Atlantic School of Theology Top Student Essay David Bentley Hart October 7, 2018 THE LIVING CHURCH CATHOLIC EVANGELICAL ECUMENICAL Leading the Young Out of Caves $5.50 Education livingchurch.org THE LIVING ON THE COVER “It is important to get students out of their CHURCH caves, but it is equally important to give them the most estimable things to con- template, once their eyes have adjusted to THIS ISSUE October 7, 2018 the light” (see “Leading the Young Out of | Caves,” p. 14). NEWS Geoff Strehlow illustration 4 Theology Upon the Granite | By Matthew Townsend 8 Ex-fundraiser: Haitian Gifts Misused 4 FEATURES 14 Leading the Young Out of Caves | By Wilfred M. McClay 18 STUDENT ESSAY CONTEST WINNERS First Place: The End of All Our Exploring By Armando Ghinaglia BOOKS 21 The Hidden and the Manifest Review by J. David Moser 22 Death Comes for the Deconstructionist Review by Colin P. Cahoon 18 OTHER DEPARTMENTS 23 People & Places 26 Sunday’s Readings LIVING CHURCH Partners We are grateful to Camp Allen, and the Society of Mary, American Region [p. 24], All Souls Anglican Foundation [p. 25], and the Diocese of Central Florida [p. 27], whose generous support helped make this issue possible. THE LIVING CHURCH is published by the Living Church Foundation. Our historic mission in the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion is to seek and serve the Catholic and evangelical faith of the one Church, to the end of visible Christian unity throughout the world. NEWS | October 7, 2018 Theology Upon the Granite In Halifax, Nova Scotia, the Atlantic School of Theology continues its 47-year tradition of adapting to a challenging environment and a changing church. By Matthew Townsend hen considering which semi- Wnary to attend, American aspi- rants may not readily look toward the Canadian Maritimes, but the Halifax- based Atlantic School of Theology hopes they take notice. AST’s offer to Americans may seem unusual: a full-tuition, merit-based scholarship for new MDiv students from the United States. The award, which began last year, is renewable annually if the recipient maintains a Atlantic School of Theology's Halifax Harbour campus was established in 1878 as Pine Hill Divin- B+ average. Two students, one contin- ity School, United Church of Canada. The campus went ecumenical — United, Roman Catholic, and Anglican — in 1971. AST photo uing and one entering, received funding this year from the program. not — which often translates to the life Empire, and in many ways it still feels The scholarship is one component of the church. like an outpost. In a way it remains a in an overall strategy to raise the Halifax, the provincial capital of citadel. But it flourishes.” school’s visibility on both sides of the Nova Scotia, is the economic center of “I sometimes think of the Anglican border. The Rev. Neale S. Bennet, the Maritimes and the exception to the church here as a delicate ecosystem, AST’s president and an Anglican priest rule. Its unemployment is relatively perhaps like one that would grow up on in the Diocese of Nova Scotia and low and the city has seen steady popu- a rock sticking up out of the Atlantic. It Prince Edward Island, told TLC that lation growth for many decades, con- is tenacious,” he told TLC. “AST and the school is holding its own, but that ditions that do not readily apply else- Anglicanism here seem to have taken the institution — like seminaries all where in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, root in a harsh environment, and to over North America — is trying to Prince Edward Island, or Newfound- hang on like flowers that are adapted to meet the rapidly changing needs of the land and Labrador. the realities of winter and ocean.” church and an ever-evolving pedagogy. “My initial impression of the These realities — Halifax’s place- “Like all theological schools, we’re Anglican scene in Halifax, when I ment far from Canada’s other major experiencing pressures,” he said. “Like moved here two years ago, was that it population centers and long-term most universities, we’re experiencing mirrored the geography of the city. struggle in the surrounding environs pressures. But we’re doing okay, maybe Halifax is a granite rock tucked into a — have allowed AST to foreshadow better than okay. We publish our finan- corner of the Atlantic Ocean,” said changes made elsewhere in Chris- cial statements on the website. You can Daniel Driver, associate professor for tendom. The school formed when see that we’re healthy from that per- Hebrew Bible and Old Testament at three denominations came together to spective.” AST. Driver was born in Portland, combine their educational efforts. The Pressure is not a new phenomenon Oregon, and studied at Wheaton Col- Faculty of Theology at the University in the Maritimes, a