Alumni News
Dr. Chan Sun Cho (STH’59)
Dr. Chan Sun Cho (STH'59) passed away on January 26, 2021. Dr. Cho graduated from the School of Theology in 1959 with a degree in Master of Sacred Theology.
Reverend Andrews Aboagye (STH’91)
Reverend Andrews Aboagye (STH'91) passed away on October 9, 2016. Reverend Aboagye graduated from the School of Theology in 1991 with a degree in Master of Sacred Theology.
Mrs. Betty Foley Wilkins (STH’84, CFA’50, Wheelockᴳ’52)
This obituary was originally published by the Boynton Memorial Chapel and can be found here.
Betty Anne Foley Wilkins (STH'84), age 90, passed away peacefully on November 18, 2019. She was born on February 13, 1929, in Somerville, Massachusetts and grew up in Medford.
She studied Music & Theology at the University of Boston.
Betty was the Choir Director at Cason Methodist Church in Delray Beach, FL and Musical Director at the Delray Beach Playhouse for many years. She taught piano lessons and taught English and Latin at Trinity Lutheran School. Later in life, Betty was the Music Director at Lakeview Church in Delray Beach, FL.
Betty had 4 children: Allan, Jennifer, John & Jill and has many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Among other things, Betty loved to travel. She enjoyed spending her summers in Massachusetts and New Hampshire with her family.
Betty is survived by her daughter Jennifer Foley; son John Foley; daughter Jill Foley Brown and husband Tom Brown; grandchildren Myles Hassler, Marley Rooslet, Ben Hassler, Daniel Foley, Katy Foley, Josh Foley, Megan Fioto and TJ Brown; plus 6 great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, November 23, 2019, at 11:00 am, at Boynton Memorial Chapel.
Flowers can be sent to Boynton Memorial Chapel in Boynton Beach, FL or charitable donations can be made in memory to the Save The Music Foundation, which is a nonprofit dedicated to starting music programs in schools, at www.savethemusic.org
Class of 2020 Commencement Activities at BUSTH
Dear Class of 2020, 
We are excited to be in person with you again here on campus, and we can't wait to celebrate with you! Here are some important times to remember this weekend as we celebrate your achievements together. For your family members following at home, the Saturday Marsh Chapel service will be available live at 3pm ET on our Live Streaming page.
Best wishes for a enjoyable and safe weekend celebration,
The Office of Students and Community Life
Saturday, October 2, 2021
2:30pm: Assemble for Procession to Marsh Chapel – STH 1st Floor
Leaders of Worship should gather in STH Room 110. Graduates should assemble in the first floor corridor outside STH Suite 108. Processing leaders of worship, faculty and administrators should wear their robe and hood.
3:00pm: STH Graduate Recognition Ceremony – Marsh Chapel
4:30pm: Class Photo – Marsh Chapel Stairs
4:30pm: Reception – STH Community Center
Sunday, October 3, 2021
1:00pm: Nickerson Field All-University Commencement Exercises
Lawrence Carter, Sr. (STH’68,’70,’79) to Receive Boston University 2021 Distinguished Alumni Award
Rev. Dr. Lawrence Carter, Sr. (STH’68,’70,’79) is the dean of the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College, Professor of Religion, College Archivist and Curator at Morehouse College, and the founder of the Gandhi King Ikeda Institute for Global Ethics and Reconciliation. A three-time Boston University School of Theology alumnus, he will be presented with the Boston University 2021 Distinguished Alumni Award on Saturday, October 2 at 1:30pm ET.
To register for the event, please visit the Boston University Alumni Weekend Website.
Rev. Dr. Carter was a featured author in the School of Theology’s 2017 publication of focus magazine. His sermon, “Other Sheep I Have,” can be found on page 32 of the issue.
Dean Pak’s Installation Service featured in BU Today
Dean G. Sujin Pak’s Installation was featured as a “Closer Look” in the Thursday, September 30 issue of BU Today. The Service of Installation was held at Marsh Chapel on Wednesday, September 29 at 11am ET. The recording of the service is available here.
