STH Installs David Schnasa Jacobsen as Inaugural Bishops Scholar of Homiletics and Preaching
October 16, 2019 – The School of Theology on Wednesday celebrated the installation of Professor David Schnasa Jacobsen as the inaugural Bishops Scholar of Homiletics and Preaching. The Bishops Scholar position was originally named for the Bishop Edwin Holt Hughes (STH’1892) Memorial Fund, which initially honored Bishop Hughes by supporting a promising future in homiletics and preaching for STH students. Over the years, it grew to help support all bishops and preachers that have graduated from STH and have gone on to faithfully serve their religious communities.
During the Service of Installation, Dr. Jacobsen preached his sermon “Facing the Word,” and immediately after was installed by Dean Mary Elizabeth Moore and Bishop Susan Hassinger. “[We] give thanks for the cloud of witnesses…who have now established the Bishops Scholar of Homiletics and Preaching,” said Dean Moore, addressing the congregation. “Bless David as the inaugural Bishops Scholar of Homiletics and Preaching…and that our mutual ministries and work may be served with all faithfulness, wisdom, and courage.” At the conclusion of the installation, Dr. Jacobsen was given a special commemorative reproduction from the School of Theology Library archives of the STH building and Marsh Chapel, as the buildings were imagined by their original architects in the 1940s.
A celebratory luncheon for the STH community was held after the service at Hillel House on Bay State Road. With a welcome and presentation given by Dean Moore, faculty speakers included Claire Wolfteich, Professor of Practical Theology and Spirituality Studies, and Dr. Jacobsen’s colleague as co-director for the Center of Practical Theology, and Bishop Hassinger. Student and alum contributors included Nikki Young (’18, ’23), Duse Lee (’20), and Jackie Blue (’09). Several students presented Dr. Jacobsen with a token of their own appreciation for his continued service and mentorship at STH. Moving forward, Dr. Jacobsen is finishing work on a new book called Promising Signs: Toward a Public Theology of Word and Sacrament for a Disenchanted Age.
