Alumni News
Senior Minister, Full-Time, Congregational: Middletown, CT
Third Congregational Church, located in Middletown, CT, is seeking a full-time senior minister. We seek an enthusiastic, compassionate and knowledgeable pastor who will lead our beloved 250 year old church into a new season of hope, growth and service.
Job responsibilities:
Give inspiring sermons, spiritual leadership, that relate to real life issues
Pastoral visitation
Teach, train, and promote lay leadership
Be personable, connecting with all ages especially youth
Administers the sacraments
Perform ceremonies of congregants (funerals, weddings, baptisms, confirmation, etc)
Be involved in community, including officiating in activities when appropriate
Work with leadership to create programs that teach and get everyone of all ages excited about the gospel
Teach Bible Study and Confirmation class
Have and embrace new ideas; be hands on.
Qualifications:
Preferred: M.Div. or MSA in Religion/Religious Studies
Middletown is a diverse, dense suburban community centrally located in Connecticut. Its location offers easy access to cultural opportunities, higher education opportunities at respected institutions (home of Wesleyan University), a variety of outdoor activities and eclectic dining experiences. The church is located in a historic neighborhood on the western side of Middletown, just off Interstate 91, approximately two and a half hours from Boston and New York City.
We are looking for an energetic pastor with an entrepreneurial approach to join our church family. We offer a competitive annual salary of $55,000 to $65,000, depending on experience, plus housing in a recently renovated parsonage. If you are a member of the National Association of Congregational Churches (NACCC), please visit https://www.naccc.org/secure-portal/open-pulpits/ for more information and to submit your MIF. You may also submit your resume directly or request more information at thirdchurchministersearch@gmail.com.
Rev. Gary H. Holthaus (STH’57, ’58)
This obituary was originally published by Anchorage Daily News and can be found here.
The world lost an exceptional man when Gary Holthaus passed away on July 5, 2022, at his home in Red Wing, Minn. A self-proclaimed humanist, Gary embraced that challenge throughout his lifework as a writer, minister, father, administrator of public humanities programs, teacher, social justice activist, outdoorsman and engaged public citizen. His territory criss-crossed half the continent, stretching from Alaska to Minnesota and Texas and through the American West. His capacity for endless cups of coffee allowed him to meet a spectrum of people - from academics to farmers, corporate executives to street people - and he sought wisdom from them all. Just after his retirement at 85, at the end of 2017, he received the Alaska Governor's Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Humanities.
Gary grew up in Iowa's farm country and earned a bachelor's degree at local Cornell College. He went on to receive bachelor's and master's degrees in sacred theology at Boston University and became an ordained Methodist minister. In 1958, an assignment to three small churches in Montana took him west, where the people he met and the reach of wild landscape captured him. His move to Alaska in 1964 fostered his extensive involvement with people and the land, ranging from Alaska Native cultures, languages and education, to land claims issues to civic engagement and community sustainability. He was the Founding Director of the Alaska Humanities Forum and his 20-year tenure shaped varied cultural frameworks for public projects in remote villages and larger communities all over the state.
On leaving Alaska in 1991, Gary went on to serve as director and consultant with numerous humanities programs, including the Center of the American West in Colorado; the Anderson Center for Interdisciplinary Studies in Minnesota; and the Northern Plains Sustainable Agriculture Society in North Dakota.
Invitations to speak and teach at conferences and symposia followed Gary wherever he went. He also volunteered on many boards, ranging from the Anchorage Child Abuse Board to the Alaska Conservation Foundation and University of Alaska Press. He was a Witness for Peace delegate to Nicaragua in 1986, and a four-time invited delegate to the Al-Mirbed Poetry Conference in Iraq.
