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GTU News

Dr. Christopher Ocker Formally Named Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs

February 18, 2025 – Dr. Christopher Ocker will continue serving as Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs and John Dillenberger Professor of the History of Christianity, a position he assumed on an interim basis on July 1, 2024. Given his status as a long-standing member of the community with a deep appreciation for the GTU's traditions, Centers, and member schools, Ocker’s leadership is needed at this time of intense challenge and unprecedented opportunity for graduate education in theology and religion. “Dean Ocker is an excellent colleague who is passionate about making the GTU the...
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GTU Faculty
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Leadership at the GTU

The Graduate Theological Union is guided by a distinguished group of academic, administrative, and faith leaders who are dedicated to advancing theological scholarship, interreligious engagement, and global ethical inquiry. Our leadership team works collaboratively to uphold the GTU’s mission of fostering interdisciplinary research, preparing future scholars and religious leaders, and contributing to the broader conversations shaping our world today. 
Faculty & Staff ResourcesGraduate Theological Union
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Modern Foreign Language Exam

MA and Doctoral students are required to demonstrate proficiency in research languages appropriate to their program and topic of study.  Students can certify by passing a language exam offered three times a year from 1:00-4:45 p.m pacific, or petition to use prior or current course work equivalent to two years of study as outlined in the program handbooks. Modern Foreign Language Exam September 24, 2024 (deadline to register September 3rd) Modern Foreign Language Exam February 25, 2025 (deadline to register February 4th) Modern Foreign Language Exam May 27, 2025 (deadline to register May...
Current Student Resources
GTU Exhibition

Visions of Eden

Library Gallery

Many of us know the Biblical tale of the Garden of Eden, the paradisal home of the first humans, Adam and Eve. According to the story, Eve offers Adam fruit from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge, leading to punishments reverberating through the centuries among the Abrahamic faiths and cultural traditions.

Visit the library to explore various visions of Eden, and then go upstairs to the Doug Adams Gallery, where artists Julia Vogl and Gabriella Willenz have created Eve's Eden, questioning: What do we learn from listening to Eve? Why is she considered “wrong” for exercising free will and...
GTU News

Remembering Vivian Wells, GTU PhD Student (1980 – 2024)

We are devastated to report that a dear member of our community, Vivian Wells, recently passed away after a battle with cancer. Vivian was a PhD student in the Department of Historical and Cultural Studies of Religion and a co-leader of the GTU’s Black Students’ Caucus. Vivian embarked on her PhD studies at the GTU in the fall of 2019. Throughout her time with us, she left a lasting impression as a warm and compassionate presence, both inside and outside the classroom. She came to the GTU with a background in teaching and was pursuing her PhD for the purpose of teaching, and perhaps also...
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Veterans Affairs Benefits

Students with outstanding financial obligations to the GTU may not register for classes or graduate. An exception to this policy applies to students using Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment benefits (CH31) or Post-9/11 G.I. Bill® (CH33), according to the following conditions. Such students will be allowed to enroll in and attend courses and access campus facilities while the campus awaits payment for tuition and fees from the VA. While awaiting receipt of funds from the VA, GTU will not impose any penalty, charge late fees, or require an eligible student to borrow additional funds to...
Admissions & AidCurrent Student Resources
GTU News

New Electronic Resource: Philosopher's Index with Full Text

The GTU Library upgraded to full text access through EBSCOhost for over 300 journal titles in philosophy. Journals published in over 30 countries in over 30 different languages are now accessible to the GTU community. Previously, the library only subscribed to an index. With full-text access, users can explore subject areas like ethics, philosophy of science, political philosophy and logic in more depth.   Some titles of note include: Journal of Philosophy, Think: Philosophy for everyone, and Environment, Space, Place. Users may also appreciate the strong collection of journals in Spanish...
Library
Flora Lamson Hewlett Library
GTU News

Dr. Kamal Abu-Shamsieh Interviewed for NPR’s All Things Considered

Dr. Kamal Abu-Shamsieh is Director of Interreligious Chaplaincy Program and Assistant Professor of Practical Theology at the Graduate Theological Union. A scholar-practitioner in interfaith engagement, he specializes in chaplaincy, interreligious dialogue, and spiritual care in diverse cultural and religious contexts. Dr. Abu-Shamsieh holds a PhD in Practical Theology from the GTU and has extensive experience in chaplaincy training, focusing on ethical leadership and intercultural competency. Passionate about fostering mutual understanding, he collaborates globally to advance interreligious...
Interreligious Chaplaincy Program
GTU News

