Communications and Marketing Office » Bible, Religion & Philosophy

Fourteen students research alongside professors during summer

Jodi Beyeler — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 16:10:25 +0000

GOSHEN, Ind. — Fourteen Goshen College students spent the summer working with professors on various research projects during the college’s eight-week Maple Scholars program in June and July.

Maple Scholars gives students the opportunity to participate in independent research projects alongside Goshen College faculty of various disciplines. Each scholar is paired with a faculty member who serves as both colleague and supervisor.

Paul Keim & Marcelle Al-Zoughbi

Marcelle Al-Zoughbi, an elementary education/special education and TESOL double major from Bethlehem, Palestine worked with Professor of Bible and Religion Paul Keim on a project to envision, develop and institute a program of Arabic Studies that embodies the unique ethos of our Anabaptist heritage and equips students for further study and service in the Arab world.

David Housman & Philip Bontrager

Philip Bontrager, a junior informatics major from Goshen, Ind., worked with Professor of Mathematics David Housman on a project developing visualizations to assist in better understanding notions of fairness and their interrelationships in resource allocation problems.

Lisa Horst & Deb Brubaker

Lisa Horst, a 2012 graduate who majored in music education from Goshen, Ind., worked with Professor of Music Debra Brubaker on a project archiving and digitizing field recordings that Professor Emeritus Mary Oyer recorded between 1969 and 1987.

Caleb Hostetler & Kent Palmer

Caleb Hostetler, a senior informatics major from Souderton, Pa., worked with Professor of Informatics Kent Palmer on developing a higher education application for mobile technology.

Rhiannon Jones, a senior biology major from Lafayette, Ind., worked with Professor of Physics Carl Helrich on a project attempting to establish the form of cholesterol structures on phospholipid (biological) membranes experimentally.

Jenna Nofziger & Stan Grove & Nathaniel Tann

Jenna Nofziger, a junior molecular biology/biochemistry major from Archbold, Ohio, and Nathaniel Tann, a 2012 graduate with majors in biology and psychology from East Petersburg, Pa., worked with Professor of Biology Stan Grove on a project generating algal biomass inexpensively enough to allow the derived biofuel to compete with petroleum-based fuels.

Beth Martin Birky & Grace Parker

Grace Parker, a senior English and Bible and religion double major from Wichita, Kan., worked with Professor of English Beth Martin Birky on researching the theme of social justice in the work of Virginia Woolf.

Rebecca Weaver & Lauren Stoltzfus

Lauren Stoltzfus, a senior English writing major from Lancaster, Pa., and Rebecca Weaver, a 2012 graduate with a major in psychology from Harleysville, Pa., worked with Professor of English Ann Hostetler on a project collecting research data on the pedagogy of multicultural literature studied at the college level.

Mara Swartzendruber & Andy Ammons

Mara Swartzendruber, a senior biology major from Albuquerque, N.M., worked with Assistant Professor of Biology Andrew Ammons studied stress on honeybees.

Bob Yoder & Leanna Teodosio

Leanna Teodosio, a junior sociology and Bible and religion major from Lima, Ohio, worked with Campus Pastor Bob Yoder on a project exploring how Goshen College can better support the faith development of students.

Emily Trapp & Bev Lapp

Emily Trapp, a senior music and communications major from Canby, Ore., worked with Professor of Music Beverly K. Lapp on a project analyzing the content of several popular piano methods to determine the balance of creative work and effectiveness of these within the curriculum for developing pianists, with hopes of producing an online resource that summarizes this research to aid piano teachers.

John D. Roth & Kate Yoder

Kate Yoder, a junior art and English writing major from Elkhart, Ind., worked with Professor of History John D. Roth on a project compiling an in-depth bibliography of sources related to Christian martyrdom, the “Martyrs Mirror,” and costly discipleship in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition in preparation for an August international consultation called “Bearing Witness: A New ‘Martyrs Mirror’ for the 21st Century?”

The college’s Maple Scholars program began in 1998. Unlike undergraduate research projects at many larger universities where students work only with graduate students, students in Maple Scholars work with professors who can answer their questions and guide them in their research and learning. Students also get the chance to share their work together in a colloquium each Friday and engage other students across disciplines.

