I had already been working in higher education for 15 years when I joined the faculty of General Seminary. I had taught in the classroom and online, steered faculty meetings, written and researched widely, and served on many academic committees. I came to General as a lay academic theologian (and working at General is one of the reasons I discerned ordination, though that’s a story for another time), and while I had led my share of services of spoken morning or evening prayer, I had never once led a sung service. It’s not that I’m a bad singer; I’ve always loved singing in choirs - it’s just, I’m not a soloist and the idea of standing in a room full of people belting out, unaccompanied, “Lord, open our lips”, was my idea of torture.

This past Tuesday, Morning Prayer was beautifully led by Lynn Markova (who in addition to pursuing an MDiv in GTS’s hybrid MDiv program also holds a Music Degree from the University of Washington). She led prayerfully, but with confidence and ease. I’m thankful for her ministry among us!

When I was first officiating sung services, however, I led with neither confidence nor ease. In fact, I remember one particularly forthright trustee (who has now since become a friend) telling me after a service, “You know, Michael, it’s OK to look like you enjoy worship when you’re leading it.” I didn’t mean to look somber or ticked-off, but I’ve been told that I can come across as pretty severe when I’m feeling stressed or afraid - which I was early one when I was first officiating services in the Chapel of the Good Shepherd.

Sometimes learning to enjoy officiating happens through repeated practice - eventually an officiant crosses that threshold from leading a service to praying the service. At other times, the Daily Office helps to break the tension for us! On Tuesday, returning Hybrid MDiv student Julia Madden read the second lesson from Acts 26, which begins with Festus’s retort to Paul: “You are out of your mind, Paul! Too much learning has driven you insane!” (Acts 26.24). As you can imagine, a group of Seminarians (and faculty!) were able to relate to Festus and responded with peels of laughter.

Students in General’s hybrid MDiv program are formed in so many different ways. We continue to form them in the Chapel of the Good Shepherd (where we pray, learn, and laugh together - just like we did today!), as well as in their ministry contexts around the country. This is something of what it means for General to have both a Benedectine and a Contextual ethos. We have a Benedictine ethos insofar as we share a common life shaped by prayer and service. We have a Contextual ethos inasmuch as seasons of common prayer and study on the Close are punctuated when students are sent back “out of the gates” to their home ministry contexts, fed, nourished, and empowered.

Dean Michael