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Dear Colleagues, The Steering Committee of the Society--Christie Neuger (Chair and Conference Coordinator), Kathleen Greider (Recording Secretary and Conference Registrar), Sam Lee (Treasurer and Membership Secretary), and Chris Schlauch (Corresponding Secretary)--met in Minneapolis at Christie Neuger's home the weekend of October 12th-14th. (We had been scheduled to meet the weekend of September 14th-16th, but due to the September 11th tragedy, airports were closed and travel prohibited.) In this newsletter, somewhat delayed by our postponed steering committee meeting, we will review some of what took place at our annual meeting in Chicago this past June, preview our upcoming meeting in Denver next year, and provide an overview of pertinent SPT news. The Steering Committee wishes to extend its sincere thanks, on behalf of itself as well as of the Society, to Rod Hunter, who has rotated off the committee. Rod has been a leader in the Society since its inception, and his contributions to the Steering Committee have been exemplary and invaluable. It is worth noting that Rod has continued to provide important input to the Committee, despite having been relieved of his formal responsibilities. That is testimony to the quality of his character, as well as to his dedication to our community. SOME NOTES ON THE 2001 ANNUAL MEETING As many of you will recall, our annual meeting last year addressed the topic, "Constructing Pastoral Theology Together: Getting Down to Cases in the Church." It was intended as "a reassessment of the field's relation to the church, a fresh consideration of the role of the pastoral case study in our field's methodology, and our clearly emerging commitment in the Society to the doing of pastoral theology as a cooperative inquiry in a community of scholars and pastoral practitioners" (Spring Newsletter, March 28, 2001). The Steering Committee carried out a rather bold, unorthodox--but ultimately well-received--decision to modify the structure of the meeting. Rather than scheduling a series of plenary presentations over two or three days, along with workshops, study groups, and other events, all plenary presentations and discussion related to the theme of the conference were scheduled on one day. Carolyn Bohler (United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio), Lucinda Huffaker (Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion), Anne Wimberly (Interdenominational Theological Center), and Brad Binau (Trinity Lutheran Seminary) led reflections through the plenary presentations. They considered issues in pastoral theological methodology, substantive questions and perspectives, as well as procedural and strategic matters. Registered participants who took the time to complete an evaluation form indicated their sincere appreciation for and high estimation of the substance and structure of the plenary presentations and discussions (although most felt that group energy began to drop by late Friday afternoon). We want to extend our thanks to Bonnie Miller-McLemore for her Work in Progress presentation on theology, care, and children; to those who chaired theological study groups (Bill Clements, Ed Wimberly, Emma Justes, Miriam Glover-Wetherington, Charles Scalise, Rod Hunter, Glenn Asquith, Carrie Doehring, Rick Mixon, Roy Steinhoff-Smith, Herb Anderson, Bonnie Miller-McLemore, Marie McCarthy); to those who led workshops (Glenn Asquith, Ulrike Guthrie, Joretta Marshall, Bonnie Miller-McLemore, Chris Schlauch, Charles Scalise, Ronald Sunderland, Barbara McClure, Darryl Fairchild). Certainly a highlight of the entire meeting, by acclamation, was the humorous and thought-provoking luncheon address given by Peggy Way (Eden Theological Seminary). Last but not least, we want to thank Emma Justes (Northern Baptist Theological Seminary) for opening her home to Society members for the Society Party. A PREVIEW OF THE 2002 ANNUAL MEETING Next year we will return to Denver for our annual meeting, June 13-15. We have, in the past, used The Brown Palace/Comfort Inn facilities. They are undergoing renovations in June, and were unavailable. On behalf of the Steering Committee--and the Society--Christie Neuger spent considerable time trying to secure an alternative location. The Committee determined that The Hyatt Regency Hotel will serve us well, in terms of value and convenience. The prices for our hotel rooms will be slightly higher than the last time we were in Denver (at $139 for a single room and $149 for a double room) but we were able to negotiate good prices given the circumstances. The theme of this year's meeting is "Navigating Difference In/Through Pastoral Theology: A Work-in-Progress." We are seeking to have a working conference in which participants can explore issues of negotiating differences specific to and challenging in their respective contexts. Thus, for example, we have--in a preliminary way--considered some of the following questions: Are we realistic and honest about the difficulties of plurality? Are our pastoral theologies adequate for theory and praxis in plurality? How do we teach amid plurality? We are pleased to announce that our three Plenary Speakers will be Marsha Foster Boyd, Emmanuel Lartey, and Nancy Ramsay. Our featured Society Luncheon speaker in 2002 will be Ron Sunderland. Our Work in Progress presenter will be Mary Moschella. The meeting will of course also include gatherings of our ongoing theological study groups (to which all are invited), an array of specialty workshops, another great Society party, and the many individual conversations and small informal gatherings that we so much enjoy. Larry Graham has generously agreed, once again, to host the Society part. ENCLOSURES WITH THIS LETTER Mid-Year Financial Report and Projected Budget for 2002 Quick Reference Form Membership List This list is current as of the date of this letter. It incorporates all changes and new additions made at last year's annual meeting, and by individual communication since then. If you spot an error or wish to change or add to your entry, please contact the Corresponding Secretary, Chris Schlauch, by e-mail at crschlau@bu.edu. Please note: It is a convenience to the Steering Committee, Journal editors, study group co-chairs and others to have e-mail addresses for Society members. At present fewer than 60% of the names on the list show