A Progressive Interreligious Theological School

Imam Dr. Jihad Saafir developed one of the first organizations of its kind in the US.

Islah LA is a South Los Angeles community center that offers a food pantry, transitional housing for people experiencing homelessness, and a program that supports, educates, and instills renewed confidence in formerly incarcerated individuals.

Jihad serves as the Director of Islah LA and as the Director and Arabic Instructor at Islah Academy, a K-8 microschool he also founded. Islah Academy implements a restorative justice teaching methodology designed specifically as a tool to break the “school-to-prison pipeline.”

Rev. Dr. Chris Carter is addressing environmental injustices against people of color.

Inspired by taking the CST class Animal Theology and Ethics with Dr. Grace Kao, Dr. Carter teaches that the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the land on which we work suffer from environmental exploitation. In his latest book, The Spirit of Soul Food: Race, Faith, & Food Justice, Dr. Carter asks, “What should soul food look like today?”

Dr. Carter is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church, teaches in the Department of Theology & Religious Studies at the University of San Diego. His research, writing, and activism center on racial justice.

Rev. Brenda Bos was elected as the first openly lesbian bishop in the ELCA.

Elected as bishop of the Southwest California Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in 2021, Rev. Bos sees CST’s world-class faculty as crucial to her spiritual formation, and vocational discernment. She credits them with helping her live into God’s unique call on her life, strengthening her spiritual life, and helping her find her distinctive voice.

She is “forever grateful” for the way CST’s interreligious and ecumenical commitment sharpened her Lutheran articulation and gave her “greater sensitivity to the faith journeys of others.”

U.S. Air Force Captain Mir M. Ali ministered 24/7 to evacuees during the U.S. Afghanistan withdrawal.

Almost overnight, Mir – the only Muslim Armed Forces chaplain serving with Operation Allies Refuge at Ramstein Air Base and throughout Europe – went from tending to the spiritual needs of a small USAF community to providing hope to thousands of Afghan refugees living in tents.

Mir feels connected to refugees culturally, ethnically, and by faith, and noticed their deep gratitude for ministerial support and his ability to communicate in a language that is familiar to them (Urdu/Hindi).

Rev. Dr. Nikia Smith Robert empowers churches to imagine a world beyond policing, prisons, and punishment.

Dr. Robert founded Abolitionist Sanctuary, a faith-based coalition united against the moral crisis of mass incarceration and the criminalization of impoverished Black motherhood.

While earning a PhD in Religion with a focus on ethics and public policy, CST served an incubator for her ideas. She is grateful for the strong emphasis that CST places on connecting theory with praxis to make a transformative social impact.

Dr. Kristin Ritzau founded Food ED to help young students understand how the ecosystem works.

After noticing that most elementary schools in America serve food to young students without ever teaching them about our ecosystem, Dr. Ritzau founded Food ED, an educational nonprofit that partners with communities and schools in the San Gabriel Valley.

Research demonstrates that garden programs in schools are cost effective and cost-saving, improve student and staff productivity and health, and increase civic engagement and critical thinking skills. She is convinced that every seed is a prayer and a miracle.

Nina Fernando envisions an America where people of all backgrounds are treated with respect and dignity. As Executive Director of the non-profit Shoulder to Shoulder, she helps equip faith leaders to be strategic partners in countering discrimination and violence against Muslims. She has also served as a Faith-rooted Organizer at Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice, a LankaCorps Fellow in Sri Lanka, and a OneBeat Fellow.

Nina says her MA program at CST offered the opportunity for exploration around critical thinking. “I loved my experience, and if I know of anyone who is in a place where they might consider a school of theology, I always point to Claremont.”

Dr. Mazvita Machinga founded the only registered psychotherapist center in Mutare, Zimbabwe. In addition to volunteering her clinical services at Pastoral Care and Counseling Services (PCCS), she also teaches and serves as the University Counselor at Africa University.

“I’m proud to be a practical theologian, pastoral psychotherapist, and mental health specialist…At CST, my training in psychotherapy and counseling taught me how to integrate psychological, theological, ethical, and spiritual frames of reference when offering counseling.”

Mazvita hopes to one day secure financial assistance to build a Pastoral Care and Wellness Center.

Dr. Woonjoo Baek led his church through conflict and turmoil back to health.

When he was appointed to Evangelical Holiness Church in South Korea, it had just lost 500 members. Through the uncertainty, Dr. Baek pressed on and today he works from sunup to sundown at the church of 3000+ members.

Dr. Baek, who also serves as chair of the board of Seoul Theological University, has never regretted his decision to respond to his call to ministry. Now a husband, father, and grandfather, he still believes that seeking and following God’s guidance is the only way.