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FEBRUARY, 2016
Dr. Peter Gathje, Associate Dean for Curriculum and Instruction at Memphis Theological Seminary (MTS), has been named Vice President of Academic Affairs and Dean of the Seminary after a nationwide search.
MTS President Dr. Jay Earheart-Brown announced Gathje’s appointment to staff and faculty members February 8. Gathje will replace Dr. Stan Wood, who will retire in June.
“Dr. Gathje brings to this position an unquestioned love for the mission and ministry of MTS, a passion to help the church and its leaders carry out the ministry of Jesus Christ in the real world, and a willingness to work with our board, faculty, and administrators to meet the challenges facing us,” Dr. Earheart-Brown said. “Everyone who participated in the interview process was impressed by the clear and creative ideas Pete shared for helping MTS move faithfully and boldly into the future. I look forward to working with Dr. Gathje in this work.”
“I am humbled and excited,” said Dr. Gathje of his appointment. “Many thanks to folks who have been praying and supporting me along the way in the process of coming to this day.”
Dr. Gathje holds a Master of Theological Studies and a Ph.D. from Emory University in Atlanta. Gathje is also co-founder and director of Manna House, a hospitality home for the homeless. He has also served on the faculties of Christian Brothers University and Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He has served as an instructor of Christian Ethics at MTS since 2006 and has written and edited several books and articles on ethics and service to the disenfranchised, including Sharing the Bread of Life: Hospitality and Resistance at the Open Door Community (JZ Publishing, Atlanta).
Manna house
Photograph by Peter Gathje
Memphis Theological Seminary (MTS) is an ecumenical, interfaith graduate school of theology that seeks to create a higher theological educational setting that is committed to scholarship, piety, and justice. MTS was founded in 1852 in McKenzie, Tennessee as the educational arm of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. In 1964, the seminary moved to Memphis, TN and educates men and women of all races and denominations.