Mark Staples shares his reflections from his experiences as a photojournalist for the Lutheran Church in his newly published book, Neighbors Revisited: a church journalist’s life lessons learned from people of other cultures. He particularly focuses on his travels to several countries on the African continent and Asia in the 1980s. The catalyst for…

Dr. William Avery, Professor Emeritus of Stewardship and Parish Ministry, shares his thoughts on three top issues from the previous year, 2023: The Hamas-Israel conflict, the exit of from church participation, and clergy burnout. He reminds us that that the Middle East conflict is not recent but has its roots from the biblical period. From his year…

Dr. James Thomas, Retired Associate Professor of Worship Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary of Lenoir-Rhyne University, talks about his recent experience in teaching at the Good News Theological Seminary in Ghana. He shares his experience with students in the classroom as well as in the field experiences. Although he had been to Ghana previousl…

Lisa Erdman, Postdoctoral Scholar in the President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program at the Penn State College of Medicine, talks about her current teaching and the role of everyday objects in communication between patients and healthcare providers. Health humanities is an emerging, interdisciplinary field of study that examines how the arts and hu…

Author Joseph Bathanti (LSU Press, Mercer University Press) details the writing program, Brothers and Sisters Like These, he and Dr. Bruce Kelly started at the Charles George Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Asheville, North Carolina. Bathanti is a creative writing mentor for Carlow University’s MFA program. He is Professor of Engli…

Andrew Taminger, a third-year seminarian at United Lutheran Seminary, talks about his attendance at the Lutheran World Federation Assembly (LWF) in Krakow, Poland. After a brief introduction to the history of the Federation, he continues by sharing his personal highlights of the Assembly along with some of the discussions including climate change, …

Jane Nutter, the President of the Gettysburg Black History Museum, talks about the development of the museum. She emphasizes the fact that the museum goes beyond the presence of African Americans in Gettysburg during the Civil War. The museum highlights the Blacks in Gettysburg before, during, and after the War. She notes that the museum contains a…

The Rev. Dr. James Cobb reflects on his 50 years of ordained ministry. He describes the congregations to which he had been called along with their significant contributions to ministry. Many of the years in the pastorate he shared as co-pastor with his wife, Pastor Judy Cobb. While he has been centered in parish ministry, he shares his involvement …

Dr. Elizabeth Viti, Professor emeriti of French Language and Literature at Gettysburg College discusses the life and times of Simone de Beauvoir, the French writer, intellectual, philosopher, and activist of the 20th century. Beauvoir’s life was vibrant. Viti notes Belvoir’s long-time friendship with Jean-Paul Sartre. Beauvoir was a prolific writer…

Fr. Andrew Durbidge, Rector St. Luke and St. Matthew Episcopal Church in Brooklyn New York Joins us to talk about his recent pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago or the Way of St. James. Each year thousands of individuals start from various points in France, Spain, and other locations to take the journey. This pilgrimage dates from the medieval per…

Pastor Richard Michael and his wife Bonnie McCourt talk about their most recent travel to the Holy Land which he was co-leader. This was his 11th tour. Both share the benefits of taking such a tour which included reading the scriptures through a new lens and changing one’s world view. Richard discusses his change from a total pro-Israeli perspectiv…

Dr. Michael Birkner, Professor of History, Gettysburg College ,talks about his recently edited book Democracy’s Shield: Voices of World War II. He describes the oral interviews conducted by Gettysburg College students of veterans of the Second World War. This project took place over a twenty-five-year period. The interview process began with a netw…

Dr. Crump, former Professor of Systematic Theology at LTSG, named Karl Barth, Rudolph Bultmann, and Paul Tillich as the leading theologians of the 20th century and briefly described the central themes in the work of each. Common to all three would be close to Tillich’s phrase, “Accept the fact that you are accepted.” Crump described the crucial imp…

This episode of The Seminary Explores features Pastor Ed Smith, the recipient of the Called to Lead – Excellence in Ministry Award by the Alumni Association of United Lutheran Seminary. Ed shared his various areas of ministry after graduating from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg. While a pastor in the Pocono area of Pennsylvania, he…

On this episode of the Seminary Explores Prue Yelinek discusses research on her familial roots which date back to 1754. Her discussion combined the history of her family in relation to the history of the Church of the Brethren in the Shenandoah Valley. That history is intertwined with the events of the Civil War in that area. Yelinek shared the sur…

Ann Bracken's book Crash: A Memoir of Overmedication and Recovery, explores mother-daughter experiences of mismanaged care for depression and chronic pain. A co-host for the Wilde Readings Poetry Series, Bracken is a contributing editor for Little Patuxent Review. Her poetry, essays, and interviews have appeared in numerous anthologies and journals…

Recorded at the Adult Discussion Class at St. James Lutheran Church, this episode is centered on the career of Kristin Rice who recently retired as the Chief Public Defender of Adams County in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. She defined and described the role of the Public Defender’s Office: the type of cases the office must take, the unique structure of…

Author Gregory Christianson shares the development of his newest book Gettysburg Fast Facts for Kids and Families. The story of Gettysburg is told through the eyes of children. He discussed how his interest in the Civil War began and his desire to make the Gettysburg visit experience accessible to children. His inclusion of the contributions of wom…

Mr. Jonathan Noel, Minister of Music at St. James Lutheran Church in Gettysburg Pennsylvania discussed the role of the organist in the life of the church. He described the organist as helping the music life of the congregation. He recalled his early interest in the instrument and connecting it in the worship life of the church. Noel noted the chall…

This is a program of remembrance. Three colleagues and friends of Dr. Richard Stewart share their memories of him. Dr. Joseph Donnella emphasizes Stewart’s work on making connections among people, groups and churches. He highlighted the collegiality he experienced with Stewart when they both were serving parishes in St. Croix. For Mark Staples, his…