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 more 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.
EDS at Union joined Episcopal Church leaders in Canada in Toronto to discuss the changing nature of theological education, the connections between leadership formation and discipleship, and the intersection of seminary education and culture.
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Please consider a donation to the following Kickstarter campaign to contribute to this film production. "It was 1974, and eleven women were ordained Episcopal priests in a ceremony held against church rules."
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Dean Kelly Brown Douglas presented at the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts' clergy conference in late April to lead a discussion on white supremacy in church and society. She asked what the Church can do as hate is on the rise.
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"I'm staring at the photo of 15-year-old #NigelShelby who committed suicide after anti-gay bullying. All persons should be treated with sacred dignity, esp young LGBTQ persons. The sin is homophobic bullying, even when it is cloaked in religious language." @DeanKBD on Twitter
TwitterThe 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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On 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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Whereas 96 Americans on average are killed a day Whereas on a monthly average 50 women in America are killed by an intimate partner Whereas Black Americans who are less than 14% of the population account for more than half of all gun deaths Whereas gun-related deaths are the third leading cause of death for
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By The Very Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas “The phenomenon of refugees is not an El Paso problem, it’s a U.S. problem,” said Ruben Garcia, the founder and director of Annunciation House. And he should know. At Annunciation House, they provide the “hospitality” of food, bed, a shower, and other necessities for at least 2000
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The EDS at Union Spring Community Read is Anna Clark’s riveting book, The Poisoned City: Flint’s Water and the American Urban Tragedy. Anna Clark will join Dean Kelly Brown Douglas on Wednesday, January 30, at 6:00 pm EST, in James Chapel for a conversation about how Flint’s water and this urban tragedy is connected to the work of
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The affiliation of the Episcopal Divinity School with Union Theological Seminary began in earnest in August, when the first ten students arrived for the Anglican Studies program. But it was the inaugural Convocation and installation of the Very Rev. Kelly Brown Douglas, Ph.D. as Dean last week, that cemented this new chapter for EDS at
Read More Watch the Episcopal Divinity School at Union Convocation, a two-night event that celebrated the next chapter in the life of EDS On Tuesday, October 30, 2018, The Very Reverend Kelly Brown Douglas, Ph.D., delivered the Dean’s Address, Toward a Just Earth: Courageous Faith in Challenging Times. On Wednesday, October 31, 2018, the EDS at Union Inaugural Convocation featured The
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A powerful true story about the potential for mercy to redeem us, and a clarion call to fix our broken system of justice, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption is a New York Times Best Seller by Bryan Stevenson. EDS at Union selected Stevenson’s book as their community read for the Fall semester and the author
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