– By Anna Ruth

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Classes trace the Apostle Paul’s footsteps through Greece and Rome

Jodi Beyeler — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:37:34 +0000

Follow along on the travel blog of Paul’s Journeys Through Rome & Greece: http://blog.goshen.edu/journeysofpaul

Thessaloniki, Greece

GOSHEN, Ind. – Goshen College Campus Pastor Bob Yoder remembers how his life was significantly changed by a semester spent in the Middle East during college, when the “Bible came alive” for him. He hopes the same will be true for his students as he helps lead one of two classes spending 20 days during May term traveling together through Greece and Rome, tracing the footsteps of the Apostle Paul. Both classes will be engaging the same material and going to the same places, but have different objectives.

One group is a Bible class of 33 students led by Yoder and Professor of Bible, Religion and Philosophy Keith Graber Miller. Their focus is following Paul’s second missionary journey in Greece as described in Acts 16-18 and exploring the issues of the various religious communities he influenced and the various books of the Bible associated with those churches. They will conclude in Rome where Paul spent his final earthly days and the study of the book of Romans.

Students also will engage three very different ways of expressing Christian faith, though all are descendents of Paul’s work: Eastern Greek Orthodox Church, Roman Catholicism and the Evangelical church movement, Yoder said. The students will have the opportunity to visit Thessaloniki, Philippi, Berea, Vergina, Mt. Olympus, Meteora, Delphi, Athens, Corinth, Florence and Rome.

“One of my hopes is that we learn lessons about how to cross boundaries in our faith setting, like Paul was engaged in,” Yoder said. “That’s one of the reasons Paul is a hero for me.”

Thessaloniki, Greece

Group times will include worship, reflection and sharing insights from various small group projects and assignments. There will also be times throughout the course where students will be encouraged to individually reflect, pray, read and journal.

“Gaining insight into the faith, spirituality and mission of the Apostle Paul will hopefully strengthen students’ individual faith journeys,” Yoder said. “Another hope is that the Scriptures will come alive for students as they experience the various historical places in Greece and Rome.”

The second group traveling is a broadcasting class of nine students led by Assistant Professor of Communication Seth Conley and Assistant Professor of Communication Kyle Hufford. They are working on producing a documentary examining the ways one of the most influential figures in the Christian Church dealt with cultural, religious, physical and personal boundaries, and how he “bridged the gap.” They are providing the writing, photos and videos on the blog (http://blog.goshen.edu/journeysofpaul).

The crew is traveling with 128-plus pounds of video equipment, including three cameras. “The classes will be taking different approaches in digesting the material and experiences,” Conley said. “We will be asking, ‘how do we tell a great story?’ We will be ingesting the experience and then sharing it with people who can’t be with us.”

The class films an interview with tour guide David Sparks.

Students will be rotating between different roles to gain experience in producing, directing, filming, lighting and audio engineering.

“Along the way, our team will be chronicling not only what we learn about history but also about what Christ is teaching us personally during this journey,” said Conley. “Students don’t always make the connection between broadcasting and their faith, so when this opportunity arose, I wanted to take advantage of it.”

Yoder is pleased that the trip includes both classes with different objectives, and believes that they will enhance each others’ learning. “I see this as an example of the kind of interdisciplinary learning we focus on here at Goshen College,” he said.

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College Assistant Director of Public Relations Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s ”America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Notre Dame professor featured in upcoming Conference on Religion and Science

michaelrn — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:05:52 +0000

GOSHEN, Ind. – Goshen College’s 12th annual Conference on Science and Religion will be held March 23-25, and will feature Notre Dame theologian and scientist Celia Deane-Drummond. The theme for this year’s conference is “Re-Imaging the Divine Image: Humans and Other Animals.” Deane-Drummond will offer a public lecture on Friday, March 23 at 7:30 p.m., titled “Re-Imaging the Divine Image: Freedom,” and another on Saturday, March 24 at 10:30 a.m., titled “Re-Imagining the Divine Image: Virtue.” Both lectures will take place in Goshen College’s Church-Chapel.

