In Spring 2017, Episcopal Divinity School affiliated with Union Theological Seminary, creating EDS at Union. This new partnership allows EDS to continue providing Episcopal theological education within an accredited, degree-granting seminary while carrying forth their long history and mission of dismantling racism and working for social justice. Guided by the traditions of EDS and the Anglican community, EDS at Union has identified the following core values which will guide their work with students, the Church, and in the public square.
FAITH: EDS at Union’s Anglican studies program is grounded in the gospel call to partner with God in mending the earth.
SOCIAL JUSTICE: EDS at Union is committed in all of its interactions to bring faith and theological scholarship together in the service of social justice.
VISION: EDS at Union is committed to being a responsible visionary of its material and non–material resources so as to be accountable to its future and to building a just earth.
INCLUSIVENESS: EDS at Union’s circle of interactions will represent a culturally, ethnically, religiously and nongendered array of voices along with those who are suffering on the underside of injustice.
RESPECT: EDS at Union will value the sacred dignity of all persons in all of our interactions and conversations.
INTEGRITY: Demonstrate strong moral principals and maintain values even when it’s unpopular.
Union students who enroll in the EDS at Union Anglican Studies program at Union will earn a Master of Divinity degree from Union and also fulfill requirements for ordination in the Episcopal Church. The Anglican Studies program will include a clear pathway for those called to the ordained ministry and for those called to various lay ministries. Both paths will train students to be effective preachers, liturgical leaders, and administrators. In all instances, students will be prepared to embrace ministries that reflect what it means to be sanctuary and witness in contemporary society.
Led by Dean Kelly Brown Douglas, EDS at Union aims to transform theological education by providing innovative public programming and classroom instruction that reimagines faith in the public square and trains faith leaders for progressive activism.
Rev. Anna Olson taught a two-day intensive course challenging the conventional wisdom of church growth programs, advocating for throwing the doors of the church open on the assumption that God is already at work in the community.
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Rev. Kenneth O. Ofula joined the EDS at Union students for a lecture on Anglican missions in East Africa. This lecture is part of the course taught by Dr. Joshua Samuel that asks students to explore "the different understandings of missions in post-colonial contexts."
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The EDS at Union community came together in song with AME Pastor Henry Allen Belin in telling the story of Absalom Jones, the first black priest of the Episcopal a Church, and Richard Allen, founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.
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This Spring Semester, EDS at Union is piloting a “Spanish Learning Lab” to give students who are beginner Spanish speakers an opportunity to gain language skills. This weekly course is facilitated by Rev. Yamily Bass-Choate and is centered around in-person conversation practice combined with an online Spanish tutorial program.
Learn MoreThe EDS at Union NOW podcast features faith leaders, educators, and community organizers discussing the complicated social and moral challenges of the day, as well as the ever-changing world of theological education.
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*An edited version of this article will be published in the Spring 2020 Union Collective Magazine Understanding the US/Mexico Border through experiential education, THANKS TO THE ANNUNCIATION HOUSE! A group of EDS at Union students, staff and board members arrived at Annunciation House in El Paso, Texas on January 10th. For the six days, they
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Homily by Meredith Ward December 6, 2018 As we enter this season of Advent, these days of preparation and expectation, it is good to make time, as best we can in the midst of our busy-ness, to open our hearts to that true spirit of love and giving that is at the heart of the Christmas
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Dear friends and colleagues, I hope you are enjoying a blessed Advent. In this season of waiting and expectation, I am more conscious than ever of the way that our broken and tumultuous world is longing for courageous moral leadership. Our program here at EDS at Union is committed to fostering this kind of lay
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Union Theological Seminary President Serene Jones today announced the appointment of The Very Rev. Kelly Brown Douglas, PhD. to the Bill and Judith Moyers Chair in Theology. The Union Board of Trustees voted to name Douglas, currently the Dean of the Episcopal Divinity School at Union and Professor of Theology, to the chair that was
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Below is a recap of some of Dean Kelly Brown Douglas’ public events during October 2019. To keep up with Dean Douglas, follow @DeanKBD on Twitter and EDS at Union on Facebook. October 3 – Christ in Crisis: A Conversation with Jim Wallis at Trinity Wall Street In this video, Dean Kelly Brown Douglas interviews Sojourners Editor-in-Chief Jim Wallis
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Where Faith and Scholarship Meet to Reimagine the Work of Justice Having problems viewing this email? View online. Dear friends, This summer, I had the privilege of joining the Church of Heavenly Rest in leading students and parishioners on a Civil Rights pilgrimage through Alabama and participating in a Border Prayer Service with members
Read MoreOn July 30, 2019, the leaders of the Washington National Cathedral, including Dean Kelly Brown Douglas, released a statement denouncing the continuous and escalating racist and dehumanizing rhetoric from the President of the United States. Below you can read the full statement and see a recap of the media response. Have We No Decency? A
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Dean Kelly Brown Douglas responds to President Donald Trumps racist attacks on U.S. Rep Elijah Cummings and the City of Baltimore.
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We interviewed Rev. Bonnie Perry ‘88, the Bishop-elect of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, and the first openly-gay woman to be elected to that post. You’re stepping into a new position, which gives you the opportunity to think about the future direction of the church and what you would like to bring. What do you
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Where Faith and Scholarship Meet to Reimagine the Work of Justice Dear friends, As Dean of EDS at Union, I have the privilege of sharing with people across the Church the work that God is calling us to today. Over the past several months, I have been speaking about the dangerous rise of white supremacy
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Episcopal Divinity School at Union and The Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest will make a pilgrimage to Montgomery, Alabama from Wednesday, June 19 through Saturday, June 22, to visit the Legacy Museum and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice. Established by the Equal Justice Initiative, these sites are our nation’s first memorials dedicated to the legacy
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By The Very Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas Union Chapel Service: Thursday, May 2, 2019 Her name was Sandra Parks. When she was in the sixth grade she wrote an award-winning essay in her school’s districts Martin Luther King, Jr. essay contest. She wrote of the traumatic wounds she endured in her Milwaukee neighborhood as
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By The Very Rev. Kelly Brown Douglas Easter morning makes clear that God will not tolerate crucifying realities that deny the sacred dignity and life of any human being. Laquan McDonald, by three years old, was a ward of the state. Passed around through various foster and relative’s homes, he was emotionally and physically
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The Very Rev. Kellly Brown Douglas is visiting Virginia Theological Seminary to observe the Feast of Dr. King on the 51st anniversary of his death. As the guest preacher, below is the sermon she will deliver on Thursday, April 4th at the Seminary’s community Eucharist. By The Very Rev. Kelly Brown Douglas Good Evening Virginia
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By Miguel Escobar, Director of Anglican Studies Several months ago, I received an email asking me to serve on the Taskforce on Communion Across Difference. Truthfully, my initial reaction was to say “absolutely not.” Growing up as an effeminate Latino gay kid in a small, mostly white town in rural Texas, the wounds are still
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