Current News From LTS
Advice from a Grizzled Practitioner
President Cueni to Address LTS Commencement
Dr. Kwok Pui-Lan to Be Next Cobb Lecturer
Florida Couple Invests in Future of the Church
President Cueni Announces Plans to Retire
New Chief Financial Officer for LTS
Spring 2008 Convocation Speakers Announced
Chapel Events for Spring 2008
Click here for Previous News Stories
Advice from a
Grizzled Practitioner
Speaking to the 142nd Lexington Theological Seminary commencement exercises on May 16, President R. Robert Cueni drew on 42 years of ministry for his address entitled “A Grizzled Practitioner’s Reflections on Ministry.”
Dr. Cueni distilled his guidance into five practical lessons intended for the graduates to properly maintain their intellectual stimulation, spiritual lives and pastoral practices during their ministries.
He advised the graduates to value and continue to develop tools received in Seminary. He said their seminary educations are foundations for understanding how their faith is to be lived within contemporary social, economic and cultural contexts. Additional ministerial experiences will bring more skills and tools.
Lesson Two was to maintain the discipline of study they practiced in seminary. He recommended they continue to read a wide variety of subject matter in order to keep their intellectual lives vital.
His third lesson was for them to remember that ministry is about faithfulness to God and serving the people of God and not about the ministers themselves. He said that ministry is about being faithful and effective and not about soliciting praise.
The fourth lesson was to stay away from the “third rail hazards,” those activities that could, like a subway where the rail in the middle carries high voltage, can kill one’s ministry. He recommended not inappropriately touching the church’s money, staff or church members. “Inappropriate physical touching can destroy a ministry,” he warned.
His final lesson was to “keep the faith.” He urged the graduates to “love people and use things … always remember that hope empowers.”
Summarizing an 80-year-old quote from theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, Dr. Cueni said that even with all the church’s weakness and “the limitations of the ministry, there is no other place where your life’s energies can be invested that can make such a difference in the lives of others or bring such great satisfaction to your life.”
After the presentation of diplomas, Board of Trustees Chairperson Gary W. Kidwell presented Dr. Cueni and his wife, Linda, with a resolution from the Board recognizing them for their years of service to the church and to Lexington Theological Seminary. They plan to retire soon.
Twenty-six persons received degrees. Six earned Master of Arts degrees, 18 received Master of Divinity degrees and two received Doctor of Ministry degrees.
Among them were Irma and Ruben Rodriguez, who are thought to be the first mother and son to graduate together. Irma, who lives in Orlando, FL, began her theological study in Cuba 53 years ago. She has persevered through the Cuban communist revolution and many personal challenges that delayed her completing the degree. She has been preaching for 50 years without a seminary degree.
President R. Robert Cueni to Address Lexington Seminary Commencement
On May 16 President R. Robert Cueni will be the guest speaker for the 142nd commencement at the Seminary. The title of his address is “Grizzled Practitioner’s Reflections on Ministry.”
Dr. Cueni looks back on his ministry with fondness, recalling the early years and learning how to serve various sizes of congregations, experiencing the wonderfully rewarding times and suffering the pain associated with being a pastor.
Increasingly he has become aware that twenty-first century graduates face a much different church and society than the ones he served over 42 years ago. Today’s congregations have many more demands on their free time, are multi-cultural, and struggle with social issues that did not exist in the sixties. The 2008 graduates will be responsible for reversing declining church memberships and revenues and utilizing an increasing number of technological challenges.
Dr. R. Robert Cueni became president of the Lexington Theological Seminary in 2002 after 36 years as a local church pastor in the upper Midwest. Prior to coming to LTS, he spent ten years as senior pastor of Country Club Christian Church, Kansas City, MO. Recently, he announced his intention to retire as soon as a new president can be called.
The Seminary’s graduation will begin at 10 a.m. in Memorial Hall on the University of Kentucky campus across the street from the Seminary. The graduates will process across the Seminary lawn led by a bag piper, the choir, faculty trustees, and platform guests.
Twenty-six persons will be presented diplomas. Six will receive Master of Arts degrees, 18 will receive Master of Divinity degrees, and two Doctor of Ministry degrees. Eleven are women and 15 are men.
Dr. Kwok Pui-Lan to Be Next Cobb Lecturer
Dr. Kwok Pui Lan is the William F. Cole Professor of Christian Theology and Spirituality at the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Mass. She will deliver the 2008 William Daniel Cobb Lectures at Lexington Theological Seminary at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday and Friday, March 27 and 28.
On Thursday, her topic will be “Globalization and the Challenge to Christianity” and on Friday, she will address “America, Empire, and Prophetic Christianity.”
Dr. Kwok Pui Lan is an internationally known theologian who has published extensively in Asian feminist theology, biblical interpretation, and postcolonial criticism. Her publications include Postcolonial Imagination and Feminist Theology (2005), Introducing Asian Feminist Theology (2000); and Discovering the Bible in the Non-Biblical World (1995). She is the coeditor of two groundbreaking volumes Empire and the Christian Tradition: New Readings of Classical Theologians (2007), and Off the Menu: Asian and Asian North American Women’s Religion and Theology (2007).
The William Daniel Cobb, III Lectures were established as a memorial to their namesake who died February 24, 1987, only months after becoming president of Lexington Theological Seminary. Dr. Cobb set the endowment of several quality lectureships as one of his goals for the Seminary. The Cobb Lectures allow the Seminary annually to bring to campus a noted speaker in one of the disciplines of theological study.