Deane-Drummond has been professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame since August 2011. Her unique appointment is concurrent between the Department of Theology in the College of Arts and Letters and the College of Science. She was elected fellow of the Eck Institute for Global Health at the University of Notre Dame in September 2011.

Deane-Drummond graduated with a degree in natural sciences from Cambridge University and obtained a doctorate in plant physiology at Reading University prior to two postdoctoral fellowships at the University of British Columbia and Cambridge University. She subsequently took up a lectureship in plant physiology at Durham University before turning her attention more fully to theological study, obtaining an honors degree in theology and then a doctorate in systematic theology from Manchester University.

During her scientific career Deane-Drummond lectured both nationally and internationally, and published over 30 scientific articles. Since then, she has published numerous articles, books, edited collections and contributions to books, focusing particularly on the engagement of systematic theology and the biological sciences, alongside practical, ethical discussion in bioethics and environmental ethics. She has lectured widely both nationally and internationally on all areas relating theology and theological ethics with different aspects of the biosciences, especially ecology and genetics.

From 2000 to 2011 Deane-Drummond was professor of theology and the biological sciences at the University of Chester, and was director of the Center for Religion and the Biosciences that was launched in 2002. In May 2011, she was elected chair of the European Forum for the Study of Religion and Environment. She was editor of the international journal “Ecotheology” for six years.

Since 1992 Deane-Drummond has published as a single author or as an editor 22 books, as well as 33 contributions to books and 43 articles in areas relating to theology or ethics. Her more recent books include: “Ecotheology” (DLT/Novalis/St Mary’s Press, 2008); “Christ and Evolution: Wonder and Wisdom” (Minneapolis: Fortress/London: SCM Press, 2009); “Creaturely Theology: On God, Humans and Other Animals,” edited with David Clough (London: SCM Press, 2009); “Seeds of Hope: Facing the Challenge of Climate Justice” (London: CAFOD, 2010) and “Religion and Ecology in the Public Sphere,” edited with Heinrich Bedford-Strohm (London, Continuum, 2011).

Goshen College’s Religion and Science Conference is designed to provide maximum interaction with one of the principal thinkers in the dialogue between religion and science. A single invited speaker presents three lectures, two of which are open to the public. Small, moderated discussion sessions provide conference participants an opportunity to address topics from the lectures, and others, in conversation with the speaker.

Conference attendants and participants include pastors and interested laypersons, as well as academic scientists, mathematicians, theologians and students. For more information about the conference, visitwww.goshen.edu/religionscience.

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College Acting News Bureau Coordinator Alysha Bergey Landis at (574) 535-7762 or alyshabl@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S.News & World Report‘s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Online Advent devotions with Goshen College student and faculty voices begin Nov. 21 at blog.goshen.edu/devotions

jessegb — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 20:41:12 +0000

Advent devotions for 2011 are available online, via RSS and as a free daily email.

GOSHEN, Ind. – As churches and individual Christians around the world prepare to celebrate Christ’s birth, Goshen College is again offering an online spiritual resource to help believers make time and space in their hearts and minds to welcome Advent and celebrate Christmas.

Beginning Nov. 21 (the Monday prior to the first Sunday in Advent) and culminating on Christmas Day, Goshen College students, faculty and staff will provide weekday reflections based on the Sunday’s upcoming lectionary Scripture passages, available online at blog.goshen.edu/devotions, by daily e-mail or via an RSS feed. Many writers will reflect on the Advent theme: “Awesome Deeds We Do Not Expect,” taken from Mennonite Church USA worship resources.

Organizers intend the devotions to provide a moment of pause and peace, sharing the thoughts of individual believers to enhance the personal reflections of readers. The short reflections could be used as a centering tool at the start of a day or a way to wind down in the evening. Either way, the writings and Scripture passages can help Christians concentrate specifically on the meaning and mystery of the Advent season.

