Theological Seminary Research Articles

Warunki przyjmowania kandydatów do seminarium duchownego w II RP na przykładzie Seminarium Duchownego w Płocku

The article is about issues related to the conditions of admitting candidates to seminaries in the period of the Second Polish Republic. The issues were presented on the example of the Higher Theological Seminary in Płock. This article was divided into thematic sections, starting with the discussion of the institutional outline and formal preparation of candidates for the priesthood. This section refers to the decisions of the Council of Trent. Next section of this article concerns the general admission conditions for candidates to universities in the Second Polish Republic. The article also draws attention to important role of the preparation for priestly, in the light of the rules the Code of Canon Law of 1917. The following subsections of the dissertation refer directly to issues related to the organization and functioning of the Higer Theological Seminary in Płock. At this point, Author presented path of Theological Seminary in Płock to become a higher education institution. The article ends with a summary, which concludes that the theological seminaries in the Second Polish Republic, although they didn’t fit into the framework of „secular” education, presented a significant scientific and didactic level.

Mesterek és tanítványok. Különös tekintettel Kovács Albert hatására a 20. század eleji kolozsvári homiletika-oktatásra

"Masters and Disciples. With Particular Focus on Albert Kovács’s Influence upon the Teaching of Homiletics in the Early 20th Century in Kolozsvár/Cluj-Napoca. In this paper, I examine the influence of Albert Kovács (1838–1904), Professor of Practical Theology between 1865 and 1904 at the Theological Seminary in Budapest, upon the teaching of homiletics in the early 20th century in Kolozsvár. After the sudden death of Albert Molnár (1849–1901), Lecturer of Practical Theology at the Theological Seminary in Kolozsvár (1895–1901), Béla Kenessey (1858–1918) continued his work (1901–1907). As former disciple of Albert Kovács, Kenessey used his personal notes from Kovács’s lectures. László Ravasz (1882–1975), Professor of Practical Theology (1907–1921), as the disciple of Kenessey in Kolozsvár, was directly influenced by Albert Kovács’s homiletical thoughts. In this paper, I attempt to demonstrate the influence of Albert Kovács by identifying Kenessey’s homiletical notes (1902) in the Manuscript Collection of the Theological Institute in Kolozsvár, by using an early (1909), handwritten version of László Ravasz’s homiletical handbook (1915) from the inheritance of his disciple Sándor Tavaszy (1888–1952). I also examine the value of László Ravasz’s thoughts in the context of the history of Hungarian and European Protestant homiletics and preaching. Keywords: Albert Kovács, Béla Kenessey, László Ravasz, history of homiletics and preaching "

Jewish Religious Schools in Sarajevo until 1941: The Sephardic Yeshiva of Sarajevo (La Yeshiva De Saray) and the Jewish Secondary Theological Seminary in Sarajevo (El Seminario Rabbiniko Saraylisko)

In Sarajevo, since the formation of the Jewish religious community, the religious education of children has developed simultaneously. First, four-grade elementary schools, where mostly male children went, came forward. Later in the 17th century, Talmud-Torah secondary school was developed, while Yeshiva was only formed in the second half of the 18th century. Until the establishment of the Belgrade Yeshiva by Rav Yehuda Lerma in 5395 (1635) and the Sarajevo Yeshiva by Rav David Pardo in 5528 (1768), there were no rabbinical schools in the territories of the Western Balkans and neither rabbis. In the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, later the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, there was a need for qualified personnel for the religious education of Jewish children and youth according to general laws, in lower and secondary schools. On June 13, 1928, the Jewish Secondary Theological Seminary was opened, which began operating on November 25, 1928. The Seminary operated until 1941, when it was closed on April 6 by Nazzi Germans. The paper aims to present the development of Jewish religious education from the arrival of Sephardim to Sarajevo in the 16th century until 1941. To show the importance of the development of rabbinic and Talmudic studies in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the reputation of Sarajevo's Jewish religious schools in Europe and the world.