Gary's voracious reading habit - of ancient European and Asian texts through to contemporary poetry, novels and essays - made him a firm believer in the power of words to better us as people. "We are people of the word," he wrote, "- word as creative act and word as bond. Stories become the means of exploring our bonds, the agreements we make with ourselves, with one another and with the earth." Throughout his working life he crafted words into poems, stories and essays. He authored multiple books of poetry, including Unexpected Manna and Circling Back and several essay collections including Wide Skies and Learning Native Wisdom: What Traditional Cultures Teach Us About Subsistence, Sustainability, and Spirituality, where he observed, "There has never been a long-term, sustainable culture that did not keep an eye on reciprocity, balance and harmony…"
However, words on the page were not always enough. Gary also loved music and collaborated with his wife and musician/composer Lauren Pelon to create and perform compositions incorporating her music and his words, deepening the meaning and resonance of both for widespread audiences.
The position of Minister at the Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship landed Gary back in Alaska, in 2012, for the last five years of his professional career. A fitting close, the job highlighted so many aspects of the exceptional man Gary was: kind, generous, authentic, funny, comforting, honest, inspiring, humble, strong, a firm supporter of the human enterprise and a believer in the central goodness of human beings. The reverberations of his life reach farther than he ever would have imagined.
Gary is survived by his wife, Lauren Pelon of Red Wing; brother, Jack Holthaus (Brenda) of Springfield, Ore.; son, Kevin Holthaus (Lydia Ossorgin); and daughter, Stephanie Holthaus (Ken Acton), all of Anchorage.
The family suggests contributions in Gary's memory may be made to Doctors Without Borders, Amnesty International, Food and Water Watch or Mayo Clinic Hospice in Red Wing.
Dr. Stephanie A. Budwey (STH’04,’12) Publishes “Religion and Intersex: Perspectives from Science, Law, Culture, and Theology”
Dr. Stephanie A. Budwey's (STH'04,'12) new book Religion and Intersex: Perspectives from Science, Law, Culture, and Theology is published by Routledge and will be available August 25, 2022.
This book considers the situation of intersex people who have faced erasure in the areas of science, law, culture, and theology due to the assumption that all humans are either ‘female’ or ‘male.’
Centered in interviews conducted with German intersex Christians, this book argues that moving from a paradigm of sexual dimorphism to sexual polymorphism will help promote the full humanity and flourishing of intersex people by creating a world where intersex individuals are no longer coerced and/or forced to undergo non-consensual, medically unnecessary treatment, no longer experience human rights violations because of their lack of legal protection, no longer feel inhuman and Other due to epistemic injustice that stems from socio-cultural norms and stereotypes, are no longer told they are not made in God’s image as a result of a sexually dimorphic understanding of Genesis 1:27, and no longer feel excluded and invisible in worship services that do not recognize them.
This combination of the practical and the spiritual allows for a reconsideration of the medical treatment and pastoral care that should be available to intersex people. This book will be helpful to those in the disciplines of science, law, culture, and theology, particularly those in gender and theological studies and those already in and studying for lay and ordained ministry.
Stephanie Budwey is the Luce Dean’s Faculty Fellow Assistant Professor of the History and Practice of Christian Worship and the Arts at Vanderbilt Divinity School, USA. She is the author of Sing of Mary: Giving Voice to Marian Theology and Devotion (2014) and co-editor of In Spirit and Truth: A Vision of Episcopal Worship (2020).
Also: See Dr. Budwey's (STH'04,'12) new open access peer-reviewed article “Saint Wilgefortis: A Queer Image for Today” on Religions.
Budwey, Stephanie A. 2022. "Saint Wilgefortis: A Queer Image for Today" Religions 13, no. 7: 616. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13070616
Order your copy of "Religion and Intersex: Perspectives from Science, Law, Culture, and Theology" on Routledge. Use the code "ASM07" for 20% discount.
Postdoctoral Fellowship in Practical Theology and Young People, Princeton Theological Seminary:
Postdoctoral Fellowship in Practical Theology and Young People
Princeton Theological Seminary seeks a postdoctoral fellow in Practical Theology and Young People. The appointment is for three years starting no later than January 2023. Eligible candidates must have a Ph.D. in practical theology completed within the last 3 years, or have a scheduled dissertation defense date in 2022. Deadline for submission of all application materials is Friday, September 30th, 2022.
