February 1993 Page 1
The Newsletter of the World Conference of Associations of Theological Institutions
Volume I, Number 1 February 1993
To provide an established and continuing forum for members
to confer concerning matters of common interest related
to theological education;
To consider and promote relations of member associations
to one another, to other educational organizations and
units throughout the world, to appropriate ecclesiastical agencies
as they relate to theological education, and to other bodies
as may be relevant;
To identify and advocate excellence in theological education
and ministerial practice and to encourage full compliance
with the standards and purposes as established by the member
institutions;
To provide leadership and understanding of the purposes,
role and needs of theological education in the following ways:
By cultivating a broad and informed understanding of
theoloigcal education;
By serving as an advocate locally and globally for theological
education and its implications for church, society and
education in general;
By interacting with other appropriate agencies and groups;
To provide services to member associations in the following
ways:
By facilitating co-operation and co-ordination among
associations;
By gathering, maintaining and sharing information and
resources that will facilitate the work of member associations;
By encouraging, sponsoring and conducting research on
theological education and related matters;
By enabling and supporting member associations in implementing
standards, policies and procedures by which they may
best serve their constituencies;
By assisting and guiding the establishment of procedures
and criteria for equivalency of academic diplomas and degrees
awarded by the institutions in the different regions;
By being instrumental in identifying resources for the
development of the global nature and implications of theological
education;
To promote the improvement and advancement of theological
education in such ways as may be appropriate.
WOCATI PREAMBLE
Theological education is a worldwide enterprise fundamental
to the mission of the church. In its most immediate and
concrete forms theological education is shaped by the religious,
educational, social, political and historical traditions
within which it exists. Theological education is carried out in
a world which is increasingly being made aware of its interdependence
and religious pluralism. Its context is both local
and global and therefore, it can function more effectively
within a worldwide framework.
These characteristics of theological education have led
theological institutions to commit themselves to closer cooperation
at local, national, and regional levels. It is appropriate
that a global network and organization be established to serve,
support, and enhance theological education in its constituent
parts. To this end, the World Conference of Associations of
Theological Institutions is established. The members constituting
this Conference join themselves together for the purpose
of advancing their shared vision, purpose, and common cause.
WOCATI PURPOSES
Executive Committee members are (from left) Jaci Maraschin
(ASTE, Brazil), Teresia Hinga (ATIEA, Kenya), Barbara Brown
Zikmund (ATS, USA), Yeow Choo-Lak (ATESEA, Singapore),
Diane Jagdeo (CATS, West Indies), and Ian Williams (ANZATS,
Australia). Missing from the photo is Heather Walton (ACATE,
UK).
WOCATI News
Page 2 WOCATI News
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
responsibility prevails. Among other things, the tidak apa
attitude causes us to have hope in our face and nothing in our
heart. It may even make us call our cowardice duty and our
weakness sacrifice, a tendency Christians do well to avoid like
a plague.
I firmly believe that doing theology in all its grandeur and
excitement comes about when we avoid bottle-necking in both
our management and thinking. Good management creates
space for innovative thinking. Further to the above and pursuant
to it and consequent upon it, clear thinking has unexpected
resources of creativity which sound management is able to turn
on like a flood when they are needed. In brief, in our work it is
our joy and challenge to develop, strengthen, and enhance the
capacity of people to realise their full potentiality. Let this
work continue uninterrupted!
Yeow Choo-Lak, WOCATI President
Singapore
Twenty-six delegates from sixteen member associations gathered for the first World Congress in June 1992.
A business friend loves to say:
³Success is never ending and failure
never final. Getting it wrong is part
of getting it right.² Smart guy, that
one. His maxim may be true in the
coporate world, but I personally
believe that in the world of theology
we have less room for mistake(s).
To his words of wisdom, I would
like to add: ³Why get it wrong in the
first place?²
Getting it right from the very beginning will avoid a
disaster that can be expressed in: ³Our greatest progress is in
the field of backwardness and the true enemy is our incompetence.²
‹John leCarre
In our work, it does not hurt us to avoid the tidak apa (can¹t
care less) attitude where little sense of urgency and none of
February 1993 Page 3
The first World Congress of the World Conference of
Associations of Theological Institutions, (WOCATI) was held
at Pittsburgh, U.S.A., from June 14-21, 1992. Twenty-six
delegates from sixteen member associations, together with two
consultants and thirteen guests participated. The Congress was
able to further the goals of WOCATI as affirmed in the
constitution adopted at the inaugural meeting at Kaliurang,
Jogyakarta, Indonesia in June, 1989. During the first two days,
the WOCATI Congress shared in joint sessions with The
Association of Theological Schools in the United States and
Canada (ATS) at its biennial meeting.
At the Congress, the following were amongst the most
significant themes discussed:
(a) The inter-relationship between globalization and
contextualization. The importance of globalization was recognized
in providing a broad, indeed global perspective for the
theological task and also challenging any particular theology
which claims to be universal. However, with a significant
number of delegates representing associations from the southern
regions of the world, questions were raised as to whether
some expressions of globalization could be another form of the
continuing dominance of the concerns of northern theology. A
global perspective needs to acknowledge the range and diversity
of cultural contexts in which theology and theological
education are pursued. It was recognized that a crucial challenge
to theological educators in many regions of the world
was to give greater attention to developing forms of contextual
theology. Some of these contextual theologies are being
developed in regions of considerable religious pluralism. This
constitutes a significant challenge to many traditional ways of
doing theology.
