In late June, in Louisville, KY, the 81st General Convention of The Episcopal Church convened for its triennial gathering of governance and election of leadership. The governing body of The Episcopal Church, General Convention meets every three years as a bicameral legislature that includes the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops, composed of deputies and bishops from each diocese. As is always our custom, and with this large gathering of friends and stakeholders from across the church, Seminary of the Southwest made a strong commitment to supporting this work and using this opportunity to connect with alums and well-wishers across the church and beyond.
Perhaps the most striking visual element of this commitment was found at the Southwest booth in the Exhibit Hall, where convention attendees could find an 8 foot tall replica of the iconic Seminary Cross. The actual Seminary Cross was built in the early 60’s when Christ Chapel was originally constructed and sits outside the chapel to indicate to students and the Southwest community that Christ calls them to carry their ministry outside the walls of the church.
This year the replica cross – originally built for the 79th General Convention held in Austin, TX, in 2018 – extended further this ‘outside the walls’ ethos, traveling more than 1000 miles to be a part of the seminary presence at General Convention. The replica cross became a popular place to take a photo, or a ‘Southwest Selfie’ as coined by seminary staff.
While it was the replica Seminary Cross that drew many visitors to the Seminary of the Southwest booth, there were two meaningful topics that dominated discussion in alignment with what was happening on the floors of the House of Deputies and House of Bishops:
- the robust scholarships Southwest offers through the Pastoral Leadership Initiative
- the newly revised MDiv curriculum that creates an intentional formational space to work toward building Beloved Community.
Read more about Southwest at General Convention on Episcopal News Service
Adjoined with a booth for Southwest’s local formation program, the Iona Collaborative, the combined booths became a lively hub of conversation and fellowship, and an arena of rich and important conversation on the topic of theological education and the future of the church.
In attendance and present at the booth most days were Southwest’s outgoing dean and president, the Very Rev. Cynthia Briggs Kittredge, and incoming dean and president, Dr. Scott Bader-Saye. This unique opportunity to have both deans present for this well-attended event provided an excellent opportunity to continue the smooth leadership transition at Southwest.
“General Convention was an amazing opportunity to connect with old friends, visit with alumni, meet new people, and see the governance work of the church up close,” said Dean Bader-Saye. “It was a special privilege to be there with Cynthia and to share that week as we prepared for the transition in the dean and president’s office. Our team kept lively conversations going at our booth, and we made wonderful new connections with people throughout the church. By the end of the week I was exhausted but in the best possible way!”
On Tuesday, June 24, 2024, Southwest and Iona hosted a reception and dinner for alumni and friends of the seminary at the Galt House Hotel in downtown Louisville. The well-attended event included alumni from across decades, and featured a tribute video to Dean Kittredge. With a large contingent of Southwest staff in attendance, as well as the many alumni from Southwest and the Iona Collaborative, the festive event felt much like a reunion, and provided a much needed respite amid a very busy week for all.
“General Convention is an important and unique opportunity to see and connect with so many people in a very short time,” said Eric Scott, vice president for Communications and Marketing. “Being able to discuss and receive feedback on Southwest’s initiatives that we hope have a significant impact on the church- whether it be Beloved Community initiatives, our commitment to residential formation, or the way we provide high-quality resources to local formation – was an amazing experience. It was a joy to bring the good news back to Austin that our hard work is being recognized, and more importantly, making a difference.”
