Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary : 2002 Seminar

Institution Name: Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary

Address:
130 Essex Street
South Hamilton, MA 10982

Phone: 978-468-7111

Key Contacts:
Barry Corey, VP for Development
John Jefferson Davis, Professor of Systematic Theology and Christian Ethics
Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., President
Raymond F. Pendleton, Professor of Pastoral Psychology
Kenneth L. Swetland, Academic Dean
Timothy C. Tennent, Associate Professor of World Mission

Gordon-Conwell addressed the basic question: “How can the faculty arrest the glaring disconnect of thinking theologically and acting Christianly by imaginative ways of nurturing the spiritual life of the students?” In order to engage this question, faculty concluded that they needed to cultivate a more intentional sense of community among themselves. Elements of the project included (1) faculty discussion around faculty’s role in students’ spiritual maturity, (2) discussion with the trustees on this question, and (3) a regular practice of two faculty members sharing at faculty meetings how they would answer this question in their own courses. Finally, the faculty met in an extended retreat in August 2003 to examine the theme of spiritual formation and deepen the discussion of contemporary issues with an awareness of larger historical contexts. During the course of the retreat, all forty-five faculty members visited sites in New England that were linked to such figures as Whitefield, Edwards, and Moody.