The successful candidate will:
• Teach at the Masters level starting in Spring 2023, normally 3 credit hours per semester, for a total of 15 credit hours, with no committee or other faculty responsibilities;
• Oversee the research activities (qualitative research design, execution of research plans, interpretation of data, and training/supervising student researchers) of two major grant projects in young people’s ministries, The Foundations Project (focus: youth ministry) and The Ministry Collaboratory (focus: ministry with young adults). The postdoctoral fellow will serve as the Principal Investigator for each project’s research, writing research reports and presenting research findings at a relevant academic conference. PTS commits to reimburse travel and related conference costs, according to its travel-reimbursement policy, for the Fellow’s attendance at one academic conference up to $1000 per academic year.
• Teach annually at the Forum on Youth Ministry (continuing education) event, on the PTS campus.
• Mentor PTS students, and especially M.A. and dual degree students around academic and vocational matters related to youth/young adult ministries;
• Serve on the administrative staff of the Institute for Youth Ministry, including sitting on the steering committees of both projects.
The successful candidate must live within commuting distance of Princeton for the duration of the Fellowship, and will report to the Mary D. Synnott Professor of Youth, Church and Culture, faculty liaison to the Institute for Youth Ministry.
Interested candidates should submit the following: 1) Cover letter; 2) Curriculum vitae (including names and contact information for three references); 3) Transcripts (official or unofficial); 4) Names/contact information for three references; and 5) Two 250-word essays: one addressing the candidate's specific interest in, and preparation for, scholarship and teaching in practical theology and young people’s ministries, and the other explaining the candidate’s views on innovation and its role in ministry and theological education (including theological influences). Materials should be mailed or submitted electronically to the Human Relations Office at Princeton Theological Seminary, hr.office@ptsem.edu. Persons from underrepresented communities are especially encouraged to apply. Review of applications will begin on May 1, 2022.
As Princeton Theological Seminary is related to the Presbyterian Church (USA), this Postdoctoral Fellow will be expected to work constructively within an ecumenical ethos informed by the Reformed Tradition.
Director of Faith Formation, Part-Time, UCC: Westborough, MA
Director of Faith Formation
The Congregational Church of Westborough
Reports to Senior Pastor and Faith Formation Board
General Job Description and Requirements
The Director of Faith Formation and Christian Education will provide overall leadership in Faith Formation ministries and Christian Education intergenerationally for children, youth, and families consistent with the mission and vision of The Congregational Church of Westborough. In conjunction with the Senior Pastor and staff, they will provide guidance, resourcing, and direct special events for education and mission purposes. They will lead Faith Formation classes, establish approved curricula, train and supervise teachers, and lead Youth Groups as well as other appropriate duties that may arise.
Duties & Responsibilities
1. In partnership with the Faith Formation (FF) Board and staff, provide vision, support, administration and leadership for Faith Formation classes and provide support for FF teachers.
2. Lead selection and preparation/execution of all Sunday School curricula and Materials, in consultation with FF Board and relevant staff.
3. Ensure that classrooms are in order and supplies/equipment are ready as needed.
4. In conjunction with Staff and Boards, plan and implement special seasonal events (i.e., Rally Sunday, Christmas Pageant, Lenten/Easter).
5. Work with Sr. Pastor to incorporate children and youth presence in corporate worship as needed.
6. Act as lead Youth Group leader and meet at least twice monthly. Develop fellowship events and service projects for both church family and outward to community.
7. Attend FF Board meetings and provide a monthly update of activities.
8. Prepare and submit a yearly budget to FF board, Sr. Pastor, and Trustees.
9. Prepare and submit an annual Faith Formation report.
10. Communicate regularly with the congregation about programs, projects and events. Recruit parent/adult participation.
11. Other duties as may be required relating to Faith Formation/Christian Education.
Knowledge & Experience
1. Person of faith with a proven ability to relate to all ages and build trusted relationships.
2. Have at least two years of post-secondary education and some formal training/credentials/certification in Faith Formation (or be willing to obtain Certification within 12 months).