(b) Who defines excellence of theological scholarship? In the
discussions at the Congress, great emphasis was placed upon
the task of theological educators to educate the whole people
of God. To engage in this task means to develop new forms of
theological scholarship and research, with different criteria for
evaluating excellence. Theologies of the people are not to be
uncritical. However, at present, there tends to be a dominance
of, if not an enslavement to, norms of excellence as defined by
the academy and professional and disciplinary guilds, especially
those of the northern world. The Congress asked the
executive committee of WOCATI to be responsible for a
continuing study of ways in which theological education and
excellence of theological scholarship are being defined and
developed in the various regions of the world.
(c) The contributions of women to theological education.
Congress acknowledged that theological education must take
far more seriously the contributions and perspectives of women.
REPORT OF THE FIRST WORLD CONGRESS
Their partnership within the theological enterprise will challenge
many established ways of doing theology, as they bring
distinctive concerns and methodologies to bear upon the theological
task. WOCATI¹s commitment to having equal representation
of men and women from member associations at the
Congress greatly assisted in establishing a positive dynamic
partnership within the life of the Congress itself. The importance
of the contributions of women to theological education
forms one of the continuing areas of study in WOCATI¹s
programme over the next four years.
(d) Other issues were related to the ways theological educators
were pursuing their vocation in a wide range of contexts.
It was here, as elsewhere, that one of WOCATI¹s unique
contributions to theological education was experienced, in that
WOCATI provides the opportunity for dialogue between theological
educators from all regions of the world. Delegates
received reports from their colleagues about such issues as:
(i) the ecumenical nature of theological education;
(ii) the challenge for faculty members to be involved
within the struggles of the people;
(iii) the need for faculty development;
(iv) difficulties encountered in evaluating credentials
of various associations;
(v) encouraging theology and theological education to
be expressed in indigenous languages;
(vi) the need to develop more adequate library resources.
The Congress elected a new executive committee with Dr.
Yeow Choo Lak as President. It charged the executive committee
with the responsibility of furthering the aims and
purposes of WOCATI in a number of ways, as outlined
elsewhere in this newsletter. It also resolved that the next
World Congress would be held in 1996.
Ian S. Williams
Australia
Page 4 WOCATI News
LITANY OF FELLOWSHIP
By our presence this fifteenth day of June 1992, we affirm:
That we have been called as theological educators not to a life
of privilege but of service;
That we serve by our study, our reflection, and our scholarship
that the faith and witness of the church may be informed,
nurtured, and sustained;
That in our teaching, we live that others may be endowed and
enabled to minister in God¹s kingdom throughout the world;
That we who are charged with the high offices and guardians
of institutions that in faithfulness are instruments of God¹s
grace and work by which their earthly natures are transformed;
That in our learning and teaching we are accountable to the
written and living Word of God and to the teachings by which
the Church of Jesus Christ is nurtured from generation to
generation;
That faithfulness to our calling binds us to one another to
preserve fully the witness of the past and to recapitulate this
sacred heritage by addressing the world as we encounter it in
our individual ways, circumstances, traditions, and language;
That in our diversity we are led to seek with our colleagues of
differing tongues and traditions the unity of faith, shared
convictions, guiding purposes, and informed insights in order
that our learning may be increased, our teaching empowered,
and our witness confirmed;
That in concert with our colleagues throughout the world, we
will strive to discover new ways to raise up future generations
whom God calls to lead people of faith throughout the world,
to minister to the world by word and deed, to be stewards of the
earth, sky, and sea, and to be heralds of reconciliation, peace,
and justice throughout all God¹s creation;
That we acknowledge that this fellowship of mutual endeavor,
respect, and common calling is itself a mission that claims us,
a challenge that inspires us, and a hope that guides us;
That we gather in this place and at this time to broaden our
horizons, increase our understanding, and be confirmed in our
vocation as we embrace brothers and sisters from throughout
the world as joint heirs of our calling and co-workers in a
shared vineyard, and in so doing seek constantly the guidance
This litany opened the first World Congress of WOCATI at our meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
as a convenantal statement which the representatives affirmed in unison.
and confirmation of God¹s Spirit. Amen.
Explanation of membership fees as stated in the WOCATI
Bylaws: ³The full membership fee shall consist of a sustaining
fee of 100 US dollars plus an amount equivalent to one per cent
of the operating budget of the association up to a maximum of
5,000 US dollars annually. The affiliate membership fee shall
be 1,000 US dollars annually.² Dues payments should be
mailed to: WOCATI, 10 Summit Park Drive, Pittsburgh, PA
15275-1103, USA, Attention: Esther Brown.
