March 20, 2009

Kairos A Publication of the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Community Issue #175

By Stella Burkhalter, MDiv Senior

God and I have an understanding. I’m a and I think that’s something for us theologians to
visual learner, so when I need to know something, consider, too. My pile-of-yarn prayer got old after a
God gives me a picture. There was that time I was while. One day I asked God to help me with a
beating myself up for falling short and wondering mess as I stood there with the tangles in my hands
what my sinful self looked like to God. Just then, a for the thousandth time. I think God was sick of
picture popped into me. “You again with the yarn? Didn’t I just fix that
my head: The Thing for you?” Instead of taking it from me, God gave
from the Fantastic me a picture. It was me playing with God in a gi-
Four1. It was so gantic pile of yarn. The picture came and went so
ridiculous that I fast that I didn’t get a
knew it had to be look at God, but what I
from God. It did get was the mes-
cracked me up. The sage: “Why are you so
cool thing was, God obsessed with having
also showed me everything in neat little
that the ugly, brown balls? This is how it is.
thing-ness can melt Get over it. Come play
off. Sin is not who with me.” Once again, it
we are, it’s what was funny. God is
clings to us, and funny. I’m grateful for
God’s grace can that. I’m grateful, too,
melt it off and reveal what we are created to be. that for those of us who
Another time, I was frustrated about what a are a little slow, God is
mess a situation in my life had become, and God willing to paint a picture.
gave me a picture of a pile of yarn that was hope- Maybe next week I’ll write about the picture
lessly knotted and tangled. It occurred to me that of the purple-headed chicken.
all I had to do was hand the pile over to God and
God could handle it, handing me back a beautiful,
1
neat ball. That became my practice in prayer – I’d The Thing and Fantastic Four are the creative
visualize whatever was worrying me as a mess of work of Marvel Comics and 20th Century Fox.
yarn, and I’d visualize myself handing the mess
over to God. It always made me lighten up and Inside This Issue
remember that we serve a mighty God who has the Chapel Schedule 2 What I Learned in Seminary 5
power to change things in our lives in surprising Announcements and Events 2 Today
ways. Explorations in Identity: Part 6 3 Weekly Calendar 6
People who work out will tell you that you Student Voting Changes 4
can’t keep exercising the same way for too long,
© 2009 Austin Presbyterian
Theological Seminary
 Issue 175 www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.html Page 2

