All posts tagged: theological

How we make theological decisions for fictional scenes in ‘The Chosen’

How we make theological decisions for fictional scenes in ‘The Chosen’

Published by skeptic

(RNS) — When providing a theological assessment for “The Chosen,” it is essential to keep in mind what the show is and what it is not. The show is not Scripture. This is why the first episode begins with a disclaimer, reminding the audience of this distinction and encouraging them to read the Gospels. Additionally, it is important to know what sort of show “The Chosen” aims to be. It is not a historical documentary but a historical drama. Its primary purpose is not to educate, but to entertain and engage the audience while remaining true to the source material. “The Chosen” has accumulated hundreds of millions of views across various platforms and has had an enthusiastic fan base since its release in 2017. I serve the creators of the show along with my colleagues by reviewing the content for theological accuracy. Both the subject matter and the source material for the show are held sacred by all of the experts who provide consultation for “The Chosen,” myself included. No one wants to see Jesus, …

Union Theological Seminary votes to divest from companies profiting from Gaza war

Union Theological Seminary votes to divest from companies profiting from Gaza war

Published by Sam

NEW YORK (RNS) — Union Theological Seminary’s board of trustees voted Thursday (May 9) to divest from all companies profiting off the war in Gaza.  Union, a private, ecumenical school, shares a graduate studies program with Columbia University but is independent and maintains a separate, $127 million endowment, is the first U.S. institute of higher education known to divest from the war in Gaza. “We do it with humility and we do it with a sense of moral conviction,” said Union’s president, the Rev. Serene Jones.  In November, Union’s board of trustees, which includes Jones, hired Cambridge Associates, a private investment management company, to review the seminary’s investment portfolio to identify companies that are financially invested in the war in Gaza. The board will now transition to selling its shares of the identified companies. “We have a very good investment committee who are completely, at a moral level, committed to seeing this through,” Jones said.  In a statement after the trustees had approved the measure, they said, “With respect to companies that are profiting from …

President Nancy Claire Pittman to retire from Phillips Theological Seminary

President Nancy Claire Pittman to retire from Phillips Theological Seminary

Published by Sam

The Board of Trustees of Phillips Theological Seminary has announced the upcoming retirement of President Nancy Claire Pittman effective Sept. 30, 2024. “Nancy has faithfully served Phillips in so many ways over the decades,” said Claire Meredith, chair of the Board of Trustees. “As president, she has tirelessly worked to strengthen the seminary’s core values while exploring new opportunities with grace and strength.” Pittman served Phillips in several roles before being named the seminary’s first female president in 2019. She was Vice President of Academic Affairs and Dean before being named interim president in 2018. She has also directed the seminary’s Doctor of Ministry program and taught courses in the practice of ministry and the New Testament. “There likely has never been a more challenging time to lead a seminary than during Nancy’s tenure,” Meredith said. “She has skillfully led Phillips through the global pandemic and continuing shifts in mainline Protestant theological education. Her vision has opened up new and innovative opportunities for the seminary and those it serves, including construction of a new building …

Right-wing media descends into theological row over Israel-Hamas war

Right-wing media descends into theological row over Israel-Hamas war

Published by Sam

(RNS) — Far-right media figures are locked in a theological war of words over whether the phrase “Christ is King” is antisemitic, highlighting widening fissures within conservatism’s right wing amid broader debate on the Israel-Hamas war. The dust-up, which crescendoed on social media over the weekend, is rooted in the recent departure of far-right influencer Candace Owens from the Daily Wire, a publication co-founded by conservative podcaster Ben Shapiro. Owens left the outlet this month after extended backlash following her criticism of Israel and its ongoing ground assault into the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 30,000 people in the region following an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that left 1,200 Israelis dead and hundreds taken hostage. The debate over her remarks taps into simmering tensions within American conservatism, which has traditionally been a bastion of support for Israel, particularly among evangelical Christian and Jewish conservatives. But recent years have seen the emergence of an influential far-right wing, some of whose members have framed their opposition to Israel in ways widely decried as blatantly …

Scholar Dr. Daniel B. Wallace shares insights on first female president of the Evangelical Theological Society

Scholar Dr. Daniel B. Wallace shares insights on first female president of the Evangelical Theological Society

Published by Sam

By Madison Joy Gerwing PLANO, Texas — Dr. Daniel B. Wallace, Executive Director of CSNTM (The Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts) expresses gratitude for acknowledgment in Christianity Today’s article of November 20, 2024, “First Woman Steps into Leadership of Evangelical Theological Society.” Highlighting Dr. Karen Jobes—a superb and internationally known biblical scholar from Wheaton College and a former board member of CSNTM—Christianity Today’s article recognizes Wallace’s role in helping to facilitate the inclusion and equality of female scholars within the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS). In response to this acknowledgment, Wallace openly reflects on his involvement in ETS as a member and former president. He emphasizes the systemic inequality that suffused the society and highlights the governance processes that fostered an unwelcoming environment for female scholars. Wallace confesses that he was unaware of the inequalities within ETS’s leadership structure until he was elected vice president. This became apparent when Princeton Seminary student Emily Zimbrick conducted a formal survey on biblical equality at ETS in 2013, with Wallace himself as one of the interviewees. …

PSR welcomes two new faculty to contribute to reimagining theological education

PSR welcomes two new faculty to contribute to reimagining theological education

Published by Sam

Pacific School of Religion (PSR) is proud to announce the appointment of two outstanding new faculty: Dr. Alexandra Rosado-Román and Dr. Ish Ruiz. Following a rigorous faculty and community search process, these colleagues have been selected to help shape PSR’s distinctive reimagination of theological education.   Scholar-activist Dr. Alexandra Rosado-Román will continue serving as Assistant Professor of Gender Studies and Caribbean Decolonial Ethics, a position she’s held this academic year through an externship at The Program in Theology and Practice at the Graduate Department of Religion at Vanderbilt University.    Dr. Rosado-Román’s scholarship is focused on unraveling the intersecting workings of colonial constructs — including race, class, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and citizenship — and chronicling their enduring impact on the lives of racialized women. Her work is inspired by the resilience of Afro-Caribbean feminists, queer activists, and leaders of organizations that provide vital anti-racist, anti-sexist, and anticolonial education along with the innovative practices of resistance they employ to foster values of sovereignty, freedom, justice, and healing.     Dr. Rosado-Román recently successfully defended her dissertation, “Decolonial Betrayals: Afro-Caribbean Feminist …

Walter Brueggemann’s theological biography offers many surprises

Walter Brueggemann’s theological biography offers many surprises

Published by Sam

Long-time Biblical scholar positions himself apart from Progressives and Evangelicals Walter Brueggemann has been writing for the American church for six decades and continues to produce four to five books a year. Best known perhaps for his popular and still relevant Prophetic Imagination (Fortress 1978), Brueggemann’s biography has finally been written by Conrad Kanagy, Professor of Sociology at Elizabethtown College, PA.  The biography is a candid reveal of a Brueggemann whom most readers of his books never encountered. At ninety years of age, the provocative theologian has nothing to lose in revealing the depths of his soul while also speaking a challenging word to the rapidly receding American church. Brueggemann states that “with some important exceptions, my theological writing is nearly all autobiographical.” This means that until we know his story we will never really understand his theology. Brueggemann reveals that he has “never moved from the German Evangelical Pietism” of his childhood formation, which while tolerant of theological differences also saturated Walter in the biblical text. “I take the Bible seriously but not literally, …