Jeffrey A. D. Weima, The Sermons to the Seven Churches of Revelation: A Commentary and Guide

Jeffrey A. D. Weima, <i>The Sermons to the Seven Churches of Revelation: A Commentary and Guide</i>

«Хотелось иметь Вас своим сотрудником по делу воспитания…»: письма архиепископа Николая (Зиорова) Н. А. Ильинскому

This publication introduces into the scientific circulation the letters of one of the famous Russian Orthodox Church hierarchs of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a member of the State Council, a famous theological writer Archbishop Nikolai (Ziorov), which relate to the early period of the hierarch’s biography, associated with his service at the theological and educational department. The letters were addressed to Nikifor Alexandrovich Ilyinsky, an Assistant Inspector at the Vologda Theological Seminary. In his letters Archbishop Nikolay dealt with various topics, but to a greater extent he considered the problems of theological schools, thus, the letters are the most valuable source on the history of theological education at the Synodal period. The letters also noted the destinies of those individuals whose life path was connected with the Vologda Diocese and the Vologda Theological Seminary. The particular interest is the characterization of the control and auditing activities held by the Educational Committee under the Holy Synod, as well as individual auditors and events which took place in theological schools at the considered period. The purpose of the publication of the letters is to show the view of one of the hierarchs of the Russian Church of the early twentieth century on the problems and controversial issues of the inner life of theological schools. The published letters can be found in N. A. Ilyinsky’s diary, which is stored in the State Archive of the Vologda Region.

Scott N. Callaham. Biblical Aramaic for Biblical Interpreters: A Parallel Hebrew-Aramaic Handbook

Scott N. Callaham. <i>Biblical Aramaic for Biblical Interpreters: A Parallel Hebrew-Aramaic Handbook</i>

JOHN THE THEOLOGIAN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY IN BITOLA AND SUBCARPATHIAN RUS: HISTORICAL CONNECTIONS, EDUCATIONAL PROCESS, GRADUATES

The article investigates the historical ties of Subcarpathian Rus with one of the theological institutions in the Balkans - the St. John the Theologian seminary in Bitola. The deficient educational level of the Orthodox clergy in the early 1920s is characterized. The network of Orthodox seminaries in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes during this period is shown. Based on the documents of Serbian and Ukrainian archives, the stages of attracting students from Subcarpathian Rus to study in the Kingdom's secondary and higher spiritual and theological institutions are clarified. The role of the bishops-delegates of the Serbian Orthodox Church, who served the most for the departure of entrants to study in Macedonia, is assessed. For the first time in historiography, the names of the Transcarpathians who graduated from the seminary and were ordained as priests were established. The article also mentions other seminarians who were expelled for failure or transferred to other educational institutions. The article describes the seminary's curriculum, extracurricular activities, incentives system, and students' leisure time. The annual reports of the seminary also provide an opportunity to trace the way of reforming the educational institution's curriculum, increasing and decreasing the number of hours in certain subjects. The author concludes that Bitola Theological Seminary trained about 30 priests for Subcarpathian Rus and was among the most popular and respected in the region. The Orthodox clergy who graduated from the studios in Macedonia were highly educated and able to unite the faithful in the parishes. On this basis, the diocesan hierarchs entrusted the "Bitolians" with large parishes or problematic parishes where it was necessary to normalize the situation. The conclusions outline the prospects for further research.

Yekaterinoslav Theological Seminary’s Role in the Development of Music Education in Southeastern Ukraine in the Late Nineteenth to Early Twentieth Centuries

This article is devoted to studying the musical and educational activities of the Yekaterinoslav Theological Seminary in the context of Russian spiritual education in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Seminary’s role in regional culture is considered in detail, with a specific focus on the development of music education and musical art. The extent of dissemination of musical knowledge by the Yekaterinoslav Theological Seminary is discussed. The role of Seminary musical education in preserving the traditions of church singing art is also studied. The connection between Seminary musical education and musical life is traced, as well as the emergence of secular musical art elements in the performance of sacred music in the concert repertoire of the Seminary choir, orchestra, and instrumental ensembles. Finally, the three most important functions of the Theological Seminary’s musical and educational activities are formulated. This research is a contribution to the study of the process that supported Ukraine music education formation as a part of Europe.

“An Oppressive Insensibility”: Disestablishment, Clerical Infirmity, and the Origins of the Manual Labor Movement

In the contested spiritual economy of the early nineteenth century, recently disestablished American clergymen consolidated themselves in theological seminaries. Members of the dominant New England Congregationalist and Presbyterian ministries, these seminarians organized a defensive front against itinerant, populist rivals by intensifying their curricula, proscribing physical exertion as a distraction from study, and shielding clerical students from popular influence. Yet critical voices from within the seminaries soon reported that unrelenting study damaged students’ bodily health and alienated the clergy from a laity on whom their educational funding now depended. Accompanying such critiques were proposals for an alternative pedagogy that gained its fullest expression in the manual labor school, where physical vigor was enshrined as a complement to theological training and where barriers separating clergy from laity were minimized. By situating the infirmities that seminarians logged in memoirs and exposés alongside their efforts to reform the seminary system, this article argues that the graduate clergy mustered a coherent, forceful response to the crisis in spiritual leadership that disestablishment precipitated. The article presents clerical elites not as casualties of democratization or as agents of capital, but as self-aware and self-interested economic actors in the reordering of American religious authority after disestablishment.

