Last night, I made my way to 1823. I was coming back from a wedding in West Virginia. So Lesley (my wife), Kathleen (my mother-in-law), Maddie (the delightful but slightly unruly puppy), and I made our way to 1823. It was a cold and breezy evening. Groups with dogs are, quite rightly, required to sit […]
Last Thursday and Friday afternoons, the Lifelong Learning Department hosted its first online Symposium on the Spirituality of Children attended by over 250 participants from across the country and the globe. Jerome Berryman (founder of Godly Play) presented the keynote address on “Becoming Real: A Theology of Childhood,” with Drs. Lisa Kimball and Liz DeGaynor […]
One of the lasting impacts of this season of learning how to use Zoom at Virginia Theological Seminary is in respect to our Board committee work. Our practice was to hold all Board meetings face to face; normally, in a massive two-day intensive, where committees met on the Tuesday and the full Board on the […]
It is strange traveling again. But such travel is important. Much can be done on Zoom, but the quality of the connection is so much deeper when we are in each other’s presence. So as part of the continuing Bicentennial Campaign, the Rev. Barney Hawkins, Ph.D. and I are making the trip to connect with […]
As we reflected on possible projects to mark this Bicentennial, various ideas were put on the table. And one that generated considerable interest was a new edition of Helen Reid’s Search for the Invisible. Helen Reid (the wife of Richard Reid, who was the Dean) produced two editions of a book dedicated to the “houses of […]
It was at Deans’ Table (and yes the plural for Deans is deliberate – several attend) last week that the question came up. Who exactly is the chaplain with a focus on pastoral care at the Seminary? It is true that no one carries the title at the Seminary. The Rev. Dr. Ruthanna Hooke is […]
The Board of Trustees at the November Board meeting will be invited to reconsider the designs for the Welcome Center. After appropriate consultation, I will be explaining to the Board that the approved designs need to be modified in the light of the “Saints and Stories” wall. We now have a full historical introduction to […]
Learning to live life in healthy and balanced ways is a key goal of discipleship. One area the student handbook does address is the realm of drugs and alcohol. It is appropriate from time to time to remind the community of where we stand on these issues. On illegal drugs, we are completely clear. We […]
Two distinguished lives who are close to the Seminary have recently passed into eternity. And today, I wish to just acknowledge their gifts among us. We start with General Colin Powell: a committed Episcopalian who was honored by the Seminary with an honorary doctorate in October 1999. He died at the age of 84, after […]
Yesterday I had a full report on Dean’s Table. This is a good and helpful vehicle for seminarians to raise questions and issues. One particular issue that was raised was “communication.” Especially in respect to Convocation, there was a sense that the communication could have been clearer. Was it possible, for example, for seminarians to […]