and I arrived too early for the Easter Vigil. Perhaps we were overly optimistic about how many other people would also want to be there. Perhaps we got lucky with traffic and parking. Perhaps it didn’t take us as long to get our shoes and coats on as it did when my son was younger. Whatever the reason, we had a long time to wait in the dark and contemplate.
As I sat there, I reflected on the difference between my family—neatly dressed, unhurried, fully knowing what to expect—and those holy women who rolled out of bed early and immediately ran to the tomb that first Easter.
Sometimes life is better if you see what’s coming. It’s less stressful for one thing, and the events can be managed more smoothly and more effectively. But other times, to really feel the power of God’s actions, you have to just roll out of bed, unprepared, and run toward the place where God calls you. I don’t know what you will experience there, and part of the point is that you don’t, either.
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I’m not saying that squeaking into church with wet hair and a powerbar breakfast just as the organist sounds the first notes of the prelude is a spiritual discipline people should cultivate. But when it happens, maybe, just maybe, you’ll be able to experience God’s saving actions the way the holy women did early on the first day. And you can thank God that, at least this time, you didn’t miss it.
May the surprising blessings of Eastertide rest upon you and those you love, now and always.
Micah
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Doctor of Ministry, Master of Divinity, and Diploma in Anglican Studies degrees and diplomas will be awarded at the Bexley Seabury commencement on May 17 at 10:30 am at St. Paul and the Redeemer Episcopal Church at
4945 S. Dorchester in Chicago. Bexley Seabury Director
the Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Ohio, will preach. Reception directly following. For questions or to RSVP, please contact Lynn Bowers at
lbowers@bexleyseabury.edu
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Bexley Seabury Professor Continues to Advance Ecumenical Dialogue
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Professor Emerita Ellen K. Wondra represented the World Council of Churches Commission on Faith and Order March 23-25 at a high-level global consultation at Notre Dame University in South Bend, Ind. on the implications of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ). Five world communions (including the Anglican Communion) have now affirmed or signed the Declaration. At the first meeting of these five, participants identified implications of the declaration and suggested multiple possibilities for increasing the effect of the declaration in local churches.
An ecumenical prayer service in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at Notre Dame marked the opening of the three-day consultation.
The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Roman Catholic Church signed the JDDJ on 31 October 1999 in Augsburg, Germany. It has since been joined or substantially affirmed by the World Methodist Council (WMC), the Anglican Communion and the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC).
The March consultation marks the first time that all five JDDJ partners have come together to see how the historic agreement can help move the churches closer toward their goal of Christian unity.
Attending the service as guests of honor were leaders of the five Christian World Communions who have signed and affirmed the JDDJ. They were WMC President the Rev. Dr. J.C. Park; LWF General Secretary the Rev. Dr. Martin Junge; Kurt Cardinal Koch, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (Roman Catholic Church); the Very Rev. Dr. Sarah Rowland Jones, Dean of St. David's Cathedral in Wales (Anglican Communion); and WCRC General Secretary the Rev. Dr. Chris Ferguson. The WCC Faith and Order commission is part of the process and is represented by Professor Wondra.
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Share the Joy of Resurrection With a Gift to the Annual Fund
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THANK YOU for all the ways you support our mission.
With your help, Bexley Seabury continues a150-plus-year tradition of offering top-quality advanced theological studies taught by world-class scholar-practitioners. Please consider a gift to celebrate the joy of Eastertide and help us raise more gifted leaders for the Church.
If you are able, please make a contribution by mail (1407 E. 60th Street Chicago IL 60637), phone (800-275-8235), or online by clicking the button below.
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APPLY BY APRIL 30 to Begin DMin in Congregational Development Studies this June
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Enhance Your Skill Set for 21st Century Ministry
Is leading your congregation more of a mystery than it used to be? It may be time to re-tool with a Bexley Seabury DMin in Congregational Development.
- LEARN FROM SCHOLAR-PRACTITIONERS, faculty members distinguished in fields related to congregational development, and from peers.
- COLLABORATIVE STUDY FORMATS in small groups, lecture and discussion, online reflection, case studies.
- INNOVATIVE & PRAGMATIC COURSES that emphasize leadership for today and the integration of theory and practice.
- PARTICIPATION in a learning community with others who are asking similar questions.