Ювілейні видання 1930-х років інституцій Греко-католицької Церкви в Галичині

Jubilee editions of such institutions of the Greek Catholic Church as: the Theological Scientific Society, the Greek Catholic Theological Academy, and theological seminaries in Lviv and Przemyśl, published in Galicia in the 1930s, are considered. Publications covered the scientific and educational activities of the mentioned institutions based on the documentary materials. These reflect the leading role of both the head of the Greek Catholic Church, Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytskyi, and the rector of the Theological Academy, Dr. Josyp Slipyi. The documents and materials presented in the jubilee editions, such as the messages of Metropolitan Sheptytskyi, reports of rector J. Slipyi, bibliography of publications of the Theological Scientific Society and Theological Academy, biographies of religious and cultural figures of Galicia, registers of scientific seminars on theology, philosophy, history, Slavic philology and sacred art, evidence the deep scientific research undertaken in the field of humanitarian studies. The main organizer of scientific research in the interwar period was the Shevchenko Scientific Society in Lviv, but the other institutions, such as: the Theological Scientific Society and the Theological Academy, the only Ukrainian higher school in Galicia, also took an important part in the development of national science and culture. Ukrainian theological science was represented at the European level by the journal «Theology», the edition published by the Theological Scientific Society, and later by the Theological Academy. It published materials written not only by theologians, but also by Ukrainian and foreign historians, writers, art critics, philosophers, and national educational figures, which contributed to revitalizing public life in Galicia. The use of these materials and documents by modern researchers of the history of the Greek-Catholic Church of the interwar period in publications, fundamental editions, discussions at symposia and scientific seminars, which are mentioned in the article, attests to the relevance and source value of such jubilee publications.

Education in Black and White: Myles Horton and the Highlander Center's Vision for Social Justice

Education in Black and White: Myles Horton and the Highlander Center's Vision for Social Justice

From Isolation to Community: A Renewed Vision for Christian Life Together, MylesWerntz. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2022. 195 pages

DialogVolume 61, Issue 4 p. 327-328 BOOK REVIEWS From Isolation to Community: A Renewed Vision for Christian Life Together, Myles Werntz. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2022. 195 pages Scott J. Hagley, Corresponding Author Scott J. Hagley shagley@pts.edu Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA Correspondence Scott J. Hagley, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. Email: shagley@pts.eduSearch for more papers by this author Scott J. Hagley, Corresponding Author Scott J. Hagley shagley@pts.edu Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA Correspondence Scott J. Hagley, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. Email: shagley@pts.eduSearch for more papers by this author First published: 19 January 2023 https://doi.org/10.1111/dial.12769Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume61, Issue4Winter 2022Pages 327-328 RelatedInformation

Covid-19, Public Violence, Fake News and Vaccines: A Theological Ethical Reflection

This paper attempts to deal with Covid-19, fake news and vaccines and is the product of a talk the author gave at a contact session of the Northern Theological Seminary of the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa. This presentation was given a few weeks after South Africans were confronted by the eruption of public violence, “apparently” sparked by the jailing of President Jacob Zuma. The author, although requested to share ideas on Covid-19 and vaccines, felt that there was some political nexus between public violence, the feeling of being left out systematically, the unintended consequences of the lockdown, and the spark—the Constitutional Court’s decision to jail the then president. This article does not discuss the Constitutional Court’s decision or the jailing of the then president but tries to academically think about the causes of the eruption of public violence. The author explores the politics surrounding the vaccines and the unintended consequences of the lockdown, discusses “what the Church has become” since the outbreak of this virus, and deliberates the impact of “fake-news” in the era of a pandemic.

