Friday, May 20, 2016 7:00 p.m. Xenia Nazarene Church 1204 W. Second Street, Xenia, 123rdOhioPayne Theological 2016CeremonyCommencementSeminary
Salutations from the Board
Chairman’s
Vice Chairman’s Word
Dear Friends, First, I would like to salute all those who have made this graduation possible. The spouses, children, families and relatives. This is your accomplishment too. Congratulations and thank you! Second, the instructors, professors, administrators and staff. This graduation is a testimony of your achievement as educators, and mentors to our students. Congratulations and thank you! I also want to thank the people who helped these graduates in many other ways. Your employers, your congregation, Payne students, and other people behind the scenes. You also made this possible. Last, but not least, I thank all 24 members of this graduating class for selecting Payne to receive your degree. With so many other choices, I am humbled that you chose this particular institution to further your education. Congratulations and thank you! As you prepare to further your ministry, please know that you will always have our support and prayers!
Bishop Gregory G.M. Ingram Board Chairman
Brown* Rev. Dr. Eric
Brown Rev. Dr. Grainger Browning Rev. Lucinda Burgess** Rev. Bruce L. Butcher Rev. E. Anne Henning Byfield Mrs. Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker Dr. Jeanette Prear Harris Rev. Dr. Perry Henderson Rev. Dr. Winton Hill Ms. Cheryl Hammond Hopewell Mr. Claude Powers Judge Adele M. Riley Rev. W. Antoni Sinkfield Ms. Mia Wortham Spells, Esq. Rev. Dr. Donald Tucker Mr. Joseph Turner Rev. Dr. Albert D. Tyson III Rev. Dr. Stafford Wicker *Faculty **StudentRepresentativeRepresentative Board Leadership
Garnett Henning Bishop
Emeritus Bishop
Board BishopVice-ChairmanWilliamP.DeVeaux, Sr. Bishop John
Board BishopChairmanMcKinley
Rev. Dr.
Rev. Floyd
Bryant Bishop T.
Bishop Wilfred
Bishop McKinley Young Board Vice-Chairman
Messiah Bishop Zedekiah
Bishop Gregory G. M. Ingram Young R. Larry Kirkland N. Leath J. L. Grady, C. Robert V. Webster, Emeritus W. Alexander Charles S. L.
Dear Graduating Candidates, Your years of hard work and dedication toward your academic success have paid off. On behalf of the entire Payne Theological Seminary community, please accept my sincere congratulations on your graduation. I also thank you for choosing Payne. I know you have benefitted from your time here, and have been witness to the Seminary’s effort to advance as a premier destination for the best and brightest African American seminary students and scholars. Thank you for helping make Payne a better place to learn and to thrive. As you continue on your journey, know that you are always welcome here. Please be sure to join your fellow graduates, faculty, staff, family, friends at the reception in the lobby to celebrate your accomplishments after this evening’s commencement service.
Bishop Jeffrey
Word
Rev. Michael Joseph Brown, Ph.D.
Dr. Michael Miller Associate Dean of Academic Services
Word
Rev. Brandon Stewart Chief of Staff
Dr. Betty Holley Faculty Representative Ms. Elise ControllerPeyroux Rev. Jules Dunham Howie Director of Development
Dr. Michael Joseph Brown Academic Dean & Interim President
Cry. Sing. Shout! This is a day of celebration! This is a day of the Lord’s making! It is only right that all who share in this event rejoice. It is a day we have never seen before and one we will never experience again.
Message from the President
Academic Dean/Interim President
Today, we celebrate the accomplishments of many. Some started on this journey more than six years ago, taking a course here and there toward the degree requirements before deciding to go “all in” to complete the Master of OthersDivinity.started around three years ago, diligently taking courses online and intensives in Wilberforce, Philadelphia, Washington DC, and other places. Still others have been among us less than three years. Through sheer determination they all juggled courses, careers, home lives, and churches to reach this day. Regretfully, we have lost some along the way. So today, shed tears of joy for those who arrived at this moment and sorrow for those who, instead of graduating, are part of the cloud of witnesses surrounding us. Everyone who walks across that stage today deserves to be proud. They are now part of an ancient and venerable order of scholars. Stretching back to the earliest centers of Christian thought, like Alexandria, there has been a consistent line of theologians who have engaged the faith, preached to the faithful, and defended both from outside danger. Our graduates today have joined that number. I am proud to be the chief servant of this institution during this time. I would like to thank the leadership of the Board of Trustees, particularly Bishop Gregory G. M. Ingram (Chair) and Bishop McKinley Young (ViceChair), for their sage advice and sober vision. I applaud our faculty, who have dedicated themselves to the betterment of our students. I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to our staff, who keep this institution running day in and day out. They are the foot soldiers without whom none of this would be possible. They are the bricks and mortar of this proud institution. And I would like to thank our alumni, who continue to hold Payne Theological Seminary as dear in their hearts.
