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Professor Emeritus
William P. Brown (but you can call me, Bill) is the William Marcellus McPheeters Professor of Old Testament at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, GA. My writings explore the intersecting issues of ecology, justice, faith, and science from various biblical perspectives. Throughout my many years of teaching (over thirty now), I’ve written a few books along the way, including Wisdom’s Wonder, The Seven Pillars of Creation, Seeing the Psalms, Sacred Sense, Handbook to Old Testament Exegesis, and most recently Deep Calls to Deep: The Psalms in Dialogue amid Disruption. Much of my work is driven by the desire to promote constructive dialogue among diverse participants to foster mutual understanding and equity. I am also known as an “evangelist of wonder” in my teaching and writing. I love to teach biblical interpretation as an exercise in wonder, the kind of wonder that is ever open to being surprised by the text, by God, by creation, and by each other. And wonder, it must be said, often leads to wondering, which doesn’t shy away from asking hard questions about the text, God, and each other. Such an approach invites interdisciplinary approaches, some far afield of traditional biblical research. I spent a year, for example, studying the social and theological implications of astrobiology at the Center of Theological Inquiry in Princeton, which blew my mind and instilled in me a cosmic perspective whenever I talk about God and life, human and otherwise.
I am currently working on a Psalms commentary for the Old Testament Library series and on a collaborative project on biblical aesthetics with Dr. Ralph Watkins. I am ordained in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and love preaching and teaching. Gail and I are the proud parents of two amazing daughters, Ella and Hannah: one is a landscape architect and organic farmer, while the other is a primatologist studying the mountain gorillas of Rwanda. Talk about wonder!
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Denomination: Presbyterian Church (USA)
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1983-2009 Associate Professor of Supervised Ministry
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1973-2008 Professor of American Religious History
Dean of Students Emeritus
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1985-2003 VP for Student Life and Dean of Students
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1974-2002 Professor of Church History
Professor Emerita of Church History, Dr. Catherine Gunsalus Gonzalez shares memories of many of the first women in theological education at Presbyterian seminaries (including herself) from the 70s through the 90s.
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1998-2018 J. Davison Philips Professor of New Testament
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2000-2009 President
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2010-2016, Executive VP/Dean of Faculty and Associate Professor of American Christianity and Black Church Studies, 2017 VP, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
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2001 - 2011 Dean of Faculty & Executive VP; 1996 - 2011 Professor of Ministry
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2007 - 2012 Director, John Bulow Campbell Library and Professor of Theological Bibliography
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2005 -2010 William M McPheeters Professor of Old Testament; 1995 - 2004 Professor of Old Testament
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1999-2009 Associate Professor of Theology; Director of Advanced Studies
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1991-2023 J. Erskine Love Professor of Christian Ethics
Dr. Riggs is interested in the relationship between social oppression and socio-religious ethical praxis, ethical discourse that bridges the gap between womanist religious scholarship and the Church’s practice of ministry, the moral foundations for public policy, and the Church`s role in social justice ministry. She was named as a Henry Luce III Fellow in Theology for 2017-2018.
Dr. Riggs is the Founder of an applied ethics non-profit center called Still Waters: A Center for Ethical Formation and Practices, Inc. Still Waters’ mission is to provide education in conflict transformation theory and practices, particularly focusing upon the intersection of religion and violence. The Center’s latest program is REM (Religious Ethical Mediation) PLAY, interactive dialogues for envisioning practical ways to engage during times of conflict.
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Denomination: Non- Denominational
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1991-2020 Associate Professor of New Testament
Dr. Saunders’ research interests include “eschatology” in early Christian understandings of “the last days,” the nature of the Church, spirituality, and ecclesial self-definition, with a special interest in the Gospel according to Matthew.
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Denomination: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
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J.B. Green Professor of Theology 1984-2014
Professor Emeritus
Jeffery L. Tribble, Sr. has been a member of the teaching faculty of Columbia since 2007. He currently serves as the Lead Professor of the Doctor of Ministry Program and is tenured as Associate Professor of Ministry. He is a practical theologian and qualitative researcher and teaches a variety courses in the practice of ministry, theories and practices of leadership, church administration, qualitative research methodology and theological research, and supervised ministry for Doctor of Ministry Students. His institutional leadership has included service as Associate Dean for Advanced Professional Studies, Chair of the Institutional Review Board, Chair of the Advanced Degrees Committee, Chair of the Practical Theology Area, Becoming Implementation Task Force, Pathway to Tomorrow Vision Steering Committee, and Strategic Blueprinting Task Force. Dr. Tribble’s academic credentials are Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, Doctor of Philosophy in Practical Theology and Congregational Studies from the Joint Program of Northwestern University and Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Master of Divinity from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, and B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Howard University. An ordained Elder of The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, he is a practitioner scholar with over thirty years of ministry leadership as a pastor and presiding elder with service and teaching on all levels of the A.M.E. Zion Connectional Church. A researcher and consultant of congregational ministries as well as an active member of a local church, he is keenly interested in the quality of pastoral leadership, the vitality of congregational ministry, and the varied roles of congregations in their communities.
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Denomination: Africian Methodist Episcopal Zion
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President 2015-2021
Professor Emerita
I am Haruko Nawata Ward, Professor of Church History. My primary research field is Reformations Studies (or Early Modern global Christianities). As a historian, I like to listen attentively to the voices in the primary sources in the archives and old books. I am especially interested in finding women reformers’ voices, the interior worlds of women martyrs and martyrologists, and the interpretations of the Gospel and their implications for the socio-theological-moral (in)justices in early modern colonial missions. While I prefer hearing from the dead, I am happy to publish these findings for general audiences and to engage with professional societies who can talk back to me. I also like to introduce my research in teaching and converse with my students about what history means today as we dismantle myths, half-truths, and untested beliefs. Since 2002, I have created and taught general courses in the History of Christianities (from the beginnings to the modern period), addressing critical topics, agents, and issues in church history while honoring diverse ecumenical traditions throughout history. I enjoy teaching my elective courses on various subjects in the global Reformations and co-teaching integrative courses with my colleagues. We make the learning space/time together, weaving the primary voices from history and using creative and imaginative tools, such as songs, foods, and reenactments, be it in classrooms, the cyber world, or chapel services.
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Denomination: Presbyterian Church (USA)
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2000-2007 Conant Professor of Worship