3. Must have or obtain CORI and follow The Congregational Church of Westborough Safe Church Policy.
Skills & Abilities
1. Strong organizational and administrative skills.
2. Excellent communicator and able to leverage social media/technology as needed in conjunction with FF objectives.
3. Inspire and encourage intergenerational activities.
4. Awareness of and ability to articulate the values, principles and practices of the Congregational Church of Westborough.
Work Conditions
Work from home and within the church building as needed.
Hours
15-20 hrs/week as needed to effectively execute the responsibilities of this position. Structured to run from Mid-August to Mid-June. During Mid-June to Mid-August, time as needed for Youth Group activities and Mission Trip (if one is planned).
Salary
$18,338 Annually.
Benefits
$1403 Social Security, continuing education (or certification if required) allowance
Come participate in a dynamic, Open and Affirming congregation that's seeking to learn as God calls us to grow in Christ. We're looking for a dynamic leader for our Christian Education/Faith Formation team who can relate to "children" of all ages! Visit our website and call us at 508.366.2000 or call Rev. Betsy Dorsi at 508.389.3823.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Associate Director of Youth Ministry, Full-Time, UMC: Hoover, AL
A large, passionate, welcoming, and caring United Methodist church in Hoover, AL, a suburb of Birmingham, is looking for their next full-time Associate Director of Youth Ministry. Riverchase United Methodist Church is seeking an individual who is deeply relational, empathetic, and has excellent communication skills.
The right candidate will have a deep love for teens, especially middle school students- since this will be their primary ministry focus. He/she will have a strong emotional intelligence, be extremely organized, and be willing to step outside the church, spending time with students on their turf possibly joining them at the school for lunch or attending one of their events. This individual will also be very well versed in all forms of electronic communication, and have a humble heart with a willingness to take direction from others.
Qualifications for this position include 1-3 years of experience serving in youth ministry, a general understanding of the Bible, and alignment with United Methodist teachings. This person will also have strong leadership skills, empathy, and an ability to communicate clearly and effectively in front of larger audiences. A bachelor’s degree is preferred. To apply for this position, resumes along with any questions may be sent to Heather Quiroz at heather.quiroz@ministryarchitects.com
Youth Fellowship Director, Part-Time, UCC: Hanover, MA
First Congregational Church of Hanover
Youth Fellowship Director
General Responsibilities
● Coordinate with Youth Group leaders and Christian Education Committee to prepare, outline, institute and maintain a foundational plan, as approved by the Christian Education Committee, for the Youth Group Ministries (Senior and Junior High)
● Coordinate and provide resources for the Youth Group Ministries including but not limited to
○ Scheduling, organizing and gathering materials for monthly meetings
○ regular and consistent contact with youth and parents regarding meetings, curriculum, plans etc. (minimally monthly)
○ organizing mission projects (minimally 2 per year)
○ coordinating with Christian Education Director for joint missions/projects and organizing volunteers
● Organize outreach events through collaboration with the Pastor, Christian Education Committee, Christian Education Director and office staff
● Provide regular communication of Youth events including but not limited to;
○ contacting the Christian Education Committee and Pastor as needed
○ regular submissions to the e-news
○ announcements in church as needed
○ Posting to social media outlets (minimally monthly)
● Attend monthly Christian Education Committee meetings quarterly to share the vision of the youth ministry
● Coordinate and communicate with the Christian Education Director
● Work with the Senior Pastor and the Christian Education Committee to identify ways to encourage attendance and promote our Christian Education program throughout our surrounding communities.
Hours and Compensation
The position is presently configured for approximately 5 hours per week from September 1, 2022 through June August 1, 2022. These hours are flexible within reason to accommodate the convenience of the Youth Fellowship Director while meeting the needs of the church.
The Youth Fellowship Director will be compensated in 11 monthly payments (total salary $5,300). The Youth Fellowship Director will be paid the last week of the month. The church will pay their portion of Social Security/Medicare tax.
This is a one year agreement that will be evaluated before years end. It is mutually agreed that this arrangement is for one year and may be terminated by either the First Congregational Church of Hanover or the Youth Fellowship Director upon 60 days notice.
Director of Communications, Full-Time, NCC: Washington D.C.
