Martin Riesebrodt, professor emeritus of the sociology of religion in the Divinity School and Department of Sociology, died December 6, 2014 of cancer in Berlin. He was 66. Read the full obituary here.

On October, 19, Central Christian Church in Indianapolis presented the Honored Ministers Pin to twelve members of its congregation, including Brian Grant (1964) and Clark Williamson (1957; trustee). Linda McCrae, Senior Minister of Central Christian, and Sharon Watkins, General Minister and President of the Christian Church, Disciples of Christ, officiated at the service. "Together these twelve ministers served 540 years as ordained ministers in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)." They have served 86 different congregations and also in hospitals, regional and general church ministries, mission sites, and seminaries. Full story here.

Rebecca Anderson (2007) curated a "MothHour" StorySLAM at the Regional Assembly of the Christian Church in Illinois and Wisconsin on October 10. Four first-person narratives around the assembly theme, "Plant for the future... play with a purpose," were crafted and presented live. Storytellers were Michael Karunas (1995), Deirdre Jackson Jones (2007), Associate Dean Yvonne Gilmore (2001), and Justin Ziegler, new minister of the Christian Church of Arlington Heights.

Rebecca Anderson together with Andrew Packman (current PhD student) and the house band from Root and Branch Christian Church helped to lead Friday evening worship at the CCIW Assembly. Michael Karunas led the Saturday morning all-assembly Bible study.

Verity Jones (Trustee) has become the Executive Vice President of Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, where she had been the Director of the Center for Pastoral Excellence.

Former resident David Albertson is the author of Mathematical Theologies: Nicholas of Cusa and the Legacy of Thierry of Chartres, Oxford University Press, 2014. Albertson, who teaches at the University of Southern California, was awarded a 2014 Manfred Lautenschlaeger Award for Theological Promise at the University of Heidelberg for his book in May. The book suggests that the writings of Thierry and Nicholas "...represent an alternative possibility for a kind of modernity that makes room for a more amicable relationship between religion and science. Moving from medieval to modern doesn't need to mean moving from a religious view of the cosmos to a scientific view of the cosmos, as if the two were opposed." More here.

Alex McCauslin (2011) has accepted a position as Pastor of Church Vitality and Youth Mission at Journey of Faith Christian Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan. There are long DDH connections with that congregation, which was formerly known as Memorial Christian Church. Russ Fuller (1948) was a long-time minister, and Michael Karunas (1995) "grew up" there and is among the leaders that congregation nurtured. Also, in 1893, the year before he became the inaugural dean of DDH, Herbert L. Willett worked with Disciples in Ann Arbor and the Disciples women leaders to found the first Bible Chair at the University of Michigan (which later became the campus ministry known as Guild House). Congratulations, Alex!

Congratulations to Thandiwe Gobledale (2009) and Darryl Ferguson (former resident), who were married on September 20 in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. Alexis Vaughan (2009) presided at the ceremony, which was attended by numerous DDH and Divinity School classmates together with families and other friends. Thandiwe, the daughter of Tod and Ana Gobledale (1975), has recently completed a residency in clinical pastoral education at Advocate Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn; Darryl is a PhD candidate in religious ethics at the Divinity School.

Sympathy to JoAnne Kagiwada (Trustee) on the death of her mother, Setsu Hirasuna, on August 25. Mrs. Hirasuna was 104 and had lived in Fresno, California, for many years, remaining active until very recently. JoAnne reflected that, while her father was a public figure in the community (working with the Japanese American Citizens League and with the labor movement in the San Joaquin valley), her mother "...fed everybody who came to the house, often without much notice. She always found some way. And she never seemed to lose her cool." Here is an oral history interview with Fred and Setsu Hirasuna from 1999. A memorial service will be held October 18.

Congratulations to former residents Jeff Challberg and Leah Boyd, who were married on August 9 in St. Paul, Minnesota. They met at DDH and became engaged in the Chapel of the Holy Grail. Both are MDiv graduates of the University of Chicago Divinity School.