The Hartford International University for Religion and Peace (formerly Hartford Seminary) is a

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theological university in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

History

Hartford Seminary's origins date back to 1833 when the Pastoral Union of Connecticut was formed to train Congregational ministers. The next year the Theological Institute of Connecticut was founded at East Windsor Hill, Connecticut. The institution moved to Hartford in 1865 and officially took the name Hartford Theological Seminary in 1885. The Bible Normal College affiliated with the seminary in 1902 and changed its name to Hartford School of Religious Pedagogy. The Kennedy School of Missions became another affiliated activity, originally organized by the Seminary as a separate organization in 1911. In 1913, these three endeavors were combined. In 1961, the entities were legally merged and adopted the new name Hartford Seminary Foundation, which was used until 1981, when the simpler name "Hartford Seminary" came into use. The Hartford Seminary Foundation published the ''Hartford Quarterly'' (originally named ''Bulletin - Hartford Seminary Foundation'') from 1960 to 1968. Hartford Seminary began to offer niche concentrations in Christian-Muslim dialogue in 1972, and in 1990 Hartford Seminary officially claimed non-denominational status. On Jan. 1, 2018, the Hartford Seminary joined the Boston Theological Interreligious Consortium (BTI), which is the largest theological consortium in the world. In October 2021, Hartford Seminary officially changed its name to the Hartford International University for Religion and Peace. The change was intended to better reflect its focus on interfaith dialogue. The university's logo was also updated.

Hartford campus

When the seminary moved to Hartford in 1865, it was at first located in the area now occupied by buildings of the Wadsworth Atheneum. In the 1910s, it planned a dedicated new campus on Hartford's west side, south of Elizabeth Street. Construction was delayed by

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and a handsome campus of Collegiate Gothic Revival buildings was constructed in the 1920s. Surviving elements of this construction phase were used by the seminary until 1981, and currently constitute the campus of the

University of Connecticut School of Law The University of Connecticut School of Law (UConn Law) is the law school associated with the University of Connecticut and located in Hartford, Connecticut. It is the only public law school in Connecticut and one of only four in New England. In ...

. The present main seminary building, designed by architect

Richard Meier Richard Meier (born October 12, 1934) is an American abstract artist and architect, whose geometric designs make prominent use of the color white. A winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1984, Meier has designed several iconic buildings ...

, was completed in 1981, replacing several buildings demolished from the initial building phase. The seminary also continues to occupy several adjacent buildings that have historically been part of its campus. These, as well as the law school, were listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1982, primarily for their architecture.

Academics

Hartford International University is centered on two academic units: the Hartford Institute for Religion Research and the Duncan Black Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, the country’s oldest center for such study, having opened in 1973. The seminary offers certificate programs and graduate degrees up to the doctoral level, including the only accredited Islamic chaplaincy program.

The Muslim World Publication

Hartford International University has been home to ''The Muslim World'' since 1938, an academic journal dedicated to the promotion and dissemination of scholarly research on Islam and Muslim societies and on historical and current aspects of Christian-Muslim relations. The journal was founded in 1911, and is edited and published quarterly.

Notable alumni

Akaiko Akana Akaiko Akana (1884–1933), became the first Kahu (pastor) of Hawaiian ancestry at Kawaiahaʻo Church in 1918. He served in that capacity until his death in 1933. Background He was born December 24, 1884, to Chun Akana and Harriet Kahema in the ...

, first pastor of Hawaiian ancestry at Kawaiahaʻo Church *

Fred Hovey Allen Fred Hovey Allen (1845–1926) was an American Congregational clergyman and author, best known as the inventor of the first photogravure plates for art reproduction made in the United States. Biography Fred Hovey Allen was born in Lyme, ...

, clergyman and author, made first photogravure plates in U.S. * Thomas L. Angell, scholar at Bates College * Asnage Castelly,

Haitian-American Haitian Americans (french: Haïtiens-Américains; ht, ayisyen ameriken) are a group of Americans of full or partial Haitian origin or descent. The largest proportion of Haitians in the United States live in Little Haiti to the South Florida area ...

wrestler who competed for Haiti at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

in the 74 kg freestyle competition. * Henry Allan Gleason Jr., linguist * Yvonne Y. Haddad, Professor of the History of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations at Georgetown University *

Yahya Hendi Imam Yahya Hendi is the Muslim chaplain at Georgetown University; the former Imam of the Islamic Society of Frederick based in Frederick, Maryland; and the former Muslim chaplain at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda until his retiremen ...

, Georgetown University Muslim chaplain, named one of the world's most influential Muslims in 2012. *

Fenwicke Holmes Fenwicke Lindsay Holmes (1883–1973) was an American author, former Congregational minister, and Religious Science leader. The brother of Ernest Holmes, Fenwicke is widely recognized for being an important factor in the establishment of Religio ...

, Religious Science leader *

Fred Kirschenmann Fred Kirschenmann (born February 4, 1935) is an American professor, organic farmer, and a leader in the sustainable agriculture movement. He is board president of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture and the former director of the Leopold Ce ...

, leader in the sustainable agriculture movement *

Charles H. Kraft Charles H. Kraft (b. 1932 in Connecticut) is an American anthropologist, linguist, evangelical Christian speaker, and Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and Intercultural Communication in the School of Intercultural Studies at Fuller Theological Se ...

, missionary, linguist, missiologist and deliverance minister * Vergel L. Lattimore, professor at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio * Rachel Taylor Milton, co-founder of the Urban League of Greater Hartford and Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame inductee *

Richard T. Nolan Richard Thomas Nolan (born May 30, 1937, Waltham, Massachusetts; dual citizenship in the Republic of Ireland, 2011) is a canon of Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut and a former college professor of philosophy and religiou ...

, Episcopal Church/USA canon, writer, professor of philosophy and religious studies ''emeritus'' *

Beverly Daniel Tatum Beverly Christine Daniel Tatum (born September 27, 1954) is a psychologist, administrator, and educator who has conducted research and written books on the topic of racism. Focusing specifically on race in education, racial identity development in ...

, President, Spelman College * Andrew Young, pastor, mayor of Atlanta, U.S. Congressman, UN ambassador, President of the National Council of Churches USA, and member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)

Notable faculty

* Chester David Hartranft * Edward A. Lawrence, Sr. * Ingrid Mattson (1998-2012) *

Plato E. Shaw Plato Ernest Oliver Shaw (April 2, 1883 — August 5, 1947) was an American historian and seminary professor born in Athens, Greece. A graduate of Yale Divinity School, Columbia University, Union Theological Seminary, the University of Edinburgh, ...

* Miriam Therese Winter

References

External links

Official website
* * {{authority control Educational institutions established in 1833 Educational institutions established in 1913 Education in Hartford, Connecticut Seminaries and theological colleges in Connecticut Universities and colleges in Hartford County, Connecticut 1833 establishments in Connecticut School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut