Date: September 13, 2021
The Christian Century magazine is the magazine of the American mainline. It is a significant achievement to get attention in this magazine. We rightly celebrated the appropriate recognition of the Rev. Kate Sonderegger, Ph.D.‘s interview in the magazine. So it is extraordinary to find ourselves lifting up another colleague who is honored by both an article and by recognition on the cover.
The Rev. Ross Kane, Ph.D.’s book is rightly attracting attention. And the essay in the Christian Century is a good synopsis and brings out the implications of the Ross Kane project. Entitled online “How White Christians turned syncretism into an insult” and in the print edition “Theology’s Insult,” the essay explains that the quest for “purity” in theology is part of a racist narrative. It is elegantly written and deeply provocative.
This is a golden season for research at the Seminary. My faculty colleagues are either working on major Lilly grants or writing extraordinary books and articles. Increasingly, VTS is at the center of the academic conversation — a major achievement for a free-standing independent Seminary.
The Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, Ph.D.
Dean and President