Graduate Theological Union

We hope you'll join us next Thursday, October 8 at 5pm for the 2026 Robert N. Bellah lecture, featuring Dr. Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor in African American Studies at Princeton University. One of the nation's most prominent scholars, Dr. Glaude is an educator, author, political commentator, and public intellectual who examines the complex dynamics of the American experience. He also serves on the Morehouse College Board of Trustees and frequently appears in the media as an MSNBC contributor on programs like Morning Joe and Deadline Whitehouse with Nicolle Wallace. Dr. Glaude will deliver an address titled, “Bellah’s Ghost: The Broken Covenant and America’s 250th Anniversary.” Learn more and register to attend in person or via livestream here: https://bit.ly/4e9qJG8

It’s easy to focus on what students can produce with new technologies. But what if we’re asking the wrong question? In his latest article “What AI Is Forcing Us to Ask About Education,” GTU President Uriah Kim explores the difference between optimization and formation, arguing that education is not only about reaching the right answer or producing polished work, but about how an individual grows as a human through the process of learning. https://bit.ly/4yld4nx

While the value of higher education is increasingly scrutinized by Americans, more students are seeking educational pathways that connect their academic interests to meaningful careers. To meet these demands administrators of humanities and social science programs are navigating new pressures to demonstrate how their degree programs can prepare students for life and work beyond the classroom. The GTU is responding by developing partnerships with California State University campuses that offer undergraduate programs in religious studies but no graduate program. Read the story here: https://www.gtu.edu/news/partnerships-cal-state-create-new-pathways-students

As autonomous vehicles and artificial intelligence reshape how we live and work, what happens to the human relationships and encounters that give our lives meaning? In a recent Washington Post article, GTU Professor Braden Molhoek and alumna Noreen Herzfeld offer thoughtful perspectives on the intersection of technology, faith, and human dignity. Read the full article here: https://bit.ly/3TnEwC0

While the current conversations around artificial intelligence often carry doomsday overtones, in his new book GTU President Uriah Kim draws on his deep experience as a scholar to offer the more hopeful perspective that AI should be engaged as a form of accompaniment in the cultivation of human flourishing. Click here to learn more: https://www.gtu.edu/news/new-AI-book-president-kim

Artificial intelligence is inspiring people to ask questions that extend well beyond its technological capabilities, including a fundamental inquiry into what it means to be human. In Episode 2.8 of Science and Spirituality for the Curious, host Richard Randolph spoke with faculty member Braden Molhoek, director of the GTU’s Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences (CTNS), about the ethical and theological implications of artificial intelligence. Their conversation explores AI through the lens of virtue ethics, human responsibility, emerging technologies, and the changing relationship between humanity and the natural world. Visit https://www.gtu.edu/news/braden-molhoek-s-and-s-podcast to learn more.

In a new op ed in J. The Jewish News of Northern California, GTU President Uriah Y. Kim asks: what kind of people are we becoming in the age of artificial intelligence? Long before Silicon Valley, the Book of Proverbs imagined Lady Wisdom standing at a crossroads, calling people toward discernment, judgment, and human flourishing. Today, as AI reshapes how we learn, work, and make decisions, that ancient question feels remarkably urgent. Kim opines that AI must be designed not only for optimization and productivity, but also for judgment, discernment, and wisdom—and why higher education and theological institutions have a vital role to play in that conversation. Read the full article here:

Silicon Valley’s AI needs a dose of Proverbs’ Lady Wisdom Long before Silicon Valley’s AI began asking to guide our lives, the Book of Proverbs imagined another guide for human flourishing.

Nine schools have joined the GTU’s Theological Schools Recentering & Enhancing Library Integral Services (TRELIS) program. By equipping theological schools with the robust library support required for graduate-level academic research, these seminaries will gain access to a wealth of theological librarian support in reference and instruction, online resources, and comprehensive collections in theology and religion. https://www.gtu.edu/trelis

The National Endowment for the Arts has awarded a grant to the GTU for developing a documentary directed by esteemed filmmaker Ric Burns about Ralph Albert Blakelock, a previously overlooked painter now thought to be America's van Gogh. Devin Zuber, Associate Professor of American Studies, Religion, and Literature and member of the Core Doctoral Faculty at the GTU, is senior advisor to the project. A specialist in the intersections between religion, literature, and aesthetics in American art and literature, Zuber is uniquely qualified to help shape the film’s narrative. Visit https://www.gtu.edu/blakelock to learn more.

Still thinking about pursuing a master's in theological studies? With a 93% professional and academia placement rate over the last 3 graduating classes, the GTU prepares students for success. Apply by July 1 to start this fall! Visit https://www.gtu.edu/academics/ma-program for more information.