The popularity of the devotions continues to grow each year and there are now almost 9,000 online subscribers, representing many different denominational backgrounds and countries. And when “Advent devotions” is searched on Google, Goshen College devotions are first on the list. Since 2001, Goshen College annually offers online devotions to celebrate Advent and Lent, special seasons of the church calendar.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in BarronÕs Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Youth ministry book emphasizes ‘being church together’

jessegb — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 17:51:42 +0000

Editors Andy Brubacher Kaethler and Bob Yoder of Youth Ministry at a Crossroads: Tending to the Faith Formation of Mennonite
>> PURCHASE the book for $15.99 from Herald Press on their website.
>> LISTEN to a podcast of an interview with the editors, Bob Yoder and Andy Brubacher Kaethler, is available on the website of Laurelville Mennonite Church Center.

A joint release of Goshen College and Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary
GOSHEN, Ind. – Bob Yoder has heard congregational youth group leaders say they are afraid to lead Bible studies, fearing they do not have enough training. He also senses people are afraid to talk about their faith in their congregations.

In contrast, Yoder said, he would like to see every person being able to “articulate their hope in Christ in the context of the church.” That’s how he answered a question asked recently at a workshop he led on ministry with youth, and that answer reflects a goal for a new book, Youth Ministry at a Crossroads: Tending to the Faith Formation of Mennonite Youth, edited by Yoder and Andy Brubacher Kaethler.

Recently released by Herald Press and the Institute of Mennonite Studies, the book encourages congregations to take seriously their role in the faith formation of youth. Both editors come to the subject from their own involvement with youth in the Mennonite Church: Yoder is campus pastor at Goshen College and previously was conference youth minister for Indiana-Michigan and Central District Mennonite Conferences. Kaethler is director of !Explore: A Theological Program for High School Youth and an instructor at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary.

Yoder noted that Mennonite congregations often draw on generic curriculum for their ministry with youth. “How do we work at nurturing our distinctive faith when we’ve been drinking from this stream for decades?” he asked.

“There has been an explosion of youth ministry materials in the recent past,” Kaethler said. “We believe there is a place for Anabaptist reflection on the themes that are important in ministry with youth.”

Youth Ministry at a Crossroads is not a kit of program materials, but instead examines how to incorporate Mennonite and Anabaptist themes in ministry. The content is shaped around three sections — Being, Knowing and Doing, a model that encompasses the aspects of discipleship important to Mennonites. These three themes are linked to Jesus’ threefold promise of being the Way, the Truth and the Life in John 14.

“The primary emphasis of the book is formation of youth,” Kaethler said. “We are encouraging congregations to continue to involve youth in the life of the church rather than to see youth as the objects or consumers of a program.

“Being followers of Jesus is what guides our ministry with youth,” Kaethler continued. “For example, we organize service projects not because we want to teach kids about service, but because it is what we all do as part of our faith. We don’t do ‘fun’ things with adolescents because they need to be entertained, but we find joy in being church together.”

In the book, 12 writers reflect theologically on issues such as worship, technology, discipleship, consumerism, and Christian faith and hope; and give practical implications and recommendations for further reading.

“Some topics in the book are ones we would not find anywhere else,” Kaethler said. “Some we wanted to give a Mennonite perspective to.” For example, reading the Bible is a subject for which the editors especially wanted to give an Anabaptist perspective, while the dark night of the soul — lament and expressing loss and grief — is an unusual topic for ministry with youth.

“We asked people involved in ministry, people who brought something to the table in their experience or education,” Yoder explained. They included writers from different racial and ethnic groups and from both Mennonite Church Canada and Mennonite Church USA.

Recognizing that people who are involved in youth ministry are often busy people serving as volunteers, Yoder and Kaethler had a goal of making sure the chapters are short. Readers can jump in anywhere, without having to read the book from beginning to end.

The idea for the book emerged from a youth ministry symposium at AMBS in 2006. At that gathering of youth ministry workers, speaker Kenda Creasy Dean, a professor of youth, church and culture at Princeton Theological Seminary, named four things the church needs to give youth: a language of faith, a community in which this is learned, a vocation or purpose in life, and a sense of hope, Kaethler reflected. These four things “connect our identity and our vocation with what God is doing in the world. That’s missional.”

