Rev. Greg Peters, Ph.D.
Influential Education
"I am constantly reminded of the balance between the life of faith and the life of the mind and try to model my own vocational calling on that which I experienced at Saint John's School of Theology and Seminary."
Every day I have opportunities to use what I learned at Saint John's School of Theology and Seminary (SOT/Sem) to impact the lives and faith of my students and my parishioners. I came to the School of Theology and Seminary knowing very little about monastic history, and so everything I learned was new, but ultimately became important to me. I am now an assistant professor of Medieval and Spiritual Theology at Biola University and Priest-in-Charge at the Anglican Church of the Epiphany in La Mirada, CA. I am thankful for you who support Saint John's School of Theology∙Seminary, because you are in turn supporting the work that God has called me to do.
I love teaching and being involved in the students' personal, intellectual, and spiritual formation. I work at a private Christian university so my teaching is rooted in the classical and Christian educational traditions which always keep the life of the mind and the life of the Spirit linked together. During my time at Saint John's, I was greatly influenced by the faculty, especially Sr. Mary Forman and Fr. Columba Stewart. I do not think that I had really ever taken academic or intellectual risks until I got to the SOT/Sem. We went so deeply into the texts and daily discussions that I now spend the bulk of my time doing the same thing: talking about texts with my students. The professors at the SOT∙Sem were influential models of what good teaching is all about. I have the privilege of walking with my students just as the professors at Saint John's School of Theology∙Seminary walked with me.
Perhaps the most important lesson I learned was to be faithful and regular in prayer as part of my educational process. The life of the monks and the rhythm of the monastery and the SOT/Sem showed me that study and prayer were not in tension but they were two aspects to the same endeavor - growth in holiness. I am constantly reminded of the SOT/Sem's balance between the life of faith and the life of the mind and try to model my own vocational calling on that which I saw at the SOT/Sem.
My work and vocation would not be possible without the scholarship I received at Saint John's School of Theology and Seminary. Your support was meaningful because it showed me that Saint John's School of Theology and Seminary was committed to my education and to my calling. With your generous gifts, you make scholarships possible and you help build the Church. I cannot begin to explain how important that continues to be. Thank you for helping Saint John's School of Theology and Seminary equip people like me in vocations that impact lives beyond visible measure.
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