Click here to view the article
Reverend Dr. James R. Prickett (STH’61)
Jim, (89), died September 1, 2021, at home. He was an ordained minister, serving churches in Indiana, Ohio, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Florida. In addition, Jim served in the U.S. Army, was assistant personnel manager of a steel company and served as administrator of a Methodist retirement center in Florida.
Jim was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on August 1, 1932. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati. Later he earned a master’s degree in theology from Boston University School of Theology, as well as a master’s degree and Ph.D. in education from the University of Pittsburgh.
Jim helped found Habitat for Humanity International in 1976 and served on its Board of Directors for two years before joining the founder Millard Fuller as the first paid staff person in Americus, GA for two years. He was a member of the first or second Leadership Evansville class, worked in PTA organizations in several states, volunteered at Evansville ARC and for the Komen Race for the Cure. He was also a member of the Board of Directors of Habitat for Humanity of Evansville for 12 years, serving as president for 3 of those years.
Jim was predeceased by his first wife, Donna Mills Prickett (mother of his children); his parents, Gladys and Francis Prickett; and his stepdaughter Melissa Connors.
He is survived by his wife, Janette; son, Brad (Susan) Prickett; daughter, Valerie (Rich) Watts; son, Barry (Elisheva) Prickett; stepson, Jeff Howard; grandchildren, Megan Prickett, Shannon and Greg Watts, Declan, Finn and Rowan Prickett; brother, Jack (Janet) Prickett; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A Celebration of Life service will be held at Old North UMC on Wednesday, September 8, 2021, 2:00 p.m., with The Reverends Mike Monahan, Don Bernhardt, and Gary Schaar officiating. Visitation at Alexander North Funeral Home before the service from 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Memorial contributions may be made to Old North UMC, 1401 N. Stringtown Rd., Evansville, IN 47711 (oldnorthumc.com) or Habitat for Humanity of Evansville, Towne Center North, 560 E. Diamond Ave., 47711 (evansvillehabitat.org).
Prof. Wesley Wildman: Thoughts on Innovation from a Change Skeptic
This article was written by Prof. Wesley Wildman for The Presbyterian Outlook, and was originally published on September 15, 2021. The following is an excerpt only; please read the full article here.
Thoughts on Innovation from a Change Skeptic
We like to think what we do matters. Has an impact. Changes lives. But does it?
I confess: I’m a “change skeptic.”
A change skeptic is someone who has trouble believing (often rosy) self-assessments about how our earnest actions lead to real change, to the betterment of lives.
This chronic cognitive condition is typically brought on by witnessing too much overly hopeful thinking about how change supposedly occurs. It is exacerbated by personally participating in supposed processes of radical transformation that turn out to be not so radical, or even transformational.
A Message from Dean Pak to Alumni/ae & Friends (Fall 2021)
Dear STH Alumni/ae & Friends,
As I begin my first full year as dean of the Boston University School of Theology, I am invigorated by the opportunities of this moment. Shaped by the challenges and lessons of the past year, the world is now feeling its way toward a new way of being. So too are religious institutions, including the School of Theology.
In this task, and in meeting the needs of our students, the entire STH community, and beyond, I ask for your financial support as we begin a new academic year.
Just as religious leaders are rethinking the shape and practices of religion, we at STH need to rethink what religious leadership can be. To me, pastoral leaders should be stewards who draw on their rich traditions without being stifled by them, summoners who convene and build networks and partnerships, and trailblazers who spur substantive response to societal problems by stimulating and supporting necessary change.
Guided by this vision, we can chart a path toward an effective and inspired theological education. In this, STH is uniquely equipped by its widely recognized identity as a school of prophets, from Howard Thurman and Martin Luther King, Jr. (GRS’55, Hon.’59) to the present day. We are strengthened, too, by our firm stand for the principles of social justice and inclusion.