Meet the New ATLA Religion Database

Next time you click into an EBSCO database, you may be surprised. The company that provides us with a variety of databases, including the ATLA Religion Plus Database, created a new look for their sites. ATLA Religion Plus database Broad coverage in all areas of religion and theology. This is a great database for starting your article research. Also, use this database to find articles on a particular Bible passage. Here is the direct link to the Scripture Search tool Below, you'll find a PDF guide to help you navigate the new interface as well as a ten minute video to walk you through...
Library
Flora Lamson Hewlett Library
GTU News

Agents of Hope: 2024 Impact Report

Throughout its history, the GTU has fostered hope as the cornerstone of its mission. In 2024, this commitment shone through in our efforts to equip scholar-leaders as ‘agents of hope,’ nurture interreligious dialogue, and expand innovative programming. The Agents of Hope Impact Report celebrates the transformative achievements of our faculty, students, and alums who embody hope in addressing humanity’s greatest challenges. Together, we envision a more just and compassionate future, driven by scholarship, creativity, and bold action. Explore our Impact Report below, or in full-screen mode...
GTU News

Announcing The 2024 Borsch-Rast Prize Winner, Dr. Julia Watts Belser

Berkeley, CA – December 16, 2024 The Graduate Theological Union (GTU) is proud to announce that Dr. Julia Watts Belser (PhD ’08) has been awarded the eighth annual Borsch-Rast Book Prize and Lectureship for her 2023 publication, Loving Our Own Bones: Disability Wisdom and the Spiritual Subversiveness of Knowing Ourselves Whole (Beacon Press). In this groundbreaking work, Dr. Belser offers a radical rethinking of disability in biblical literature and contemporary culture, challenging political and religious marginalization of disabled people. Through fresh interpretations of sacred texts,...
GTU AlumsNews & Events
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The Robert N. Bellah Lecture on Religion and Public Life

About the Robert N. Bellah Lecture on Religion and Public Life The Bellah Legacy Group partnered with the GTU to create an annual lecture designed to preserve, build on, sustain, and promote awareness of the corpus and legacy of Robert N. Bellah’s work within a contemporary context.
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Pacific and Asian American Collections

General Collections Pacific and Asian American Center for Theology and Strategies Collection Organized in 1972 as the Asian American Center for Theology and Strategies and incorporated in 1974, the name was changed to Pacific and Asian American Center for Theology and Strategies in 1977 to reflect inclusiveness of constituencies. PACTS was an ecumenical center for research, resourcing, recruiting, training, and consciousness-raising which sought to promote the fulfillment of God's mission through the ministries of the churches and the service of community groups. The organization,...
Library
GTU Staff
GTU News

Interreligious Chaplaincy Program Welcomes Kurdish Scholars to the GTU

The GTU’s Interreligious Chaplaincy Program recently hosted a group of scholars from the Iraqi Kurdistan Friday Prayer Council for an open discussion about religious minority expression in the US, dismantling anti-Muslim prejudice, and other key issues. The visit was organized by Dr. Kamal Abu-Shamsieh in collaboration with the US State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program.  The program began  with  Interim Dean Christopher Ocker welcoming the delegation and providing an overview of the vision and history of the GTU. Dr. Mahjabeen Dhala, a faculty member from the Center for...
Interreligious Chaplaincy Program
GTU Staff
GTU News

GTU Presence at SBL/AAR 2024

Are you heading to SBL/AAR in San Diego from November 23-26? Explore new insights, engage in brave conversations, and forge meaningful connections by attending the sessions below featuring GTU students and faculty. We look forward to seeing you there!
GTU News

GTU Student Zeinab Vessal Awarded Prestigious Ahlul Bayt Fellowship by the Mohsena Memorial Foundation

Zeinab Vessal is a PhD student in Art and Religion and Presidential Scholar at the GTU. She is a member of the International Quranic Studies Association, where she explores the societal implications of the Quran and enhances public understanding of Quranic inscriptions on Islamic objects and sacred spaces in the Middle East, as well as Shi’a-inscribed iconography in early modern manuscripts. As Vice President of the Shia Muslim Association at Northwestern University, she co-designed and facilitated numerous workshops and webinars on Islamic studies since 2019.   Zeinab Vessal, a...
The Center for Islamic Studies (CIS)
CIS | Center for Islamic StudiesMadrasa-Midrasha

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