In a year of transition, I write to you with wholehearted appreciation: appreciation for the leadership that has brought HDS to where it is today, appreciation for the leadership that will take HDS into the future, and appreciation for the continued progression of the School’s mission made possible by a brilliant and devoted community.
I profoundly appreciate the privilege of serving for this brief moment as interim dean, to join with you as we honor the School’s recent history and anticipate our next chapter. At the Convocation celebration introducing the new academic year, I shared my gratitude for David Hempton’s extraordinarily wise, humane, and tireless service as dean for the past 11 years—and for his commitment to return to his important teaching and research as a member of our faculty. Additionally, I shared my eagerness for the arrival of our incoming dean, Marla Frederick, whose appointment in January comes with such joy and promise for our community. I would like to reiterate those sentiments as the core message for this year’s report: We are truly blessed to witness the transition from the leadership of one exceptional dean to the forthcoming leadership of another.
While reflecting on the many ways that David Hempton has strengthened the foundations of HDS and expanded our global engagement during his time as dean, I want to express gratitude for the quality that I think lies at the heart of all true leadership: trust. David’s dedication to intellectual integrity and to the ethical care of this community was a hallmark of his time as dean. He proved a faithful and forward-thinking steward of our collective striving for new knowledge, our common commitment to equity and justice, and our shared desire to push the potential of this remarkable institution into ever greater service of our students, our disciplines, and our communities. He earned our trust and served with unwavering fidelity to our highest values.
We have also benefited immensely from Louanne Hempton’s graciousness and dedicated support of the Divinity School’s mission. She has been a brilliant and buoyant presence in our community—extending care to every new class of students, every new cohort of associates, the staff upon whom this School depends, and scores of scholars (those who visit and those of us who are rooted here). These two people have defined my decade at Harvard Divinity School—a wonderfully rewarding season of my life—and I will be eternally grateful for their leadership, thoughtfulness, and generosity.
I also have the great privilege of welcoming Marla Frederick back to Harvard when she joins HDS as our new Dean next semester. Marla is a renowned scholar, an exceptional teacher, and a dedicated leader—someone I respect deeply as a colleague and a friend. Her academic expertise, paired with her demonstrated leadership across the field, will undoubtedly build on the School’s foundation, guiding HDS to new heights.
Throughout this report, you will read more about David, Louanne, and Marla—including the exciting announcement of Marla’s deanship—as well as many other community members who bring the School’s vision to life. The vibrancy of HDS faculty, staff, students, alumni, visiting scholars, and friends continually leaves me awestruck. I hope that the depth and breadth of work at the Divinity School—both what is explored and how it is engaged—also resonates with you.
Our Ongoing Commitments
Convocation this fall provided a welcome moment to celebrate Harvard University’s new president, Claudine Gay, who graciously delivered our keynote address. President Gay came to know the Divinity School more deeply throughout the decanal search. She highlighted that connection in this memorable phrasing, which has stayed with me throughout the semester: “You are a community that not only expresses ideals but also lives up to them....You speak and act with conviction about the benefits of learning and living and working alongside people of different backgrounds and experiences. In that way, you are a very powerful example for the rest of the University.” President Gay also acknowledged the School for our ongoing commitment to “building an open and supportive culture that enables every member to thrive.”
Building an open and supportive culture, one mindful of every member, requires both aspirational visions and practical applications—a complementary pairing that our community understands well. Indeed, we live and work in the creative tensions of such contrasting forces. We reckon with the big existential questions while respecting established methodologies. We work toward the betterment of society at a global scale while also engaging thoughtfully as individuals here on campus. We respect multireligious pluralism while also honoring personal explorations of ethics and spirituality. Few places could contain the multitudes that call Harvard Divinity School home. The School’s unique ability to bring such complexities into constructive relationships to one another is a big part of what I love about this place; and I recognize that we are learning how to do this work better with every given day.
Academic Expertise and Reach
Faculty across HDS continue to deepen their expertise and expand their reach through cutting-edge research, new course offerings, event series, and intellectual leadership in their fields. As you’ll see in the forthcoming “Year in Review” section, 2022–23 brought many exciting academic developments and exceptional scholarly publications. Space constraints preclude a comprehensive list of all faculty achievements, but I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge a few highlights of faculty excelling in leadership roles at HDS and beyond.
Kimberley Patton was recognized as the School’s “Outstanding Teacher for 2022–23.” In addition to offering fascinating classes, such as “Scent in Ancient Mediterranean Religions,” she also serves as a member of the University’s Committee on Degrees in Folklore and Mythology, the Standing Committee on Archaeology, and the joint FAS/HDS Standing Committee on the Study of Religion.
Francis X. Clooney, S.J., was elected president of the Catholic Theological Society of America in July 2022. The Society also announced that a Festschrift in his honor will be published for this year’s annual meeting of the American Academy of Religion. This prestigious publication celebrates his contribution to the academy in the fields of comparative theology, the study of religion, and South Asian studies.