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) has been a leading force for ecumenical cooperation among Christians in the United States since its founding in 1950. The 37 NCC member communions — from a wide spectrum of Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox, Evangelical, historic African American and Living Peace churches — include 30 million persons in more than 100,000 local congregations in communities across the nation.
The Director of Communications is responsible for managing the public relations work of the NCC. This position will be located in the NCC’s Washington D.C. offices.
Essential Functions
The Director of Communications will:
- Manage the Council’s public relations, brand and reputation, create and distribute press releases, action alerts, and marketing campaigns.
- Play a key and essential role in the creation of the Council’s public statements.
- Produce and edit an electronic newsletter and lead NCC’s social media efforts.
- Maintain contact with communications staff of NCC member communions and partners and strategize with them on matters of mutual interest and concern.
- Work closely with and regularly meet with the Council’s Communications Committee to develop communications strategies and execute programs to deliver communications objectives throughout the organization.
- Maintain contact with and develop strategic relationships with members of the secular and religious media to ensure the NCC has a high public profile.
- Maintain the NCC’s website and databases, ensure it is regularly updated and remains up to date technologically as well as create rich and creative content that is optimized for search engines.
- Be familiar with the NCC’s public policy positions and those of its member communions and represent the Council as directed.
- Assist in the preparation of the Council’s Christian Unity Gathering (CUG) including in preparing the program agenda, generating stories and media coverage, handling audio/visual needs and assisting with the logistics of the CUG.
- Ensure the Council’s communications ministry is carried out with sensitivity to gender, racial, economic, disability and intergenerational lenses.
- Equip, train and resource regional and local faith-based organizations related to the Council’s mission and priorities.
- Undertake other projects/work/functions that may be assigned.
- This position reports to the Chief Operating Officer (immediate supervisor) and President/General Secretary (head of NCC staff).
Essential Qualifications
- Degree in journalism, communications, or related field required.
- Demonstrated experience in managing a comprehensive strategic communications and media relations program to advance an organization’s mission and goals.
- Strong media relations skills desired.
- Superior oral and written communications skills.
- Knowledge of website design platforms, including WordPress.
- Previous website management experience.
- Experience working with Neon or other CRM systems is preferred.
- Training in theology and ecumenism is preferred.
- Passion for and experience in ecumenism and the work of the National Council of Churches.
- A track record of collaborative leadership and team building within complex religious organizations.
- A self-starter with project management skills, who is able to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
- Integrity and an ability to establish and maintain trust amongst diverse constituencies and team members, and an ability to engage with proficiency with others in various leadership positions.
- Creativity, forward thinking, and technological savvy.
- Familiarity with the public policy positions of the NCC and member communions.
- A record of and ability to infuse race, gender, and economic equality with sensitivity to disability and intergenerational concerns, throughout the organization and its work in tangible, efficient and creative ways.
- Ability to manage and oversee a budget.
- Significant familiarity with community organizing techniques.
- Ability to make timely, intelligent decisions and take action after considering options and available information.
- Membership in an NCC member communion preferred.
Benefits
Annual salary range $65,000-$75000. Benefits include 9% 403(b) contribution, 22 days of paid vacation, and a significant health care insurance subsidy.
Procedure and Deadline
Send a cover letter, resume, and salary requirements via email by August 8, 2022 to: jobs@nationalcouncilofchurches.us.
BUSTH Announces Distinguished Alumni for 2022
August 2022 – The Boston University School of Theology (BUSTH) is pleased to announce this year’s Distinguished Alumni for 2022. A list of previous winners can be found on the BUSTH website.
“The 2022 Distinguished Alumni are change-leaders, each in their own way,” says G. Sujin Pak, dean. “They model for us the possibilities of visionary leadership in our world today for Theology & the Arts, support of clergypersons through various transitions in their vocations and duties, and faithful protest in the face of daunting injustices. We celebrate these alumni/ae for the many ways they powerfully embody prophetic witness and prophetic hope—speaking boldly into theological and social crises with conviction, compassion, and wisdom—calling us all to be the change needed to enact and embody a more just and peaceful world.”
