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March always seems to arrive carrying more than one season at a time. The astronomical calendar tells us that spring is near, the Christian calendar reminds us that we are journeying through the season of Lent, and the academic calendar insists—quite convincingly—that there is no such thing as a slow month at Perkins. This issue of the Perkins Perspective reflects that mixture of reflection, renewal, and forward movement that characterizes this time of year.
 
During Women’s History Month, we are especially grateful to highlight the work of Dr. Emily Nelms Chastain and Perkins student Michaela Calahan, whose teaching, scholarship, and leadership remind us that the story of the church has always been shaped by voices that refuse to be confined to the margins. One of the gifts of theological education is the chance to see more clearly the breadth of the communion of saints—and, just as importantly, to recognize how much of that communion is still speaking, teaching, and leading among us. At Perkins, we are committed to forming leaders in a community where those voices are not only remembered but trusted, encouraged, and heard.
 
This month also brings several signs of growth and momentum across the school. We celebrate the new appointment of Dr. Farris Blount to our faculty and the appointment of Dr. Jeanne Stevenson-Moessner to the Susanna Wesley Centennial Chair of Practical Theology—a fitting selection given her years of contributions to that discipline of study. We are preparing to welcome another distinguished guest through the William Abraham Lecture Series, and we are enthusiastic about the possibility of a second cohort this coming fall in our Spanish-language M.Div. program, where new registrations reflect both the needs of the church and the widening reach of Perkins’ mission. These developments remind us that theological education is never static or monolithic. It is always responding to the Spirit’s movement—regardless of language, context, format, or new ways of imagining ministry.
 
As we move toward Easter, the rhythms of the season invite us to hold together two truths that do not always come naturally to academic communities: patience and hope. Lent teaches us to wait, to examine, to repent, and sometimes to sit with unanswered questions. Easter arrives with the audacious claim that God is not finished with the world—or with us. It is as Jürgen Moltmann once referred to it, “God’s protest against death.” The resurrection is not simply a conclusion to the story of the cross; it is the beginning of a future we could not have produced on our own.
 
In a school like Perkins, where deadlines, lectures, meetings, and committee work have a way of multiplying faster than loaves and fishes, that promise matters. We are reminded that the work of formation is not only what we plan, schedule, and assess. It is also what God continues to bring to life in ways we do not control.
 
And that, in the end, is very good news—for the church, for the world, and for all of us who are still learning what it means to be formed for the many callings ahead.