After the symposium, Kaethler and Yoder began conversations with youth ministry workers in the Mennonite Church, and from that grew the plan for this resource. Two Mennonite Education Agency Peoplehood Grants helped to fund the symposium and the distribution of the book to current youth workers, conference and area church ministers, and Mennonite camps and high schools.

– Written by Mary E. Klassen

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Institute for the Study of Global Anabaptism publishes first book, John Driver’s ‘Life Together in the Spirit’

jessegb — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:51:02 +0000

“Life Together in the Spirit: A Radical Spirituality for the Twenty-First Century” by John Driver.
Copies of the book are still available and can be requested by contacting John D. Roth at johndr@goshen.edu or by calling 574-535-7433.

GOSHEN, Ind. – Goshen College’s new Institute for the Study of Global Anabaptism published its first book in July, an English-language translation of John Driver’s “Life Together in the Spirit: A Radical Spirituality for the Twenty-First Century.” The project was sponsored by Greencroft Communities, who helped make the book available for free in Spanish and English to every pastor in Mennonite Church USA.The Institute for the Study of Global Anabaptism was created in the spring of 2011 in an effort to help North American Christians become better informed about the rapidly-growing Anabaptist movement around the world, which is transforming the character and future of the 500-year-old tradition. Today there are some 1.7 million Anabaptist-Mennonites in the world, representing 227 groups in 83 countries.

The institute has a number of projects aiming to deepen understandings of the global Anabaptist community, and one of them is a small book publishing initiative. According to Professor of History John D. Roth, who also serves as director of the institute, publishing efforts will focus on translations of theological and historical works emerging out of Anabaptist-Mennonite contexts in the global south.

“We tend to assume that theological knowledge is generated in seminaries here, and then we think the primary challenge is how to share our knowledge with the rest of the world,” said Roth. This initiative seeks to do the opposite as it looks to help Mennonites here become more aware of the creative work being produced outside of North America.

John Driver, who currently lives at Greencroft in Goshen, spent more than 50 years living in Spanish-speaking settings and working as a missionary, theologian, teacher and pastor. “No other individual,” said Roth, “is a more widely recognized or respected voice for Anabaptist-Mennonite thought in Central or South America.”

Many new Christians in Spanish-speaking countries are part of the Pentecostal tradition, which places a strong emphasis on the active presence of the Holy Spirit. Driver’s book, “Life Together in the Spirit,” provides an Anabaptist perspective on the Holy Spirit that Roth believes will be read with appreciation by Mennonite pastors in North America.

The English publication of Driver’s “Life Together in the Spirit” debuted in early July at the Mennonite Church USA convention in Pittsburgh. Recently, English and Spanish translations of the book were sent to every pastor in Mennonite Church USA. That effort was made possible at the suggestion of Mark King, CEO of Greencroft Goshen, who provided funding for the project in an effort to recognize the talents and gifts of Greencroft residents.

“This book, and the larger work of the Institute, can remind us that the cultural expression that Anabaptism has taken here in North America is not the only way,” said Roth.

– By Alysha Landis

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Goshen College students explore call to ministry during summer

jessegb — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 16:25:40 +0000

GOSHEN, Ind. – This summer, nine Goshen College students are exploring church ministry as they work with congregations across the United States through the college’s Ministry Inquiry Program (MIP).

The opportunities for MIP participants are vast; students can be involved in worship planning, worship leading, teaching in Bible and Sunday schools, leading music, pastoral visiting, community service and preaching.

The Ministry Inquiry Program is a joint effort of Mennonite Church USA and the five Mennonite colleges in the United States. The 23-year-old program enables students from Mennonite colleges to test their calling and gifts for ministry by serving as pastoral interns for a three-month term.

The summer 2011 Goshen College MIP participants are:

Kelly Frey, a junior nursing major from Shipshewana, Ind., is working at Shalom Mennonite Church in Indianapolis, Ind. Frey, daughter of Neal and Christine Frey, is a 2008 graduate of Bethany Christian Schools and attends Shore Mennonite Church.