A celebration of these alums and their achievements will be part of our annual Community Day, scheduled for Wednesday, September 21, 2022.
2022 School of Theology Distinguished Alumni
Dr. Michelle A. Graveline (CFA 1974, STH 1976)
Reverend R. Preston Price (STH 1970)
Reverend Howard-John Wesley (STH 1997)
In the category of Emerging Leader:
Reverend Dorlimar Lebrón Malavé (STH 2018)
2022 Distinguished Alumni Biographies
Dr. Michelle Graveline (1976, MSM), taught at Assumption University in Worcester for 35 years, retiring in 2019 as Professor Emerita of Music. She was active as a collegiate and community chorus conductor, teacher, adjudicator and clinician in Massachusetts. With the Assumption Chorale, she performed in numerous European countries on15 national and international concert tours. Her choruses performed at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris and St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, and twice had the distinction of performing for Pope John Paul II.
In 2008 Dr. Graveline received Assumption’s Honorary Alumna Award, and in 2011 received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Contribution to the Mission. She served on numerous committees, including the Representative Faculty Senate, which she served as President from 2015-2017. She served multiple terms as Chair of the Art and Music Department.
Graveline received the BMus and MSM degrees from Boston University and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Michigan.
Graveline served as President of the Massachusetts chapter of the American Choral Directors Association and has served as an adjudicator for numerous festivals, including the Massachusetts All-State Vocal Auditions. She has given workshops at ACDA conferences, for the Massachusetts Music Educators, and the Rhode Island Music Educators.
Also a noted harpsichordist and organist, Graveline has performed at numerous venues in the US and Europe, as well as locally.
Reverend R. Preston Price (1970, MTh) has been married to Jean Price for 55 years. Jean is retired from teaching and being a professional organist. They have two sons. Robert is Dean of the Saint Matthew Episcopal Cathedral in Dallas; John is Superintendent of Schools in the city of North Chicago. The family includes two wonderful daughters-in-law and five grandchildren.
Beginning in 1970, Preston served seven churches within the California-Pacific Annual Conference: rural, suburban, urban; one with a majority of members POC, one a new church start, one with two language congregations (Korean and Samoan) embedded. During that time, he participated in graduate-level education with Walter Wink, Eric Law, Marie Fortune, Lombard Center, JustPeace, and a two-year Spiritual Direction certification. He took two travel seminars: Palestine and Spiritual Sites including Taizé and Assisi. He served with ten associates and five seminary interns. He was volunteer chaplain in an emergency room, established a chaplaincy program at a children’s hospital, served on the board of a sheltered workshop and Red Cross, co-hosted a weekly radio show, and was a member of a city traffic commission. In every appointment he founded or supported clergy support groups.
After retiring and moving to Chicago and the Northern Illinois Conference, Preston served three interim appointments of five months each; two with majority of members POC. He then served for six years as a $1/year associate for Urban Village Church — a United Methodist new church start that aggressively/assertively welcomes LGBTQIA+ members. He also served as Parliamentarian for Bishop Sally Dyck for four years. He served as Mentor or Courtesy Mentor to 10 students considering Candidacy for Ministry and served for two years as pastoral assistant to Dean of Students Cynthia Wilson at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. He also taught for six years as a part of the faculty of the Course of Study program at Garrett.
Preston enrolled in the School of Theology immediately following his graduation from California Western University. He graduated in 1970 and served as a member of the Alumni Council of the School for several years in the 1990s and as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Committee from 2009-2015. During that time, he and his family established the Rev. Dr. Robert P. Price, II Scholarship honoring his father who received his PhD degree from the School in 1958. He has also been able to financially support several specific students in pursuit of their degrees. He and his wife (also a graduate of Boston University with a Masters in English) are members of the Claflin Society of the University.
