Faculty Member elected as Co-chair of the Evangelical Association for Theological Field Educators
Dr. Daryl Smith has been elected as Co-chair of the Evangelical Association for Theological Field Educators. Dr. Daryl Smith says, “It's always an honor to be part of this group.” Smith has been a member of EATFE for several years and was recently chosen as Co-chair along with Dipa Hart of Dallas Theological Seminary. Smith says, “They are good friends with a passion for Mentored (Field Education) Ministry. We all work together to help one another grow spiritually and grow in ministry.”
Smith and Hart have two main responsibilities as Chairs for EATFE. “Our primary work is the guiding and planning of our next EATFE Biennium Conference at Fuller Theological Seminary in January 2014. We are currently creating a membership survey and working with the past co-chairs to make a smooth leadership transition,” says Smith. He is also responsible for planning their caucus meetings at the 2013 Association for Theological Field Education Conference.
Smith has many ties to Asbury Theological Seminary. After graduating from the Kentucky campus he was hired as the Director of Continued Education. Then he moved to Rochester, New York where he was a pastor for eight years before he returned to the Asbury Seminary community. For the past 11 years he has worked at the Florida Dunnam Campus as the Co-Director of Mentored Ministry, as well as an Associate Professor of Mentored Ministry and Christian Leadership.
Affiliate Professor, Dr. Philip Tallon, to be a Visiting Instructor at Caribbean Wesleyan College
Dr. Philip Tallon, Affiliate Professor of Philosophy and Religion, will be a visiting faculty member at Caribbean Wesleyan College in May of 2012. He will be teaching Philosophy of Religion, a course he currently teaches at Asbury Seminary, for the school in Jamaica.
Asbury Theological Seminary begins phase two of Kalas Village
With the start of 2012, Asbury Seminary is taking the next step to develop Kalas Village. Construction began in the last week of 2011 on phase two, which adds another 50 “town house” style units. A unique feature of this phase is the addition of a community center. It will have several amenities including an outdoor basketball court, tennis courts, a volleyball court, and several gazebos for picnics and other social gatherings.
Just one year ago, students began making Kalas Village their home. The complex opened to seminary families in January of 2011 after phase one was complete. The complex currently consists of 26 buildings containing 100 units, which range from two to four bedrooms. Each unit has geothermal heating and air-conditioning, hardwood and ceramic floors, open floor plans, and front and back porches. They come with kitchen appliances and have a washer and dryer connection for laundry. This family housing complex has been made possible through a generous donation from the Bill and Carol Latimer Charitable Foundation. This also helps make the units very affordable with competitive rental costs.
Bryan Blankenship, the Vice President for Finance and Administration, says one goal of Kalas village is to “provide exceptionally high quality living accommodations for Asbury Seminary students at affordable prices.” In addition, Blankenship says Kalas Village is meant to reflect the seminary’s commitment to community and reestablish a focus on residential theological education. One way Asbury is striving to achieve that goal is through the Residential Host Program. Five host couples are placed throughout the complex to inspire growth and instill a sense of community. President Tennent comments that "the development of Kalas Village is part of a 'residential renaissance' at Asbury Seminary. This is part of a larger vision connected to building five new single student living halls. The residential renaissance is just one of many developments outlined in Asbury Seminary’s 2023 Strategic plan" he says, "which aims to achieve several landmark goals by the Seminary’s centennial celebration."
A dedication ceremony will be held at Kalas Village for the new complex after it is complete. Seminary officials hope to have phase two complete by January 2013 and students would be able to move into the new units the following month.
Asbury Seminary 1974 alumnus, Robert Biddulph receives Distinguished Alumni Award
Asbury Theological Seminary’s Director of Alumni and Church Relations, Tammy Cessna, announces Robert Biddulph '74 as the recipient of the 2011 Distinguished Alumni Award.
Bob and Sydney Biddulph have been missionaries to Spain with One Mission Society since 1977. Through evangelism, discipleship and counseling, they have assisted in establishing several churches.
Bob serves as pastor of counseling and cell groups at the Chamartín Churchin Madrid. Together with Sydney, they coordinate Marriage Encounter, a ministry that seeks to strengthen family relationships and provides effective evangelistic opportunities.
