Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices
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Theological Education Volume 47, Number 1 ISSUE FOCUS 2012 Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices in a Multifaith Society Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices in a Multifaith Society: An ATS Project, 2010–2012 Stephen R. Graham Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices from an Evangelical Perspective Sang-Ehil Han, Paul Louis Metzger, and Terry C. Muck The Mainline’s New Moment: Hospitable Christian Practice in a Multireligious World Frances S. Adeney, Duane R. Bidwell, and Elizabeth Johnson Walker Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices from a Roman Catholic Perspective Mary C. Boys and Scott C. Alexander Guests of Religious Others: Theological Education in the Pluralistic World Amos Yong Educating Religious Leaders for a Multireligious World: Outcomes and Learning David A. Roozen Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Recommendations for Conduct World Council of Churches, Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, and World Evangelical Alliance OPEN FORUM Theological Diversity in a Liberal Seminary: United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities Sharon M. Tan ISSN 0040-5620 Theological Education is published semiannually by The Association of Theological Schools IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA 10 Summit Park Drive Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15275-1110 DANIEL O. ALESHIRE Executive Editor STEPHEN R. GRAHAM Editor ELIZA SMITH BROWN Managing Editor LINDA D. TROSTLE Assistant Editor For subscription information or to order additional copies or selected back issues, please contact the Association. Email: [email protected] Website: www.ats.edu Phone: 412-788-6505 Fax: 412-788-6510 The Association of Theological Schools is a membership organization of schools in the United States and Canada that conduct postbaccalaureate professional and academic degree programs to educate persons for the practice of ministry and advanced study of the theological disciplines. The Association’s mission is to promote the improvement and enhancement of theological schools to the benefit of communities of faith and the broader public. The Commission on Accrediting of ATS accredits schools that are members of ATS and approves the degree programs they offer. © 2012 The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by means of any in- formation storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act, or in writing from the publisher. Permission is hereby granted without charge for the reproduction and distribution of this work, or any of its parts, for educational purposes by the faculty or administration of member institu- tions of The Association of Theological Schools, provided that no fee or compensation is charged for copies, use of, or access to such information beyond the actual cost of reproduction or access, and that the copyright notice is included intact. Requests for permission for all other uses of any part of this work should be addressed to the author(s). Views expressed in the journal are those of the writers. Publication does not necessarily signify endorsement by Theological Education or The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada. This journal is indexed in the ATLA Religion Database® and is available in electronic form in ATLASerials® (ATLAS®), both produced by the American Theological Library Association, 300 S. Wacker Dr., Suite 2100, Chicago, IL 60606; [email protected]; http://www.atla.com. Theological Education Volume 47, Number 1 2012 Editor’s Introduction iii Stephen R. Graham ISSUE FOCUS Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices in a Multifaith Society Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices in a Multifaith Society: An ATS Project, 2010–2012 1 Stephen R. Graham Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices from an Evangelical Perspective 11 Sang-Ehil Han, Paul Louis Metzger, and Terry C. Muck The Mainline’s New Moment: Hospitable Christian Practice in a Multireligious World 33 Frances S. Adeney, Duane R. Bidwell, and Elizabeth Johnson Walker Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices from a Roman Catholic Perspective 47 Mary C. Boys and Scott C. Alexander Guests of Religious Others: Theological Education in the Pluralistic World 75 Amos Yong Educating Religious Leaders for a Multireligious World: Outcomes and Learning 85 David A. Roozen Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Recommendations for Conduct 105 World Council of Churches, Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, and World Evangelical Alliance OPEN FORUM Theological Diversity in a Liberal Seminary: United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities 11 1 Sharon M. Tan Continuing the Conversation Theological Education invites responses, of up to 1,500 words, to articles pub- lished in the journal in order to foster conversation among its readers Reader responses may be emailed to editors@ats edu Responses are published at the discretion of the editors and may be edited for length Unsolicited submissions are reviewed by at least two of the following board members, who make recommendations to the editors regarding their publication 2012–2014 Editorial Board Dale P. Andrews Vanderbilt University Divinity School Leslie A. Andrews Asbury Theological Seminary Michael Attridge University of St Michael’s College Dean G. Blevins Nazarene Theological Seminary Joyce A. Mercer Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary ii Editor’s Introduction Stephen R. Graham ecent studies make clear what most North Americans are experienc- Ring—not only that religious diversity is increasing but also that many families, most congregations, and nearly all clergy experience this reality on a regular basis The Henry Luce Foundation has supported a number of proj- ects to address issues related to growing religious diversity, including those intended to reflect on and develop theological approaches to religious plural- ity and those to enhance interfaith dialogue The project to which this issue of Theological Education is dedicated was also funded by the Luce Foundation and has as its focus pastoral practices The Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Prac- tices in a Multifaith Society project brought together faculty members; scholar practitioners representing world faiths; and chaplains from hospitals, correc- tional facilities, and the US military to explore facets of the complex situations facing those in religious leadership as they exercise their pastoral practices of preaching, teaching, providing care, marrying, burying, and the host of other duties within their ministries This issue includes a more detailed report on that project Begun in 2010 and concluding with a consultation in September 2012, the project hosted four consultations, commissioned essays, and provided small grants, all for the purpose of exploring the issues and making resources avail- able for theological schools Along the way, the project shared its conversa- tions with the task force for the revision of the ATS Standards of Accreditation, providing input that was incorporated into the revised standards Structured around the three ecclesial families within the ATS member- ship—evangelical Protestant, mainline Protestant, and Roman Catholic/ Orthodox—the first three essays represent conversations promoted within each family group as well as across the groups A writing team from each family was commissioned to craft a report that reflected the conversations in their group, that named particular issues with which the family needed to wrestle, and that provided a beginning point for future conversations There was no attempt or desire to achieve agreement in every area within the fam- ilies, nor even among the authors Instead, the lively exchanges, with both areas of consensus and strong disagreement, proved fruitful within the con- sultations, and we believe they can supply a good starting place for conversa- tions within schools and other contexts Quite naturally, some overlap exists between the three ecclesial family essays but other areas are quite distinctive We hope, though, that all three will be informative and provocative for readers regardless of one’s own ecclesial identity The authors are to be commended for completing this remarkably difficult task with effectiveness, accuracy, and insight Amos Yong presents an extended reflection on hospitality, host, and guest that was initially given at one of the project’s consultations Yong explores what it means to take on the perspective of “guest” in the interfaith encounter, iii Editor’s Introduction sketches some of the theological assumptions behind that move, and offers implications of that stance for those in theological schools seeking to prepare their graduates to be effective and faithful in those relationships. David Roozen contributes his reflections on theEducating Religious Leaders for a Multi-Religious World project funded by the Luce Foundation A center- piece of the project was a set of courses offered by fifteen theological schools that included the opportunity for eighty students to attend a five-day seminar in conjunction with the December 2009 World’s Parliament of Religions in Melbourne, Australia The report includes fascinating testimony from the stu- dents as well as reflections on the courses designed by the different schools as faculty took advantage of the opportunity to incorporate the World’s Parlia- ment into their course design We are also pleased