RECORD OF MEMBERSHIP DUES
AS OF DECEMBER 31, 1992
Association Year Paid Year(s)
Name Up To Outstanding
1. ATS 1992 1993
2. ATIEA - 1991-1993
3. ANZATS 1992 1993
4. ATESEA 1993 -
5. ACATE 1992 1993
6. BTESSC - 1991-1993
7. NEAATS - 1991-1993
8. PTCA 1993 -
9. ASIT - 1991-1993
10. ATISCA 1991 1992-1993
11. ASTHEOLO- 1991-1993
12. CATI - 1991-1993
13. CATS 1991 1992-1993
14. SPATS - 1991-1993
15. ASTE - 1991-1993
16. ATIME - 1991-1993
17. PERSETIA - 1991-1993
18. MATS 1992 1993
19. WAATI - 1991-1993
February 1993 Page 5
A speech was delivered by Robert J. Schreiter on the occasion
of the 38th Biennial Meeting of The Association of Theological
Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS) and the
Congress of the World Conference of Associations of Theological
Institutions (WOCATI). Lack of space does not allow
us to print the entire address. What follows presents the main
points in the first two thirds of the address, combined with the
complete text of the last sections of the address.
Summary
Robert Schreiter was asked to address the question of
contextualization from a world perspective. His speech began
with four assumptions behind his approach to contextualization
which come from his identity as a Roman Catholic: (1) its
theological appreciation for ³nature² (and therefore culture)
which especially values oral modes of knowledge, (2) its
concern for the centrality of the incarnation of Jesus Christ
which carries hope about all of creation, (3) its sacramental
view of the world which appreciates nature as conveying
Divine revelation, and (4) its concern for the ³evangelization
of cultures,² which goes beyond evangelizing individuals.
Schreiter examined contextualization:
1. Contextualization from a world perspective becomes
essential because of the inevitability of globalization.
Contextualization is finding one¹s own voice against the backdrop
of global media. It is a way of holding up what is noble
and immensely human and humane in local culture‹against
all forces that would undermine its dignity.
2. Contextualization and globalization are interdependent.
Thinking about context begins when the larger, global
reality impinges uncomfortably. At the same time, our concepts
of globalization have implications for what we do in our
own locales. The two can serve as mutual correctives as we
measure our faithfulness and our growth in our educational
settings.
3. Globalization is currently profoundly asymmetrical.
We are moving from an East-West axis to a North-South
interaction. In this new world the North does not look to the
South as a partner, but as a resource to be exploited. In this
new world the population of the South is expanding and the
average age of the North is growing older. New patterns of
mission and dependency are emerging, but it is difficult to
know the meaning of mutuality in such a profoundly unbalanced
situation.
By Robert J. Schreiter
Professor, Catholic Theological Union, Chicago, Illinois, USA
4. Contextualization is coming about more slowly than
globalization. Why? Because the legacy of colonialism is still
very strong. The power of the global media culture is pervasive.
The North resists contextualization because it is felt to be
a rejection of Northern values. The North resists
contextualization because it simply does not like to do things
differently.
In this situation, according to Schreiter, there are three
concrete issues facing contextualization‹the uprooting of
peoples, the question of reception (or how the Gospel message
is received), and the shape of belonging in multiple worlds of
reference. He reflects upon the implications of population
movements for contextualization. He examines issues surrounding
the way the Gospel is offered and accepted in
different contexts. And he notes that it is common for people
to find themselves with double and even triple religious and
cultural loyalties. In this complex situation it is important to
understand globalization. The final sections of his address
examine globalization and the implications of globalization
and contextualization for theological education. The exact text
follows:
Globalization: The Long View
Along with our understanding of contextualization, we
need a fuller understanding of globalization. I wish to sketch
out a proposal here of how we might understand globalization
from a perspective useful for theological education and ministry.
Space does not permit working out the interaction with
contextualization, except to make some suggestions in the
closing section.
I wish to present this perspective on globalization by
taking a longer view chronologically than we have been wont
to do in theological education circles. Most frequently, we
trace the interest in globalization back to the late 1970¹s, just
as globalization itself is traced back to the early 1960¹s in
business and education, or to the League of Nations in politics.
However, I think that blinds us to those ³world² perspectives
we are hearing from the southern hemisphere. Globalization is
a phenomenon much larger than theological education‹something
we all know, but tend to forget. It is larger than the
phenomenon of religion, although religion plays an important
role in it.[1]
CONTEXTUALIZATION FROM A WORLD PERSPECTIVE
Page 6 WOCATI News
To aid in this, I want to make a rough adaption of
Immanuel Wallerstein¹s world-system theory as a basis for
understanding globalization.[2] I am proposing that globalization
(as seen from the point of view of theological education)
has gone through three stages. Each of these stages is shaped
by larger developments that serve as the carrier of these
developments; i.e., they form a frame of reference for which
societies of that time articulate their reality. This articulation,
in an integrated fashion of all elements of society, creates that
phase¹s sense of universality. Religion in turn responds within
the carrier to this universality. This is its theological mode.
And this brings about certain results that reflect what, at that
phase, constitutes effective globalization.
Schemata always distort reality. But they can help us see
a bigger picture and help us raise questions about what we do,
and see relationships that may have heretofore eluded us. The
categories here of carrier, theological mode, universality and
results are meant heuristically‹not to foreclose, but to make
us think.
