Even with all of the challenges and conflicts that marked 2018, our hearts are full of gratitude for the goodness we were able to witness and participate in. For our January newsletter update (which you can sign up for here), we spent some time looking back on the past year, revisiting the highlights and milestones that made 2018 unforgettable.
We kicked off the year with Humanity Through Community, where Nikkita Oliver presented a prophetic “New Take on Resilience,” which set the tone for a year of speaking truth in the midst of deep injustice. Our milestone year continued with the inauguration of Dr. Craig Detweiler as our third President, an evening full of memorable moments and featuring a stirring charge from Dr. Roy Barsness.
In 2018 we received a landmark grant to launch the Resilient Leaders Project, a groundbreaking new program that explores how to equip church leaders for long-term generativity; we were granted Candidacy status for Accreditation with the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), a reflection of The Seattle School’s viability and sustainability as an educational institution; we conferred degrees to 76 women and men at our 20th Commencement ceremony and welcomed another cohort of courageous learners at our 21st New Student Orientation.
We continued marking The Seattle School’s 21st year with the annual Symposia: An Intersection of Conversation & Innovation, a full day of more than a dozen powerful alumni presentations and a keynote talk from Dr. Angela Parker, all on the theme of “Roots” (you can see all the videos from Symposia 2018 here). Dr. Esther Lightcap Meek sparked our imagination and thinking at the Stanley Grenz Lecture Series with an energizing call to Integration in a Dis-Integrated World. And as the year drew to a close, we collectively reflected on the disruption of incarnation in our fifth annual Advent series, featuring beautiful essays from Kae Eaton, Abby Wong-Heffter, Dr. Jo-Ann Badley, and Gabes Torres.
In all of its heartbreak, nostalgia, and celebration, 2018 was a messy, beautiful, tragic, inspiring, and devastating year—often all at the same time. And in whatever 2019 holds, we are honored to journey with you as we continue living into our mission and making integrative, transformative education more accessible and timely than ever. From all of us at The Seattle School, thank you for joining us in that work—and happy New Year!
Top Blogs of 2018
Throughout the year on the Intersections blog, we feature profound essays, moving stories, captivating art, and more. Here are a few of our most-read posts from the past year:
The Dynamic Grief of Tahlequah
by Beau Denton
“Psychological theory, scientific research, and the common sense wisdom of living in relationship all point to this truth: if we do not name our experiences of harm and loss, and if we do not allow others to care for us in our grief, we will not wake up one day magically whole again. Internalized pain does not come to rest and dissolve away; like a poorly contained body of water, it will always find an outlet.” Continue Reading
Prophetic Rage: The Theology of Women’s Anger
by Jennifer Fernandez
“Current expressions of women’s anger aren’t just something political or cultural, they’re theological. Women are making use of their prophetic voices to point to larger issues of dignity, worth, respect, and they are pointing to these issues with rage and frustration because for too long they have been told to be passive and deferential, and for too long they have been prisoners to a system they didn’t create and which never accounted for the fullness of their humanity.” Continue Reading
Take Back the Text: Stopping the Mishandling of Texts by Toxic “Christian” Masculinity
by Dr. Angela Parker
“I am ready to fight against the toxic Christian masculinist readings that de-contextualize the biblical text while seeking to keep the arbiters of power (mostly landed, heterosexual white males) at the top of society’s hierarchy. […] As an African American woman living in the context of the United States of America, I stand and declare that we must all be ready to fight—because my Womanist sensibilities tell me that my liberation is tied to others’ liberation.” Continue Reading
This roundup was originally featured as part of our bi-monthly newsletter—the easiest way to hear what’s new around the red brick building, engage meaningful content, and learn about upcoming events. You can sign up for the newsletter here.