PCUSA ORDINATION EXAM

Chapel Schedule
March 23—March 27 PREPARATION WORKSHOPS

Monday: Sung Liturgy Ordination Exam preparation workshops are offered only
Worship Committee and once a year, so do take advantage of these if you plan
Student-led to take ordination exams this August or next Janu-
ary. One of the number one reasons people fail to pass
Tuesday: Service of Word and an exam is a failure to read the question thoroughly or a
Sacrament, Dr. Andy failure to follow general directions. Don’t be one of
Dearman, preacher those failures. All workshops will be held in McMillan
210. Contact Ann Fields for more information.
Thursday: Sung Liturgy
Worship Committee and General Overview
Student-led Monday, May 4, 6:00-7:00
Led by Lesley Davies from GA in Louisville,
Friday: Service of the Word and Shane Webb, APTS MDiv Student
Mindy Baker, preacher
Biblical Exegesis
Senior MDiv students preach in chapel on Monday, May 4, 7:00-8:00 Led by Andy Dearman
most Mondays and Fridays.
Worship & Sacraments
Tuesday, May 5, 6:00-8:00 Led by Jen Lord
Income Tax Issues for Clergy
Church Polity
All students, as well as ordained faculty and administra- Wednesday, May 6, 6:00-8:00 Led by Fred Morgan
tors are invited to our second annual Seminar on Income
Tax Issues for Clergy. Theological Competence
• Thursday, April 23 Thursday, May 7, 6:00-8:00 Led by Dave Jensen
• Presented by Debbie Steinbach, CPA and spouse of
Rev., Phil Steinbach, an Austin Seminary graduate
• 6:00-8:00 PM PCUSA SENIOR SEMINARS
• McCord 204
This seminar is strongly encouraged for all seniors. If you The remaining Senior Seminars are listed below.
are a junior or middler, please be aware that we plan to Please plan to take advantage of them. Contact Ann
offer this seminar again next year. This is not your only Fields for more information.
chance. Contact Ann Fields for more information.
Working with PNC’s, CPM’s & COM’s
Led by Rev. Kathy Anderson
Thursday, March 26
Settles Lectures 2009
6:00-8:00
McMillan 210
Dr. William Storrar, Director of the Center of
Theological Inquiry in Princeton, NJ, will present two lec-
tures on Mission and Public Theology. These lectures Pastoral Ethics (required by many presbyteries)
Led by David Johnson
explore the relationship between mission and public theol-
Wednesday, April 15 & Thursday, April 16
ogy, as that term is understood by the new International
6:00-8:00
Journal of Public Theology ( www.brill.nl/ijpt ).
McCord 204
Both Sessions are Required for Pastoral Ethics credit
‘The Common Ground'
Tuesday, March 24, 5:30 p.m.
Parents’ Night Out
'The Creative Tension'
Wednesday, March 25, 11:00 a.m.
Mark your calendar for the following dates:
Lectures will be held in Shelton Chapel with overflow • Friday, March 27, Hicks Community House, 6:00 to
seating in McMillan 210. For more information, contact 8:30 p.m. RSVP by Wednesday, March 25.
Alison Riemersma in the Dean’s Office. • Friday, April 17, Hicks Community House, 6:00 to
8:30 p.m. RSVP by Wednesday, April 15.
RSVP to Laurel Dixon, Babysitting Coordinator at 473-
8797 or laurel.dixon@austinseminary.edu.
Space is Limited!
Issue 175 www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.html
A Miniseries of Reflections from Travels Abroad
By Mary Elizabeth Prentice, MDiv Middler
Part Six: Identity as Via Negativa
It seems timely to be writing and reflecting
about a time when identity for many is being re-
defined. While I was not on campus the week be-
fore Spring Break, when the entire community trem-
bled through tumultuous times, I have heard some
of the gossip. And the prevailing question seems to
be – what makes us different from everyone else?
The seminary and churches around the world are
obviously not exempted from the economic crisis,
but are we different in our handling of the crisis
compared to other in-
stitutions? I hope and
pray that we are.
From the church doors
of Regent Street Pres-
byterian Church in
Newtownards, North-
ern Ireland, to the
doors of McCord on
the APTS campus, we
are brothers and sis-
ters united in our faith
in Jesus of Nazareth,
the Christ. We are
most importantly an
interdependent community and not individuals
alone in this world.
People, places and situations are defining
and redefining themselves continuously. Often
times it begins by stating what they are not, rather
than ascribing to distinctive particularities. This
theme seems to prevail in many of my interactions
in life right now.
For example: Last week on March 9, two
unarmed British soldiers were shot dead outside
their military barracks while receiving a pizza deliv-
ery in Antrim, Northern Ireland1. The next night, a
police officer was shot and killed in what appeared
to be pre-meditated aggression on police who were
responding to a “call for help.” This is the first of
such violence on military and public servants seen
in Northern Ireland for 12 years. The Real-IRA, a
splinter group from the IRA (Irish Republican Army)
that did not agree to the Good Friday Agreement in
1998, claimed responsibilities for the attacks hours
after each event.
To my great surprise and relief, the rival pa-
ramilitary organization (Ulster Defense Association
Page 3
[UDA]) publically announced they would not advo-
cate reprisal attacks. Sinn Fein, the political party
representative of the National-
ist/Republican/Catholic views, also harshly con-
demned the attacks and publically distanced itself
from this splinter group2. On Wednesday March 11,
