A seminary with purpose

Why in the world would an adult of sane mind choose to leave a job, a house, a family, a well-tended garden, even their country of origin, to attend Earlham School of Religion in Richmond, Indiana? Many people do it…

for the love of God.

to pursue pastoral ministry and service to the church.

to pursue peace work from a theological perspective.

to explore the depths of spiritual transformation.

to prepare for work as a clinical pastoral counselor.

to make a major life transition.

to go deeper into Quaker faith and practice—or Quaker history.

to commit to finding a way to make the world a better place.

All of these are a response to a calling.

Students make great personal sacrifices to come to the Earlham School of Religion—and they leave with so much more. I recently heard an ESR alumnus say he came to ESR with loads of questions, and he left ESR with even more! He was very happy with that, having continued to ask questions for many years thereafter.

ESR prides itself on helping students with their spiritual formation. This spiritual perspective will contribute to how graduates work to bring change to an increasingly complex and multifaceted world. Learning to listen well and consider many sides of a discussion gives them tools for supporting difference. The world benefits from people who are motivated by a mindful, spiritual foun-dation, and are committed to doing good one person at a time, one church at a time, one organization at a time.

As Quakers around the world work tirelessly for peace and justice, ESR graduates from many different faith traditions (about half of them are Quakers), supplant and restore a troubled world. And so, like Earlham College, ESR continues to provide a good education, immersed in Quaker testimonies, committed to doing good.