It should be noted too that each of the three phases
continues into those of its successors. But as we shall see, what
happens to the theological modes of the previous phases is that
they meet a different set of challenges than what they had
encountered when they were the dominant mode. The phases
should not be read in an evolutionary pattern form low to
higher, the world and the carriers of those conditions. Let us
turn to this long view of globalization.
1. First Phase: 1492-1945: Expansion and the building of
empires.
The first phase has its period of dominance from the
European voyages of exploration down to the conclusion of the
Second World War. It is a time of European expansion and the
creation of new European territorial space on the other continents
of the world. The carrier of this phase of globalization
is an image of expansion and establishment of political power
over wide areas of the world‹empire. The mode of universality
giving justification or credence to this expansion is the
concept of civilization that is invoked. In the early stage, the
peoples encountered are seen as either animal or demonic; in
a later stage, as not fully evolved. [3]
On the religious side, we see a concomitant development,
reflecting the envelope of the carrier in which it acts, and the
universality in which it works out its own understanding of
globalization. Images of expansion of the Church, of a plantatio
ecclesiae come to the fore. There is a sudden interest in
worldwide evangelization (first among Roman Catholics in
Spain and Portugal; later among churches of the Reformation
as England and the Netherlands become worldwide powers).
The theological mode responding to this is world mission,
understood as saving souls and extending the Church. The
results, by the height of European empire building in the
nineteenth century, is a worldwide missionary movement.
Globalization, at this point, means extending the message of
Christ and his church throughout the whole world.
2. Second Phase: 1945-1989: Accompaniment, Dialogue,
Solidarity.
The Second World War finished what the First World War
began: the dissolution of the overseas empires of Europe.
From the late 1940¹s into the 1960¹s, region after region was
given independence (at least ³flag² independence) and it
looked as though the shackles of colonialism would be cast off.
There was an optimism about a new world at that time, fueled
by economic expansion in the North and a discourse of ³development²
of the newly formed nations. All of this presaged a
new kind of world. The carrier of this second phase was
decolonialization, independence and economic optimism. The
mode of universality was optimism about overcoming the evils
of the past.
On the religious side, Reformation churches found themselves
overcoming their old antagonisms (partially as a result
of the student missionary movement and the experience of
Resistance in Europe during the Second World War), and
started coming together. The Roman Catholic Church abandoned
at the official level its fortress mentality against the
modern world and embraced that same modernity in the
Second Vatican Council. Both of these Western embodiments
of Christianity found themselves welcoming a new partnership
with the churches of the South. The shift into the new phase
called into question the dominant universalities of the previous
phase. What ³mission² meant came under close scrutiny.
Meanwhile, many Catholics and Protestants continued to
practice mission more or less as they had in the previous phase,
while others sought modifications, and still others called for
the outright abandonment of mission.
The response toward ecumenism, the ambivalence toward
mission, and a new attention to the churches of the South was
developed in the carrier envelope of decolonialization, independence
and optimism. The theological modes that emerged
were those of solidarity, dialogue, and accompaniment. Solidarity
bespoke the new partnership that led to a sense of
mutuality and commitment to the churches on the churches¹
own terms; it gave birth to liberation theologies. Dialogue was
a reaction to the evangelizing mode of the first phase, and
emphasized respect for the other and left the possibility of
conversion deliberately vague. Accompaniment was meant to
overcome the hegemonic patterns of leadership from the
colonial period, and replace them with greater mutuality. The
February 1993 Page 7
results were a new definition of globalization as ecumenical
cooperation, interreligious dialogue, and the struggle for justice.
These were all couched in the optimistic universality of
the 1960¹s that the world¹s problems could be overcome. The
tension between mission and these latter three went largely
unresolved, and for many there was a clear divide between
mission, on the one hand, and ecumenism, dialogue and justice
on the other. Many, however, struggled to create a new
synthesis. Globalization came to embrace all four by the
1980¹s.
3. Third Phase: 1989 - : Between the Global and the Local.
Paul Tillich and others said that the twentieth century
began in August, 1914 with the outbreak of the Great War. It
could equally be said that it ended with the fall of the Berlin
Wall. But the conditions leading up to that political event were
also shaping a larger understanding of what sometimes is
called the postmodern world. It was 1973, the date of the
OPEC oil embargo, which is often given as the date when
economic power and the concomitant modes of production
began to shift. New technologies, especially in communications,
marked a move away from largely industrial economies
to economies involved more in the flow of information, technologies,
goods and services. Just when the South was struggling
to attain nation-states, these states were becoming more
and more superfluous as information and capital drew their
own map of the world‹one beyond the eighteenth century
ideal of the nation-state.
The carrier of this new postmodern reality is a new global
capitalism. As was noted earlier, the defeat of socialism left no
alternative. But the liberal capitalism that had been seen as the
implacable foe of Marxist socialism has largely disappeared
now into a new form of capitalism that emphasizes the mobility
of capital, information and resources rather than the building
of large industrial bases. While often having a clear national
identity of origin (Japanese, American, German), it in effect
moves wherever it needs to in order to achieve its short-range
goals. Because profit margins have narrowed since the 1960¹s,
the temptation is to get the short-term profit rather than wait for
a long-term return. [4] This global capitalism is characterized
by postnationalism, a communication system built on network
rather than hierarchy, a multicentered view of the world, and a
tendency to operate in the short term. While it brings untold
new wealth to some, it also breeds asymmetries, conflict, and
a sense of no alternatives for those not included in the flow of
its information, technology, capital and goods.