As I work with our faculty, staff, Dean’s Advisory Board (alumni), students, and University leadership to develop the school’s next strategic plan, several priorities are already clear. For each of these, your support can make a real difference:
- Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, which are bolstered by an endowed Sacred Worth Scholarship Fund as we work to support other DEI-related funds, including the Dean Thurman & Bishop Easterling Fellowship Fund and the Affirmation and Empowerment Fund sponsored by the STH Class of 2021
- Faculty research and program support, such as that sponsored by the Raíces Latinas Program in Theology, Leadership and Research Fund, and the Faith & Ecological Justice Program
- Global networking and educational opportunities, including student travel supported by the endowed Global & Contextual Engagement Fund
Your gift to any of these, or to another STH fund, will strengthen the school—and, beyond that, advance our mission of transforming theological education, religious leadership, and ultimately the world. I also look forward to the opportunity to meet you at a future event in person or at least online. We are deeply grateful for your support, your prayers, and your continuing connection to the School of Theology.
Sincerely,
G. Sujin Pak
Dean, School of Theology
PS: By giving to the School of Theology, you’re not just helping STH—you’re helping us all work toward an inspiring future. I urge you to visit bu.edu/give2sth today. inspiring future. I urge you to visit www.bu.edu/give2sth today.
Navigating the Vaccination Divide
September 22, 2021 Statement from Dean Pak, Dean Stone, and Dean De La Rosa
Many are aware of the recent Boston Globe article that features a current first-year Master of Divinity student who has made strong statements against COVID-19 vaccination and testing. As many already know, Boston University provides exemptions from vaccines for sincerely held religious beliefs. Alongside the University, the School of Theology respects the freedom of persons to express their views and defend them. The School of Theology also strongly affirms the profound importance of vaccination as a fundamental practice for the well-being and safety of our community and those around us. Further, the School of Theology proudly implements the University’s public health measures to help ensure the safety of every member of our community—and those with whom they come into contact—through mandated masking in University buildings and regular COVID-19 testing. Vaccination, masking, and testing are crucial practices that help ensure public health safety. They are also loving practices to express care and esteem toward vulnerable populations.
We are living in a world that is increasingly divided, where bridges for conversation and possibilities for compassion toward an opponent are rapidly disappearing and unsought. Divisions over matters of personal safety and basic human dignity, as well as matters where opposing sides claim their own ethical mandate, are the most acute. Understandably, they struggle to find (and often cannot find) common ground. There is reason and need passionately to stand for what one believes is right, just, and good. Indeed, that is the heartbeat of religion itself. Yet, looking at the history of religions and Christianity in particular, one finds that the failure often comes when we cease to be able to embrace each other’s humanity and can only singularly embrace our own cause at whatever cost it takes to win that cause. At that point, we have not only lost sight of another’s humanity, we begin to lose our own humanity.
We are convicted that Beloved Community has got to find a way to embrace differences, practice humility, and be saturated with compassion. We are also convicted that Beloved Community must have boundaries—things to which it does and will say “no.” Religious and faith communities have often struggled in how to say this “no” or to assert a particular identity without also demeaning the other. We desperately need a model of the nonviolent “no,” as well as the nonviolent “yes.”
We hope we can find a pathway that seeks to say yes to humility and empathy and no to arrogance and disparagement. May we together say yes to conviction with compassion.
People on both sides of the vaccination issue have a right to be heard—and listened to—precisely in the midst of passionate disagreement. People also need to feel safe, recognizing that definitions of safety vary quite significantly on each side. We hope we can find a pathway that seeks to say yes to humility and empathy and no to arrogance and disparagement. May we together say yes to conviction with compassion. May we together say yes to not losing sight of the humanity of each and every one of us.
G. Sujin Pak, Dean
Bryan Stone, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
Cristian De La Rosa, Associate Dean for Students and Community Life