PHOTO BY JOSEPH REY AU
Friday, June 13, 2025 was a fortuitous day for the members of the Lexington Theological Seminary Class of 2025. Three students received their Certificate in Pastoral Ministries (one posthumously). Five students received their Master of Divinity degree, and three received their Doctor of Ministry degree. Rev. Dr. Loida I. Martell, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean, brought the message and was named Dean Emerita. There was abundant laughter, cheers, dancing, and prayers throughout the ceremony, which was held at Crestwood Christian Church in Lexington.
“It’s been a ‘Hard-Fought Hallelujah’ for our graduates,” said LTS President Dr. Charisse L. Gillett, referencing a popular Christian song. “They have journeyed a way to be here today.” But they did not journey alone. “Thank you to the churches and organizations that give students space to lead as we prepare faithful leaders for God’s mission in the world,” Dr. Gillett said.
Dr. Martell’s message, “The Invitation,” was based on Ezekiel 47:1-12. Like Ezekiel, the graduates are wading deeper and deeper into mysterious, challenging, life-giving waters, said Dr. Martell. They have accepted God’s invitation to enter into new spaces, explore new vistas, and open new doors. Other people may have looked at them in puzzlement when they announced they were going into ministry and asked, “Why ministry when you can make so much more money or receive so much more prestige elsewhere?”
“Why?” said Dr. Martell. “Because we have been invited. We have been asked to enter into this wondrous, amazing journey that we have named a calling or vocation. Ministry is not a job; it is an invitation, and you [graduates] are here because you said yes. We accept this call, understanding it is a gift. There’s no going back now.”
Dr. Martell charged the graduates to remember they “are called to be a people of justice. To confront death-dealing powers with God’s love and light. To confront despair and discouragement with a word of hope. To dream new dreams and see new visions.” She acknowledged it is not easy to be a visionary in the world today as we wrestle with divisiveness, rampant hate, and war. “Political leaders have sown fear, projecting a vision of a world on the brink of destruction,” she said. “The repeated message is that all is irrevocably lost. We are invited to stand on the shore passively, not keeping our eyes on the God of life but on the Caesars of the world, the ones who proclaim themselves to be saviors and peacemakers even as they plunder and agitate.” She urged the graduates to “resist the siren call of divisiveness. Dream of a different way of being a people and society. Leave the shores of complacency and enter the deeper waters of God’s fulness.”
You can view the entire commencement ceremony through the link below.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 2025
CERTIFICATE IN PASTORAL MINISTRIES
Erika Lyn Harris • Leticia Overton • Rhonda Lynn Padilla • Gloria Kremer (posthumous)
MASTER OF DIVINITY
Jessica Ann Dager • Mathew Goodrich • Bridget Hill • Patrick L. McKenzie • Stephanie Wallace
DOCTOR OF MINISTRY
Jacquelin Eileen Compton • Monique Yvonne Crain-Spells • Michael Zachary Sr.
The following students graduated on Friday, June 6, from the Certificate in African American Ministries (CAAM) and the Certificate in Hispanic Ministries (CHM) programs. These ceremonies were held online.
CAAM
Joseph Brown
Emmanuel Freeman
Lillian “Elaine” Harvey
Cynthia V. Johnson
Wanda J. Mulligan
Crystal L. Nix
Rosa R. Orr
Lotrala Short-Perkins
Jonli D. Tunstall
Ann Walker
Jacqueline Dolores Walker
CHM
Giovanni Amar
Herlindo Flores Herrera
Jorge Jimenez Iglesias
Marlyn Rosay Madrid Pildain
Ana Desiree Cardenas Oviedo
Gliber Eduardo Salazar Moreno