A Letter of Appreciation from Dean Mary Elizabeth Moore to the BUSTH Community
Dear Beloved Community,
You will soon have a new Dean and she will bring extraordinary gifts to the BU School of Theology. My last words are a welcome to her and a testimony to the person she is. Since the Provost will make the public announcement, I will limit myself to saying that the new Dean is a person of wisdom and integrity, who will be a visionary, guide, collegial partner, and supporter of all of you. She has been working with many STH leaders in the past month, and she will be eager to meet all of you as her early weeks unfold in January and thereafter.
My other last word is thanks! Thanks, STH community, for the gorgeous quilt you gave me last week, created from the beauty of cloth, color, and community. I was overwhelmed. Now, as you complete papers, exams, and grading, I wish you very well, and I close my “dean days” by remembering the awesomeness of YOU.
I remember hundreds of visits with STH students,
Filled with your insistent passion to build a more just and caring community,
Overflowing with ideas to create a Green Seminary, a completely inclusive school, …,
And seeking to become a magnet and maker of justice,
Spinning dreams that would not stop, even in the year 2020,
Seeking to know and grow as scholars, leaders, and spiritual beings,
Making your voices heard and joining your minds and hands to do good.
I remember a multitude of gatherings with STH faculty,
Collaborating, deliberating, caring for students, and building community life,
Sharing elegant research and love for teaching,
Creating new curricula, degree programs, tracks, certificates, and courses,
Building up centers and creating new programs and communities of learning,
Seeking to serve the good of all people and the planet,
And generating knowledge that evokes wonder and eternal seeking.
I remember gatherings with administrators and staff,
Who, from the beginning, were ready to fly with creative ideas,
Imagining how to respond to urgent needs and crying hopes,
Building zesty communities and renovating systems from bottom to top,
Continually dreaming big dreams and accomplishing great things!
I remember the alums and former faculty who studied and taught here,
Who tell funny and sobering tales that changed their lives,
Who carry the School of the Prophets in their bones,
Planting seeds that still grow in STH and communities across the world,
I remember our shared dreams for a more diverse community
Where we could encounter and appreciate deep differences in the human family,
Engaging those differences with honesty, openness, and respect,
Honoring the dignity of each and all as we learn together,
Seeking to transform harm into justice and grace within STH and far beyond.
We have traveled many miles and accomplished much.
I celebrate who we have been and what we have done together;
I give thanks for all that lies ahead in your ongoing journeys
As you breathe in Life and travel with spirit
Toward the possibilities of goodness that beckon!
May you journey forward with joy!
I will be cheering you all the way!
With love and appreciation beyond words,
Mary Elizabeth (she/her/hers)