Erica Grasse, a sophomore biology and interdisciplinary double major from Chalfont, Pa., is working at Blooming Glen (Pa.) Mennonite Church. Grasse, daughter of James and Lisa Grasse, is a 2009 graduate of Penn Ridge High School and attends Blooming Glen Mennonite Church.

Jonathan Harnish, a junior Bible and religion major from Colorado Springs, Colo., is working at Beth-El Mennonite Church in Colorado Springs, Colo. Harnish, son of Robert and Carol Brunk Harnish, is a 2008 graduate of Coronado High School and attends Beth-El Mennonite Church.

Grace Parker, a sophomore English and Bible and religion double major from Wichita, Kan., is working at New Hope Fellowship in Fairfax, Va. Parker, daughter of Greg and Nancy Parker, is a 2009 graduate of Wichita High School.

Patrick Ressler, a senior music major from Lititz, Pa., is working at Germantown (Pa.) Mennonite Church. Ressler, son of Gerald and Mary Ressler, is a 2007 graduate of Lancaster Mennonite High School and attends Community Mennonite Church of Lancaster.

Luke Slagel, a sophomore music major from Goshen, is working at North Main Street Mennonite Church in Nappanee, Ind. Slagel, son of Steven and Barbara Slagel, is a 2009 graduate of Bethany Christian Schools and attends East Goshen Mennonite Church.

Ben Sutter, a sophomore communication major from South Bend, Ind., is working at Franconia Mennonite Conference in Souderton, Pa. Sutter, son of David and Janice Sutter, is a 2009 graduate of John Adams High School and attends Kern Road Mennonite Church.

Kate Widmer, a sophomore Bible and religion major from Mount Pleasant, Iowa, is working at Albany (Ore.) Mennonite Church. Widmer, daughter of Theodore and Linda Widmer, is a 2009 graduate of Mount Pleasant High School and attends Pleasant View Mennonite Church.

Beth Yoder, a junior interdisciplinary major from Bellefontaine, Ohio, is working at Belmont Neighborhood Fellowship in Elkhart, Ind. Yoder, daughter of Stephen and Christine Yoder, is a 2008 graduate of West Liberty Salem High School and attends Oak Grove Mennonite Church.

At the end of the summer, each student will receive a scholarship of $2,000 toward tuition costs for the next academic year, along with a $500 stipend from the host congregation.

Participation in the college’s inquiry programs (Camping Inquiry Program, Ministry Inquiry Program, Service Inquiry Program) includes the opportunity to take a one credit-hour May term course that explored vocation, goals for the summer, prayer methods and a blessing ceremony.

– By Alysha Landis

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Two Goshen College students awarded theological fellowships

jessegb — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:47:08 +0000

GOSHEN, Ind. – Two Goshen College students have been awarded a 2011 Fund for Theological Education (FTE) Undergraduate Fellowship. Ben Sutter, a sophomore, and Sarah Dieter, a junior, received a fellowship to help fund their ministerial explorations. FTE is a nonprofit organization that seeks to cultivate and support young Christian leaders.

Sutter is a history and communication double major from South Bend, Ind. His parents are David and Janice Sutter and he attends Kern Road Mennonite Church. Last school year, he served as a ministry leader in the Miller Residence Hall. This summer, he is participating in the college’s Ministry Inquiry Program with Franconia Mennonite Conference in Pennsylvania.

“I’m interested in continuing to learn better ways to live out God’s dream for the world in my own life,” said Sutter. “I’m really excited to have this opportunity to enter into conversations with other young adults who have that same passion for Christ and for bringing God’s dream to the world.”

Dieter is an interdisciplinary major from Hopkins, Minn. Her parents are Michael and Debra Dieter. She participated in the college’s Ministry Inquiry Program last summer at First Mennonite Church in Denver, Colo., and will serve as the college’s student chapel assistant next year.

“I think that there is a shift in the type of ministry needed today and I can’t wait to see what that might mean for me in terms of a career,” said Dieter. “I am not sure if I want to go into traditional ministry, but I know that my time during the FTE conference will be transformative. I am honored to be a part of such an esteemed fellowship.”