President’s
President’s Cabinet
Welcome to the 123rd Commencement celebration of Payne Theological Seminary. This ceremony constitutes a special moment for our graduates, faculty, staff, trustees, and friends. Payne is proud to be training men and women of African descent to become professional practitioners of the Gospel in a world in need of a healing touch and liberating word.
Gospel Bishop Wilfred J. Messiah
Distinguished Professor of Christian Ethics Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Epistle Rev. Dr. Albert Tyson, III
Dr. Michael Joseph Brown, Interim President / Academic Dean Presiding
Leader: Take care of yourself and your reputation; and to what you have been taught; continue in them: for in doing this you will both save yourself, and those that hear you.
Leader: Neglect not the gift that is in you, which was given to you by education, with the bestowal of this degree on this day.
ScriptureOld
ProcessionalPreludeHymn
Leader: Let no one despise you; but be an example to the believers, in word, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
People: Till the Lord comes, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.
The Procession Rev. Dr. Betty Holley Faculty Marshall Call to Celebration of Learning Rev. Dr. Michael Joseph Brown
People: Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them; that your abilities may appear to all.
Presiding Prelate, Seventeenth Episcopal District Matthew 10:16-23
“All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name”
Commencement Convocation Order of Service
Organ
Invocation Rev. Dr. Winton Hill
Presiding Elder, Fourth Episcopal District 2 Timothy 3:14-17
Presiding Elder, First Episcopal District
Graduates: When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child. I thought as a child: but when I became an adult, I put away my childish ways.
Testament Rev. Dr. Charles Brown
Reverend
Payne Alumni Association
Lucinda Burgess President,
McKinley Young Benediction Bishop McKinley Young Recessional Rev. Dr. Betty Holley
Introduction of the Speaker Bishop McKinley Young Presiding Prelate, Third Episcopal District Commencement Address Conferral of Honorary Degrees Bishop McKinley Young Rev. Dr. Michael Joseph Brown Presentation of Candidates Senior Response Samantha Douglas-Lightner Payne Valedictorian Bible Presentation Sharon Stapes Class of 2015 Presentation from Seniors Alumni Induction Rev. Bruce Butcher President, Payne Alumni Association Awards & Scholarships Dr. Michael Miller Associate Dean of Academic Services Charge to the Graduates Rev. Dr. Michael Joseph Brown Recognition and Remarks
Bruce Butcher
Selection Bethel University Renaissance Choir, McKenzie, Tennessee Greetings Bishop McKinley Young Vice-Chair, Board of Trustees, Presiding Prelate, Third Episcopal District Mayor MarshaXenia,BaylessOhio
President,
Bishop
Reverend Student Government Association
The
Dr. Jamye Coleman Williams and Dr. McDonald Williams Annual Scholarship in Memory of Rev. F. Douglass Coleman, Sr.: Sheila Evans-Tranumn
The
Master of Divinity Candidates
D. Cooke Sr. Scholarship Award: Laymah Cisco The Peter and Heartha Kampen Excellence:ScholarshipMemorialforAcademic Lucinda Burgess The Donald W. Thompson Memorial Scholarship: Yolanda Tinsley Rev. and Mrs.
Edmund Wesley
Rev. Cornelia Wright Memorial Scholarship: Michelle Creer Dr. Larry and Inez Perry Award: Samantha Douglas-Lightner The Reverend Henry McNeal Brown Memorial Scholarship: Rickey Curry THE FACULTY AWARD FOR SERVICE:OUTSTANDING Felicia Bagneris THE FACULTY AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT:ACADEMIC Samantha Douglas-Lightner THE SERVICECOMMUNITYAWARD: Phillip Turner THE ACHIEVEMENTSCHOLARLYNATIONAL AWARD: Charles Flowers Awards & Scholarships Wayne Anthony Felicia Bagneris Dana SamanthaCarolWilliamDeshnellBrendaBoykinCarterCobbinCornickNeishaDavisDougherty-SteptoeDouglas-LightnerWilliamFisherMichelleFrayerJamesGivens Audrey Greene Shawn JacquelineRandolphJohnsonMillerJamesMinor*Norris-BakerMieshaOsborneLindaRobinsonMalcolmSimpsonVeronicaWatkinsWannettaWilliamsMammieWoodburyJorethaWright *posthumously
E. Wharton Scholarship: Charles Flowers
The Importance of Theological Education: A View Through the Great Commission
The Devil is in the Details: The Vagueness of the African Methodist Episcopal Church’s Domestic Violence Policy William Fisher
The African Methodist Episcopal Church in the Thirteenth Episcopal District: The Catalyst for Reducing Crime in the African American Community William Cornick Boyz in the Hood to Men of Distinction: Our Moral Authority Through Faith and Justice in the African Methodist Episcopal Church Neisha Davis
The Traditional Role of Women in the African American Baptist Church Randolph Miller Racial Tension vs Safe Sanctuary: 21st Century Battleground
The Corridor of Time: A Journey To and Beyond Current Location in African Methodism
A Community Response to African American Recidivism: Sharing Information Through Technology Michelle Frayer
Wayne Anthony
Worship Wars on Sunday Morning: Traditional vs Contemporary James Givens
Jacqueline Norris-Baker Systemic Social Patriarchal “Rule of the Father” Negative Attitudes and Behaviors Toward Black Women in the Black Church Miesha Osborne
The Exodus: A Call of Action to the Baltimore Annual Conference to Restore Black Pride in Baltimore City, Maryland Linda Robinson
Malcolm Simpson
The Church’s Role in Politics: The Role of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Secular Politics in the 21st Century
