Wesley Theological Seminary

If there is anywhere to be on Election Day, it’s in Washington D.C.

So how cool was it that I had the opportunity (completely unintentional!) to be in the midst of all of that while being able to make the trip to Wesley Theological Seminary.

This trip I took with one of my roommates, Erin, who is an amazing person with a passion for social justice. 

It was a whirlwind, less-than-36 hour trip and we loved every second of it!

This visit was a scheduled program called Windows on Wesley that happens every month (correct me if I’m wrong, Wesley people!) You can find the information and registration on their website here, or you can call admissions and they’ll hook you up. I usually recommend individual visits simply because you can be selfish and ask as many questions as you want and get all the attention (come on, you know it’s true) but I highly recommend that if you’re interested in Wesley that you take advantage of this program. 

Even though there were 10+ other people from Appalachia State (shout out to y’all!) and a couple other individuals, easily raising our group to 20+ people, the Wesley staff was able to take and answers questions while covering everything else, fully.

A quick side note: I ran into someone I had met during my visit to Garrett-Evangelical Seminary in April!- Tura, it was great to see you again!

And people, if this is not proof that the Methodist world is verrrrrrrrrrrry tiny, I don’t know what is!

We were welcomed and introduced to all of the wonderful Wesley staff. Nick Works, the Director of Recruitment, began by explaining the ideas of the school as well as thoroughly breaking down the outlines of the different degree programs. Mr. Works said that first and foremost, Wesley is a community. He said that thought the degree that you’re pursuing while in seminary is a large part of why you’re there, it may not be the more important.

Yeah. Think on that one for a little bit.

While you are in school here, you are able to take classes “across faith lines.” That is to say that you have the opportunity to not only learn from professors who teach about other religions but there is also have the chance to arrange to take classes from different religion’s institutions such as the Islam school. Wesley has a partnership with American University that is located right next door to WTS’s campus. This is definitely something worth looking into if you’re interested in studying another subject along side whichever of the three theological degrees you may choose. Dual-degrees rock!

Also, for you non-UMC people out there, Wesley has developed relationships with churches of other denominations so that when your do your field work you won’t feel limited.

Whew! Was the enough of an overview of the logistics?!

What happened next really took me aback.

In our information folders we were provided with an insert where we were asked to reflect on our discernment and exploration of our call.

Now, I know this shouldn’t have surprised me after all this is like, Jesus school, right?

But to be so intentional about making sure the Spirit was with us throughout the day was really special to me. It was a centering moment and all too often we get caught up in the specifics that we forget to be present with God.

There were two different scriptures we were given and I just want to share this one with you guys:

1 Kings 19:4-13

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁴ Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.”

⁵ Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. But as he was sleeping, an angel touched him and told him, “Get up and eat!” ⁶ He looked around and there beside his head was some bread baked on hot stones and a jar of water! So he ate and drank and lay down again.

⁷ Then the angel of the Lord came again and touched him and said, “Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you.”

⁸ So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Sinai, the mountain of God. ⁹ There he came to a cave, where he spent the night.

But the Lord said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

¹⁰ Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”

¹¹ “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. ¹² And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. ¹³ When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.

And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Think on that one, too…

Mooooooving on.

Next on our agenda was a student panel of a cross-section of Wesley’s student body. These are always exciting to listen to because you hear it from the horse’s mouth about what it’s like to be at their school. Students across the board said that this was a place rooted in spirituality with a balance of academic and spiritual development with a focus on social justice. During our time there it seemed as though there were endless connections available and being made to the “real world.” It wasn’t just this little seminary bubble, but it was active in its community.

One student said that when she was discerning where she was called to study, she had to ask herself what city she wanted to live in. This is SO important and often overlooked! But you have to be able to be comfortable where you are since this is going to be the next 3 (at least, let’s be honest) years of your life.

Many of these students shared with us that they began their journey thinking and wanting to be in the local church but as once they got to Wesley they felt a stronger call to missional work.

Our calls are ever shifting, people. Better that we accept that now, huh? Haha

“There is a strong diversity of community here.” I still remember standing at the Wesley booth at Exploration last year and having their representatives say that to me.

And they’re not kidding.

For as crazy as the weather has been for the East coast over the past month or so, we were blessed with one of the prettiest days we could have asked for on a November day. Here are some pictures of the campus:

As you all know, experiencing the worship life of each of these schools is my absolute favorite part of these visits so I was really looking forward to the service that was held in their Oxnam Chapel. It was beautiful to look at, peaceful to experience and the sermon (Election Day appropriate) was encouraging as far the Church was concerned.

The Spirit was present. 

 

After we had lunch with different faculty members and students, we were given our choice of classes we wanted to sit in on. I can’t for the life of my remember the name of it (I mean, we couldn’t eve find the room without getting lost) so if someone remembers, let me know!

It was a really interesting class, I do remember that! The discussion was based around a field trip they has taken to the art museum in D.C. and I thought it was awesome that they were taking advantage of the great culture in the area to support their class materials.

I think it was the first time I felt like I could actually utilize my degree and apply what I’ve been learning for the past four and a half years (yes, I’m on my Victory Lap!) I felt myself making connections that I haven’t in any other setting before.

That was EXCITING.

I’m sure my parents are thrilled to read this, too ;)

The final step of this visit was about housing and financial aid.

You know, the fun stuff…

I really can’t stress enough how well explained all of this was. It was laid out in paper form in a way that made is seem appealing and manageable and not daunting in the way that we all know things like this can be.

Money is always available. I’ll never stop saying that. Whether you’re Methodist, Baptist, Pentecostal- there is money for you our there, and Wesley will help you find it!

A special thank you to Chip Aldridge, Nick Works, and Patrick Barrett for all of your help. It was so nice meeting you all.

If you readers need help or have questions, these are the guys to call. They know their stuff and want so much to help you find where you’re supposed to be.

Wesley is located in a city, as President David McAllister-Wilson said, that is full of idealistic people looking to get stuff done.

Wesley is place where people are non-partisan but not disinterested in the polities of theory.

Wesley is a place that asks, “what are you doing here?” and “What are you made to do?”

Wesley is a wonderful place :)

Now I know you won’t believe when I tell you that my next stop is The Methodist Theological School inOhio, but REALLY! It will be!... barring a zombie apocalypse or a Black Friday related injury.

Many blessings to all of you!