Interfaith Study and Action

Center for Interreligious and Communal Leadership Education (CIRCLE)

Founded in 2008 with a generous grant from the Henry Luce Foundation, the Center for Interreligious and Communal Leadership Education (CIRCLE) is a joint initiative of Andover Newton Theological School (ANTS) and Hebrew College. CIRCLE’s mission is to help cultivate relationships among the students, staff and faculty of the two schools through formal and informal programming. While our primary focus is on “Faith Hill,” CIRCLE is also part of a growing local, national and international conversation about the nature of religious education in an age of religious diversity.

Both schools are committed to the premise that the training of contemporary religious leaders should not merely include interfaith perspectives described in textbooks or by experts, but also regular and substantive encounters with students and teachers from other faith communities. The presence of the religious “other” throughout a student's education requires the aspiring Jewish or Christian leader to articulate his or her spiritual commitments with clarity and conviction, while remaining open to learning from people with different beliefs and practices.

How to Get Involved with CIRCLE

JOURNEYS ON THE HILL (JOTH)
JOTH provides informal seasonal and thematic programming for the ANTS-HC graduate student community. Look for posters about upcoming events; come to one or all of the gatherings; become a JOTH leader!

INTERFAITH PEER GROUPS
These student-led groups meet once monthly throughout the academic year for study and intentional conversation. New groups form at the beginning of the fall semester.

CIRCLE FELLOWS
Each year six outstanding graduate students from the two schools are chosen as CIRCLE fellows. These competitive one-year fellowships carry a generous stipend and include an intensive leadership development program.

JOINT ACADEMIC COURSES
Each semester, ANTS and HC faculty offer one jointly-taught course open to graduate students from both campuses. We are planning the following upcoming courses:

Fall 2009 Spiritual Memoir and Autobiography: An Interfaith Exploration
Sharon Cohen Anisfeld, Jennifer Peace, and Or Rose

Spring 2010 Song of Songs in Jewish and Christian Interpretation
Solomon Schimmel and Carole Fontaine

Fall 2010 Practical Dimensions of Contemporary Religious Leadership
Sarah Drummond and Daniel Judson

Spring 2011 The Ethics of Force in Jewish and Christian Thought
M.T. Davila and Solomon Schimmel