Adapted from a Bexley Seabury announcement
Bexley Seabury Western Theological Federation has announced that two of its faculty members, the Rev. Thomas Ferguson and the Rev. Jason Fout, both residents of Bexley, Ohio, have received Conant Grants for 2015-16.
Given annually by the Episcopal Church, Conant Grants support research, writing, and course development to improve theological education at the 10 recognized Episcopal seminaries in the United States. Approximately 12 grants are awarded each year, funded by a trust established by William S. and Mary M. Conant in 1953.
“It’s an honor and a mark of distinction for Bexley Seabury faculty members to have earned two Conant Grants in one year, and three in three years in Jason’s case,” said Bexley Seabury President Roger Ferlo. “We’re deeply gratified and deeply appreciative.”
Ferguson, vice president for academic affairs and academic dean, will use his Conant Grant to research how the Episcopal Church’s ecumenical partners have responded to increased secularization. The research will include time at the archives of the Old Catholic Church in the Czech Republic in Prague and at the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Institute at Bossey, near Geneva.
Fout, associate professor of Anglican theology, will use his Conant Grant to participate in the Common Life Missions Conference 2015 in Auckland and to pursue further study of scriptural reasoning. Fout’s two prior Conant Grants supported his work in the Diocese of London while developing Bexley Seabury’s “Learning from London: Mission and Evangelism in the 21st Century” travel course and related research for a book on how to reimagine and revitalize worship communities.
