Harvard Divinity School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Established | 1816 |
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| Type | Private |
| Dean | William A. Graham |
| Faculty | 41 (voting) |
| Staff | 110 |
| Students | 430 |
| Location | Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA |
| Campus | Urban |
| Website | [1] |
Harvard Divinity School is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States. The School's purpose is to train graduate students—either in the academic study of religion, or in the practice of a religious ministry. It also caters to students from other Harvard schools who are interested in the former field. The Divinity School's current dean, William A. Graham, is a scholar of Islamic history. Harvard Divinity School is one of five university-based, non-denominational divinity schools in the United States (the other four being at the University of Chicago, Vanderbilt University, Wake Forest University and Yale Divinity School).
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[edit] History
Harvard was founded in 1636 as a Puritan/Congregationalist institution, and trained ministers for many years. The separate institution of the Divinity School, however, dates from 1816, when it was established as the first non-denominational divinity school in the United States (Princeton Theological Seminary, the nation's oldest graduate school of theology, having been founded as a Presbyterian institution in 1812). Nevertheless, for most of its history, Harvard Divinity School was unofficially associated with the Unitarian church.
Today its students and faculty come from a variety of religious backgrounds. Its academic programs attempt to balance theology and religious studies, that is, the "believer's" perspective on religion with the "secular" perspective on religion. This is in contrast to many other divinity schools where one or the other is given primacy (Yale Divinity School, for example, emphasizes its ministry program, while the University of Chicago Divinity School sees the majority of students enroll in its "religious studies" Master of Arts program).
[edit] Degrees
Harvard Divinity School grants the following degrees:
- Master of Theological Studies (MTS, equivalent to a Master of Arts in religious studies)
- Master of Divinity (MDiv, a degree usually taken in preparation for the ministry)
- Master of Theology (ThM)
- Doctor of Theology (ThD)
In addition to candidates for the above, many Harvard graduate students pursuing PhDs in the study of religion work closely with the Divinity School, though they are technically affiliated with the Committee on the Study of Religion in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
[edit] Curriculum
The curriculum is organized into three Areas.
- Area I, "Scripture and Interpretation," focuses on the nature and interpretation of sacred scriptures, especially the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament. Methods include intensive study of language and historical-critical analysis.
- Area II, "Christianity and Culture," includes courses in theology, ethics, the history of Christianity, and the social sciences.
- Area III, "Religions of the World," includes comparative religion, as well as the study of specific traditions. As of 2006, the Divinity School offers courses on Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam, Confucianism, Shinto, some pre-Islamic Persian religious traditions, ancient Greek religion, Meso-American religions, and Celtic religion.
[edit] Research and Special Programs
[edit] Women's Studies in Religion Program
The Women's Studies in Religion Program at Harvard Divinity School was founded in 1973 to study the role of religious traditions in defining sex roles. The WSRP was the first program to focus on interdisciplinary research to expand the base of knowledge about women in religion. The program aims to produce new primary research addressing these issues, and publicize the results, and promote awareness of the importance of religion for an understanding of women's situation.[1]
It promotes critical inquiry into the interaction between religion and gender. Every year the program offers fellowships to five scholars, offering them the opportunity to teach a class of their design and to take advantage of Harvard's resources, as well as to share their research and experiences with the fellows in an interdisciplinary environment.
[edit] Center for the Study of World Religions
Founded in 1960 after an anonymous donation in 1957, the CSWR at Harvard Divinity School is a residential community of academic fellows, graduate students, and visiting professors of major world religious traditions. The Center focuses on the understanding of international religions through its research, publications, funding, and public programs. Its current director is Donald Swearer, a Buddhism scholar.
[edit] Summer Leadership Institute
The SLI at Harvard Divinity School is an educational program that seeks to establish theological instruction and grounding for individuals engaged in community and economic development.
The program of study is divided into four modules: Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy; Organizational Development and Management; Housing and Community Development; and Finance and Economic Development. As a full-time residential program, holding classes five days a week, the educational focus lies on faith-based case studies of corporations and communities.
[edit] Program in Religion and Secondary Education
The Program in Religion and Secondary Education certifies students in the Masters of Theological Studies, and Masters of Divinity Programs, to teach academic disciplines in the context of religion at the middle and high school level.
[edit] Andover-Harvard Theological Library
Founded in 1911 after an agreement between Harvard Divinity School and Andover Seminary in 1910 brought the collections of both institutions together, Andover-Harvard Theological Library holds 485,000 books, pamphlets and manuscripts; 30,000 rare books; original papers of Paul Tillich; and the historical archives of the Unitarian Universalist Association. The Library serves the broader Harvard community and is used by the theological schools that make up the Boston Theological Institute.
[edit] Andover Hall
Completed in 1911 at a cost of $300,000, Andover Hall was designed by Allen and Collens, a firm that focused largely on neo-medieval and ecclesiastical designs, and is the only building at Harvard built in the collegiate Gothic style of architecture. Andover Hall was commissioned by Andover Theological Seminary, which, by 1906, saw its enrollment slide and entered an affiliation with the Divinity School in 1908. The Hall contained a chapel, library, dorms, and seminar and lecture rooms. Today, Andover Hall still contains a chapel and some classrooms, but it also holds many administrative and faculty offices.
[edit] Notable professors
- Leila Ahmed, professor of women's studies and Islamicist.
- François Bovon, prolific scholar in New Testament and Christian Apocrypha.
- Davíd Carrasco, editor, professor, and scholar of Latin American studies.
- Harvey Cox, author of "The Secular City."
- Demetrios, Archbishop of America, former visiting professor of New Testament and current primate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
- Diana L. Eck, Asianist and founder of Pluralism Project.
- Joseph Fletcher, founder of situational ethics.
- Peter J. Gomes, Harvard preacher and writer.
