The 2008 Institute for Seminarians and Rabbinical Students welcomed 35 seminarians from across the country, representing Jewish, Protestant, Orthodox and Catholic traditions.  This year’s program also welcomed the first deaf seminarian as an expression of the teachings of the Second Vatican Council that whenever persons are searching for truth in the world, we can communicate with them.

The three-day conference featured presentations and joint study programs with leading scholars in Christian-Jewish relations, including: Dr. David L. Coppola, CCJU; Rabbi Tsvi Blanchard, CLAL, New York; Dr. Eugene Fisher, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, DC; Dr. Judith Banki, Tanenbaum Center, New York; Dr. Peter Petit, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, PA; Dr. Yehezkel Landau, Hartford Seminary; Dr. Richard Lux, Sacred Heart Seminary, Milwaukee, WI; Dr. Ruth Langer, Boston College; and Dr. Ann Heekin, CCJU.

The Institute for Seminarians and Rabbinical Students invites the future rabbis, priests and ministers to better understand the history, problems and opportunities in Christian-Jewish relations in preparation for ministry in a religiously pluralistic society. The Seminarians and Rabbinical Students Institute was created in 2000 to foster deeper theological understanding and dialogue among future religious leaders in the Jewish and Christian traditions. It seeks to prepare the next generation of religious leaders to intelligently and critically expand and carry interreligious dialogue and collaboration forward. More than 230 seminarians have participated in the program since its inception in 2000. Graduates of the seminarians’ program continue the dialogue as participants in the Center’s Institute for Colleagues in Dialogue.  This program provides continuing education for young clergy in order to advance greater knowledge, understanding and harmony among religions.