wfn.org | Two ELCA seminary professors win research grants

[<NEWS@ELCA.ORG>]

>ELCA News Blog

>May 15, 2009  

Two ELCA seminary professors win research grants

>by Frank Imhoff, ELCA News Service

Two professors at seminaries of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America (ELCA) will receive grants from the
Association of Theological Schools (ATS) in partnership
with the Lilly Endowment.  Dr. Lois M. Farag, assistant
professor of early church history at Luther Seminary, St.
Paul, Minn., will receive a Theological Scholars Grant for
the project "The Balance of the Heart: Desert Spirituality
for Twenty-First Century Christians." Dr. Martha E. Stortz,
professor of historical theology and ethics, Pacific
Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley, Calif., will
share a Collaborative Research Grant with Dr. Lisa A.
Fullam, assistant professor of moral theology, Jesuit School
of Theology at Berkeley, for "The Progress of Pilgrimage:
Post-Modern Forms of an Ancient Practice." Theological
Scholars Grants are up to $12,000, and Collaborative
Research Grants are up to $16,000. ATS awarded 24 grants
for 2009-2010.

Farag is a nun of the Coptic Orthodox Church. She's a
graduate of American University, Cairo, Egypt. She earned
a master of divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School,
Cambridge, Mass., and a doctorate from the Catholic
University of America, Washington, D.C. Farag will use
the grant to study ancient spiritual writings. "The
writings of the desert fathers and mothers of Egypt will
inspire 21st century Christians in a world that is
desperately seeking spirituality. This grant has given
me a fantastic opportunity to carry the research within
its desert context," she said. Farag will conduct her
research in four Egyptian libraries.

Stortz is a graduate of Carleton College, Northfield, Minn.
She earned a master's degree and doctorate from the
University of Chicago. "Our project germinated on Mount
Kilimanjaro in July 2008," she wrote with Fullam on their
blog. Their project will explore the influence ancient
spiritual practices have on post-modern pilgrims. They
plan to walk the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in Europe,
and they'll join a Jesuit immersion experience in El
Salvador and a Lutheran immersion experience in Mexico
City.

For information contact:

John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog