Dear alumni/ae and friends,
Many members of the Divinity Faculty head to the joint American Academy of Religion - Society of Biblical Literature annual meeting that takes place right before Thanksgiving every year. And while most of us also attend additional conferences and academic gatherings throughout the year, the AAR is the largest scholarly society dedicated to the academic study of religion. And the SBL is the oldest and largest learned society devoted to the critical investigation of the Bible from a variety of academic disciplines. Several thousand people gather yearly as members of these two esteemed societies.
While juggling days of panels, lectures, and meetings, we connect with colleagues across the country, including many of our alumni serving at academic institutions. We share our concerns, particularly about the humanities and higher education. We share our joys: graduating students; doctoral students who are finally defending; and newly published books and articles. Those few days at AAR-SBL have a rejuvenating effect on those of us who attend. Exhibit halls are filled with the latest scholarship. Meetings with book editors push us to finish our manuscripts. We are reminded that our community exists in relationship with other academic units across the country. Our thriving is connected to the flourishing of all of higher education.
As VDS continues to engage in theological inquiry, prepare professionals for the practice of ministry and public leadership, and educate future scholars and teachers, it is at conferences like AAR-SBL that we are reminded of our important role in the wider profession. Our programs, degrees, and curricula continue to meet crucial needs in an ever-shifting, ever-evolving higher education landscape.
Best,
Yolanda Pierce, Ph.D.
Dean
University Distinguished Professor of Religion & Literature
University Distinguished Professor of African American and Diaspora Studies
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Lora Andrews, MDiv’14, and Carter Ellis, MDiv’13, are featured in this Washington Post article about Roots, their Kansas City UMC. Roots creates a spiritual home for young LGBTQ+ congregants and people of color, centering their experiences and acknowledging past harms of the church. Andrews and Ellis have also been engaged in advocacy, including efforts to advance LGBTQIA+ policy changes in the United Methodist Church, where Ellis served as a delegate to the 2024 General Conference.
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The Vanderbilt Divinity School community gathers each week for Wednesday Worship Service, affirming religious traditions which nurture faith and practice, as well as those practices which support curiosity and doubt.
Recent services have included one led by Bishop William T. McAlilly, our Bishop-in-Residence, with Communion in the United Methodist tradition, as well as an All Saints’ and All Souls’ service led by the "Introduction to Christian Worship" class, where the community remembered alumni and loved ones who have passed.
Learn more about our Weekly Worship here.
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Professor Lisa L. Thompson was recently featured on an episode of NewsChannel 5's "Issues of Faith," discussing gratitude, community, and noticing simple beauties of life.
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Divinity School student Niambi McLaurin, MLS, won the 2025 Theological Librarianship student essay contest. Her essay, “Research as Play: Womanist Theology and the Liberation of Library Research,” was published in the most recent issue of Theological Librarianship. This essay explores how a womanist theology of play can reimagine librarianship as a sacred, generative, and embodied practice, drawing on the author’s experiences in both librarianship and divinity school.
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Rev. Seulbin Lee, MDiv, a doctoral candidate in Christian Ethics at Vanderbilt’s Graduate Department of Religion, has been awarded the 2025 Dissertation Fellowship from the Louisville Institute, which supports innovative research that strengthens the life of the church and its engagement with the world. Her project also received the 2025 Provost’s Pathbreaking Discovery Award in recognition of exceptional research.
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Vanderbilt Divinity School welcomed alumni and community members back to campus for our 150th reunion. It was a meaningful time to reconnect, celebrate the school’s history, and enjoy being together as a community. Explore the reunion highlights in photos below.
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During the 2025 Divinity School Reunion, "Sacred Pages: A VDS Book Showcase" featured recent books by alumni and faculty, now available in an online collection.
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