The Biddulphs were not strangers to missionary activity when they arrived in Spain. Bob’s parents, Burt and Bernardine Biddulph, gave leadership to OMS in Colombia, Ecuador and Spain. Sydney’s mother, Margaret Bonnette, was a long-time missionary nurse to Haiti.
Both Bob and Sydney are graduates of Asbury College. Bob earned an M.A. in religion with an emphasis in counseling from Asbury Theological Seminary. Sydney holds an M.A. in history from Eastern Kentucky University.
The couple have three adult children—Allison, Philip and Audrey.
Asbury Theological Seminary Signs Global Partnership in Costa Rica
Asbury Theological Seminary is pleased to announce a new global partnership with the Evangelical Methodist Seminary-University of Costa Rica. The agreement solidifies a commitment to partner together in ministry efforts. The Memorandum of Understanding explains, “The growth of the Global Church… calls for a level of collaboration that will garner greater fruit through theological education than either institution could accomplish by itself.”
Both institutions share a common mission and doctrine. In addition, ties in leadership made it an easy bond. The founder of the Methodist Seminary, Bishop Luis Fernando Palomo, serves on Asbury Seminary’s Board of Trustees. Furthermore, Dr. Stephen Gober, the Director of Operations and Spiritual Formation on the Florida Dunnam Campus, previously served as the president of the Methodist Seminary for eight years.
The Memorandum of Understanding was signed on December 2, 2011 during the General Conference of the Methodist Church of Costa Rica. Asbury Seminary’s President, Dr. Timothy C. Tennent, was there for the signing and the conference. His trip marks the first ever visit to the Methodist Seminary by an Asbury Seminary President. Dr. Gober says, “The evening was charged with a great spirit of celebration because of the high esteem with which Asbury Seminary is revered by the pastors and leaders of the church.” Gober explained further that the Methodist Seminary has been a catalyst in the transformation in the life of the Church in Costa Rica, and Asbury Seminary alumni have been key to the process.
The partnership will facilitate travel courses, professor exchanges, and student exchanges to allow members of both communities to experience cross-cultural expressions of Christian life. The partnership is an especially beneficial tool for the Florida Dunnam Campus, which serves a large Hispanic population. Gober says, “We will jointly seek to discover significant Spanish resources and create translations of existing English materials that would be an asset to both institutions.” Professors from Costa Rica will teach on the Florida Dunnam Campus; additionally, professors from the Florida Dunnam Campus will teach in Costa Rica and participate in language studies through immersion.
Dr. Gober says it’s a mutually beneficial partnership. “For Asbury Seminary, it will help us pursue concrete expressions of Global engagement and strengthen our understanding and connections to better serve the Hispanic population in the USA, as well as participate in the expansion of the Kingdom of God through Latin America.” This is the fourth global partnership for Asbury Seminary in 2011. Previously, Asbury Seminary signed partnerships with Africa International University, West Africa Theological Seminary, and Seoul Theological University. Through these partnerships, Asbury Seminary continues its missional outreach by engaging the Global Church.
Geneva Silvernail participates in events at Melanesia Nazarene Bible College in Papua New Guinea
Dr. Geneva Silvernail, Vice President of the Florida Dunnam Campus, spoke at the Commissioning Service and participated in the hooding ceremony at Melanesia Nazarene Bible College in Papua New Guinea November 27, 2011.
Dr. Mike Pasquarello spoke at the Wesleyan Theological Forum
Dr. Mike Pasquarello, Granger E. and Anna A. Fisher Professor of Preaching, was the speaker for the Wesleyan Theological Forum of the Indiana Annual Conference, the United Methodist Church. Addressing a gathering of ordained ministers, local pastors, and lay speakers, the topic of Dr. Pasquarello's presentation was "John Wesley on Preaching Christ."
Asbury Seminary Board Member, Reverend Edmund Robb III, receives award
An Asbury Theological Seminary Board Member has received an award, but he says it was a family tie that made it especially memorable. Reverend Edmund Robb III was granted the 2011 Distinguished Evangelist of the United Methodist Church award. Robb says, "This is not something I expected or thought about, but I was very pleased to find out about the award. This is especially meaningful for me because it's the same distinction earned by my father, Dr. Edmund Robb, Jr., 22 years ago.”
