William Klein, former trustee, dies

…call to serve as the pastor of the Black Mountain Presbyterian Church in Black Mountain, North Carolina. He was ordained July 25, 1954, by Asheville Presbytery. He served the Black Mountain Church until he accepted a call to the Oakland Avenue Presbyterian Church in Rock Hill, South Carolina, in 1959. Eight years later he received a call to his third…

UPSem Names Rev. Dr. Lee Hinson-Hasty Next Vice President for Advancement

…in digital media. He is the host of the Leading Theologically podcast where he regularly interviews current and future leaders across the country both inside and outside the Presbyterian Church USA. As a trusted and wise conversation partner, Dr. Hinson-Hasty is called upon regularly as a strategist and confidant across the country in national, regional and local educational and ecclesial…

Center for Social Justice and Reconciliation Student Ambassadors

…in Nairobi. In response to a spiritual calling, she later joined the International Leadership University in Nairobi, where she graduated with a bachelor of theology degree in 2019. That led to her finding her way to the Seminary in 2022. Cellonia enjoys close communication with individuals and speaking up when a voice of reason is needed, and has a special…

India travel seminar: Joyful unpredictability

This is post 10 of 11 in the series “India travel seminar” India travel seminar begins India travel seminar: Religious and cultural diversities India travel seminar: Deep care & kindness India travel seminar: A dream fulfilled India travel seminar: Spirit of the Sikhs India travel seminar: Observing faith formation practices India travel seminar: Andhara Christian Theological College India travel seminar:…

Union Forum: What should white Christians do about racism?

…response to the arrest and homicide of George Floyd while in Minneapolis Police custody, there is a new sense of resolve in cities around our nation and world to address racial disparity and systemic racialized oppression. But what should the white church do? How can it begin to utilize its social capital predicated on undue privilege on behalf of those…

Teachable Spirit

…lives at the right time? Yesterday while sitting in the balcony after church she re-enforced something that I always share with others – “Have a teachable spirit!!!” If God can make a jackass talk, then truly God can speak in innumerable ways to anyone who is willing to listen; and I pray that I stay hypersensitive to God-speak, whether it…

A time to give thanks

…they are, who they are telling “Here I am.” On Monday, I lay in bed looking out the window at the changing trees and reflected on the day before. It was full of beauty and heartache, excitement and dread. There were moments when I wondered how anyone could question if there is a God, and there were moments that I…

Women address gender justice for African-Americans

On Martin Luther King Day, more than 50 African-American women working in diverse contexts in the community participated in a “conscientization luncheon” to discuss how gender justice concretely transforms life in the direction of non-alienating experiences for African-American women and the wider environment in which they are situated. The Richmond campus event was led by Professor of Christian Ethics Katie…

Fight Club?

…What if we post about our excitement to invest in an organization as much as we post about our displeasure in current events? More than numbers, I believe people are interested in stories. More than ‘yes’ and `no`, our children need explanations. We avoid money talk and favor time and talents; we avoid money talk in search for easy answers….

Will Change Ever Come?

…not just in European institutions, but in our own institutions, including the Black Church. The challenge for us as pastors and educators continues to be, to unteach what has been taught in our Churches and seminaries for so long. Historically incorrect images still fill our textbooks and many Church buildings and windows. Images that cause many blacks to hate self….

Central America Travel Seminar: The day we met Jon Sobrino

…group visited the Pastoral Center of Monsignor Romero at Central America University in San Salvador, El Salvador. It is the site where six Jesuit priests and two women were murdered in 1989. We were taken through the museum, garden, and Chapel to see and learn the story of this atrocity. In the midst of our tour, we were invited to…

Started UPSem 2014: Rev. William Joseph “Joey” Haynes III (MDiv 2019)

…study at Queens University, majoring in international studies with minors in Spanish and world religions. That study led him overseas after college working as an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher in South Korea. Back in the U.S., he worked at several local organizations that serve individuals with exceptionalities before enrolling at Union Presbyterian Seminary Charlotte. Enrolling in seminary…

Take our Ugly Christmas Sweater Challenge

The other day when I cranked my car, I was surprised by two things. First, I was reminded that my wife likes to listen to the radio much louder than I do, happily sharing the radio’s music with all the passengers in our car and the cars immediately adjacent. Second, I was startled by Perry Como’s voice coming from the…

Assocuate Pastor for Children & Familes Myers Park Pres – Description

Alternative ministries trip yields new ideas and rainbows in Baltimore

…the big, uncomfortable world out there.” The weekend included conversations with leaders from The Center Baltimore, BUILD (Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development), and The Slate Project. Students also met with local pastors who are intimately connected with their communities—and had the opportunity to get to know some of their parishioners and participate alongside them in service work in the surrounding…

Union recognized for superior fundraising performance

…of what contributed to the total support figure, overall breadth in program areas, pattern of growth in each program area, pattern of donor growth among alumni donors and other individual donors, impact of the 12 largest gifts on total support, total support in relation to the alumni base, and type of institution. Judges use those factors to recognize institutions that…

Started UPSem 2004: Rev. Nadine Ellsworth-Moran (MDiv / MACE 2011)

…of the Charlotte campus. Ellsworth-Moran concludes, “I loved that it was a smaller overall campus, and it was possible to get to know your cohort and your professors quickly. I also liked the strong Reformed theological emphasis in core courses as well as the practical applications that I was able to put into practice every week.” After graduation, she had…

Started UPSem 2017: Rev. Marina Luckhoo (pursuing MDiv)

…calling with her passion for care. “The pull to engage in holistic care persisted. I explored chaplaincy through CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) and discovered that a master’s degree was necessary to continue in this vocation.” When Luckhoo decided to explore seminary more deliberatively, she surprised herself. The way the Union Presbyterian Seminary offered its courses to make attending easier was…

Ghana Travel Seminar: Touching the lives of children and teenagers

…Ghana travel seminar has been a “once in a lifetime” experience! As I’ve dwelled together with our brothers and sisters here, I’ve been inexpressively impressed at the genuine hospitality, friendliness, and effortless way in which the Ghanaians have made me feel welcome. From the oldest to the youngest, whether in churches or colleges and schools, the hospitality has been unmatched!…

Congregational Corner: Sitting in the dark of Advent

…all that this season is for — the joy and celebration and the struggle and doubt. If you can only sit in one part of Advent right now, sit where it is most true to you and remember that Christ was sent to us because God saw the ways in which we struggled and felt separated; God heard our cries…

Lonely & waiting: Walking through Advent with those who are grieving

…done this every year that has followed. In the shadow of a very difficult pastoral month with multiple deaths and hospitalizations, I think back to that year and the few that have followed. I think about the loss that my family prepared for in the midst of Advent celebrations, and I think of the empty space in the years that…