one. If you are willing to list your e-mail address, please send it to your Corresponding Secretary for inclusion in next year's directory. (If you have two addresses, please pick one.) OTHER MATTERS OF GENERAL INTEREST Nominating Committee Rod Hunter the most recent Steering Committee member to rotate off, chairs this committee, which has responsibility for bringing a nomination for the Steering Committee to replace Christie Neuger who rotates off next June. The Nominating Committee would very much like to receive suggestions. Please send them to Rod Hunter or to any member of the committee. The Nominating Committee cannot nominate its own members. . . . In this connection, please note the business meeting's decision to select a woman of color to be Christie Neuger's replacement. Journal of Pastoral Theology and the ATLAS Project The Journal of Pastoral Theology has entered a new phase of its history. It is no longer a publication fed primarily by material from its annual meeting. In the year 2002 it becomes a two-issue-a-year journal that depends upon its total membership--not just conference presenters--for its contents. This means that we pastoral theologians need to write for the Journal and encourage our best students and colleagues to do the same. Our ability to have a great journal that is regularly consulted through ATLAS depends not primarily upon having good speakers at our meetings. It depends on our writing for the Journal of Pastoral Theology. We look forward to reading you. The editors, Joretta Marshall and John Patton, are always eager to receive manuscripts, and book review editor Loren Townsend would be happy to receive suggestions for books to review. JPT has been selected to be among the first fifty journals in religion to be made available on-line through the American Theological Library Association's ATLAS project. Check out the ATLAS website at http://purl.org/CERTR for more information. When text is available, you will need the login ID jpedx01 and password r73t4. Also, the website http://rosetta.atla-certr.org:5913/phase1/phase1.listjournals will give you a preview of Phase I (which at this point consists only of a well reproduced picture of the cover of our first [1991] edition)! When fully up and running, ATLAS will be a tremendously useful resource, with powerful Boolean search capabilities for scores of journals in religion dating back to 1946. Theological Study Groups All study groups are thriving in one way or another and will meet again next June. The names of the groups and their current co-chairs are given on the Quick Reference sheet. Anyone interested in becoming involved in a group is encouraged to contact a co-chair person at any time. These groups are not closed; everyone is invited to drop into a group of their choice to "test the waters," or to contact study group co-chairs during the year. These groups are designed to be continuous from year to year, providing a small support community for ongoing research and related interests. This distinguishes them from workshops, which are one-time affairs at the annual meeting in which members present and lead discussions on specific topics. Theological study groups can disband if they have served their purpose, and new study groups can be formed. Dues Dues include the Journal and semi-annual newsletters; $50 for regular members and $25 for students, retirees, and persons on low, fixed incomes. International members are required to pay dues only in the years in which they attend the annual conference. Checks are payable to "Society for Pastoral Theology," mailed with any new or corrected membership-list, to Society for Pastoral Theology, c/o K. Samuel Lee, 10506 Weymouth Street #103, Bethesda, MD 20854. Dues are payable by calendar year. Please keep your dues current! Society Bibliography All members in good standing (with dues paid through the previous year) are invited to submit entries. Please note Guidelines for submission. Send submissions to Kathy Lyndes. Future Meeting Sites In June, 2003, we will be meeting in Los Angeles. Displays at the Annual Meeting The Steering Committee has adopted a policy that commercial displays of goods for sale by members are not appropriate at our annual meetings. Directory of Graduate Programs As members who attended last June's meeting know, a group has met for several years under the leadership of Chris Schlauch and Bonnie Miller-McLemore to discuss issues in graduate programs in pastoral theology. A fine, useful directory of graduate programs in pastoral theology has evolved out of this ongoing group. Eventually this document will be posted on our website. If you'd like a copy now, Sam Lee can e-mail you one. (See Quick Reference sheet for contact information.) Persons responsible for writing the accounts of these various programs are requested to send Sam updated information as appropriate, as soon as possible. CEU's The Steering Committee has decided that it cannot provide CEU's for those who attend our meetings. However, recording secretary Kathleen Greider can provide a letter confirming one's attendance at the meeting to anyone who needs it. Special Interest Groups Please contact Christie Neuger if you want a room reserved. Volunteer Newcomers Host If you would be willing to volunteer your services as a host to newcomers at our annual meeting next year, please be in touch with any member of the Steering Committee. Responsibilities include being an informal host on Thursday night for supper (possibly a box supper) and adjourning with the newcomers group to a designated room for continued conversation about the Society and the field of pastoral theology. A member of the Steering Committee will meet very briefly with this group to bring greetings, but will not stay in the meeting, which the volunteer will convene. This is an experiment to see if we can do better at welcoming new friends into the Society and helping them understand and feel a part of our work together. Graduate Student Lunch Volunteer The Committee is seeking a similar volunteer from among our graduate student members for similar responsibilities with graduate students on Thursday evening of the meeting. We hope your year is going well and we look forward to seeing you in June. Sincerely,
Chris R. Schlauch Corresponding Secretary School of Theology, Boston University, December, 2001
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