Category: Dean’s Commentary

Congratulations to Dr. Sharon Heaney

Yesterday I sat with a new book – Engaging Latino/a/x Theologies: A Conversation by my esteemed colleague and friend Dr. Sharon E. Heaney. It is an important book. It is a book committed to conversation. Latino/a/x theologies are explored through six principles – teología en conjunto, mestizaje, lo cotidiano, interpreting Scripture latinamente, la lucha, and la justicia. Central […]

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Congratulations to the Rev. Lorenzo Lebrija

This is the season when there are many doctoral students who are being examined so that they can graduate in May. And normally, given there are so many, their remarkable achievement is not recognized in a commentary. However, today, I am going to make an exception and lift up the achievement of the Rev. Lorenzo […]

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Enjoying Spring Break

The Campus is a little quieter this week. This is the pause in the semester – it is Spring Break. Many students are seizing the opportunity to travel and visit with family, friends, and reconnect with their diocese. It is healthy to enjoy a pause in our patterns of work. It is not good to […]

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Attending an Installation

Last night, I was the preacher at the installation of the Rev. Greg Millikin as the new Rector of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Evanston Illinois. It was a lovely occasion. The clergy of the Deanery joined in the celebration. The Bishop of Chicago was represented by the Rev. Canon J. Sierra Reyes. It was […]

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Do come to American Patriots – even on Spring Break

My policy since starting in 2007 is that we keep those things required to a minimum. Given we are a graduate school, classes are important. And then given we are a place of formation, one corporate act of worship each day and lunch in the Refectory are important. On top of that, I insist on […]

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Episcopal Parish Network

Sometimes when I am traveling I use the commentary to let the VTS community know where I am. It gives the reader a sense of the reasons for an absence and, sure, it helps community members understand my absence from chapel in the morning. Today, I want to lift up colleagues who are traveling. VTS […]

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The joys of teaching with Dr. Robert Heaney

One joy of team teaching with a colleague is that one learns a great deal. I become a student again. This semester I am co-teaching “Contemporary Witness of the Church” with the Rev. Dr. Robert Heaney. One feature of Dr. Heaney’s teaching that I really appreciate is his commitment to present to students distinctive theologies […]

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Buy your ticket now

The Bicentennial afforded countless opportunities to enjoy music, art, and theater. Countless students, faculty, and friends of the Seminary pleaded with me to make sure that this does not simply end with the celebration of the Historic Bicentenary in October 2023. So, I am pleased to announce that VTS is hosting an amazing opera experience. […]

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Welcoming CACS Visitors in March

We are delighted to welcome to campus this week two visitors from very different parts of the church in Asia, both guests of the Center for Anglican Communion Studies (CACS). The Very Rev. Dr. Gloria Lita D. Mapangdol arrived Saturday and serves as the Dean and President of St. Andrew’s Theological Seminary in the Philippines. […]

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The Retirement of Dr. Mitzi Budde

Every time I walk into the Bishop Payne Library, I am grateful. Whenever I am working on a book project and find a footnote which references an article that I want to read, I find it in the library. It is a high-quality service: it is staffed by a fabulous team: and it has been […]

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