The Consortium will expand its newsletter to include more ecumenical news thanks to a grant from Diane Tachmindji. The fall 2002 edition of the Bulletin will be an eight-page newsletter and will present more information about people in ecumenical work. It will include interviews with prominent Ecumenists and a column by Fr. John Crossin, Executive Director, that presents an inside view of the Consortium’s activities.

Each issue will feature an interview with a prominent ecumenist. Initially, the interviews will highlight ecumenists within the Consortium. They will feature representatives from the 12 Consortium seminaries. Eventually, they will include interviews with the Consortium’s alumni/ae that are ecumenically active in their post-academic ministries.

The personal stories of Consortium members will broaden our readers’ understanding of real-life ecumenism. Their perspectives will no doubt reflect the diverse experiences characteristic of the Consortium. Readers will witness the paths that they have taken and the successes and pitfalls of their efforts. Their experiences will model future ecumenical efforts and will encourage present and future ecumenists.

Fr. Crossin will also write a regular column for the expanded newsletter. He will share his practical work in ecumenism through the eyes of the Consortium. This edition of the Bulletin presents a prelude to his upcoming column earlier on this page.

In addition to increasing the newsletter’s content, the grant will improve its quality and aesthetics.

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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Dr. Ann Riggs of the NCCC AddressesConsortium Trustees and Faculty Members

Dr. Ann Riggs, the new Director of the Faith and Order Commission of the National Council of the Churches of Christ, outlined the current state of the Faith and Order Commission and her vision for the future at the March 13 meeting of the Consortium Board of Trustees. Now that her office is located in Washington, she hopes to have ongoing collaboration with the Consortium.

To that end, she met with a group of Consortium faculty on April 2 at Wesley Theological Seminary. They discussed the state of the theological dialogues with particular emphasis on the current discussion of ecclesiology and ethics. The Commission has an immediate interest in the theological foundations for a Christian stance toward poverty in the world.

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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Consortium and Muslim Scholars Hold Dialogue

Ten representatives of the Consortium and five visiting Muslim scholars conducted a substantive, if initial, dialogue at Dominican House in early February. The two-hour meeting was part of a program for visiting scholars from Saudi Arabia that Dr. Roy Enquist, Canon Ecumenist at the National Cathedral, introduced to the Consortium. The topic was theology and building bridges between the Muslim and Christian traditions. The participants agreed that their exchange needed substantive development but was a good initial step.

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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Ecumenism Teachers to Meet for First Annual Dinner

The Consortium’s Professors of Ecumenism will be brought together for the first annual Dinner for Ecumenism Teachers. We hope that this will be an arena for them to fellowship and share their experiences, perspectives, techniques and resources as ecumenical leaders. Bon Appetit!

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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Consortium Musicians Convene First Meeting

Four seminary representatives, one Consortium board member and two guests met for the first meeting of the Consortium musicians at Virginia Theological Seminary. Musicians from Baptist Theological Seminary in Richmond, Virginia Theological Seminary, the Washington Theological Union and Wesley Theological Seminary were represented at the luncheon. Consortium board member Mrs. Mary Jackson Cathey hosted the meeting and Dr. Michael J. McMahon, President of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, addressed the participants. The luncheon was an excellent opportunity for the Musicians to share their resources and enthusiasm for worship. There will be a survey to determine if the attendees would like to meet again or form a Consortium musicians group that meets on a regular basis.

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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Judith Boettcher Leads Planning Day for Technology Meeting

On April fifth Dr. Judith Boettcher led a day of joint sharing and planning to determine how the Consortium should use technology in the future. Dr. Boettcher is the Executive Director of CREN, the Corporation of Research and Educational Networking. The corporation is a non-profit higher education member organization that provides IT Knowledge Services and Certificate Authority services supporting research and educational institutions. The meeting, held at Catholic University of America, will explore how the Consortium’s member institutions can share their current technology and collaborate to create new technological advances. On-line learning and teleconferencing were two of the many issues proposed for examination.

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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Friends of the Consortium to Expand and Begin Annual Events

Under the leadership of the public members of the Board of Trustees, the Friends of the Consortium will expand its membership and its activities in the next school year. The Friends contribute time and resources to promote public ecumenical and interreligious dialogue. The Friends also promote such dialogue among the Consortium institutions themselves. They will begin the year with a fall reception for trustees and new Friends and will host a number of presentations on ecumenical topics, such as interchurch marriages, throughout the year. For more information on the Friends, please contact the Consortium office.

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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From the desk of the Executive Director

Dear Friends:

What do I do all day? Or all week? I=m sure you sometimes ask yourself these questions, especially at the end of the semester.

At the beginning of March, I asked myself this question. Its answer shows the diverse activities of the Consortium. On Monday I met with the Board of Trustees= Development Committee over lunch to discuss their campaign for new Friends of the Consortium. Later that same day, the Communications Committee discussed the expanded newsletter, which will appear next fall thanks to a grant from Mrs. Alexander J. Tachmindji.

On Tuesday, I attended the meeting of the Student Board. The Board has been highly active this year and is already planning events for the fall. Wednesday afternoon and evening saw the Consortium co-sponsor a forum on “Aging and Death: Ministry for the Final Stages of Growth.@ Fifty-five participants attended this program at the Washington Home.

On Thursday, a planning committee gathered at Wesley to consider programs surrounding the installation of David McAllister-Wilson next October as president of Wesley Seminary. A Friday luncheon at Washington Theological Union was the monthly meeting of the faculty Science and Religion group.

What do I do all week? A variety of diverse ecumenical endeavors.

Peace,
John Crossin, OSFS

Index for April-May 2002 Issue

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