“Perhaps The Oldest Piece of Ecclesiastical Furniture in this Country”: The Construction and Destruction of Solomon Schechter’s Cairo Genizah Torah Ark

Abstract In 1897, Solomon Schechter brought a hoard of Hebrew manuscripts, now known collectively as the Cairo Genizah, to England from Cairo. Along with these manuscripts were several wooden Hebrew inscription fragments from Cairo’s Ben Ezra Synagogue. When Schechter left Cambridge to assume the presidency of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, these fragments were brought to New York where they were transformed into a Torah Ark. This Torah ark was used at the Seminary for three decades and subsequently exhibited at the Jewish Museum, New York and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. It was featured on numerous postcards and in major works on Jewish art. In 1997, it was deconstructed by the Jewish Museum to extract the medieval inscriptions. This article explores the history, meaning and reception of the Schechter Torah Ark as a window into the complexities of Schechter’s legacy and the history of Jewish scholarship in the twentieth century.

Apostles of Change: Latino Radical Politics, Church Occupations, and the Fight to Save the Barrio by Felipe Hinojosa

Reviewed by: Apostles of Change: Latino Radical Politics, Church Occupations, and the Fight to Save the Barrio by Felipe Hinojosa Gene T. Morales Apostles of Change: Latino Radical Politics, Church Occupations, and the Fight to Save the Barrio. By Felipe Hinojosa. Historia USA. (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2021. Pp. xviii, 219. $29.95, ISBN 978-1-4773-2198-0.) In his newest book, Apostles of Change: Latino Radical Politics, Church Occupations, and the Fight to Save the Barrio, Felipe Hinojosa takes us on a journey through the civil rights movement, religious activism, and the changing U.S. urban landscape. Over the course of four chapters, readers encounter Hinojosa's titular "apostles" as he examines four major American cities: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, and Houston. These cities had one thing in common: Latina/o communities that organized in the barrios and utilized religious institutions as springboards to protest community displacement, police brutality, and racism and to challenge spiritual theology. Using government documents, newspapers, oral histories, and religious archives, Hinojosa [End Page 807] shows how parallel events in post–World War II society, such as the civil rights movement, the onset of white flight, and urban renewal, led activists to occupy churches and religious buildings. Hinojosa provides an in-depth understanding of how faith-based politics and social movements—rooted in religious institutions and neighborhoods across the nation—became central to civil rights activism, self-determination, and neighborhood empowerment. He argues that not all cities and civil rights groups were the same, since demographics, religious affiliation, and location impacted each organization. Each chapter provides a vivid portrayal of scenes from the front lines of activism. Chapter 1 examines Chicago's Young Lords Organization (YLO) and the multiracial coalition of support it built to occupy McCormick Theological Seminary, which occupiers renamed the Manuel Ramos Memorial Building in honor of a neighborhood comrade shot and killed by Chicago police. Chapter 2 examines Los Angeles, where Chicana/o activists organized a group called Católicos Por La Raza and disrupted a Christmas Eve mass in 1969. Similar to YLO, the Católicos' coalition prompted the Catholic Church to recognize the needs of an impoverished Mexican American community that had witnessed religious school closures, reinvestments in other communities, and the unequal distribution of funds to projects like the newly built, multimillion-dollar St. Basil's Catholic Church. In chapter 3, Hinojosa examines East Harlem's Young Lords Organization, which endured Robert Moses's urban renewal assault on the inner city. YLO's movement in New York City was ignited by the police killing of Reinaldo Rodriguez in East Harlem and the transfer of ideas from the Chicago-based Young Lords. Its occupation of the First Spanish United Methodist Church, also known as the People's Church, allowed the Latina/o community to reclaim the space and advocate for their issues. Finally, chapter 4 examines the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO), the largest Chicano civil rights group in Texas. With support from the local community, MAYO's Houston chapter occupied Christ Presbyterian Church (now known as Juan Marcos Presbyterian Church). The organization created community food programs, but the young activists were soon forced out of the church, a setback that ultimately furthered their activism against the Presbyterian Church in Houston. Apostles of Change is a welcome addition to the fields of civil rights history, religious history, and urban history. Hinojosa shares a timely examination of how Latina/o communities were not a monolith and refused to accept ideas of urban blight in their communities by choosing to fight, occupy, and change the urban and religious landscapes of their barrios. Hinojosa's excellent study leaves the reader wanting to know more about how these occupations affected other cities in their regions. Indeed, he has set a foundation for future scholars to build on with this wealth of knowledge of occupations, movements, and activism. [End Page 808] Gene T. Morales Texas A&M University–San Antonio Copyright © 2022 The Southern Historical Association

The Impact of Hidden Curriculum in Theological Seminaries: A Case Study of JOS-ECWA Theological Seminary