Reverend Dr. Howard-John Wesley (1997, MDiv) is the exciting, gifted and anointed Senior Pastor of the historic Alfred Street Baptist Church (ASBC) in Alexandria, VA. A courageous, dynamic, and visionary leader, he is only the eighth pastor in the church’s 218-year history of worshipping Christ while serving humankind. Under Dr. Wesley’s extraordinary leadership, the Alfred Street Baptist Church has grown from 2,500 members to 10,000 members, 50,000 plus monthly online viewers and 80 active ministries with an emphasis on children’s ministries and missions. Since 2020, the Alfred Street Baptist Church has also donated more than $5.4 million dollars to over 200 organizations through their Tithe-the-Tithe initiative.
An empathetic pastor who is not afraid to take on social and political issues, Dr. Wesley led community protest marches against the New York grand jury’s 2014 decision not to indict an NYPD officer whose chokehold led to the death of Eric Gardner. His sermon, “When the Verdict Hurts,” was acknowledged in Time magazine’s July 29, 2013 cover story, “After Trayvon” as one of the best sermons preached in the United States following the “not guilty” verdict in the State of Florida v. George Zimmerman, who fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Three of Dr. Wesley’s sermons, “When the Verdict Hurts,” “A Rizpah Response” (and with the black hoody he donned while preaching this sermon), and “Tell Your Own Story,” have been archived in the faith-based collection of the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington, DC. With his guidance, Alfred Street Baptist Church became the first and only faith-based institution founding donor of the NMAAHC with a $1 million donation. Dr. Wesley captivated some thought-provoking leaders of our great nation at the 2019 Congressional Black Caucus Foundation 2019 Prayer Breakfast as the Keynote Speaker with the sermonic address of “Let the Church Say Amen.”
Dr. Wesley is the son of the late Rev. Dr. Alvin and Dr. Helene Wesley and represents the fourth generation of Baptist preachers in his family. He is an avid golfer, movie- goer, spades player, and aspiring chef. He is a Lifetime member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., as well as a member of Sigma Pi Phi, the first successful and oldest African-American Greek-lettered organization. His sons, Howard-John II (Deuce) and Cooper Reece, are the greatest joys of his life.
Emerging Leader
Reverend Dorlimar Lebrón Malavé (2018, MDiv) was born in Puerto Rico and raised in New York. She currently serves as Lead Pastor at the First Spanish United Methodist Church, also known as “The People's Church” in Spanish Harlem. Dorlimar holds a Bachelor in Sociology concentrating on Black and Latinx Studies from the City College of New York and a Master of Divinity with a focus in Liberation Theology and Ethics from Boston University School of Theology. Her passion centers around de-cloaking, naming and resisting injustice in our society. She is a sister, a daughter and believer in change. In all things she strives to create spaces where love, hope, peace, justice, and liberation are imagined, created and sustained.
While at STH, Dorlimar excelled in in her leadership and participated in many organizations: Raíces Latinas Student Association, Hispanic Youth Leadership Academy, Raices Latina Leaderships Institute, Anna Howard Shaw Center, National Association of Latina Methodist Clergy Women (ACLAMEN), The New England Annual Conference, Hispanic Summer Program (HSP), and National Hispanic Caucus of the UMC (MARCHA).
Prof. Luis Menéndez-Antuña Awarded Grant from Catholic Biblical Association
Assistant Professor of New Testament Luis Menéndez-Antuña was recently awarded a grant from the Catholic Biblical Association to start new research on Enslavement in Early Christianity. Every year, the Catholic Biblical Association grants four to six awards to promote biblical scholarship.
This project, entitled “Historiographies of Pain: Galatians 4, Enslavement, Inheritance, and Flesh,” asks the following questions: How should New Testament scholarship theorize pain mainly when the victim’s experience is both linguistically unrepresentable (the very essence of pain) and more relevantly, when primary sources do not contain first-person testimonies? Specifically, how does historiography account for the extreme pain experienced by victims of enslavement when the historical archive is empty of the victims’ voices and, in many cases, mystifies, allegorizes, or erases the victims’ agony?
Prof. Menéndez-Antuña’s project also seeks to understand how many theological concepts in the New Testament, such as “sin,” “inheritance,” “will,” or “filiation,” both depend on and occlude the reality of the enslaved person.
The grant will fund this new research and will support a presentation that will take place at the International Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature at the University of Pretoria in South Africa in 2023.