Its mode of universality is the new global culture, characterized
by American cola drinks, athletic and casual clothing,
and American movie and television entertainment. It is a
culture sent virtually everywhere, but received in considerably
different fashions. For example, ³Dynasty² is watched differently
in Lagos than in Los Angeles; studies have shown that
Canadians see the resolutions of disputes in ³All in the Family²
differently from the Dutch (Archie tends to be the winner in
Canada, while Edith, Gloria and Meathead triumph in the
Netherlands). The universality is both real and unreal at the
same time. It is real inasmuch as it is found everywhere; it is
unreal in that what it signifies means different things in the
reception of the local culture.
What becomes the theological mode of the third phase of
globalization? Discussions of the meaning of mission continue.
Worries about the stagnation of ecumenism; the possibility
of genuine dialogue with the religiously other and a
theology of religions; and speculation about the future of
liberation theology in a no-alternative world bespeak the fact
that even as we have moved into a new phase, the previously
dominant modes continue with us. After all, most Christians
still feel the need to spread the Gospel, overcome the scandalous
divisions in the body of Christ, understand other religious
traditions better, and struggle for justice. But the optimism that
marked those earlier discussions has been replaced by a sobered
realism (the attitude of the postmodern phase). Can a
new mode be identified?
I would suggest that the new mode will involve bridgebuilding,
finding symbols of hope, and seeking paths of reconciliation.
In other words, the barriers in the third phase are not
between Empire and colony, or between older and younger
church, but rather they are barriers that run helter-skelter
through our communities, created by attempts to hold the
global and the local in critical correlation. Even to phrase it as
between North and South is too simple, since the South lives
in the North and the North in the South. We need to find the
cracks yawning in our midst where the global and the local fail
to connect. We need to seek symbols of hope in a world that
seems less and less able to hold out opportunities for another
vision. Our hope is not the optimistic hope of the 1960¹s; it is
a tempered, more sobered hope, but a hope nonetheless.
Likewise, in the tensions and conflicts that emerge, we need to
seek paths of reconciliation lest an ecologically threatened
earth fracture altogether. There are many false paths of
reconciliation, to be sure. But in an ever violent world where
the majority suffer, reconciliation‹the discovery of the gift of
true humanity‹is something we cannot disdain to seek. [5]
Page 8 WOCATI News
Globalization in this third phase, then, becomes a quest for
the bridges between the global and the local. The global has
changed; its economic face appears to be even less benign than
in the recent past. This has prompted new expressions of the
local‹the eruptions in Central Asia and in Eastern Europe, the
resurgence of native pride in the Americas, but also the
rootlessness of much of affluent North America and Western
Europe. How shall the global and the local be configured to one
another, within communities and across continents? How shall
prophetic challenge be maintained? If the hypothesis about the
yoking together of the global and the local suggested above is
correct, this could well be the shape that globalization will take
in the ensuing period, even as we struggle to integrate the
understandings of the first and second phase.
Implications for Theological Education
Let me conclude this already too long presentation with
just a couple of suggestions about what all of this means for
theological education today. I make the suggestions in three
points and a concluding remark about vision.
If the next phase of globalization finds us between the
global and the local, we need to prepare ourselves and our
students to:
1. Understand the contextual. Especially for uprooted
peoples, for those who receive in a different way from how it
is given, and who seek ways (and it is often plural) to belong.
The world has shifted such that we can no longer presume (or
perhaps should even presume) an Archimedean point.
2. Build strong local communities. Only communities
confident of themselves and imbued with the Gospel will resist
the temptation to become enclaves or fortresses rather than the
communities Christ intends.
3. Interpret the global, both in its hegemonies‹how it
destroys human life; and in its gifts of decentralization, democratization
and local empowerment.
To carry these out in the concrete may require some axial
changes. The sin-and-forgiveness model that has dominated
Western Christianity for some many centuries may need to
give way to others. One being suggested from the South is a
death-and-life model, since that hues closer to the day-to-day
experiences of the poor of the world.
Certain biblical images have often undergirded, at least
implicitly, our understandings of globalization. In the first
phase, it was undoubtedly the Great Commission of Matthew
28:19-20. In the second phase, Luke may have
provided the key: Luke 4:16-20, in the call to solidarity and
justice; Luke 24:13-15, in the call to accompaniment.
The Scripture for this third phase may well be Ephesians
2:12-14; ³[r]emember you were at that time without Christ,
being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to
the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in
this world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off
have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our
peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has
broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between
us.²
Notes
[1] See the collection by Wade Clark Roof, World Order and
Religion (Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 1991).
[2] Immanuel Wallerstein, The Modern World-System: Capitalist
Agriculture and the Origins of the World-Capitalist
Economy in the Sixteenth Century (New York: Academic
Press, 1974) 2 vols.