The impact of hidden curriculum activity within the formal learning sessions of courses is real among theological school learners. In this paper, the study focused on Jos Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) Theological Seminary commonly known as JETS as a case study. The questionnaire was served to lecturers, non-academic staff, students, alumni, and immediate community members of the seminary to uncover what could be viewed as their understanding of hidden curriculum. The findings were presented in a statistical method using descriptive statistics, correlation, t-tests, and chi-square analysis. The findings indicated that the effects of the hidden curriculum on JETS students are obvious with an expected cell frequency of 22.0. There is a recurring hidden curriculum that is observed in classroom sessions by both teachers and students with a cell frequency of 12.0. When it comes to learning content in class, the attitudes of the students signal a cell frequency of 11.5. With the lack of committee members in place, the school will have difficulty spotting clear attitudes that do not agree with their training policy which the test statistics gave an expected cell frequency of 11.3. In the aspect of JETS using her immediate community to assess her hidden curriculum, there is a cell frequency of 10.8. The researcher recommends that JETS as an institution reflect on her hidden curriculum for the benefit of making her training objectives relevant to the society she seeks to serve.

Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Legacy of Boston Personalism

Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Legacy of Boston Personalism

Naomi Noble Richard

Naomi Noble Richard

On Becoming Neighbors: The Communication Ethics of Fred Rogers, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood: Children, Television, and Fred Rogers

On Becoming Neighbors: The Communication Ethics of Fred Rogers, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood: Children, Television, and Fred Rogers

WHEN ARE PERSONAL RIGHTS TOO PERSONAL TO BE CEDED? University of Johannesburg v Auckland Park Theological Seminary 2021 JDR 1151 (CC)

Context in law is everything, or so says the aphorism. That said, to what extent should courts consider the surrounding context of a contract when interpreting and construing it and its provisions? Does the parol evidence rule preclude a court from taking into account contextual evidence or circumstances in interpreting contractual provisions? Or is the court restricted to the contractual provisions and nothing beyond the four corners of the contract? These are some of the central issues that were considered in University of Johannesburg v Auckland Park Theological Seminary (2021 JDR 1151 (CC)) (UJ CC). The Supreme Court of Appeal (Auckland Park Theological Seminary v University of Johannesburg 2020 JDR 0494 (SCA) (UJ SCA)) and the Constitutional Court had divergent views on the matter. This case note provides a critical analysis of both judgments, ultimately preferring the decision of the Constitutional Court.In the law of contract, it is trite that, generally, all personal rights may be freely transferred or ceded to a third party without requiring the consent or knowledge of the other contracting party, who has a correlative duty. This is known as cession. An example is necessary. Consider A’s deposit of R10 000 into B Bank where B Bank is contractually obliged to return the deposit on A’s demand. A then transfers his right to claim (or demand) his deposit to C. There is no requirement that A procures B Bank’s consent to cede his right to claim. For the sake of completeness, cession is a bilateral juristic act aimed at transferring a personal right from a cedent/creditor to another legal person (cessionary). The cessionary then wears the shoes of a creditor in the cedent’s place. Cession can be differentiated from delegation (which concerns the substitution of a debtor, as opposed to a creditor) and assignment (which refers to a combination of cession and delegation).However, the general rule of cession is subject to limitations. There are two crucial limitations in this regard. First, a right cannot be ceded where it is the subject of a pactum de non cedendo, which can generally be defined as an agreement to not cede. Accordingly, a contract may contain a provision that prevents a creditor from ceding a right without the debtor’s consent. An example of a pactum de non cedendo is where a tenant, in a lease agreement, is not permitted to cede her rights of occupation and possession unless there is prior written consent by the landlord. Secondly, there may be certain rights that are so personal in nature that they cannot be ceded. Such rights cannot be ceded because the identity of the creditor is paramount to the debtor and there is an expectation that the party initially contracted with will fulfil the obligations. Claims for pain and suffering in delict, and claims for maintenance, are traditional examples of such rights. These rights are classified as delectus personae.In light of that general background, the author turns to consider the case of University of Johannesburg v Auckland Park Theological Seminary (supra) with a particular focus on the judgments of the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court. To this end, this case note is structured as follows. First, the pertinent facts of the case are canvassed; secondly, the decision of the Supreme Court of Appeal is examined; thirdly, the findings of the Constitutional Court are analysed; and lastly, the author provides a critical evaluation of the judgments, and endorses the reasoning furnished by the Constitutional Court.