- WORKABLE SCHEDULE—All courses are taught in one-week intensives that meet on campus 5 days, Monday–Friday in June or January.
Click below for more information and how to apply.
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Current and Prospective Students, Please Mark Your Calendars
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- APRIL 30: DMin in Congregational Development application deadline (see previous item)
- MAY 15: Registration deadline for new DMin students
- JULY 31: Registration deadline for new MDiv students
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Grow and Refresh Your Skills
2–5 days on campus plus online work
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JUNE 3–7
> Reimagining Congregations in Mission led by Bonnie Perry*
Explore inherited assumptions and patterns of Christian congregational life in light of new apostolic environments.
Begins online MAY 28; meets on-campus JUNE 4–5; continues online until JUNE 25
> Global Anglicanism in Ecumenical Context led by Tom Ferguson*
Learn how diversity and post-colonialism affect the Anglican Communion and members' capacity to cooperate and collaborate.
JUNE 10–14
> Organizational Systems led by Emlyn Ott*
Gain perspective on the development of leadership and belief systems through the lens of Bowen family systems theory and adaptive change.
> Community Organizing for Missional Living led by Barbara Wilson
Develop relational leadership skills and learn how to engage others in community change that is grounded in theology.
JUNE 17–21
> The Art of Preaching led by John Dally
What if preachers thought of themselves as creative artists who employ many artistic disciplines to craft and deliver their sermons?
JUNE19–21 plus 3 online sessions in the fall
> Incubating Sustainable Entrepreneurial Missional Ministries led by Eric Law*
Incubate an entrepreneurial ministry from the initial idea to a fully developed ministry plan, based on the “Holy Currencies” model of sustainable missional ministry.
*These June 2019 courses may be taken for CEUs or for Enrichment (audit/no credit).
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Tools for Navigating Contentious Times
Friday, May 31, 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. ET
FREE for 2018-19 Leadership Series Participants
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Richard Blackburn, executive director of the Lombard Mennonite Center, will explore the impact of emotional cutoff on ourselves, churches, families, and communities in three sessions on Friday, May 31:
- Separating Self From the Past: The Impact of Emotional Cutoff
- Reconnecting With the Past: Bridging Emotional Cutoff
- Focusing on Self: How Have You Experienced Cutoff in Family, Church, and Society?
Attend In-Person in Columbus (lunch included) OR Online—ALL ARE WELCOME
- FREE for 2018-19 Leadership Series Participants
- $35/$25 for Educational Institutions (Students/Faculty/Staff)
- $65/$40 for Healthy Congregations Network Members
- $100/$75 for Non-Members
BEXLEY SEABURY STUDENTS—This program is especially relevant for those studying or interested in the applications of Bowen family theory.
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John Floberg
(Bexley Colgate '91, Bexley Seabury '17)
has been added to the list of candidates for
11th bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota. He is supervising priest for three Episcopal congregations at Standing Rock Sioux Nation in North Dakota. John was part of the guest faculty at our 2017 Convocation. The electing convention will meet May 4.
MORE HERE
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Shannon MacVean-Brown (Seabury-Western '05) is a finalist for Bishop of Vermont. Walkabouts start in the diocese in late April, and the electing convention is May 18. Currently transition priest at St. John's Episcopal Church in Speedway, Ind., Shannon was previously canon vicar at Christ Church Cathedral in Indianapolis. She was awarded a DMin from Ecumenical Theological Seminary in Detroit in 2014.
MORE HERE
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Joshua Sunday Oyinlola
(Seabury- Western '82) was consecrated Bishop of Irele Eseodo Diocese in
the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, at Cathedral Church of St. David, Ijomu Akure, on March 29. Bishop Oyinlola is pictured with fellow bishops following the ceremony.
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Longtime Bexley Hall trustee and Bexley Seabury Seminary Federation director
Diane Porter
died in New York on March 21. Board Chair Bishop W. Michie Klusmeyer said, "Diane was an active supporter and Board Member of Bexley Hall Seminary, and helped to guide us through the various pitfalls, to help bring about the seminary's federation. She continued on the Board of Bexley Seabury, and kept us focused on our ministry. She was a wise counselor, and a joy to be with. May God grant her an abundant entrance into Paradise."
A memorial service will be held on May 25 at Grace Church in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y.
MORE HERE
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