- David D. Hall, noted historian of Puritanism.
- Amy Hollywood, medievalist and psychoanalytic/social theorist.
- Karen King, author of "What is Gnosticism?" and "The Gospel of Mary Magdala."
- Helmut Koester, New Testament scholar.
- Jon D. Levenson, professor of Hebrew Bible/Jewish Studies.
- Diane L. Moore, Harvard professor and writer.
- Ralph B. Potter, social ethicist.
- Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, feminist New Testament scholar.
- Robert William Scribner (1941 - 1998), noted reformation historian.
- Henry Ware, Jr. (1794-1843), Unitarian theologian.
- Henry Ware, Sr. (1764-1845), prominent early Unitarian theologian.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Reza Aslan, author and Islamicist.
- Charles Bennison, bishop in the Episcopal Church.
- Edward John Carnell, prominent neoevangelical theologian.
- Thomas Chappell, founder of Tom's of Maine, largest producer of natural personal care products
- Janet Cooper-Nelson, Chaplain, Brown University, first woman University Chaplain in the Ivy League.
- John Cranley, current congressional candidate in Ohio.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, philosopher, poet, essayist
- Robert P. George, author, constitutional law scholar, and Princeton professor.
- Peter J. Gomes, preacher and writer.
- Chris Hedges, author and journalist.
- Iakovos, Archbishop of America, Greek Orthodox Archbishop of America from 1959 to 1996.
- Scotty McLennan, Dean for Religious Life at Stanford University.
- Joshua Neuman, editor and publisher of Heeb magazine; author of "The Big Book of Jewish Conspiracies".
- William B. Oden, bishop in the United Methodist Church.
- Theodore Parker, prominent Unitarian and transcendentalist thinker, scholar, and abolitionist.
- Rodney L. Petersen, scholar of history, ethics, and religious conflict, and executive director of the Boston Theological Institute.
- Edmund Sears, Unitarian theologian.
- Liz Walker, journalist and activist.
[edit] Publications
[edit] Harvard Divinity Bulletin
Harvard Divinity Bulletin is a 70-year-old alumni magazine published by Harvard Divinity School three times per calendar year – generally spring, autumn, and winter. The magazine features articles, opinion pieces, and reviews on religion and its relationship with contemporary life, art, and religious studies. Many of the Divinity School’s faculty contributes to the magazine; however, unsolicited nonfiction essays, poetry, and opinion pieces are published as well.
[edit] Harvard Divinity Today
HD Today is a magazine published three times per year and includes original news articles, event listings, an alumni/ae journal, and faculty notes.
[edit] Harvard Theological Review
Founded in 1908, Harvard Theological Review is a quarterly journal that publishes original research in many scholarly and religious fields, including ethics, archeology, Christianity, Jewish studies, and comparative religious studies.
[edit] Cult/ure
Cult/ure is a graduate journal and collection of student essays published annually under the auspices of Harvard Divinity School and supported by the Office of the Dean and the Center for the Study of World Religions.
[edit] The Wick
The Wick is a journal for literary and creative works by the HDS community. The Wick publishes both published and non-published writers of fiction, poetry, essays, photography, sermons, and creative non-fiction.
[edit] Student religious affiliation
(Figures taken from 2004-2005 Harvard Divinity School Catalog)
- African Methodist Episcopal: 3 (0.7%)
- Anglican/Episcopal: 51 (11.1%)
- Assemblies of God: 6 (1.3%)
- Baptist: 22 (4.8%)
- Buddhist: 12 (2.6%)
- Catholic: 63 (13.8%)
- Christian Reformed Church: 1 (0.2%)
- Church of Christ Scientist: 3 (0.7%)
- Church of God in Christ: 4 (0.4%)
- Church of the Brethren: 1 (0.2%)
- Congregationalist: 3 (0.7%)
- Disciples of Christ: 1 0.2%
- Foursquare Gospel Church: 1 (0.2%)
- Hindu: 2 (0.4%)
- Humanist: 1 (0.2%)
- Jewish: 19 (4.1%)
- LDS/Mormon: 3 (0.7%)
- Lutheran: 21 (4.6%)
- Mennonite: 2 (0.4%)
- Methodist: 23 (5.0%)
- Moravian Church in America: 1 (0.2%)
- Muslim: 13 (2.8%)
- Nondenominational: 66 (14.4%)
- Orthodox: 7 (1.5%)
- Other: 19 (4.1%)
- Pagan: 2 (0.4%)
- Pentecostal: 2 (0.4%)
- Polytheism: 1 (0.2%)
- Presbyterian: 27 (5.9%)
- Protestant: 2 (0.4%)
- Religious Society of Friends/Quaker: 3 (0.7%)
- Seventh-day Adventists: 3 (0.7%)
- Sikh: 1 (0.2%)
- Unitarian Universalist: 41 (9.0%)
- United Church of Christ: 27 (5.9%)
- Vineyard Christian Fellowship: 1 (0.2%)
Total Christian: 75.1%
[edit] Divinity School buildings
- Divinity Hall
- Andover Hall
- Center for the Study of World Religions
- Rockefeller Hall
- Jewett House (Dean's Residence)
- Carriage House (Women's Studies in Religion Program)
[edit] External links
- Harvard Divinity School Web site
- Center for the Study of World Religions
- Andover-Harvard Theological Library
- Women's Studies in Religion Program
| Schools of Harvard University |
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| Faculty of Arts and Sciences: College • Graduate School of Arts and Sciences • Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences • Continuing Education |
| Faculty of Medicine: Medical School • School of Dental Medicine |
| Divinity School • Law School • Business School • Graduate School of Design |
| Graduate School of Education • School of Public Health • Kennedy School of Government |
| Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study (successor to Radcliffe College) |