2009, 10,000 people gathered in the city center to
peacefully demonstrate that these murderous ac-
tions do not represent who they are/were or want to
be. They carried placards read “No Going Back”,
and Nationalists/ Republi-
cans/Catholics stood
side-by-side with Loyal-
ist/Protestants. From my
whirlwind visit and in
reading the newspapers
there, my observation is
that, while the road to
peace is unclear and filled
with potholes, there is a
general sense that the
people of Northern Ireland
will not tolerate going
back to the times of The
Troubles. The people of
Northern Ireland may not know a true and full
peace, but they certainly know what is not peaceful,
and they seem to be choosing to define themselves
in a via negativa mindset.
This via negativa mindset is where the
church and seminary must live for now. We may
not know how to expertly ride this tumultuous wave
of economic uncertainty, but it is my hope and
prayer is that we as a seminary and as “church” can
be a place and space where people know they are
not alone. We are not absolved from worldly hurt,
but we are also a people that try to stand and live
into the firm and certain knowledge of God’s be-
nevolence to us in this broken world.
Photo reference: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/mar/11/northern-
ireland-peace-protests
Notes:
1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/the_p_word/newsid_7933000/7
933107.stm
2. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/mar/11/northern-ireland-eace-
protests
 Issue 175 www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.html
Proposed Voting Process
For Student Body President, Student Senate,
Elections Commissioner and Committee Representatives
The Student Senate is proposing a change to the
Constitution regarding the election of student officers.
The proposal will be presented, discussed, and consid-
ered at an upcoming Manna. What follows is a descrip-
tion of the current situation and the proposal for change.
The proposed system would allow for voters to
vote their preference of candidate no matter what situa-
tion arises. The proposed election system would bring
the election cycle down to about 4 weeks at most. Be-
cause of the way the elections would be conducted, there
would be no runoff elections (they would be built into the
first ballots) and candidates would be elected in a much
quicker amount of time. The ballots would ask the voter to
rank the candidates in order of preference to be used in
case no candidate is elected immediately. Because voters
rank the candidates they always have a say in the elec-
tion process and they never have to make a choice be-
tween the “lesser of evils.”
Here is (hopefully) a simple breakdown of how
the proposed voting system works. There are other expla-
nations on the Internet, and there are links to them at the
end of this letter. This example will use the student body
president election as the example.
1. Adam, Billy, Cindy, and Diane are all nominated
and are running for president.
2. Students are given (electronically using email and
the Internet) a ballot that asks them to rank ALL
candidates by preference.
3. After the election has ended the first preferences
are tallied up as everyone’s vote and the results
show the Diane has 30 votes, Cindy 27, Billy 26,
and Adam 17. Since no candidate has reached a
majority something else has to happen to elect a
candidate. Normally we would have a second
round of voting with new ballots. In the proposed
system we move to the instant runoff.
4. Adam has the lowest vote count and so his bal-
lots are redistributed based on the second prefer-
ence. Let’s assume that most of Adam’s support-
ers favored Billy and to a lesser extent Diane and
Cindy. The new tally is Diane 33, Cindy 31, and
Billy 36.
5. We still have no majority winner and so another
instant runoff is held, this time Cindy’s ballots are
redistributed based on the next preference. As-
suming most of Cindy’s support went to Diane the
new tally is Diane 58 and Billy 42. Diane is de-
clared the winner because she now has a major-
ity of the votes.
Page 4
All this happened within a matter of minutes once
the final vote was cast and each and every person’s ballot
was counted in a way they preferred. While the system
seems more difficult, it is actually a much more efficient
and fair way of holding an election.
While the system isn’t exactly the same when it
comes to electing senators or committee representatives
the guiding principles are the same. This is because we
aren’t electing a single winner but multiple winners in a
single election. There is an added step in redistributing
some of the votes. This system is officially called single
transferable vote instead of instant runoff voting.
If you would like to learn more about the pro-
posed system or watch some really cool videos check out
these web resources.
http://instantrunoff.com/
http://www.fairvote.org/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLVAF6M-FcQ - the
easiest/shortest way to get acquainted with the proposed
voting system.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instant-runoff_voting
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_transferable_vote
Yes the last two come from Wikipedia, but they are accu-
rate and in depth and provide a good picture of what IRV
and STV are.
For more information, contact Melissa Koerner, Student
Body President, or Matthew Thompson, Senator.