Children Choosing a Life of Crime: The Church’s Response Veronica Watkins
Felicia Bagneris Overcoming the Obesity Epidemic: Bringing Awareness to African American Church Leaders and their Congregations Concerning the Benefits of Adopting Healthy Eating Lifestyles Dana Boykin Unification of African Americans: Benefits of Agape Love and Trust
Disparities of Women in Ministry in the Macon Conference Sixth Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church
Senior Thesis Titles
Wannetta Williams
James Minor Senior Care: Mind, Body and Spirit
Single Mothers Raising African American Males to be Productive Citizens in the 21st Century Mammie Woodbury
Bricks and Mortar, Body, Spirit and Mind: Using a Nehemian Model for the Building of the Visible and Invisible Church of Mount Olive African Methodist Episcopal Church, Ft. Myers, FL Audrey Greene
Let Justice Roll Down: Strengthening Social Justice Ministries Through RelationshipsMentor/Mentee
Brenda Carter Church and Community Consider the Widows Deshell Cobbin
Carol Dougherty-Steptoe Healing God’s Mouthpieces Through Spiritual Formation: Developing a Clergy Advocacy and Leadership Development Program for African American Clergy Samantha Douglas-Lightner
Police Brutality: A Reality in the African American Communities in the United States Shawn Johnson
Joretha Wright
Caring for the Black Community: The Church’s Response to Obesity Among African American Women
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1 For everything above, see http://www.acenet.edu/news-room/Pages/Historical-Overview-Academic-CostumeCode.aspx
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The faculty, staff, and Board of Trustees of Payne Theological Seminary would like to extend appreciation and gratitude to the Xenia Nazarene Church, their pastor, Rev. Mark Atherton, their staff and congregation for hosting our commencement ceremony.
3) Valedictorian - purple cord. This year no one has received the three gold tassels that represent Summa Cum Laude (with highest honor).
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Many institutions have their own doctoral gowns. For example, Dr. Michael Brown is wearing the maroon of the University of Chicago, Dr. Charles Brown is wearing the Oxford red of Boston University, Dr. Michael Miller is wearing the purple of the Claremont Graduate School, and Dr. Kevin Wardlaw is wearing the cranberry of the Claremont School of Theology. These gowns will usually have the crest of the institutions on the institution on the front panel. Look around and you will likely see distinctive colors that represent other academic institutions.
Bus comniendam, ullorae restem cone pedis aut oditatur acestiur as namus.
In the American Council on Education we learn that the origins of academic dress date back to the 12th and 13th centuries, when universities were taking form. The ordinary dress of the scholar, whether student or teacher, was the dress of a cleric. With few exceptions, the medieval scholar had taken at least minor orders, made certain vows, and perhaps been tonsured. Long gowns were worn and may have been necessary for warmth in unheated buildings. Hoods seem to have served to cover the tonsured head until superseded for that purpose by the skull cap. A statute of the University of Coimbra in 1321 required that all “Doctors, Licentiates, and Bachelors” wear gowns. In England, in the second half of the 14th century, the statutes of certain colleges forbade “excess in apparel” and prescribed the wearing of a long gown. In the days of Henry VIII of England, Oxford and Cambridge first began prescribing a definite academic dress and made it a matter of university control even to the extent of its minor details. The assignment of colors to signify certain faculties was to be a much later development, and one which was to be standardized only in the United States in the late 19th century. White taken from the white fur trimming of the Oxford and Cambridge BA hoods, was assigned to arts and letters. Red, one of the traditional colors of the church, went to theology. Green, the color of medieval herbs, was adopted for medicine, and olive, because it was so close to green, was given to pharmacy. Golden yellow, standing for the wealth which scientific research has produced, was assigned to the sciences. I add that in many institutions the color for theology and religious studies is scarlet not red. Lemon is the color of library science. The hood colors worn by our faculty and other academics in our midst are in some instances variations on the color schemes just mentioned. For example, the green that in the ecological studies hood reflects the influence of the original concerns that contributed to the green of medicine. However, the hood color that sets one with a PhD apart from others with doctoral degrees is the dark blue called “PhD blue,” which is also the color of philosophy. Persons with a closely related academic degree, such as the ThD, will also have a similar dark blue foundation in their hoods. There is greater variation in the professional DMin degree.
A Special Thanks
1) Cum Laude (with honor) - one gold cord;
2) Magna Cum Laude (with great honor) – two gold cords;
A cademic Regalia
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Senior Thesis Titles
Turning to our graduates, please take note of the cords being placed around the necks of those who have graduated with honors.
Awards & Scholarships