Retirement Celebration for Dr. Eleazar Fernandez
March 24, 2022 | 7:30 PM CT | On Zoom
Please RSVP below. Registration is free.
Join United in celebrating the retirement of faculty member Dr. Eleazar Fernandez, Professor of Constructive Theology. For nearly three decades, Dr. Fernandez impacted the lives of seminarians at United -- faith leaders who went on to serve others and work toward justice -- and he shaped the theological landscape with his many publications. (Read his bio below.) Let us take this time to thank him for the ways he has touched so many lives and wish him well on his next endeavor.
Speakers to honor Dr. Fernandez include:
Dr. Mary Farrell Bednarowski, Professor Emerita of Religious Studies
Rev. Mike MacMillan ('09), Pastor at Faith United Church of Christ, Dunedin, FL
Lucia Kalinosky ('21), Chaplain Resident at Abbott Northwestern Hospital
Questions? Contact Ashley at ahovell@unitedseminary.edu
REGISTER:
Dr. Eleazar Fernandez has been a beloved professor, a leader in seminary education, an internationally important voice in liberation theology, and a global theologian for nearly three decades. At United, Dr. Fernandez has taught numerous courses in the areas of Constructive Theology, Liberation Theology, Theological Voices from the Global South, and a wide variety of courses in ethics and justice.
Dr. Fernandez has authored and edited many books and numerous articles and book chapters. Among his many books, he has published Toward a Theology of Struggle (Orbis Books 1994), Reimagining the Human: Theological Anthropology in Response to Systemic Evil (Chalice Books 2004), and Burning Center, Porous Borders: The Church in a Globalized World (Wipf & Stock 2011). He has edited volumes also, including Teaching for a Culturally Diverse and Racially Just World (Wipf and Stock 2014) and most recently, Teaching in a World of Violent Extremism (Pickwick Publications 2021).
United president Dr. Molly T. Marshall writes, "For nearly 30 years United students and faculty have benefited from the expansive ministry of Dr. Fernandez. This commitment to scholarship and the service of theological education has made a stellar contribution both at United and internationally. We celebrate with him the conclusion of his service as a treasured theology professor."
Dr. Fernandez is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ in the Philippines and is the President of Union Theological Seminary of the Philippines. Subsequent to his retirement from United, he will focus his full attention on his work in the Philippines
When invited to reflect on his time at United, Eleazar writes: "I thought it was only yesterday when I started teaching at United Seminary. Committed to going back to the Philippines to serve the land of my birth, I thought that I would only stay for a couple of years, but the couple of years became five and the five turned into almost three decades .... As I close my years at United, I can only hope that my diaspora life—my teaching, speaking, writing, and yes, my living—has helped broaden our horizons, deepen our compassion, and widen our connections to the world around us. Thank you United for your generosity and hospitality. May your decisions and actions be not guided by your fears, but your hopes. Sail boldly and confidently in the direction of your dreams!"
