Dr. William Avery, Professor Emeritus of Stewardship and Parish Ministry, shares his thoughts on three top issues from the previous year, 2023: The Hamas-Israel conflict, the exit of from church participation, and clergy burnout. He reminds us that that the Middle East conflict is not recent but has its roots from the biblical period. From his years of teaching and research, Avery suggests that the membership in our American congregations started to decline in the early 1960s. Avery indicates...

Dr. James Thomas, Retired Associate Professor of Worship Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary of Lenoir-Rhyne University, talks about his recent experience in teaching at the Good News Theological Seminary in Ghana. He shares his experience with students in the classroom as well as in the field experiences. Although he had been to Ghana previously, this experience exposed him to the deep division between Muslims and Christians. He also comments on his taking more time to listen to various...

Lisa Erdman, Postdoctoral Scholar in the President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program at the Penn State College of Medicine, talks about her current teaching and the role of everyday objects in communication between patients and healthcare providers. Health humanities is an emerging, interdisciplinary field of study that examines how the arts and humanities can offer a deeper understanding of the illness experience and well-being in healthcare. An artist, educator, and researcher, Erdman holds...

  Author Joseph Bathanti (LSU Press, Mercer University Press)  details the writing program, Brothers and Sisters Like These, he and Dr. Bruce Kelly started at the Charles George Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Asheville, North Carolina.  Bathanti is a creative writing mentor for Carlow University’s MFA program. He is Professor of English at Appalachian State University, serving as the McFarlane Family Distinguished Professor of Interdisciplinary Education, as an affiliate...

Andrew Taminger, a third-year seminarian at United Lutheran Seminary, talks about his attendance at the Lutheran World Federation Assembly (LWF) in Krakow, Poland. After a brief introduction to the history of the Federation, he continues by sharing his personal highlights of the Assembly along with some of the discussions including climate change, women’s rights, disabilities, and gender issues. He goes on to discuss the tensions that were present in the deliberations including the use of...

Jane Nutter, the President of the Gettysburg Black History Museum, talks about the development of the museum. She emphasizes the fact that the museum goes beyond the presence of African Americans in Gettysburg during the Civil War. The museum highlights the Blacks in Gettysburg before, during, and after the War. She notes that the museum contains artifacts from various individuals and families of color including photographs, furniture, and documents. The community was enthusiastic to...

The Rev. Dr. James Cobb reflects on his 50 years of ordained ministry. He describes the congregations to which he had been called along with their significant contributions to ministry. Many of the years in the pastorate he shared as co-pastor with his wife, Pastor Judy Cobb. While he has been centered in parish ministry, he shares his involvement in the life of the church beyond the congregations such as a member the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In addition,...

Dr. Elizabeth Viti, Professor emeriti of French Language and Literature at Gettysburg College discusses the life and times of Simone de Beauvoir, the French writer, intellectual, philosopher, and activist of the 20th century. Beauvoir’s life was vibrant. Viti notes Belvoir’s long-time friendship with Jean-Paul Sartre. Beauvoir was a prolific writer with numerous publications that span various areas.  Her book, The Second Sex, published in 1949, places her as an important figure in women’s’...

Fr. Andrew Durbidge, Rector St. Luke and St. Matthew Episcopal Church in Brooklyn New York Joins us to talk about his recent pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago or the Way of St. James. Each year thousands of individuals start from various points in France, Spain, and other locations to take the journey. This pilgrimage dates from the medieval period. Durbidge used his walking time for meditation and reflection. The walk reinforced his own spiritual growth. He began his 60-mile journey from...

Pastor Richard Michael and his wife Bonnie McCourt talk about their most recent travel to the Holy Land which he was co-leader. This was his 11th tour. Both share the benefits of taking such a tour which included reading the scriptures through a new lens and changing one’s world view. Richard discusses his change from a total pro-Israeli perspective to one in which he has been open to hear and listen to the Palestinian vices. Both describe the plight of Palestinian workers and Palestinian...

Dr. Michael Birkner, Professor of History, Gettysburg College ,talks about his recently edited book Democracy’s Shield: Voices of World War II. He describes the oral interviews conducted by Gettysburg College students of veterans of the Second World War. This project took place over a twenty-five-year period. The interview process began with a network of veterans he knew. The interviews included:  men and women, persons who had been in combat, those who were not, WACs and WAVES. He noted the...

Dr. Crump, former Professor of Systematic Theology at LTSG, named Karl Barth, Rudolph Bultmann, and Paul Tillich as the leading theologians of the 20th century and briefly described the central themes in the work of each. Common to all three would be close to Tillich’s phrase, “Accept the fact that you are accepted.” Crump described the crucial importance of the two World Wars on each. He compared the “big three” with American Lutheran theologian and Gettysburg professor, Robert Jensen, who...

