Four-hundred alumni and friends of YDS converged on the Quad Oct. 19-21 for Convocation & Reunions 2016—three days of lectures, worship, fellowship, and fun. Here are six top storylines from the big event—and a photo album, too.
Troeger’s Beecher Lectures
Thomas Troeger, J. Edward and Ruth Cox Lantz Professor Emeritus of Christian Communication, dedicated his three-part Beecher Lectures to “The End of Preaching.” The title of the lecture series, Troeger explains, was drawn from the poetry of George Herbert (1593- 1633) whose work, along with the insights of Henry Ward Beecher, were “used throughout the lectures to frame our contemporary concerns with enduring wisdom from the past.” Troeger adds that the lectures were aimed at exploring the purpose of preaching in a world today that “is locked into cycles of brutal violence, when warring modes of knowledge feed the orthodoxies of sectarianism, scientism, and political ideology.”
View videos of Troeger’s Beecher lectures on the YDS YouTube page.
Faculty conversations
Each of the gathering’s three mornings featured talks with distinguished YDS professors. The faculty members and their topics were:
- Joyce Mercer ’84 M.Div., Professor of Pastoral Care and Practical Theology, on “Restorative Spirituality and Pastoral Care: Hope for Traumatized Children”
- Miroslav Volf, Professor of Theology and Director of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture, on “Joy, Desire, and Responsibility: Joy and Joylessness in Post-Industrial Societies”
- Willie Jennings, Associate Professor of Systematic Theology and Africana Studies, on “Toward a Revolutionary Intimacy: What the Book of Acts Teaches Us About Life Together”
Class of ’66 gift
The Class of 1966 celebrated its 50th reunion and presented to the Divinity School a class gift of more than $493,000. Included in the gift was $89,000 for a new Class of 1966 Scholarship. The nearly half-million in gifts from class members reflects an unprecedented level of generosity by a YDS class and includes annual fund gifts, gifts to other scholarships, and planned gifts. Alumni interested in developing their class gifts are encouraged to contact James Ebert ’97 M.Div. at james.ebert@yale.edu
Alumni award recipients
At the Convocation Dinner and Alumni Awards Presentation on Oct. 20, YDS celebrated the reunion classes and recognized four distinguished graduates, each of whom gave stirring acceptance speeches. The recipients were:
Emily Scott ‘06 M.Div. — Distinction in Congregational Ministry
Judy Fentress-Williams ‘90 M.Div. — Distinction in Theological Education
Charles King ‘83 M.Div. ‘89 J.D. — William Sloane Coffin Award for Peace and Justice
Robert K. Massie, Jr. ’82 M.Div. — Lux et Veritas
For more on each of the four, see: http://divinity.yale.edu/alumni/alumni-awards.
Also recognized at the dinner was the winner of the annual Dean’s Outstanding Service Award. This year’s recipient was Robert K. Loesch ’66 B.D., a longtime class agent and chair of this year’s 50th Reunion Planning Committee. Read the complete citation.
Worship with Jim Antal
Preacher and environmental activist Jim Antal ’78 M.Div. led a worship service in Marquand focused on the necessity of addressing climate change. Antal, who has served as a minister and president of the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ since 2006, has been active in ecological justice issues since the first Earth Day in 1970, and is now the UCC’s chief spokesperson on climate change. Read text of Antal’s sermon, “Necessity.”
Planning under way for 2017
As this year’s attendees bade fond goodbyes, efforts were already under way for Convocation & Reunions 2017, which will take place Oct. 18-20, 2017. Alumni interested in helping with the planning can contact gail.briggs@yale.edu . For a listing of YDS classes celebrating reunions in 2017 visit http://divinity.yale.edu/alumni/convocation-and-reunions.
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Videos of many of the lectures and talks are available on this playlist at the YDS YouTube channel.