Luther Seminary announces that the Rev. Joy J. Moore, Ph.D., has been elected vice president for academic affairs and academic dean, beginning September 1, 2020.
“I’m honored that Dr. Moore is bringing her leadership gifts, commitment to the mission and vision of the seminary, and deep engagement with faithful innovation to this vital role,” said Robin Steinke, president of Luther Seminary.
An ordained elder in the United Methodist Church, Moore has been on the Luther Seminary faculty for the past year as associate professor of biblical preaching. Before joining Luther Seminary, she established the William E. Pannell Center for African American Church Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary and served as its first associate dean. Previously, she was associate dean for church relations and associate dean for black church studies at Duke Divinity School in Durham, North Carolina. Immediately before coming to Luther, she pastored a historic African American United Methodist congregation in Flint, Michigan, whose service as a Community Help Center includes weekly distribution of water through the ongoing water crisis.
Moore has focused on cross-racial ministry in urban, rural, and suburban congregations. She is an “ecclesial storyteller” who seeks to encourage theologically framed, biblically attentive, and socially compelling interpretations of Christian scripture in order to understand the critical issues influencing community formation in contemporary culture. She grew up on Chicago’s South Side attending Commonwealth Community Church, where she was spiritually formed and experienced a call to Christian ministry.
“I am thrilled to work with this faculty in such a time as this for educating leaders sent by the Holy Spirit to witness to the redemption and reconciliation of Jesus that serves God’s world,” Moore said. “I will give my best to advocate for the seminary’s mission; to represent this faculty; and to ensure the development that will demonstrate academic rigor, theological reflection, and a heart for the world Jesus died for.”
About Luther Seminary:
Luther Seminary educates leaders for Christian communities across the country and around the world. An innovator in theological education, the seminary is committed to exploring leading-edge approaches for Christian ministry, proclamation, and faith formation in a rapidly changing world. As one of the seven seminaries in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Luther Seminary has educated more than one-third of ELCA pastors, lay professionals, and leaders of many global Lutheran and ecumenical churches. Learn more at Luthersem.edu.