The Biennial Meeting brought Association of Theological Schools (ATS) presidents, deans, and theological education leaders to learn and network as they examined new models that schools are exploring in service to their missions. Dr. Kathy Winings commented on the workshop about finances and student debt. ATS has an initiative: Economic Challenges Facing Future Ministers. This workshop highlighted key insights and successful strategies theological schools can adopt to better prepare students for the financial challenges they will face in ministry. Workshop attendees heard from several...

Sister Christiana Mmadu is from Nigeria. In Nigeria she became a nun, joining a vibrant sisterhood in Oyo State, and she devoted herself to caring for others. A devout Catholic, she came as a missionary sister to the USA, planning to study at St. John’s University, a well-known Catholic institution located on Long Island. Due to administrative problems, she was unable to attend, but was then offered the opportunity to enroll at the UTS city campus at West 43rd St. in Manhattan. Friends reminded her that she is a person who is “very devout and faithful” to her church and that her beliefs...

BARRYTOWN, NY – Lebron James made a promise and commitment to the people of Cleveland to bring them their first sports championship in 52 years. He succeeded.  The Cleveland Cavaliers won the NBA Championship, 2016 on June 19, 4 games to 3, after being down 3 games to 1 to the Golden State Warriors. Carl J. Verderber, Maintenance Supervisor and all-around handyman at the Unification Theological Seminary (UTS), Barrytown since 2000 following a 30-year career at IBM in Kingston, NY, has made a similar promise and commitment. He vows that someday the city of Hudson, NY will...

When semester is over, UTS closes down. Right? No, wrong! Two weeks after commencement on Monday, June 13 faculty and staff came together in the Oak Room, at the UTS 4W 43rd Street  campus in New York City, for a faculty education day. The morning session, facilitated by Dr. Kathy Winings, started at 10:00 am with a webinar from the Association of Theological Schools (ATS): The State of the Industry (2015) A 45- minute overview of enrollment, students, faculty, and finances at 273 institutions that are members of ATS. (UTS is an affiliate member). UTS faculty were asked to...

Unification Theological Seminary, has remarkably talented alumni. The successes and achievements of graduates greatly improve the reputation of higher educational institutions and for UTS it is the same. UTS is proud of its graduates and their accomplishments. The number of areas served is vast: pastoral ministry, the non-profit world, business, finance, real estate, the arts, public education, private education, college and university education and administration, law, medicine and other professions. UTS benefits by the alumni contributions to the world but also by the alumni...

BARRYTOWN, NY – On Saturday, June 18, Generation Peace Academy (GPA) held its graduation ceremony at the Barrytown Conference Center for its 2015/2016 participants, marking the culmination of a nearly year-long program that began last September. The sixty-five graduates, ranging in age from 18-21, began their 10-month journey at Barrytown last fall, a place Louise Honey, Program Development Manager for GPA, likes to call the group’s “home base.” “We always begin our kickoff workshop at Barrytown,” said Louise. “We start and end our program here. We kind of consider it our ‘home...

BARRYTOWN, NY – In the midst of their workshop being held at the Unification Theology Seminary (UTS) in upstate New York, members of Generation Peace Academy (GPA) were alternately enthralled and entertained by a speaker who happily recounted his numerous experiences with the Seminary’s founder, Rev. Sun Myung Moon, and the wisdom received from him. The speaker, Tom Bowers, a 1981 graduate of UTS and the librarian there from 1995-2000, delighted the crowd as he spoke of the many times he was privileged to be with the man he proudly and affectionately called “Father.” Tom, a...

Dr. Abdou Gaye earned his Doctor of Ministry with a dissertation on “Introducing the Holy Marriage Blessing to Muslims: Testing a Quranic Approach”. His spiritual (and academic) journey has been tempestuous. The following excerpts are adapted from an article by Jones Iziomo which give us some insights into his life beginning in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. Abderrahmane “Abdou” Gaye is the second son of nine children from a strong Moslem family. The name Abderrahmane (pronounced in its short form as Abdou) means “the servant of the Merciful.” Mauritania is a...

In 1975 UTS was founded in Barrytown, NY by Reverend and Mrs. Moon, who are often warmly called “True Parents, or True Father and True Mother” by UTS alumni and friends of UTS. The following year of 1976 was another pivotal year in the Founders’ work in America. On June 1, 1976 there was the “God Bless America” rally at Yankee Stadium where Reverend Moon gave the bold and historic declaration that “America is God’s Hope” in front of  45,000 people. Reverend Moon declared that America would only be able to keep God’s blessing as an advanced country if she remained united with...