An Exhortation to Ministry
Elder Charles Sandefur, President of the Mid-America Union of Seventh-day Adventists at the InMinistry Banquet, June 29, 2001

At the InMinistry banquet on Friday, June 29 (see the InMinistry Orientation Gallery for pictures), InMinistry students and staff members were treated to a heartfelt exhortation to the tasks and craft of pastoral ministry. The exhortation, delivered by Elder Charles Sandefur, President of the Mid-America Union of Seventh-day Adventists, included the following stirring citation from, of all places, Moby Dick.

"'Woe to him whom this world charms from Gospel duty! Woe to him who seeks to pour oil upon the waters when God has brewed them into a gale! Woe to him who seeks to please rather than to appall! Woe to him whose good name is more to him than goodness! Woe to him who, in this world, courts not dishonor! Woe to him who would not be true, even though to be false were salvation! Yea, woe to him who, as the great Pilot Paul has it, while preaching to others is himself a castaway!'"

-- Father Mapple in Moby Dick

We have begun!

On Friday, June 29, a group of hale and hardy pioneers--nine pastors--assembled on the campus of Andrews University as the first cohort of students in the new InMinistry delivery system for the Master of Divinity program. During the two-week orientation they will learn essential information about the new delivery system, participate in their first course, and fellowship together in a variety of settings.

Thanks to the ministry of Pastor & MDiv student Maury Castro, the nine pioneers are experiencing a well organized orientation including an opening banquet, special events over the Sabbath, recreation, and an all-day outing to Chicago.

If you would like to learn more about the InMinistry Delivery System, we would encourage you to:

• Explore the InMinistry Web Site (a more professional version is "in the works") and read the "documents" listed under the documents tab there
• Read the cover story in the June 28, 2001 Adventist Review, "The Making of a Pastor, 2001" by Bill Knott (which is available on-line)
• Enjoy the additional pictures below and in the full InMinistry Orientation Gallery

Thank you to all who are helping to make the orientation and initial class a success.

July Conferences
There's still a little time left to sign up for one of two fine conferences offered in July. Here is the essential information:

Dr. Raoul Dederen

Dr. Dederen, Professor of Theology, Emeritus, regularly teaches a Sabbath School class which is meeting in the Science Complex during the construction of the Seminary Building. InMinistry students had the privilege of participating in his Sabbath School class on Sabbath, June 30, and of watching this master teacher at work. Dr. Dederen served in a variety of roles at the Seminary including chair of the Theology and Christian Philosophy Department, Associate Dean, and Dean. In retirement he continues to teach on occasion and to direct dissertations (See the story of one recent defense by one of Dr. Dederen's PhD students). His continuing, prayerful interest in the Seminary and its ministry is an inspiration to us all. We are certain that the following sequence of pictures will bring satisfying memories to the minds of alumni readers of The Moving Times who had the privilege of sitting in Dr. Dederen's classes.

If you have been looking for a way to contribute to the construction of the new Seminary building, here is a great suggestion for you--participate in the "brick campaign."

With the Seminary building nearing completion, it will soon be time for the grounds surrounding the new complex to undergo a metamorphosis.

We invite you to join other alumni and friends in investing in the Seminary Entrance Terrace, a beautiful walkway of bricks and pavers near the south doors of the new building.
Your name--or the name of someone you would like to honor--will be engraved on one of the bricks or pavers
to become a lasting legacy.

All order forms and contributions must be received by Dec. 31, 2001. Your donation is tax deductible, less the value of the brick or paver.

Click here for more detailed information and to submit the information for your brick or paver. If you have any question, please feel free to contact Mary Nell Rosenboom at 1.800.253.2874 ext. 3592.

David Merling and Paul Ray, from the Old Testament Department and the Institute of Archaeology, led a study tour of Syria and Turkey from May 27-June 18. Participating in the tour were Robert Bates, Efrain Velazquez, Alexandru Breja and Gregory Arutyunyan; four Ph.D. students. Each of these students has a major or cognate in archaeology and the history of antiquity.

The study group visited various archaeological sites important for understanding the ancient world (Qadesh on the Orontes, Charchemish, Troy, the Cilician Gates, Alaça Höyük and Kanish/Karum) and biblical history (Aleppo, Antioch, Damascus, Ephesus, Haran, Troas, and Tarsus). At several of the sites (Ugarit, Ebla, Mari, Hattusa [Bogaskoy], Alalakh, Sultan Tepe and Edessa, [Urfa]) archives of cuneiform tablets or ancient manuscripts have been found which shed light on Bible backgrounds. Five of the seven churches (Laodicea, Ephesus, Sardis, Thyatira and Pergamum) of the book of Revelation were visited, as well as well as Colossae (of the book of Colossians), Hierapolis (also mentioned in Colossians 4:13) and Iconium (Konya). A few sites connected with church history (Dura Europus, Palmrya, Krak Castle and Istanbul) were also visited.

Can you imagine adopting 400 sons and daughters into your family? Or how about just hosting them for a ten-month visit?

From August, 2000 through May, 2001, the Pioneer Memorial Seventh-day Adventist Church did just that--adopted the Seminary's 400 students and hosted them in the church facility. Making use of eight different spaces as makeshift classrooms, Seminary students and faculty found a home at PMC. And they found a warm and caring reception.

We express our heartfelt thanks to PMC and to its peerless staff for such a notable feat of hospitality and grace.