Swartz Hall
45 Francis Ave
Cambridge, MA 02138
Phone: n/a
Web address: http://hds.harvard.edu/life-at-hds/religious-and-spiritual-life
Email: kmaloney@hds.harvard.edu
Contact Person:
Rev. Kerry A Maloney
Organization Description:
Drawing on its historical strength in Christian studies and its significant resources in global religious studies, Harvard Divinity School educates scholars, teachers, ministers, and other professionals for leadership and service both nationally and internationally. To help in building a world in which people can live and work together across religious and cultural divides, we strive to be a primary resource in religious and theological studies for the academy, for religious communities, and in the public sphere. Operating within the Division of Student Services at HDS, the Office of the Chaplain and Religious and Spiritual Life (RSL) is committed to this mission by honoring and supporting students, faculty and staff in the study and practice of their many religious and spiritual traditions. We aim to encourage on our campus a climate of genuine religious pluralism, in which the differences among us are respectfully and fruitfully engaged, not muted or merely tolerated. We strive to develop a scholarly community in which the practices of our diverse faith traditions can play a vital role in the intellectual and spiritual formation of all who learn and teach here. One expression of our commitment to these aspirations is our weekly Wednesday Noon Service. Hosted each week by a different religious community of the HDS campus, this service allows all in the HDS community to pray and meditate with our companions across the boundaries of our many respective traditions. Another expression of the vitality of the campus's spiritual life is the vibrant array of opportunities for meditation, prayer, worship and co-curricular study that are sponsored throughout the week by many groups on campus. Under the auspices of RSL, the leaders of the campus's religious and spiritual organizations meet several times each year to collaborate on projects and to support one another's endeavors. Special services for the entire HDS community are also sponsored by the RSL each year, including "Seasons of Light" and the annual Multireligious Commencement Service of Thanksgiving. Helping to nourish the opportunities for spiritual practice at HDS is but one aspect of many responsibilities of RSL. Throughout the year, we aim to support and expand the lively conversation at the intersection of the intellectual and spiritual life of the School and of the people who comprise it. We offer a variety of opportunities to students, faculty and staff for the support and nurture of soul and mind. In addition to being available to all in the School for personal counsel as well as spiritual direction and care, the Chaplain and Director of Religious and Spiritual Life seeks to initiate and to join conversations pertaining to the promotion of justice and peace within and beyond our walls. Promoting an explicitly multireligious orientation and program, we seek to contribute to the mission of HDS by helping to foster the lively pluralism toward which we aspire as an institution. People of all religious traditions as well as those who do not identify with any religious tradition are welcome to participate in all of our programs and to utilize our services.
Opportunities for Student Involvement:
Field education students will have the opportunity to participate in the planning and oversight of RSL's existing programs and to develop one project related to their particular ministerial interests and the School's spiritual needs. This might be an on-going social justice project in which HDS students participate regularly, the development of an evening retreat series for small groups of students, or an initiative to nurture the burgeoning collaboration among the campus's many religious and spiritual organizations. Students need to be concurrently enrolled in Meaning Making or have had Meaning Making to be eligible for this placement.
Commute/Transportation Information:
Located on the HDS campus, this placement requires no transportation, except if/when a project takes the field ed students off campus.
Arts of Ministry Competencies Offered:
- Administration and Program Development
- Pastoral Care and Counseling
- Preaching and Worship
- Public Leadership, Community Organizing, and Planning
- Religious Education and Spiritual Development
Supervision:
One hour per week.
Additional Information:
- Number of Students: 2
- Total Compensation: $6000.00
- Type of Compensation: Work Study