Date: January 21, 2026
Not too long ago, the January term was fairly uncomplicated. We offered a couple of week-long courses on campus as well as longer travel seminars. Recently, as a way to support doctoral students writing their thesis we added a Doctoral Writing Course during the first week. With the affiliation with GTS, we now also welcome GTS students to campus to take a variety of electives (including a very popular course on Canon Law taught by Mary Kostel), as well as a required course in preaching. Additional programming includes the GTS faculty retreat as well as the VTS faculty retreat. And we’re always delighted when the Rev. Prof. Sarah Coakley offers to lead quiet prayer on campus.
I’m so thankful for the support of the whole community as we welcome various people to campus and think creatively about ways to support each other. Knowing that the folk in facilities are keeping the campus in top shape, the people at Merriwether-Godsey are always ready to provide meals, and the library is open and welcoming is such a blessing.
This January we have experimented with a slightly different class and chapel schedule. We were asked to change that timing of the morning blocks to ensure that 1.5 credit courses in January had a similar amount of time in the classroom as 1.5 credit courses in the semesters. So classes in January start at 8:45. The knock-on effect of this change means that we had to slightly adjust the time of morning worship. So Morning Prayer in January begins at 8:00 am. During the last two weeks we also had regularly scheduled services at 11:45 and 5:30 so that there would be plenty of opportunity for students taking the preaching classes to preach in chapel. This week, GTS students have offered to lead Evening Prayer.
Please do consider joining us for worship this week at 8:00 am in the chapel. Evening worship is held in the Oratory at 5:15 tonight (a quiet prayer session lead by Dr. Coakley) and 5:30 on Thursday (evening prayer led by the GTS students). Everyone is welcome. Next week the spring semester launches with our usual schedule, and we begin our days with worship at 8:15 am.
Melody D. Knowles, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer
Associate Professor of Old Testament
Virginia Theological Seminary and The General Theological Seminary