CARLTON BYRD

World News & Perspectives
■■GREATER MIDDLE EAST UNION MISSION
Lichtenwalter
to Lead Islamic
Studies, Theology
Faculty at Middle
East University
Veteran Adventist theologian
has taught at Andrews
University for 12 years.
By Rachel Lemons, deputy director
of communications, Middle East
University, writing from Beirut, Lebanon
Meu photos
URBAN OASIS: Larry Lichtenwalter praised the Middle East University campus
as an oasis in the middle of Beirut.
The religion of Islam and the Middle
East region are firmly situated within the
global spotlight of modern society. With
such prominence it is vital that the Seventh-day
Adventist Church develop a
solid understanding of the region and its
dominant religion in order to effectively
minister to, and interact with, its diverse
inhabitants and adherents.
Within the Adventist community,
Middle East University (MEU) envisions
itself as the knowledge center on topics
that relate to, or intersect with, the Middle
Eastern region, its religions, its cultures,
and its languages. Central to this
vision is the development and expansion
of the Institute of Islamic and Arabic
Studies, along with the Faculty of
Theology, to be headed—as of March
2013—by veteran Seventh-day Adventist
pastor and teacher Larry Lichtenwalter,
whose appointment was recently
announced. Lichtenwalter’s breadth of
experience promises to bring a unique
perspective to the expansion and maturation
of the programs, school officials
believe.
Lichtenwalter has served as pastor of
Village Seventh-day Adventist Church in
Berrien Springs, Michigan, for the past
27 years. During this time he saw his
pastoral ministry evolve to include academic
roles as well. He recounts that
over the past 12 years he has taught a
class almost every semester at the Seventh-day
Adventist
Theological Seminary
at Andrews University.
He is the author of
eight books and has
published articles in
various publications,
including Adventist
Review and Dialogue, a
Seventh-day Adventist
journal for college
students.
In Lichtenwalter’s
estimation the MEU
campus “is a little
haven amid all the concentrated
city that’s
around it. It’s a lovely
campus, and it has
potential and room for
the addition of more
buildings.”
In addition to the
potential of the campus,
Lichtenwalter believes that the Faculty
of Theology and the Institute of
Islamic and Arabic Studies have the
potential to flourish as well. When
asked about his vision for the programs,
he said, “I think we have some very
exciting possibilities. There’s no doubt
that the multicultural and contextual
setting of MEU has a lot to offer to any
young person thinking about what to
do with their spiritual life or how to
NEW DEAN: Larry Lichtenwalter,
a veteran Seventh-day Adventist
pastor and instructor at Andrews
University, will head the Institute
of Islamic and Arabic Studies,
along with the Faculty of Theology,
at Middle East University in
Beirut, Lebanon.
serve. Our world has
become more and more
multicultural in its perspective.
I believe this
campus can provide
some diversity in the
theological realm that
some other schools
would not be able to.”
MEU aims to provide
a theology program
that complements
those of its sister universities
around the
world by providing a
semester abroad, which
complements the theological
curriculum they
are studying at their
home universities. In
charting out MEU’s
niche in the space of
theological education,
Lichtenwalter
described “a curriculum, a program
where you have your Islamic and Arabic
component. That is what MEU is seeking
to serve.”
Lichtenwalter completed his
undergraduate studies at Southern
Adventist University and his Master
of Divinity and Ph.D. at Andrews University.
He is married to Kathie, and
they have five sons and two daughtersin-law.
n
10 (138) | www.AdventistReview.org | February 21, 2013