Friends:

These are the days of Orientations for New Students.
During my decade as Director of the Consortium I have tried to be present at as many orientations as possible to speak about the practical operation of the WTC to the new students.

You might think I would become weary of so many talks--but very surprisingly [even to me] I have not. I enjoy seeing faculty and administrators I have not seen for several months. The new students are full of contagious energy.

And our project--ecumenical and inter religious understanding--is more important than ever.

So last night I enjoyed singing Baptist Hymns in the Chapel at John Leland--and on Monday I was attending the Opening Mass of the Holy Spirit and Dominican--and then speaking to the new students at my alma mater (oh how many years have passed), Catholic University.

It is an exciting time.

John

Friends:

On Sundays I preach at Annunciation Catholic Church on Massachusetts Avenue. This past Sunday I spoke about our life in an age of Globalization and a world economy--a world which young adults tend to be very aware of, a world of increased contact between faith traditions.

I noted that in dealing with our fellow Christians and with adherents of other faiths, we have special gifts to share and much to learn. Just as Christians down through the ages have learned a lot from the perseverance of the pagan Canaanite woman in the Sunday Gospel reading from St. Matthew, we have things to learn from others whose faith is different from our own.

God ways, of course, as not our ways. God does not always operate according to our plan. God's truth can come to us from sources that seem--to us--to be unlikely, like the woman in today's gospel.

All of this is fairly common understanding for those of us involved in ecumenical and inter religious dialogue. I should not take it for granted.

I received many most positive comments after the mass. And I, for the first time I can remember, received an email about it.. It seems that a young woman I know was driving by the church just as the mass was beginning and decided all of a sudden to stop rather than attend a later mass elsewhere. [I emailed back that perhaps the Holy Spirit was at work.]

Her email said that what I said was just what she needed to hear--a most positive view of others, a respect for people of other faith and a realization that we can learn from others and share our faith with them as well.

Peace,
John

Friends:

I had a delightful luncheon today at Washington Theological Union with Fr. Joseph Wimmer. Dr. Wimmer is chair of the Consortium Science and Religion Faculty Group. We discussed a few last minute items for the Consortium Faculties' Convocation on Science and Religion this coming September 29th. Dr. Francis Collins will be offering the keynote.

We also worked on the Spring Science and Religion Presentation This year Dr. Alicia Juarrero will be speaking on causality!

The Science and Religion Group, which received a grant from Metanexus for a major Science and Religion effort several years ago, has just received another RFP from them--and will be discerning whether to submit a proposal.

There is never a dull moment with the Science and Religion Group.


Peace,
John

Friends:

I am back to having coffee in the middle of the afternoon and reflecting on various happenings.

The Consortium semester began yesterday with the first of the on campus student orientations. I met with the new students--57 of them--at Virginia Theological Seminary and explained the workings of the Consortium.

I have a revised version of Crossin's 10 points for new students this year.

A key element is asking the students if they might follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit in making a [modest] commitment to be active ecumenically.

I always enjoy the student orientations.
I find them personally enriching.

Yesterday I stayed for lunch and thus had the opportunity to meet some of the students personally and answer some of their questions. I gave, for example, an extended response to a questions about courses for the new Consortium Certificate Program in Muslim-Christian Dialogue. This program is gradually being launched and more course are starting to be offered.

Peace,
John

Friends:

One thought on ecumenism that I read somewhere and has stuck with me has to do with our preconceptions--or perhaps our frameworks.

The thought is: For well over a thousand years Christians thought of themselves as basically united--of the divisions among them over various issues as temporary and unfortunate. There was an expectation that eventually the divisions would be healed. Even in the centuries after the split of East and West--which we date to 1054--many Christians expected that unity would be restored in this unusual situation.

Only in recent centuries have we been formed to think of our divisions first--or of these divisions as primary for our identity. This has been a significant shift.

The ecumenical movement, it seems to me, will be succeeding when we think of ourselves first as united as Christians in Baptism--and work to heal the differences that exist.

Peace,
John