What is the most difficult and divisive issue facing congregations today? No, the answer is not sex and sexual orientation. Ineffective leadership is the most pressing problem, and although it is not sexy, all church leaders, ordained and lay alike, need to take heed.

"Ineffective leadership is probably the bedrock issue we are facing today," said Chabraja Fellow Bill Sachs, who in January 2012 will teach a five-day, intensive course that examines events and leadership styles that have shaped the Episcopal Church. "Leadership is consensus on who we are, where we are going, and how we are going to get there. When a conflict arises in a congregation, a question of leadership is usually at its core."

When something horrific happens, how do we explain it? Does our faith give us the words to articulate our understanding of justice and mercy? The ability to express who God is and how we understand humanity?

Using 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the 2010 Haitian earthquake as her focus, the Rev. Dr. Renée Hill is offering a hybrid (online and in-person) course at Seabury this fall that examines disasters from a theological perspective. 

Nurya Parish of Grand Rapids, Michigan had been a minister in the Unitarian Universalist Association before becoming an Episcopalian. Although she had a master's degree in divinity from Harvard University, when she entered the ordination process, she was told that she would need to spend a year at an Episcopal seminary. Parish thought this requirement would put an end to her hopes, but then she discovered Seabury.