The Wesley Journal

Bethany Printup-Davis based her reflections around the recently-released First Nations Version: A New Testament in English translated by Native North Americans for Native North Americans and all English-Speaking people. We at the Journal highly recommend reading and supporting the First Nations Version (their website can be found here ). Bethany has offered this note of explanation on the translation: By tradition, First Nations people are oral storytellers. The FNV is a retelling of the Creator’s Story—the Scriptures—following the tradition of the storytellers of these oral cultures. Many First Nations tribes still resonate with the cultural and linguistic thought patterns found in their original tongues. This way of speaking with its simple yet profound beauty and rich cultural idioms still resonates in the hearts of First Nations people. This project was birthed out of a desire to provide an English Bible that connects, in a culturally sensitive way, the traditional heart languag...

Photo by Kelly Drury The ribbons that have weaved through all the previous windows find themselves wrapped in on each other in this last window in the sequence, curling around the pulpit on the right of the window and challenging scientific imagery on the left. When these windows were designed in the 1950s, the world was reeling from the astounding technological advancements made through the power of science: atomic power and the atomic bomb, rockets and missiles, and the earliest satellites. It is a particular moment, preserved in glass, reminding the seminarian that he must attend to every facet of his education diligently in order to be able to preach in the complicated, conflicted world outside of the seminary, facets that are depicted in the other windows as almost being woven into the DNA of a pastor. Of course, the world today looks a little different. It is not expected that the seminarian be a he, nor is it expected that they be destined to be a pastor in a parish. Wesle...

The windows of Oxnam Chapel, where we gather to worship at Wesley, are one of the chapel’s most beautiful features. Each window has its own unique meaning, and, together, the windows tell us something about our faith and about what those who designed our chapel hoped and prayed for our community when they designed the space in which we worship. One set of those windows – the widows that run along the upper wall of the Nave give us particular insight into what kind of community our founders hoped that we would be. Each of these windows evokes an image from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: Put on the whole armor of God … so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able ...

With the cross before us and gazing upward to the timbered ceiling of Oxnam Chapel, one may notice the stained-glass windows along the upper left wall. Across the multi-colored panes are symbols corresponding to excerpts from the famous exhortation to “be strong in the Lord and the strength of his power,” which can be found in what we call chapter six of the letter to the Ephesians. Our focus here is the third to last pane, which features the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit. Photo by Kelly Drury What does it mean to put on the helmet of salvation, and what did the Ephesian church interpret salvation to mean? Is salvation something that one “puts on”? More importantly, how should followers of Jesus interpret this military imagery today, in light of the appalling $1.7 trillion spent on arms in 2017 alone, the global refugee crisis stemming from armed conflicts and human rights abuses, and police brutality? The Ephesians would have been familiar with military parapher...

Photo by Kelly Drury Although we are now more than a few weeks into the fall semester, it is never too late to say welcome to the 2018-19 school year! This welcome is also to myself as I begin this journey as academic dean with you at Wesley Seminary. I moved from Austin, Texas on July 1st where I served on the faculty of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and taught in the areas of mission, evangelism, and Methodist studies. Previously I have served on the faculty at Perkins School of Theology, Pfeiffer University, and the Methodist Seminary in Mexico City where I served as a missionary. Since my arrival here I have enjoyed the warm words of welcome from faculty, staff, and students. My wife and I are also enjoying the natural beauty, history and culture of the DC area. Wesley is a wonderful seminary community, and I really appreciate its diversity, commitment to excellence, and the service of the church and world. The Wesley faculty, staff, and students come from different ...

Oftentimes, I find myself sitting in the chapel at Wesley. Most times it is for the weekly Tuesday chapel service or Plumbline’s monthly Motivational Monday service. However, there are times when I come to the chapel when it is empty, when the lights are off, and my spirit is heavy. It is during those times I find myself staring into the nothingness and thinking about whatever issue is weighing me down that day. During one of these moments of quiet, I looked around and finally realized that there was a story depicted in the stained glass windows. It’s a familiar story found in Ephesians 6:10-18. Paul is teaching the believers in Ephesus rules and regulations and how to live with our neighbors in the image of Christ and with the strength of the Lord. Paul goes on to teach that the enemy comes and attacks, so we must be ready by being prepared with truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation. He delivers these points by using the analogy of the armor of a soldier. The enemy we ...

(10) Last of all, I must remind you that we are all fighting in a spiritual battle. We are weak human beings , so let your strength come from our Great Warrior Chief. (11)The only way to stand strong against the war plans of the evil trickster is to put on Creator’s war garments. (12) But remember , we are not fighting against human beings. Our battle is against the evil rulers, the dark powers, and the spiritual forces of the unseen world above and around us. (13) Once you are fully dressed for this war, you will be able to stand your ground in this day of the enemy’s rule. You are now ready to make your stand—so stand strong. (14) Wrap the sash of truth around your waist, cover your heart with the breastplate of making wrongs right again, (15) and put on your feet the moccasins of Creator’s peace treaty , so you will always be ready to tell the Good Story as you walk the road of life . (16) Then you must raise high the shield of trusting in Creator; this will put out the flamin...

Greetings Wesley Community, I pray your studies are going well and that you are making the most of your seminary experience. There are a number of ways you can maximize your experience outside the classroom, especially through student council and other student organizations. To facilitate this, my goal for Student Council this year is to focus on building collaboration and community among all members and organizations within Wesley by cultivating enthusiasm toward productive and engaging activities, fellowship, discussion, and initiatives. In an effort to accomplish this goal I, along with the Executive Board of Student Council, have launched the I See You Initiative. We want every student on this campus to know that we acknowledge your value and worth as one of God’s creations and as a contributor to the well-being of our community. You may have felt the initial spark of the I See You Initiative if you attended Orientation in August when Student Council and the student...

A new school year is well underway here at Wesley and while Reading Week may have provided a much-needed respite for many of us, we will shortly find ourselves again seeking quiet moments of calm and opportunities for reflection between the bustle of classes, work, internships, student life, family life, and social life. Being located as we are in Washington, DC, many of us have felt the high-tension political climate that surrounds us seeping into our own stress and, being a United Methodist seminary during this time of uncertainty in the Church, we may find it difficult to find renewal in the places of worship where we serve or attend. We live in interesting times and that can make the already challenging work of theological education an overwhelming process. For this edition of the Wesley Journal, we have chosen to focus on one of the more contemplative spaces on campus, the Oxnam Chapel, and more specifically, the clerestory windows which depict the well-known Armor of God ...