Robb is the founding pastor of the The Woodlands United Methodist Church in The Woodlands, Texas. Since its beginning in 1978, the congregation has been one of the fastest-growing churches in America and is now the fourth-largest church in Methodism. Robb has seen his church grow from 30 people to more than 4,200 people who regularly attend worship. The congregation funds more than $1.5 million in missions annually. However, Robb says when it comes to building a thriving ministry, it can’t be counted in numbers. “While I am proud of these accomplishments, success for me is more about spiritual growth and transformation in the lives of people than it is about numbers.”
Before his work at The Woodlands, he served as the associate editor of Good News magazine. He is currently a board chairman of A Foundation for Theological Education, which has provided more than $2.5 million in fellowship grants to United Methodist doctoral students since 1977. He is also an election official with The Woodlands Township Board, and was named a “Hometown Hero” in 2007 for his many contributions in The Woodlands.
Robb received an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Asbury University. He was elected to Asbury Seminary’s Board of Trustees in 1997.
Dr. John Oswalt to deliver a lecture on The Art of Bible Translation at the Year of the Bible Celebration
Dr. John Oswalt, Visiting Distinguished Professor of Old Testament, is currently in Nigeria where he will deliver a lecture on The Art of Bible Translation at the Year of the Bible Celebration in the capital city of Abujah on Saturday, November 19. He is also teaching a two-week module on the prophets at West Africa Theological Seminary in Lagos. He will return to the US on Sunday, November 27.
Asbury Theological Seminary Receives $350,000 Grant from the Henry Luce Foundation
Project to Explore Church Revitalization Movements in Africa, India, Asia and Latin America
The Center for the Study of World Christian Revitalization Movements at Asbury Theological Seminary received a $350,000 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation for a four-year research project (2012-2015) called Emerging World Christian Identities: Transformation in the Urbanized and Globalized Context. The project will explore the revitalization of the church in urban cultural contexts in the non-Western world, including Africa, India, Asia and Latin America.
This project builds upon the findings of the Center’s first international project, Revival and Revitalization: Exploring the Cultural Dynamics of Religious Awakenings, also funded by the Henry Luce Foundation. The work of Revival and Revitalization (2008-2011), while global in scope, was centered in North America and Europe. The Global South and East and the importance of ordinary Christians and unordained leaders emerged as key themes worthy of deeper exploration. In response, the new project explores church revitalization movements in four urban areas, including Nairobi, Kenya, Dehra Dun, Uttararkhand, India, Singapore, and Buenos Aires or an alternate Latin American city. These cities not only reflect the diversity and spiritual depth of global Christianity, but were strategically selected to coincide with Asbury Seminary’s developing mission initiatives and global partnerships under the leadership of President Dr. Timothy C. Tennent.
Four international consultations will bring 65 representatives from diverse fields and backgrounds to the urban sites to learn from local scholars, practitioners and laity and will culminate in local public events to report the findings. The findings of each consultation and how the findings will impact the shape of theological education around the world will be published in a comprehensive narrative and include the writings and perspectives of a wide variety of project participants. The project is conceived as more than just a series of academic publications. It is intentionally designed to develop lasting collaborations between academic institutions, churches, scholars, and practitioners.
Dr. J. Steven O’Malley, Director of the Center for the Study of World Christian Revitalization Movements, said, “In a day when aspirations for human freedom are being loosed in multiple locations across the globe, we sense that it is vital to discern how and where God is at work in manifesting revitalization. We also find it appropriate to be linked to a Seminary built upon John Wesley’s primal vision for the world as our parish, and one that is now building upon a trajectory of significant global involvement in that ongoing mission for the past century.”
The Center for the Study of World Christian Revitalization Movements was established at Asbury Theological Seminary in 1991 (originally as the Wesleyan Holiness Studies Center) and purposed to “contribute to the vitality of Christian mission and local congregations by synthesizing learnings from past and present revitalization movements worldwide.” The Center’s approach is interdisciplinary, combining biblical studies, theology, history, anthropology, and sociology.
