TH6.1: First-Years Making Their Way...
[The editors asked the entering students’ thoughts as the year starts. Below are the responses we received.]
QUESTION 1: What do you most want out of your time here at Union Theologial Seminary?
I want to be stretched, because it’s the only way growth occurs. (Ben Sanders) • To be taken to the Xtreme...I want to Xperience a variety issues and studies, Xtend friendship and knowledge, Xpand my mind, Xamine and reprogram my thoughts where necessary, Xcercise my faith and Xplore! (Suleima Rosario) • My experience at Union is all about discernment – where is God leading me, and how can the good folks at Union prepare me to get there? (Tim Palmer) • I hope to deepen and clarify my theology, explore a greater range of religious experience, and relate both to a broader understanding of society and of justice. (David Orr) • To experience being a member of this religious community. (Kuniko Montgomery) • Through listening to others’ stories At Union Theological Seminary, I want to learn to whom my message is accountable and how best to communicate that. (Wade Mitchell) • Learning from and with other people (teachers, students…) and together finding answers to my many questions: about Christianity in the US, contextual theology, key elements of Christian faith, etc. (Kerstin Menzel) • Answers. (Julia Locke) • Academic and scriptural support for the progressive, counter-cultural beliefs about worship in Christian settings that I came to through practice. (Melissa Lemons) • To know what God wants me to do next. (Mark Leach) • I hope to experience the common ground we share, thereby expanding my horizons. (Kyeong Il Jung) • Through theological education I want to grow in biblical knowledge, delve into questions of theology, ethics and social justice. (Brenda D. Ford) • I want confidence in my own theological voice most out of my time at Union. (Michele Finazzo) • What I want most out of my time here at UTS is a better understanding of God’s call for me. I know God has called me to seminary and ministry, I’m just not quite sure of the context in which God wants me to minister. (Beth Greenwood) • I hope to come out of Union with a greater (theological) understanding of what is wrong in this country and this world – particularly with regard to race matters – and what my place in that world is and can be. In the meantime, I hope to learn from the amazing students and faculty who are at Union. (Ian Doescher) • What I want most is the kind of theological education that will enable me to empower others to think for themselves about who God is for us today. (Karyn Carlo) • To be challenged in the way I see Christianity, and also the academic world. Oh, and God! I’m excited about bringing my previous studies down to ground level... (Gillian Breckenridge) • I'd like to think I'll have gained a foothold into the academic community in preparation for my future endeavors. (John Banionis)
QUESTION 2: What are you feeling one month after Orientation and one month into the school year?
Glad that orientation nourished budding friendships, yet also relieved that the start of classes brought a sense of normalcy to my life. (John Banionis) • Has it really been a month? I am feeling so happy to have the chance to be here at all, but that I would love to stay for longer. I feel like I have to really make the most of my time here. (Gillian Breckenridge) • I am feeling really blessed to be here, doing what I love best with some of the coolest people I’ve ever met. (Karyn Carlo) • I’m feeling mostly terrified – but I’m trying to tell myself to take it a semester at a time. So far, so good; the first few weeks have been great. (Ian Doescher) • After being here one month, I am honestly feeling a little overwhelmed. There’s a lot of work, a lot to learn, and a lot on which to reflect. But I’m also feeling overwhelmed by the "welcome home" feeling of the school – it’s fantastic. (Beth Greenwood) • I am feeling a bit anxious, excited, nervous, blessed after one month at Union Theological Seminary. (Michele Finazzo) • Challenged and among a community of fellow laborers in the vineyard, with great expectancy, waiting – waiting and praying for clarification, waiting for answers to questions that lie within and discernment from the urges in our spirit that tug at our hearts. I am excited with the plans God has laid out for me and letting go of the control. (Brenda D. Ford) • What? One month passed already? (Kyeong Il Jung) • Thrilled and exhausted. (Mark Leach) • At home – with all the comfort and acceptance of family craziness "home" implies. (Melissa Lemons) • Joyfully overwhelmed. (Julia Locke) • Excitement and a back and forth between self-doubt and rising self-confidence (Kerstin Menzel) • Xcited, Xhausted,and Xtremely Blessed! (Suleima Rosario) • After the first month, I am affirmed that I am at the right place. (Wade Mitchell) • I still feel like dreaming.... ah... I mean, in a good way. (Kuniko Montgomery) • I already feel my assumptions being questioned, and I’m struggling to open my mind to unfamiliar and often uncomfortable ideas and modes of expression. (David Orr) • It finally sunk in one day at worship that these new faces I have been seeing every day for the last few weeks are my family for the next three years – and that was a joyous realization. (Tim Palmer) • After a month at Union I am feeling a major need for more hours in the day to complete all of my reading assignments. (Ben Sanders)
QUESTION 1: What do you most want out of your time here at Union Theologial Seminary?
