Tutu Education Center becomes a reality at GTS

By Jefferson Siegel

On Sunday evening, hundreds of guests gathered at Chelsea’s General Theological Seminary for the gala opening of the Desmond Tutu Center, the seminary’s new educational conference center.

“Our hope is that the Desmond Tutu Center will become a place where people of all kinds come to learn how they can be part of the solution to the conflicts that divide us every day,” said actor Sam Waterston, who serves as honorary chairperson of the Leaders of the Church capital campaign.

In deciding what to name the center, Rev. Ward B. Ewing, Dean of the Seminary, told the crowd, “We decided we wanted to name it for the one person who, more than anyone else, exemplifies deep spirituality and an intransient stand for justice in his own life.”

Calling GTS a very special place, the Most Rev. Desmond Tutu, Nobel Laureate and former Archbishop of Capetown, recalled how he was at GTS when it was announced he had won the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize.

“When you look at the state of the world,” Tutu said, “Afghanistan, Iraq, Zimbabwe, The Sudan, and you know that God is weeping.... This center is hoping to nurture those who are going to be implements of peace and reconciliation.”

The new $27 million center has full conference facilities as well as 60 modern guest rooms. Ground was broken for the center on May 18, 2005.

Top
Actor Sam Waterston (left), who serves as honorary chairperson of GTS’s Leaders of the Church capital campaign, talked with Rev. Mary Laney of the Diocese of Pennsylvania at Sunday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Desmond Tutu Education Center.

Middle:
Guests mingle on GTS’s lawn during Sunday’s opening of the Desmond Tutu Education Center.

Bottom:
Eight-month-old Nathaniel Thomas enjoys the festivities with his father, Benjamin Thomas, a first-year GTS doctoral student from Colorado.

Chelsea Now photos by Jefferson Siegel