End of the Year Reflection

I am happy to announce that I have turned in my last paper and finished my last test and the first year of my PhD program has officially come to an end. There are many ways that a man like me could reflect on this last year. If you've been reading since September, you have heard the majority of my reflections. I have learned a lot and I have grown a lot. I feel more confident in my vocation and in my giftings from the Lord to complete this process. (Translation: I'm no longer waiting for them to kick me out.) The things that I have learned will stay with me; some of them I will be ruminating on for the remainder of my life. But all those things, I am certain, will come out on these pages sooner or later.

I thought, therefore, that a more appropriate approach to this year's assessment would be to share with you some of my observations of being in a PhD program at Marquette University, particularly as they differ from my Masters program at Asbury Theological Seminary. Take the following with a grain of salt. I assure you that they are all true, but none of them reflect on the quality of the institution, individual, or education and experience I received or am currently receiving.

Top Five Differences Between Asbury and Marquette:

1. Asbury is an Evangelical Protestant Seminary; Marquette is a Catholic University.
2. Asbury is outside the official ranks of the Methodist Church because it is viewed as "too conservative"; Marquette is outside the official ranks of the Catholic Church because it is viewed as "too liberal".
3. Asbury professors wear collared shirts and occasionally business suits; Marquette professors wear the Collar and occasionally Monastic robes.
4. Asbury's end of the year party consists of a barbecue and Diet Coke; Marquette's consists of a smattering of Wisconsin beers and a selection of fine wines and liquor (provided by the department).
5. Asbury's Final Greek exam was a sight translation of John 15; Marquette's final Greek exam was a sight translation of a passage from Diogenes (I don't even know who that is).

Top Ten Marquette Experiences that would never happen at Asbury:

1. Taking an entrance exam after I had already been accepted.
2. Writing a 25 page paper and being told that not even this is enough space to make a substantial argument.
3. Finding no research in English for a paper I had to write.
4. Hearing the "F Bomb" in class from a professor.
(I did hear an Asbury professor say "Darn it all" once.)
5. Being assigned a new paper (in addition to the impending final) in the final two weeks of the semester.
6. Readung the "F Bomb" in an email from a professor.
7. Hearing the statement: "I can say that the resurrection was probably physical, but that's about all I can say."
8. Facing a professor's look of incredulity when I told him I couldn't read French.
9. Having a meeting with a professor while he had a smoke.
10. Being told I was a "schismatic."

These are the shockers of the year. But I hope you have been able to tell from my posts that the majority of students and teachers at Marquette are strong and faithful Christians, even if they have a beer or a smoke once in awhile.