Mark your calendars!
Baccalaureate
Commencement News
Sat., May 23
CORRECTED TIMES
6:00 p.m.
Commencement
Sun., May 24
2:30 p.m.
Both Events Will Be Held At
University Presbyterian Church
See Alison in the dean’s office
for more information.
 Issue 175 www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.html
A Weekly Column Offering Musings, Insights, and Reflections on the Seminary Life
Fabric
By Paul Dubois, MDiv Senior
• On Monday, March 9, there were fewer than 10
people at the chapel prayer service, including the
leaders.
• At about the time the service concluded, an e-mail
was sent heralding the seminary’s cost cutting
actions and that seven persons were no longer
employed by the seminary.
• Chapel attendance was significantly higher on
Tuesday for the Service of Word and Sacrament,
with a faculty member presiding.
• Although there was no chapel on Wednesday,
many were gathered in Stotts for a campus-wide
meeting regarding the campus changes enacted
on Monday. This meeting concluded with prayers
of gratitude, lament, and hope.
• On Thursday, fewer than 10 persons gathered in
chapel for the daily prayer service.
• On Friday’s Service of the Word, a senior student
delivered his senior sermon, a right-of-passage
enjoined by many–members of his class and
friends, in addition to others.
Someone observing these events might suggest
that the Monday and Thursday prayer services represent
the basal rate of community worship on our campus–10.
When the excitement dies down, this is the pulse at rest.
Surely there were other moments of prayer and worship
during the week, and not just in chapel. God doesn’t exist
in the chapel alone, but the chapel is a place for us to
come together to pray, to worship, and to commune. As
the Library is a place for study and Stotts Hall as a place
for refreshment and community, the chapel is a place
where our diversity yields to our unity.
But I wonder why our basal rate is so low.
I don’t know, maybe it is not so low. It’s not about
the attendance anyway. It’s about our reluctance, inability
or apathy towards gathering regularly in prayer and wor-
ship, to be present with one another and before God. If it
isn’t happening here... why do we think it will happen in
the churches we leave here to serve? I fear we have
more reasons not to worship and pray together than we do
to head up that hill and join together in being a prayerful
community.
There are times that we are drawn to chapel. We
show up when our good friends are preaching or leading.
We show up for special events, when the administration
Do you have something to say to Kairos? Something to add… Something to refute?
If so, we’d like to hear. We are committed to dialogue.
Letters to the editor will be published. See page 6 of this issue for our editorial guidelines.
Page 5
encourages us. We show up for a favorite professor’s
sermon. But these moments constitute the veneer of our
life together as a worshiping community; they are not the
fabric. When a crisis comes the veneer falls away; it is the
fabric that holds us together. In times of crisis we are
drawn in to community, but that’s not really the best time
to weave the fabric of community. Instead, it is in times of
crisis that one sees the character and resilience of the
community that has been woven.
While most of us surely strive to live our lives cen-
tered on God, that doesn’t necessarily make our commu-
nity God-centered. As a community, do we intentionally
enter into prayer and worship with one another? Do we
seriously engage in a life of community worship and
prayer? Are we rooted in a life of discernment together? I
don’t want to get hung up on words like ‘chapel’, ‘worship’,
and ‘prayer’. I certainly don’t want to reduce the question
to a matter of chapel attendance. Yet... when, why, and
how do we come together as a people? Only during a
crisis? Are we engaged in a life together that matters? If
this is not the fabric of our community, then it seems to me
that we are not really a Christian community at all.
Rather, we are a school and a workplace and a multi-
family residential community.
The nexus of chapel, worship, and prayer seems
to offer a threshold for us, beckoning but not compelling
us to enter, a grace that can be refused.
Towards the end of his spiritual autobiography
The Seven Storey Mountain, Thomas Merton pondered
the magnitude of cruelty and destruction that occurred
during World War II. He gave thanks for the thousands of
monastics around the world who, during this time, did little
but pray–pray in solitude and in their communities set
apart from the rest of society. Merton offers this arresting
thought: How much more severe, more cruel, and more
destructive would this war have been had it not been for
the thousands of monastics around the world constantly
praying for peace, mercy, and love? How many millions
more would have died if not for them?
Merton’s thought convicts me: It is the intentional,
deliberate life of God-centered prayer and worship that
sustains our common life. I don’t go to chapel because I
enjoy it, or because it is engaging, relevant, or reverent. I
go for myself, because I have to go. I go for you, because
I want to meet you there. I want to be there, with you, to-
gether, in prayer and praise, seeking forgiveness and hop-
ing for hope, for the benefit of this school, this community,
our families, and our world.
 Issue 174 www.austinseminary.typepad.com/portal/kairos.html Page 6