The Cobb Lectures will be held in the Seminary’s Fellowship Hall at the rear of the campus.
Florida Couple Invests in Future of the Church
Lexington Theological Seminary (LTS) is pleased to announce a gift of $500,000 by Blanche B. and Luther Coggin of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. The gift establishes the Blanche B. Coggin Endowment for Excellence in Theological Education, and provides funding for faculty and students at the Seminary to enhance excellence and expand opportunities in theological education.
“Ministry is a difficult and high calling,” notes Mrs. Coggin. “We want to help provide men and women with the best seminary education possible and help them graduate without a burden of debt from student loans.”
In announcing the gift, Lexington Theological Seminary President R. Robert Cueni stated, “Blanche and Luther Coggin’s generosity is an investment in the future of the church. Endowed gifts like this give the Seminary the flexibility to provide excellent preparation for students who will lead our congregations in the years ahead.”
Mrs. Coggin was reared in First Christian Church, Birmingham, Alabama, where she met her future husband, Luther, in a Sunday school class. The Coggins are now active members of First Christian Church of the Beaches, Neptune Beach, FL. For many years, Mrs. Coggin directed the Disciples youth camp activities in the Alabama/Northwest Florida Region. In one of those camps in the 1960’s, she met a young graduate of LTS, A. Guy Waldrop, an LTS trustee and former General Minister of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) In Kentucky. Waldrop recalls Mrs. Coggin as gregarious and able to relate very well to the children. “They just loved her because of her good nature,” said Waldrop. “She is still the warm, engaging person she was then.”
Uses of the Endowment will include providing financial assistance for students to study world missions abroad; enabling LTS faculty to partner with professional schools in disciplines related to ministry, such as medicine, nursing, law, and business; acquiring classroom technology and providing related training for its use; and assisting LTS faculty in creating professional development courses for part-time ministers.
President Cueni Announces Plans to Retire
Dr. R. Robert Cueni announced January 7 that he intends to retire this year as president of Lexington Theological Seminary, effective upon the naming of a new president.
Cueni, 66, has been president at LTS for six years. An ordained minister of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), his career has included 34 years as pastor of local congregations and two years as an area minister in Texas. Lexington Theological Seminary is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
“I have loved ministry and continue to recommend ministry as a wonderful way to expend life’s energy,” he said. “I have come to love the people, mission and ministry of LTS.”
Cueni told trustees he has accomplished the goals set when he became Seminary president, including having a strong faculty, being financially solid and providing a sound curriculum that prepares ministers for the 21st Century.
LTS Board Chair Gary Kidwell of Indianapolis, IN, praised Cueni for his faithful service. “LTS owes a great debt of gratitude to Bob and his wife, Linda, for the leadership they have provided the seminary. His ministry as seminary president and pastor has touched the lives of thousands of people, and future generations will benefit from his witness.”
A search committee is being formed. A national search will be conducted using the executive search model developed by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
New Chief Financial Officer for LTS
Laura Davis of Lexington has been named Chief Financial Officer of Lexington Theological Seminary. She began December 3.
In announcing her selection, President R. Robert Cueni described Ms. Davis as a personable, outgoing, and friendly individual who will be a great addition to the LTS community. “She is highly qualified for this position and we look forward to working with her,” he said.
A native of Lexington, she is a graduate of the University of Kentucky and is a Certified Public Accountant.
She and her husband, Dean, and 15-year-old son, Ryan, recently returned to the Bluegrass from Raleigh, NC where she was regional controller and director of accounting for CARQUEST.
Spring 2008 Convocation Speakers Announced
- February 7 – John Mark Hack – Casino Gambling
- February 14 – Congo Refugees
- February 21 – Jody Heil and Tracy Siegman, Israel Immersion Report
- February 28 – LTS President’s Search Committee
- March 6 – Author and LTS Student Kim Edwards on Project Cure
- March 13 – Fay Barnes and Barrett Milner, Borderlinks Immersion Report
- March 20 – Reading Week – no presentation
- March 27 – Kwok Pui Lan, Cobb Lecture series
- April 3 – Dr. Steve Monhollen's Inaugural Lecture
- April 10 – Dr. Jerry Sumney's Sabbatical Report
- April 17 – Dr. Emily Askew's Inaugural Lecture
- April 24 – Lexington Mayor Jim Newberry [tentative]
- May 1 – Dr. Jimmy Kirby's Sabbatical Report
Chapel Events for Spring 2008
Weekly Chapel Services are held each Tuesday beginning at 11:30 a.m.
- February 5 – The Most Rev. Ronald W. Gainer, Bishop of the Diocese of Lexington, Kentucky
- February 12 – Taize Service by Joan Schlesing, LTS Student
- February 19 – Ruben Rodriguez, LTS Senior
- February 26 – Dr. David Sharrard, LTS Professor of Pastoral Care
- March 4 – Kevin Snow, LTS Senior
- March 11 – Kelley Dick, LTS Senior
- March 18 – Spring Reading Week/Holy Week
- March 25 – Cindy James and Dikiea Ellery, LTS Senior Students
- April 1 – Felix E. Ortiz-Cotto, United Church of Christ Area Executive for Latin America/Caribbean Partner Relations Ministry Team
- April 8 – Dr. Bill Kincaid, Senior Minister, Woodland Christian Church
- April 15 – Dr. Lisa Davison, LTS Professor of First Testament
- April 22 – Cynthia Priem, LTS Senior
- April 29 – Dr. R. Robert Cueni, LTS President
- May 15 – Communion Service