This episode of The Seminary Explores features Pastor Ed Smith, the recipient of the Called to Lead – Excellence in Ministry Award by the Alumni Association of United Lutheran Seminary. Ed shared his various areas of ministry after graduating from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg. While a pastor in the Pocono area of Pennsylvania, he developed a ski ministry. After a few years, he received a call to a parish in Colorado where he participated in the beginning years of Habitat...

On this episode of the Seminary Explores Prue Yelinek discusses research on her familial roots which date back to 1754. Her discussion combined the history of her family in relation to the history of the Church of the Brethren in the Shenandoah Valley. That history is intertwined with the events of the Civil War in that area. Yelinek shared the surprises she found in her research as well as the published articles that emerged from her research on family members during the Civil War, “Colonel...

Ann Bracken's book Crash: A Memoir of Overmedication and Recovery, explores mother-daughter experiences of mismanaged care for depression and chronic pain. A co-host for the Wilde Readings Poetry Series, Bracken is a contributing editor for Little Patuxent Review. Her poetry, essays, and interviews have appeared in numerous anthologies and journals. She is a correspondent for the Justice Arts Coalition, exchanging letters with incarcerated people to foster their use of the arts. Bracken holds...

Recorded at the Adult Discussion Class at St. James Lutheran Church, this episode is centered on the career of Kristin Rice who recently retired as the Chief Public Defender of Adams County in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. She  defined and described the role of the Public Defender’s Office: the type of cases the office  must take, the unique structure of the Pennsylvania Public Defenders Office, and the caseloads of the lawyers in the office (from DUI and immigration to death row). Listeners will...

Author Gregory Christianson shares the development of his newest book Gettysburg Fast Facts for Kids and Families. The story of Gettysburg is told through the eyes of children. He discussed how his interest in the Civil War began and his desire to make the Gettysburg visit experience accessible to children. His inclusion of the contributions of woman and African Americans are pieces of the Gettysburg narrative often omitted when talking about the war. Although the book is designed for...

Mr. Jonathan Noel, Minister of Music at St. James Lutheran Church in Gettysburg Pennsylvania discussed the role of the organist in the life of the church. He described the organist as helping the music life of the congregation. He recalled his early interest in the instrument and connecting it in the worship life of the church. Noel noted the challenges as well as the opportunities of the organist in this age of technology. While the organ is less used in many churches today, technology and...

This is a program of remembrance. Three colleagues and friends of Dr. Richard Stewart share their memories of him. Dr. Joseph Donnella emphasizes Stewart’s work on making connections among people, groups and churches. He highlighted the collegiality he experienced with Stewart when they both were serving parishes in St. Croix. For Mark Staples, his conversations with Stewart were important of him. Stewart’s work on African American history and the Lutheran Church was a labor of love. Dr....

Dr. Richard Perry, Professor emeritus of Church and Society and Urban Ministry Program, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago discussed the formation and history of the Conference of International Black Lutherans or CIBL. From the beginning, CIBL was and continues to be  dedicated to the  research, study, and examination of Lutheran theology through the African American experience. Conversation between Dr. Albert Pero (United States) and Dr. Ambrose Moyo (Zimbabwe) in the mid-1980s developed...

Dr. Teresa Smallwood, The James Franklin Kelly and Hope Eyster Kelly Associate Professor of Public Theology, United Lutheran Seminary discussed her choice of the top stories in religion for 2022. She discussed her concern for Democracy in the United States, the current role of the Supreme Court, religious freedom, the care for children and their health, and the challenges facing the Black community. She emphasized the importance of our mainline churches to educate its members in the Christian...

Pastor Annabelle Markey, Co-pastor Community Lutheran Church, Sterling, VA, while on a 3-month sabbatical from her parish she had the opportunity to fulfill her interest in traveling 490 miles on foot from France through northern Spain on the Camino de Santiago. The pilgrimage attracts people from around the globe: Christians and non-Christians, people in transition in their lives, walkers who are taking the time to discern, and non-believers. She and her husband walked 10 to 18 miles each...

Dr. Andre Lijoi, Associate Program Director of WellSpan York Hospital Family Medicine Program and Clinical Associate Professor for Penn State University School of Medicine joins Katy Giebenhain for a conversation about Narrative Medicine’s potential for clinicians and patients. A graduate of Ramapo College of NJ and Georgetown University School of Medicine, Lijoi did his residency and internship at University of Maryland Medical Center. He holds a CPA in Narrative Medicine from Columbia...

Nicole Yurcaba joins Katy Giebenhain for a conversation about identity, assumptions, and Ukrainian writers to start reading right now. A Ukrainian-American Poet and Essayist, Nicole’s book reviews, poems, and essays have appeared in The Atlanta Review, Whiskey Island, Raven Chronicles, Appalachian Heritage, North of Oxford, The Southern Review of Books and elsewhere. She holds an MFA from Lindenwood University. She has been a Writing Resident at Gullkistan Creative Center for the Arts in...