[3] For a good history of this development of understandings
of the ³other² encountered, see Bernard McGrane, Beyond
Anthropology: Society and the Other (New York: Columbia
University Press, 1989).
[4] For a general description of this new form of global
capitalism, see Robert B. Reich, The Work of Nations: Preparing
Ourselves for 21st Century Capitalism (New York: Alfred
A. Knopf, 1991); for a critique of the relation between the
liberal-industrial and global capitalism, see David Harvey, The
Condition of Postmodernity (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1989).
[5] I have explored these themes of reconciliation more fully
in Reconciliation: Mission and Ministry in a Changing Social
Order (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1992).
WOCATI News
is published by
The World Conference of Associations
of Theological Institutions
10 Summit Park Drive
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15275-1103, USA
Officers
President Yeow Choo-Lak, Singapore
Vice President Jaci Marschin, Brazil
Secretary-Treasurer Barbara Brown Zikmund, USA
February 1993 Page 9
WOMEN IN THEOLOGICAL EDUCATION
by Maryanne Confoy, Yarra Theological Union, Victoria, Australia
Australian New Zealand Asssociation of Theological Schools (ANZATS)
My first response is to acknowledge the priority that
WOCATI has given to women in theological education by
requiring that women be given equal representation from each
region. This requirement has resulted in my presence in this
conference. Thank you!
In addressing the question as proposed: What are the most
significant factors, conditions, forces, or developments that
either positively or negatively affect the role and status of
women in theological education? my immediate reaction is
that women are not concerned with their role or status. What
is of primary consideration for women is the significance of our
contribution to the task of theological education.
One obvious fruit that we would hope for from our
contribution to this panel is that there might be a greater
awareness of the distinctive insights that women¹s scholarship
offers to the world of Christian theology. An example of
women¹s influence is in regard to methodology. In order to
prepare for this panel, we gathered together with other women
here, all of whom were prepared to share their insights.
Although the daily schedule was crowded, they were still
willing to give their free time to this purpose. We also chose a
different physical setting, because we believe that every aspect
of the experiene of learning is significant. So we chose to
arrange the group in a circle and to try to operate in a conversational
manner rather than for each to offer her own isolated
insights.
Conversion seems more linked to conversation than to
dogmatic statement. So, collegiality and collaboration are
characteristics of the way women engage in theology as a
community of searchers. Independent and privatised learning
are not characteristic of women¹s way of knowing--whatever
the discipline may be. Concrete examples of this can be seen in
a number of women¹s theological books, but particularly in the
book edited by Mercy Amba Oduyoye and Musimbi Kanyoro,
The Will to Arise: Women, Tradition and the Church in Africa.
This book is the outcome of a meeting with African women
theologians, their sharing about ³the life and dreams, the
sorrows and joys of African women in a continent where
religion shapes the whole of life.²
While men describe the spiritual life in terms of the ³quest
for the Grail,² with all the individuality of such a personal quest
as a consequence, women are meeting in groups, such as that
of the African women, addressing issues related to bonding in
community. The relational aspects of the faith experience are
of greater significance to women than the achievements of the
individual. The group is the focus of consideration rather than
one¹s own personalised efforts and accomplishments. Women
are listening with attentiveness to each other, and the bonding
goes beyond boundaries and ideological differences to deeper
areas of woman¹s consciousness.
Among the most critical contributions of women¹s theology
to the Christian world is its reclaiming of the body.
Women¹s theology is an embodied spirituality. Much of the
Christian heritage describes people at war with their bodies.
Women then become the enemy in men¹s struggle to address
their sexuality in the spiritual life. At best men are ambivalent
towards women, in fact if not in theory. The Christian tradition
gives classic examples of this ambivalence, in both theory and
practice. Women are usually either idealised by men, or seen
as a source of temptation.
Women are concerned to befriend their bodies, to be more
in tune with them. Their concern is to integrate an embodied
spirituality, rather than to accept the dualistic heritage that has
been theirs. So women¹s theology is rich in imagery and
language that affirms the wholeness of humanity. Metaphors
that celebrate birth, the feminine experience, and the life of
passion and compassion abound in women¹s writing. Desire is
seen as an important aspect in theological writing, as thirst for
God takes shape within the affective dimension rather than the
exclusively rational domain.
With a greater appreciation of the feminine, new images
and metaphors for God are being generated. This is not simply
an awareness of God as mother, but there is an increasing
appreciation of a wide range of biblical descriptions of the
attributes of God which transcend some of the more limiting
depictions handed on by nineteenth-century spirituality.
New insights on sin and grace are resulting from women¹s
reflection on their own experiences. After listening for years to
sermons on pride as a primary source of sinfulness, women are
beginning to realise that a far greater problem for them is selfeffacement
‹self-forgetfulness‹because they are so oriented
towards the needs of others. As women and men dialogue
about their human experience a deeper awareness of the
diverse aspects of their Christian spirituality will be a consequence.
The resulting insights will enrich the faith journeys of
women and men of all ages and backgrounds.
