June 18, 2025

Where Global Meets Local

Near the main entrance to the Trinity Lutheran Seminary building hangs a banner that proclaims, “Unleash the radical inclusivity of Christ.” The Gospels are full of stories in which Jesus welcomes those commonly perceived as outsiders due to age, gender, physical condition, nationality, social status, and more. Jesus invites those who follow him to recognize the full humanity of everyone they encounter. The Acts of the Apostles continues the story, describing the early church’s development from a relatively small homogenous community to a more diverse regional and even global community where differences are no longer a reason for division.

Trinity Lutheran Seminary is a community of teaching and learning that is committed to embodying these theological commitments. Trinity’s two newest faculty members – the Rev. Dr. Olehile Buffel, associate professor of Pastoral Care, from South Africa, and the Rev. Dr. Baiju Markose, assistant professor of Theology, from India – both point to the inclusive nature of the Seminary community as one of the reasons they were drawn to Trinity. Let’s hear from them in their own words.

Rev. Dr. Olehile Buffel

I was attracted to Trinity by its inclusive, welcoming, and ecumenical nature while remaining a Lutheran institution where future leaders of the church and the community are formed. Trinity also has a powerful sense of community where students and faculty engage in intellectually and spiritually stimulating community life.

Rev. Dr. Baiju Markose

I found this “inclusivity” embodied and practiced in every fiber of the Seminary, including community gatherings, classrooms, worship, faculty meetings, resource sharing, and many more. The Seminary's radical, inclusive nature organically creates an authentic space where everyone’s identity and gifts are affirmed and celebrated.

How does teaching at Trinity compare to your previous teaching experiences?

Buffel: I came from an Open Distance e-Learning institution where there is a physical distance between the university and students, resulting in limitations regarding student support and care. The prospect of face-to-face learning at an institution where there are possibilities of maximum support to students attracted me to Trinity. Trinity offers smaller class sizes that foster a close-knit learning environment with a strong emphasis on community and spiritual formation of future leaders of the church and the community. I feel that my call to teaching and my passion for the teaching ministry of the church are more appropriate and utilized better at an institution that is primarily in person.

Markose: Teaching at Trinity is a unique pedagogical experience. Most Trinity students are already faith community leaders, pastors, and professionals who bring their distinct experiences, talents, and insights into the classroom. Thus, teaching becomes a unique harvesting and gleaning experience, primarily manifested as a pedagogical dance in which students and the teacher thoughtfully engage with one another. Teaching at Trinity is genuinely “glocal” ( global and local) in nature. The specific contexts of the students are well addressed; simultaneously, they are theologically engaged in conversation with broader global contexts. As a teacher from India, I consider it a privilege to learn from the students about their unique stories, specific concerns, and needs. Often, I am amazed by how their narratives intertwine with my own. I believe that teaching occurs when a courageous “third space” of conversation is thoughtfully created, in which both the teacher and the students share in the process. This dynamic is exciting and challenging. This element of excitement is exceptional compared to my previous teaching experiences in India and the U.S.

What excites you about Trinity?

Buffel: What excites me is the mission of the Seminary to form leaders for Christ’s church at work in the world. Trinity offers me a unique opportunity to contribute to shaping the next generation of leaders in the church and the community and within an inclusive and ecumenical context. It also offers me a very rigorous academic and community environment characterized by continuous academic, intellectual, and spiritual development.

Markose: The most exciting aspect of teaching at Trinity is its incredible opportunity to catalyze the students’ theological and spiritual formation through the accompaniment model. The relatively small size of the student community at Trinity creates the unique opportunity to accompany them in their theological imaginations and ministerial yearnings beyond the four walls of the classrooms. Most recently, I overheard a student saying (obviously after two consecutive classes!), “Oh, it’s so good to be in Seminary!”

What are one or two of the most important things you hope your students learn from you?

Buffel: I hope that students can benefit from my mentorship. I also hope students will learn important principles and skills in pastoral ministry and learn to interpret and apply Scripture in sermons.

Markose: I hope the students learn how my unique cultural and linguistic background shapes my theological imagination and creativity, particularly my distinct Dalit Christian heritage. Additionally, I want them to break free from their embedded epistemological shells and recognize various other possible and valid theological perspectives.

The hymn “All Are Welcome” invites us to “build a house where love can dwell and all can safely live.” At Trinity, we rejoice that we are building a house where wisdom can dwell and all can safely learn. a house, in the words of the hymn, “where all are named, their songs and visions heard and loved and treasured, taught and claimed as words within the Word.”