Rev. Dr. Jayakiran Sebastian the new dean of LTSP

                                                       (Picture courtesy LTSP)

The Rev. Dr. J. Jayakiran Sebastian has been appointed as the new dean of the Lutheran Theological Seminary Philadelphia (LTSP). He will be taking over from the Rev. Dr. Paul Rajashekar, in July, 2012. This is the first time that the seminary started in 1864, will be having a non-Lutheran as its dean.

Professor Dr. Jayakiran Sebastian is an alumnus of the UTC, Bangalore and taught in the college for over a decade. During this time he has served as the Theology and Ethics department chairperson and the dean of doctoral studies. He also has several years of experience as a presbyter in the Church of South India , Karnataka Central Diocese. Dr. Jayakiran is presently the H. George Anderson Professor of Mission and Culture, and Director of the Multicultural Mission Resource Center at The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia.

He is a Member of the Center of Theological Inquiry, Princeton, NJ, USA, and was in residence there from August 2003 to May 2004. In addition to several articles in edited books, various articles have been published in journals that cover a range of interests including the contributions and the ongoing relevance of the study of the early teachers of faith, the baptism and conversion debate, and contemporary missiological issues and themes. Recent publications include: "Towards a Christological Missiology Today with the Guide-Who-Stands-Aside," in Theology Today; "Enduring to the End -- Persecution, Martyrdom and Identity," in Bangalore Theological Forum; and "Having and Sharing: Theological Perspectives from India on Consumerism and Exclusion," in the inaugural issue of the new journal International Journal of Public Theology, to name a few.

The principal, faculty, students and all staff of the UTC congratulate the Rev. Dr. Jayakiran Sebastian on his appointment and wish him and his family all the best for the future.