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As women and men become more sensitised to their
attitudes to those who are ³other² they become more fully
human. Women have been ³other² in a male-normative culture
which has been oppressive to women as other, but also to those
men who did not fit the norm as prescribed by their culture. The
gift of women to the endeavour to become more fully human,
more fully ³alive in Christ² is in raising people¹s awareness to
inner prejudices and bias for whatever cause: sex, race, age,
social status, or lifestyle. A Christian theology which arises out
of this heightened sensitivity will be more authentically
incarnational. The reduction of theology to a system of thought
which maintains an oppressive status quo has hindered the
Christian churches for far too long. Exclusiveness and elitism
within Christianity are always an aberration.
Finally, women¹s theologising is focused on the future.
While Christian feminist theology has its roots in its heritage,
it is not confined to the past. It reaches to the source of light and
life. It affirms the future in faith, hope and in a loving embrace
of humanity and the cosmos. Women and men are presently
working together in creative ways as they respond to the
challenges of the future in a world that is often described as
paralysed by fears of nuclear catastrophe. The collaborative
efforts of women and men who include an authentic feminine
as a basis of their theological praxis give witness to a vital
affirmation of covenantal promise. Institutional churches will
ignore these future-oriented theological activities at their own
peril. They may find themselves reduced to the circumstances
of a museum of treasures from the past with little to say to the
future, or to the identity of a ³dinosaur farm² with benevolent
creatures whose reality is not related to the present. Women
have been incredibly patient in the past; they are now realising
that they have a serious responsibility to make their own unique
contribution to a future which takes humankind and the created
world as seriously as their God intended them to take it.
This conference has acknowledged women¹s contribution
to theological education. As women we have responded with
passion and conviction about the importance of this contribution;
we offer our support and invite WOCATI to continue
these efforts in the transformation of our world.
Good and gracious God, we offer thanksgiving for women
in the life and tradition of the churches.
We remember the women at the foot of the cross and at the
Easter tomb.
We are thankful that they did not flee with the
other disciples, that they came to care for Jesus
without knowing who would roll the stone away.
We remember the women in the early church who spoke up
when it was not expected of women.
We are thankful that they refused to remain silent,
that they reminded the young church that there is
neither slave nor free, male nor female‹
but that all are one in Christ Jesus.
We remember the women who founded religious orders to
enable women to serve and pray in the church unlimited by
male powers and rules.
We are thankful that they found their way to teach
and heal the young and the poor in need of your
grace. We will never know all that they have
done‹but we rest in the fact that your wisdom
guides and sustains faithful living.
We remember the women who have challenged authorities
and principalities in the name of your Holy Spirit.
We are thankful for their courage even when they
were burned at the stake, tortured as witches and
otherwise discounted by those who feared their
wisdom.
We remember the women who enroll in formal educational
programs where they are not welcomed.
We are thankful that these women call us to
redefine theological education
to expand old patterns with the rich stories
of women
to change past practices with the methods
of women
to explore the possibility that you, our
God, are doing a new thing.
Thank you God
-open us to grow and lead your institutions and associations
in new paths
-remind us that we dare not rest until all of your servants,
your young men and your young women,
can see visions and prophesy in your name.
Praise be to you our God. Amen.
Barbara Brown Zikmund, USA
PRAYER FOR WOMEN OFFERED AT
CONGRESS 1992
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February 1993 Page 11
NEW WOCATI EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETS IN SWITZERLAND
€ involving coordination with ETE and its consultations/
work.
€ taking a particular case and writing it up to illustrate the
issue.
2. December 1993
Draft documents sent to the secretary-treasurer
3. April 1994 an expanded Executive Committee meets
for a week with working groups:
€ to refine/rewrite the papers with representatives
from member associations (approx. 8-10 additional
people).
€ to do preliminary planning for the CONGRESS 1996
decide on how formal invitations will be extended and
request that member associations select delegates to
participate in the discussion process.
Not all associations will have representatives on the working
groups, but all associations will be contacted in the process.
All associations will be invited to contribute ideas through the
newsletter. During the plenary sessions in April 1994 all
members of the working groups will have opportunity to
comment on all of the papers, not merely on the one on which
s/he is working. If all of the suggested persons participate in
the April 1994 meeting there will be 9 women (including the
secretary-treasurer who does not serve on any particular group)
and 11 men (assuming that the unnamed representatives are
male). Working group members were selected from the
nominations sent in by associations. Associations which did
not submit names are not as well represented on the working
groups.
4. June - July 1994 final preparation of all four papers and
printing of the ³discussion document.²
5. August 1994 - June 1996 the ³discussion document² is
circulated to the member associations. Delegates
anticipating attending CONGRESS 1996 collect responses
from individuals, institutions and associations.
6. June/July 1995 Executive Committee meets for three
days to do more detailed planning of CONGRESS
1996.
7. June 29 - July 4, 1996 CONGRESS 1996 meets in
Nairobi, Kenya with the theme ³Partnership in Theological
Education.²
The newly elected Executive Committee met November
27-29, 1992 at Chateau de Bossey, Switzerland. The members
present were: Yeow Choo-Lak, President (Singapore); Jaci
Maraschin, Vice President (Brazil); Barbara Brown Zikmund,
Secretary-Treasurer (USA); and at large members Teresia
Hinga (Kenya), Diane Jagdeo (Trinidad), Ian Williams (Australia).