Bob Yoder, Goshen College’s campus pastor, nominated both award recipients for the fellowship, which is funded by Lilly Endowment Inc. Goshen College students have been chosen for this program several years in a row, and according to Yoder, having two award recipients in one year is uncommon for most schools.

According to its website, FTE was created in 1954 when leading educators, clergy and philanthropists joined together “out of the common concern that the quality of those entering the ministry had declined and that highly talented students were too often choosing other careers.”

Each year, FTE awards about 150 new fellowships to students to fund their exploration of preparation for pastoral ministry.

FTE Undergraduate Fellows are selected by a national committee of theological educators and church leaders. Students must be nominated by a professor, school administrator, pastor or campus minister; hold a minimum 3.0 grade point average; have an interest in pastoral ministry and demonstrate leadership in a church or school community. For more information about the fellowship, visit www.fteleaders.org.

– By Alysha Landis

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

New book offers first introduction to Amish spirituality and religious beliefs

jessegb — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 18:20:38 +0000

The Amish Way: Patient Faith in a Perilous World
By Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, David L. Weaver-Zercher
October 2010. Jossey-Bass, a Wiley imprint. $24.95.

GOSHEN, Ind. – On Oct. 2, 2006, the world was stunned by the killings of five Amish schoolgirls in a small schoolhouse in Nickel Mines, Pa. Within hours, the Amish community forgave the gunman and rallied around his family. It was an act of compassion and forgiveness so powerful, so unbelievable, and for many, so questionable that it led three authors who know the Amish well to write a book about the role of forgiveness in Amish culture, “Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy.” Those three authors – including Goshen College Professor of History Steve Nolt (pictured at left) – are now releasing a new book “The Amish Way: Patient Faith in a Perilous World” (October 2010, Jossey-Bass), the first book ever about Amish spirituality and practice. It is a rare inside look at how Amish Christian beliefs and practices inform every aspect of Amish daily life, and explains, for example, why they shun cars, have no electricity in their homes and stop formal education at grade eight.

On some levels, the Amish and their countercultural ways offend the typical American’s individualist sensibilities, but this window into Amish religious beliefs may challenge and even change some of those perceptions. After all, the tight-knit Amish community fosters a genuine sense of belonging. Each day, these people choose to live out their core values of submission, obedience and patience, and to adhere to strict community rules, according to the authors.

And the Amish population is growing. According to a 2010 report, the number of Amish in North America has doubled since 1991 to 249,500 people. Indiana is home to 43,710 Amish residents. This is due to large families and the fact that nearly 85 percent of children raised in an Amish community choose to join the Amish church as adults.

“The Amish Way” is the story of the Amish religious experience, told through the Amish cultural lens by three scholars whom the Amish have come to trust as interpreters of their way of life. The authors explain how Amish faith is intertwined with community and commitment, child rearing, home life, material possessions, the natural world, evil and sorrow.

Amish faith is engaging, mind-boggling at times and may prove problematic for some. But it may also serve as a challenge to people of faith, many of whom struggle daily to live out the tenets of their own faith in a world full of distractions. The book explores the complicated question: “Is there anything the Amish can teach the rest of us about living meaningfully in the modern world?”

In a review, Publishers Weekly wrote, “Refreshingly, this study makes a point of focusing on the spiritual and theological aspects of their world rather than simply cataloguing the outward cultural characteristics. Horse-drawn transportation and simple clothing do make their appearances, but they are revealed to be simply incidental to a deeply felt faith rather than something to gawk at.”

The book is written by Nolt; Donald Kraybill, a senior fellow at the Young Center of Elizabethtown (Pa.) College; and David Weaver-Zercher, professor of American religious history at Messiah College in Grantham, Pa. Their prior bestselling book Amish Grace served as the basis for the most-viewed Lifetime movie of all time.

Nolt is the author or coauthor of nine other books, including Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy (2007), Mennonites, Amish and the American Civil War (2007) and A History of the Amish (2003). He is also a coauthor of the forthcoming North America volume in the Global Mennonite History Project.

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.