region that seems lege in Illinois and the University of St. of King’s College (Anglican), Holy to extend outside of Canada’s eastern Andrews, Scotland. Before coming to Heart Theological Institute (Roman margins. Unemployment, poverty, and Halifax, Driver taught at Tyndale Uni- Catholic), and Pine Hill Divinity Hall collapsed fisheries have made life hard versity College in Toronto. He is now (United Church of Canada) merged at for East Coasters, lending a hard- in his third year of teaching and wor- the Pine Hill campus on the Northwest scrabble reputation to the place. The shiping in Halifax. “It was established Arm of Halifax Harbor. people are kind, but circumstances are as a military stronghold of the British This may sound like a story from the 4 THE LIVING CHURCH • October 7, 2018 late 1990s or early 2000s, as increased person who is traditionally theologi- dent minister in the mission field. As financial stress and decreased church cally educated who is resourcing mul- with AST’s ecumenical merger, this is attendance led to cooperation across tiple smaller communities of faith.” not a recent development: the program profound denominational lines. How- As mainline denominations shrink is long out of testing, having been ever, AST’s formation came much ear- and needs change, questions of enroll- offered for more than ten years. lier. “Catholics and Protestants have ment — who, why, and for how long — Learning sites — churches that wish to studied and trained together here since drive AST’s agenda. receive a student minister — register 1971,” Driver said. “Institutional ecu- “We’re meeting the challenge of through their denominations and are menism may have arisen by foresight enrollment in all kinds of different made available to AST students, should or necessity — probably it was both — ways, one of them being to put focus all sides agree on placement. but by now it is simply a part of the on continuing education and on Like Matthew Heesing, most stu- ecosystem.” diploma programs,” Bennet said. dents in the distance program are affil- The realization at the time, said the “We’ve seen quite a growth in our iated with the United Church. The pro- Rev. Susan MacAlpine-Gillis — assis- enrollment in diploma programs. We gram was created to meet the UC’s tant professor of pastoral theology, have an MA in theology and religious needs, but it is available to Anglicans, recruitment coordinator, and a grad- studies, which is a growing program.” Roman Catholics, and those from uate — was that no single denomina- “We are taking our light out from other denominations, provided judica- tion in Halifax could easily meet underneath the bushel in a more sig- tory approval and a suitable learning enrollment targets. MacAlpine-Gillis nificant way than we have in the past. site. In Heesing’s case, that site is speaks well of AST and the Canadian We’re advertising regionally, nationally, United Church in the Valley, Turner church, but she also offers frankness and internationally.” Valley, about an hour south of Calgary. and realism. “We will have undoubt- There, he is a part-time student online edly fewer full-time clergy in any of Going the Distance and paid part-time minister — the our denominations, because it’s just Also among AST’s efforts to diversify: only one in the congregation. In the hard to find congregations who can a five-year, distance-based MDiv pro- summer, he returns to Halifax to spend meet those needs,” she told TLC. “We gram in which students come for six weeks as a full-time student. may be back to that Methodist circuit summer study and spend the rest of Heesing, who is from Edmonton, rider phenomenon, where there is one the year in practicum study as a stu- (Continued on next page) 7KH$\UHV&HQWHUIRU 6W0DU\ V6HZDQHH 6SLULWXDO'HYHORSPHQW ŊŊ/ÄõËÚ½¤é½½Ë¤ÄË­ÞÄ­ÞåÚå­ËÄĤ^åĪDÚûĮÞ^õÄŊŊ ­ÞªË½û×½õªÚõÄËéÚ¥×Ë×½åËÚÞåĤåËÚÄõĤ ÄåËÚËÄÄåŊå˽­¤ĮÞ×Þå×éÚ×ËÞÞĪ Ŋ ŊŊsªåªÚûËéªËÞåûËéÚËõÄ¥åªÚ­Ä¥ËÄËéÚÃ×éÞĤ×½Ä×ÚÞËĽŊŊ ÚåÚåĤËÚååÄËÄˤËéÚ×ÚË¥ÚÃÞĤ^åĪDÚûňÞ^õÄ­ÞŊ­ååË Ŋ ×ÚËô­­Ä¥Þ×­Ú­å齪ËÞ×­å½­åûåË×Ë׽ˤ­ôÚÞº¥ÚËéÄÞĤ­Ä׽ˤ ÄåéÚ½éåûĪ ŊŊËÃÞ×Äå­Ãõ­åªéÞËÄEõ,Ë׽餤Ĥ½ËåËÄåª^ËéåªŊŊ éÃÚ½ÄW½åé­ÄcÄÄÞÞĤËéåĪËéÚ¤ÚËêååÄËË¥ĤēĊ íÄéåÞ¤ÚËÃEÞªô­½½ĤÄí½Þõû¤ÚËÃôÚûû½­¤Ī (ÝƇĈžɕŴŸŕġŸÝŋĭōğŕŸŋÝƇĭŕōɕÝōāŸĈžĈŸƣÝƇĭŕōžÝŸĈÝƣÝĭńÝùńĈŕōńĭōĈŕŸùƪûÝńńĭōġɆȾȾɚɅɀɆɚȿɄɃɇ ZZZ6W0DU\V6HZDQHHRUJ October 7, 2018 • THE LIVING CHURCH 5 the experience of shifting from the dis- NEWS October 7, 2018 tance program to the residential also | deepened my relationship with my Atlantic School of Theology ongoing process and engaged learning. (Continued from previous page) The church, AST administration, fac- ulty, staff, and other students offer an completed a master’s degree in reli- opportunity for lively, interactive rela- gious studies and theology at St. Mary’s tionship in both programs.” University in Halifax.