Heather Walton (UK) was unable to attend. Consultants
from the WCC unit on Ecumenical Theological Education
(Jacques Nicole and John Pobee) were present for some
sessions.
The Committee evaluated the CONGRESS 1992 (Pittsburgh),
clarifying the use of the words ³conference² and
³congress.² The organization WOCATI is called a ³conference.²
It is an association of associations. However, when
WOCATI convenes representatives of the associations in a
meeting every four years, that gathering is called a ³congress.²
CONGRESS 1996
The Committee has determined that CONGRESS 1996
will be held in Nairobi, Kenya. Efforts will be made to prepare
and circulate working papers to all member associations well
before CONGRESS 1996 so that delegates will be able to come
to CONGRESS 1996 representing the opinions, concerns and
decisions of their associations.
Limited funds will make it difficult for all of the proposed
committees of WOCATI to meet before 1996. Therefore, it
was agreed that the Executive Committee will play a very
direct role in the preparation of four ³working papers² dealing
with issues originally assigned to committees. The schedule
and assignments are as follows:
1. Nov 1992 - January 1994 Preparation
Maraschin Academic credentials
Hinga Women in theological education
Jagdeo Influence of cultures on theological
education
Williams Scholarship and research in theological
education
Different methods may be used:
€ having one or two people develop papers, or write
parts of a larger paper.
€ asking one or two associations to work on the issue
(this might involve visiting the association in person).
€ using the contact with other associations to promote
membership and ownership of WOCATI.
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WOCATI Administration
The Executive Committee discussed the administration of
WOCATI and its relationship to ATS. It was concluded that
there is no immediate need for an Executive Secretary, or for
special office space in Pittsburgh. The elected secretarytreasurer,
who is from ATS, can get needed support through
ATS office staff and volunteers. It was agreed, however, that
because of this important relationship to ATS, Jim Waits,
Executive Director of ATS, should attend WOCATI Executive
Committee meetings as an Advisor.
It was agreed that the Executive Committee meetings will
involve:
€ Three officers and four members at large.
€ Three representative ³consultants²
1) from WCC - Ecumenical Theological Education.
2) from the Vatican/Roman Catholic theological
education office.
3) from ICAA.
€ Two ³advisors²
1) James Waits (to assist WOCATI in relation to
financial resources).
2) Petros Vassiliadis (to assist WOCATI in its
relationships to Orthodox theological education).
It is understood that WOCATI will pay the expenses for
the attendance of the ICAA representative and the Orthodox
advisor. All others will come to the meetings at their own
expense, unless arrangements for expenses are negotiated with
the secretary-treasurer before the meeting. Members of the
working groups asked to come to the April 1994 meetings will
have their expenses covered by WOCATI.
It was agreed that only the names of the Executive Committee
will appear on the stationery. The official mailing
address of WOCATI will be the home association of the
secretary-treasurer. In this case it will be 10 Summit Drive,
Pittsburgh, PA 15275-1103 USA.
Finances
The Executive Committee recognizes that the future of
WOCATI can never be self-supporting through dues. The
Executive Committee further recognizes that more diversified
funding sources (beyond the USA) need to be found to ensure
the existence of WOCATI after CONGRESS 1996. Therefore
a small Financial Resources Committee was created to oversee
the development of funding for WOCATI. Two types of
funding will be sought: (1) ongoing WOCATI maintenance
funding, and (2) special travel funding to get specific individuals
or association representatives to meetings. Strategic planning
will be done to approach the appropriate sources for both
types of funding. At present grants to WOCATI from the Lilly
Endowment Inc., the Luce Foundation and The Pew Charitable
Trusts provide adequate funding through 1996.
It was agreed that WOCATI will open a Citibank account
in New York, NY (USA). Many major banks throughout the
world can transfer funds into and out of such accounts. This
account will serve as a clearinghouse for WOCATI, receiving
dues and paying reimbursements. The business officer of ATS
will continue to handle daily accounts and keep the records.
WOCATI News
WOCATI will publish a newsletter once or twice a year.
The editor will be the secretary-treasurer and it will be called
the WOCATI NEWS. ATS will assist in the design, production
and mailing of WOCATI NEWS as an in-kind contribution.
WOCATI will cover direct costs (printing and mailing).
The newsletter will list the names of member associations,
showing which associations have paid dues ³at the time of
printing.² This practice will apply subtle pressure on associations
to pay dues. Where there are real currency/exchange
problems, however, member associations will not be embarrassed.
The entire newsletter will be printed in English. Although
printing some articles in other languages might be
convenient to some of the membership, it is impossible to do
that without offending others. It is more equitable to print all
of the newsletter in English.
The best distribution system is to mail the newsletter
directly to all institutions which belong to member associations.
If an association supplies WOCATI with addresses for
member institutions the newsletter will be mailed directly.
Otherwise bulk mail packets of 20-25 copies will be mailed to
each member association for distribution regionally.
Barbara Brown Zikmund, Secretary-Treasurer, USA
NOTICE TO ASSOCIATIONS
We will be happy to mail copies of WOCATI News
directly to each of your member institutions if you will
send the addresses to: WOCATI News, 10 Summit Park
Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15275-1103, USA.
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