Lisa M. Hess

Associate Professor of Practical Theology and Contextual Ministries
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• Teaching and Research

  Lisa’s area of specialization is Christian formation, spirituality,
  and religious leadership education. Her recent work redresses contemporary theological education with an intentional formation in radically covenantal companionship, embodied in a disciplined spiritual stewardship or contemplative empiricism. Rooted in love’s rationality, such a compassionate theology promises an interpretation of situations but also an expressive theological delight able to companion the suffering of self and others. Author of An Artisanal Theology (Cascade 2009), a radically covenantal approach to ministry formation, she is focusing her research on “correlation” and the promise of Jean-Luc Marion’s philosophical and theological work for a postmetaphysical, noncorrelational practical theology.

• Education

  B.A., Carleton College (1991)

  M.Div., Princeton Theological Seminary (1996)

  Ph.D., Princeton Theological Seminary (2001)

• Professional

  Ordained minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA), serves on the Permanent Judicial Council for
  the Miami Presbytery (Ohio)

  Clinical member of the Association of Clinical Pastoral Education

  Member of the American Academy of Religion

  Board member of the Society for the Study of Christian Spirituality

  Secretary-Treasurer, Academy of Religious Leadership

  Member of the Association of Practical Theology

  Curriculum Vitae

• Publications

  Click on the thumbnail to view an enlarged photo
  of the bookcover.

  Book(s):
  
  

  

  Artisanal Theology. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2009.
  
  publisher notes

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

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  Article(s):
  
  “Pastoral Implications” Lectionary Homiletics Lent 2008

  “Formation in the Worlds of Theological Education,”
  Teaching Theology and Religion Volume 11 Issue 1
  January 2008 (peer-reviewed)

  “A New Sacred Grove” Teaching Theology and Religion Volume 10, Issue 3, July 2007 (peer-reviewed)

  “Sabbath Observance for Religious Leadership: It’s Not
  About Time or Eternity” Sustaining Pastoral Excellence
  monthly, June 2007

  “The Gift of Worship: Living Both Ways” in The Upper Room Worship Book, Accompanist and Worship Leader edition, ed. Elise Eslinger (Nashville:  Upper Room Books, 2007)

  “Theological Interdisciplinarity and Religious Leadership”
  Journal of Religious Leadership, Vol. 5, no. 1, Spring 2007
  (peer-reviewed)

  “Being Missional” The Clergy Journal, July/August 2006,
  Vol. 82, no. 8

  “What is Practical Theology?” Journal of Theology, Summer 2005

  Introduction, George MacDonald’s Diary of an Old Soul
  (New York: Barnes & Noble Publishers, 2006)

  “The Challenge of Activism” The Clergy Journal, April 2006,
  Vol. 82, no. 6.

  “Leadership and the Church We Are Becoming” The Clergy Journal, May/June 2005, Vol. 81, no. 7;

  “Toward a Full-Fledged Action Theory with a Perspective of Musical Transcendence”  Verbum et Ecclesia, University of Pretoria – Gauteng, South Africa, Spring 2005 (peer-reviewed)

  Paper(s):
  
  “A Contemplative Empiricism: Mindfulness, Wisdom, and Expertise in Teaching Spirituality in Seminaries,” Association
  of Practical Theology Biennial Meeting, St. John’s University, Collegeville, MN, April 2008

  “Bridging Private and Public: Music as Oral Event in Literate Religious Communities,” College Theology Society – Spirituality section; 2007 Annual Convention; University of Dayton, Dayton OH, May 2007

  “Wholly Friends: Buddhist Perspective and Practice Toward Compassionate Companionship in a Violent World,” Midwest American Academy of Religion, Chicago, IL, March 2006.

  “Music, Education, and Reconciliation: the Paradise Road Paradigm,” Music Consortium, Arts and Reconciliation Conference (celebrating 10 years of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission), University of Pretoria, Tshwane/Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa, March 2005.

• Personal Life

  In her own Sabbath time, Lisa enjoys bread-baking, sitting with the Quakers, coloring, and interfaith poetry. She also dabbles in Foodie culture, science fiction, and the careful shepherding of her Basenji-Beagle dog, Marley.

  photo by: Jaquelynn Buck