Theology

Meg Wade, a second-year MDiv student, brings her passion for helping those in mourning process their grief as a “grief doula,” while George Schmidt, a second-year PhD student in theological studies, brings his experience as an military chaplain that was present at hundreds of burial ceremonies to assist next of kin at the Arlington National Cemetery. Both highlight contrasts as well as similarities in the way society ritualizes grief. Read More

The question of the "other" is a recurring one. Many scholarly volumes wrestle with this inquiry: who is the other? Toni Morrison enters the discourse with a decidedly reflective view of her own work alongside a plethora of writers who have produced both fictional and scholarly, literary and scientific contributions. Morrison’s particular reference to “origin” is a play on the folksy notion of creation as she weaves her literary prowess into the fabric of despair for those "othered," while concomitantly leveling seismic critique upon those whose literal and figurative expressions serve to “other” human beings, historically and presently. Read More

Professor Joerg Rieger Each month, we ask a member of the Vanderbilt Divinity School faculty to recommend a book they are currently reading. Our January recommendation is offered by Joerg Rieger, Cal Turner Chancellor’s Chair in Wesleyan Studies and Distinguished Professor of Theology. Professor Rieger recommends Transcending… Read More

Our monthly Alumni/ae Tuesday Guest Post series on the VDS Voices blog highlights posts written by VDS and GDR alumni/ae. Hear firsthand about their important work in the community, collaborations with other alumni/ae and faculty, and much more. Be sure to also check out the Divinity School Instagram feed every Tuesday… Read More

Each month, we ask a member of the Vanderbilt Divinity School faculty to recommend a book they are currently reading. Our October recommendation is offered by Juan Floyd-Thomas, Associate Professor of African American Religious History.  Professor Floyd-Thomas recommends “The New Abolition: W.E.B. Du Bois and the Black Social Gospel”… Read More

By Amy E. Steele, MDiv, PhD Assistant Dean for Student Life The First Year experience at Vanderbilt Divinity School is an extension of the New Student Orientation. It is comprised of six sessions that focus on spiritual formation, stewardship, and vocation—or in other words, matters of spiritual grounding,… Read More

It was the spring of 1998. Europe was in the final stages of agreeing on a single currency, the euro. The Good Friday Accord had just been reached in Northern Ireland. Back in the United States, the President was embroiled in a White House sex scandal. And… Read More

Each month, we ask a member of the Vanderbilt Divinity School faculty to recommend a book they are currently reading. Our March recommendation is offered by Victor Anderson, Oberlin Theological School Professor of Ethics and Society and Professor of the Program in African American and Diaspora Studies and Religious Studies. Read More

The long quiet has settled in the halls of the Divinity School. Students depart to visit family and friends across town and around the world. Faculty retreat to cozier spaces to grade papers and prepare for the new term. Around our building, the staff is keeping the lights on, holding… Read More

by Kimberly A. Goins, MTS1 As I reflect upon my first year experience at Vanderbilt University Divinity School, I cannot help but think what I wrote in my personal statement: I want to pursue the master of theological studies degree because I have a myriad of ideas… Read More