Mayra Rivera concluded her time as president of the American Academy of Religion, the world’s largest association of scholars in religious studies. Her leadership has brought an interdisciplinary focus on religion and climate catastrophe to the forefront of the academy. You can read more about Mayra’s work in the “Advancing Global Religion” section of this year’s report.
We welcomed several new faculty members to campus in July 2022: Benjamin Dunning, Ahmad Greene-Hayes, Tracey E. Hucks, Terrence L. Johnson, and Annette Yoshiko Reed. In their first year with the School, each of these professors brought fresh insights to our community, additions to the curriculum, and important connections to the School, with an exceptional dedication to teaching and learning. You can read more about these leading scholars throughout the report.
In addition to stand-out faculty members, a wide range of exceptional visiting scholars can be found across our campus. I want to acknowledge the many fellows, research associates, and visiting monastics brought into the HDS community by way of the Office of Ministry Studies (OMS), the Center for the Study of World Religion (CSWR), the Religion and Public Life (RPL) program, and the Women’s Studies in Religion Program (WSRP). On any given day at HDS, you may have the opportunity to connect with a visiting scholar in Jewish studies, a visiting Hindu monastic, a Buddhist Ministry Initiative fellow, or a Yang Visiting Scholar in World Christianity. We have a richer understanding of multireligious education and ministry thanks to the visiting scholars who become part of our community.
Creating Connections Across Campus and Beyond
This past year was punctuated by events that both celebrated our growing community and burnished the ties that connect us to one another. In November, HDS graduates spanning six decades gathered on campus for the 2022 Alumni Day. It was a beautiful day filled with engaging discussions and exciting connections with friends old and new. Highlights from the event can be seen in a photo essay provided in this year’s report.
The campus community also gathered throughout the year to participate in the 2022–23 Common Read, which focused on The Legacy of Slavery at Harvard published by the University. Led by the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DIB), the Common Read is a year-long series of engagements with a single text to reorient the School community around our shared values and commitments—respect, dignity, mutual understanding, and trust. The program helps the School advance its vision of a restorative anti-racist and anti-oppressive HDS and work toward a world healed of racism and oppression. Leaders of the DIB office, Melissa Wood Bartholomew and Steph Gauchel, chose bell hooks’s All About Love as this year’s text to continue our community’s conversation about historical harms, racialized inequity, and restorative justice.
Building on the University’s report on slavery and the subsequent Common Read program, the School initiated a new series in the spring of 2023: Religion and the Legacies of Slavery. Led by the RPL and DIB teams, this six-part public conversation engaged faculty from across the School and reached thousands of audience members. A detailed overview of the series can be found in the “New Resources for Teaching and Learning” section. As one of the scholars formally participating in that series, I can attest that these conversations were as formative for the presenters as they were for the international audience.
Another School-defining event occurred as the first-ever HDS Climate Justice Week took place in April. Led by students in collaboration with the RPL team, staff, and faculty across the School, this initiative was developed to honor Earth Month by proactively tackling the urgency of the climate crisis. I invite you to read more about these efforts on the HDS news site—including an article titled “Sights and Sounds” that features photos, audio clips, and transcripts from the series of powerful events.
Across the School, students, staff, faculty, and visiting scholars led an array of events and projects. The WSRP hosted remarkable research associates who explored topics ranging from representations of the female voice in the Qu’ran to religion’s role in climate and sustainability efforts. The CSWR continued to expand the new Transcendence and Transformation initiative and hosted a poetry workshop with Pulitzer Prize recipient Tracy K. Smith. Colloquiums, lunchtime lectures, and fireside salons abounded throughout the year. The opportunities to learn more—to delve deeper—seem endless at HDS. I extend my heartfelt thanks to every community member who has offered their expertise, guidance, time, energy, and skills to make possible each of these opportunities to learn.
The support of alumni and friends is absolutely indispensable to all of this activity and accomplishment. I want to express my gratitude for the volunteer leadership groups, such as the Dean’s Council, the Global Task Force, and the Alumni/Alumnae Council, who share their experience and wisdom to guide our future while keeping us rooted in our core commitments. Thank you for helping us engage with students past, present, and prospective. Thank you for helping us create networks of academic excellence near and far. And thank you for helping the HDS community advance knowledge of religions at a global scale while also examining values at deeply personal levels.
In honor of this year’s Common Read and the inimitable bell hooks, I leave you with these words of wisdom from All About Love: “The widespread assumption that ethical behavior takes the fun out of life is false. In actuality, living ethically ensures that relationships in our lives, including encounters with strangers, nurture our spiritual growth.” Our commitment to ethical engagement with our students, with our scholarship, and with our extended School community seeks to make good on this promise.
Thank you for being an essential part of this effort.
David F. Holland
John A. Bartlett Professor of New England Church History
Interim Dean of Harvard Divinity School