I want to be stretched, because it’s the only way growth occurs. (Ben Sanders) • To be taken to the Xtreme...I want to Xperience a variety issues and studies, Xtend friendship and knowledge, Xpand my mind, Xamine and reprogram my thoughts where necessary, Xcercise my faith and Xplore! (Suleima Rosario) • My experience at Union is all about discernment – where is God leading me, and how can the good folks at Union prepare me to get there? (Tim Palmer) • I hope to deepen and clarify my theology, explore a greater range of religious experience, and relate both to a broader understanding of society and of justice. (David Orr) • To experience being a member of this religious community. (Kuniko Montgomery) • Through listening to others’ stories At Union Theological Seminary, I want to learn to whom my message is accountable and how best to communicate that. (Wade Mitchell) • Learning from and with other people (teachers, students…) and together finding answers to my many questions: about Christianity in the US, contextual theology, key elements of Christian faith, etc. (Kerstin Menzel) • Answers. (Julia Locke) • Academic and scriptural support for the progressive, counter-cultural beliefs about worship in Christian settings that I came to through practice. (Melissa Lemons) • To know what God wants me to do next. (Mark Leach) • I hope to experience the common ground we share, thereby expanding my horizons. (Kyeong Il Jung) • Through theological education I want to grow in biblical knowledge, delve into questions of theology, ethics and social justice. (Brenda D. Ford) • I want confidence in my own theological voice most out of my time at Union. (Michele Finazzo) • What I want most out of my time here at UTS is a better understanding of God’s call for me. I know God has called me to seminary and ministry, I’m just not quite sure of the context in which God wants me to minister. (Beth Greenwood) • I hope to come out of Union with a greater (theological) understanding of what is wrong in this country and this world – particularly with regard to race matters – and what my place in that world is and can be. In the meantime, I hope to learn from the amazing students and faculty who are at Union. (Ian Doescher) • What I want most is the kind of theological education that will enable me to empower others to think for themselves about who God is for us today. (Karyn Carlo) • To be challenged in the way I see Christianity, and also the academic world. Oh, and God! I’m excited about bringing my previous studies down to ground level... (Gillian Breckenridge) • I'd like to think I'll have gained a foothold into the academic community in preparation for my future endeavors. (John Banionis)
QUESTION 2: What are you feeling one month after Orientation and one month into the school year?
Glad that orientation nourished budding friendships, yet also relieved that the start of classes brought a sense of normalcy to my life. (John Banionis) • Has it really been a month? I am feeling so happy to have the chance to be here at all, but that I would love to stay for longer. I feel like I have to really make the most of my time here. (Gillian Breckenridge) • I am feeling really blessed to be here, doing what I love best with some of the coolest people I’ve ever met. (Karyn Carlo) • I’m feeling mostly terrified – but I’m trying to tell myself to take it a semester at a time. So far, so good; the first few weeks have been great. (Ian Doescher) • After being here one month, I am honestly feeling a little overwhelmed. There’s a lot of work, a lot to learn, and a lot on which to reflect. But I’m also feeling overwhelmed by the "welcome home" feeling of the school – it’s fantastic. (Beth Greenwood) • I am feeling a bit anxious, excited, nervous, blessed after one month at Union Theological Seminary. (Michele Finazzo) • Challenged and among a community of fellow laborers in the vineyard, with great expectancy, waiting – waiting and praying for clarification, waiting for answers to questions that lie within and discernment from the urges in our spirit that tug at our hearts. I am excited with the plans God has laid out for me and letting go of the control. (Brenda D. Ford) • What? One month passed already? (Kyeong Il Jung) • Thrilled and exhausted. (Mark Leach) • At home – with all the comfort and acceptance of family craziness "home" implies. (Melissa Lemons) • Joyfully overwhelmed. (Julia Locke) • Excitement and a back and forth between self-doubt and rising self-confidence (Kerstin Menzel) • Xcited, Xhausted,and Xtremely Blessed! (Suleima Rosario) • After the first month, I am affirmed that I am at the right place. (Wade Mitchell) • I still feel like dreaming.... ah... I mean, in a good way. (Kuniko Montgomery) • I already feel my assumptions being questioned, and I’m struggling to open my mind to unfamiliar and often uncomfortable ideas and modes of expression. (David Orr) • It finally sunk in one day at worship that these new faces I have been seeing every day for the last few weeks are my family for the next three years – and that was a joyous realization. (Tim Palmer) • After a month at Union I am feeling a major need for more hours in the day to complete all of my reading assignments. (Ben Sanders)
posted by JP at 8:03 AM
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