Latter-day Saint Life

One Important Thing Christ Taught Us: How to Suffer

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For all that Jesus taught us, one of the most important things is that Jesus taught us how to suffer.

I spent several years at the Yale University Divinity School. In that academic environment, I gained a lot of experience in biblical languages, texts, customs and interpretations, as well as in theology, religious history and religious traditions. But I most value what I learned through my relationships and conversations with others.

For a bit of context, the Yale University Divinity School is an ecumenical (i.e., multidenominational) academic institution that trains scripture scholars and future ministers. There are many divinity schools in North America, though most of them are decidedly sectarian. That is, they admit students from only a single faith tradition who are then taught by professors who share that faith tradition, with the intent that those students will serve in a variety of roles within that faith tradition.

Yale Divinity School is non-sectarian. It proactively admits students from a variety of faith traditions, which creates a vibrant ecumenical setting where conversations of learning and faith from a variety of perspectives permeates the experience.

Most people who go to divinity school have the intention of being ordained and then entering the religious profession. So my friends at divinity school were amused when they had this initial conversation with me.

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