Nashotah House Summer Instensives - Part I

It's hard to believe that these two weeks represent my final courses in the program.  Although I will return again to work and consult on my thesis later this year and into 2012, I seems strange to realize I will not enjoy the same community experience as one has during regular class sessions.  In part this tempts me to think about the possibility of continuing on for D.Min work.  I have enjoyed the convenience of distance (3 1/2 hour drive from home), and the unique mix of students and professors, some coming from far distant corners of the globe to this tiny outpost in southern Wisconsin.  In one of my classes we have students from Nigeria, Kenya, and Barbados in the Caribbean, as well as a Chinese professor from a seminary in Canada on sabbatical.  Besides my professors they are privileged to have on campus a visiting scholar who serves as principal of St. Stephen's Hosue at Oxford, teaching on their theology faculty, the Rev. Canon Dr. Robin Ward. 

My professors this year are also both visiting scholars, with additional connections to the Lutheran church.  Dr. David Herman, who teaches The History of the English Hymnal recently retired from the University of Delaware and is a very accomplished recitalist and composer.  Although now a practicing Anglican, Dr. Herman has served in the past as an organist and music director in a Lutheran parish.  He is also the author of the biography of Jan Bender, under whom he also studied.  The Rev. Dr. Philip Pfatteicher, who teaches The History and Function of the Liturgical Year, is actually a rostered Lutheran clergyman in the ELCA, although I believe he and his wife now attend an Episcopal church in Boston.  Dr. Pfatteicher is the author of several books on worship and liturgy, which a search on Amazon will provide you with titles and descriptions.  He has long served as a recognized expert in this field and it is a rare opportunity to study under a man of his stature and reputation.  You can read more about their backgrounds on the Nashotah site at this link. 

I will post additional observations in the days to come.  For now I have to return to work.  A paper awaits....

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