Monday, March 23rd

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Sung Liturgy Shelton Chapel
Worship Committee and student-led
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Spiritual Direction – Scott Quinn McCord 202
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Acts 2:42 – Jose Lopez McCord 203
6:00 – 7:30 p.m. MATS Colloquium – Ellen Babinsky McCord 201

Tuesday, March 24th

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Service of the Word and Sacrament Shelton Chapel
Led by Andy Dearman
Chapel Team: Mari Lyn Jones and Clare Lozano
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. MSSW/MDIV Group – Nikki Stahl McCord 201
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Company of New Pastors Informational Lunch Knox Dining Hall
WEEKLY CALENDAR OF EVENTS

3:00 – 7:00 p.m. Judy Fletcher’s Kroning – Laura Harris McCord 203
5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Settles Lecture – Dr. William Storrar Shelton Chapel/Vickery Atrium/McMillan 210
MARCH 23-MARCH 29, 2009

Wednesday, March 25th

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Judy Fletcher’s Kroning – Laura Harris Knox Dining Hall
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Midweek Manna – Student Senate Stotts Dining Hall
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Settles Lecture – Dr. William Storrar Shelton Chapel/McMillan 210
11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Spiritual Direction – Jean Springer McCord 202
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Corpus Christi – Scott Spence McCord 201
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Student Senate – Melissa Koerner McMillan 206
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Spiritual Direction – Barbara Schutz McMillan 205
2:00 – 3:30 p.m. APTS Choir Rehearsal Shelton Chapel
2:00 – 3:30 p.m. Faculty Board Meeting – Nancy Reese Trull Boardroom
4:00 – 5:00 p.m. Faculty in Executive Session – Nancy Reese Trull Boardroom
5:00 – 6:30 p.m. Company of New Pastors McCord 201
6:00 – 9:00 p.m. Balcones Community Orchestra – Outside Group McMillan 211

Thursday, March 26th

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Judy Fletcher’s Kroning – Laura Harris Knox Dining Hall
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Mission Presbytery CPM McCord 203
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Spiritual Direction – Barbara Schutz McCord 202
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Sung Liturgy Shelton Chapel
Worship Committee and student-led
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Call 2 – Gail Dalrymple McCord 201
6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Senior Seminar: Working with PNCs, CPMs, COMs McMillan 210

Friday, March 27th

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Mission Presbytery CPM McCord 203
8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Spiritual Direction – Joe Berry McCord 202
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Worship: Service of the Word Shelton Chapel
Mindy Baker, preacher
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Still Small Voice – Margaret Talbot Knox Dining Hall
1:00 – 4:00 p.m. Business Affairs Strategic Planning Meeting – Lori Rohre Knox Dining Hall

Saturday, March 28th

8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Mission Presbytery CPM McCord 203
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Fund for Theological Education – Kathy Muenchow McCord 201
8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Carol Howard-Merrit Workshop – Kathy Muenchow McMillan 204/205/206/210
2:00 – 7:00 p.m. The Growing Generation, Inc. – Outside Group Knox Dining Hall

Sunday, March 29th

2:00 – 3:30 p.m. Austin Girl’s Choir – Sara McClure Shelton Chapel

Submissions to Kairos: Email submissions to the editor, Paul Dubois, at Kairos@austinseminary.edu. Calendar events and room reservation
requests should be sent to Katherine Sweet at ksweet@austinseminary.edu or made in person at the McCord desk. Editorial decisions are based
on urgency, availability of space, and editorial guidelines. Deadline is Wednesday at 5:00 P.M. Submissions made after deadline must be
accompanied by a dunkel.

Kairos Editorial Guidelines

1 Kairos is the voice of students at Austin Seminary.
2 Kairos generally carries no advertisement for sales of goods or services by individuals. An exception is the sale of a student’s library or other
study aids.
3 It is not possible to make all program announcements which are submitted by individual churches. Kairos is more likely to be able to run an-
nouncements which apply to ecumenical or interfaith groups or groups of churches.
4 No letters which attack individuals or groups will be run in Kairos. This is to be distinguished from letters which might criticize the actions of
individuals or groups.
5 Kairos will publish letters to the editor that contribute to Christian conversation on the APTS campus. All letters must be signed.