Dr. Mark Labberton is Inaugurated as Fuller Seminary’s Fifth President

Dr. Mark Labberton was inaugurated as the fifth president of Fuller Theological Seminary in a ceremony Wednesday morning in the First United Methodist Church on Colorado Blvd.

Approximately 2,000 people from countries across the globe descended upon Pasadena to honor Dr. Labberton and celebrate their commitment to Fuller Seminary at the morning service and two additional inaugural events. Over 50 delegates representing other academic institutions were also in attendance.

“This is a moment,” Dr. Labberton said in his inaugural address, a moment of significant transition for Fuller Seminary;  of unprecedented change in higher education; of dramatic and profound change in the church; and of extraordinary turbulence in institutions across the globe.

But, he said, “If God is God, and if God has spoken in Jesus Christ for the salvation of the world, then none of this personal or global reality lies beyond God’s arms.”

It was indeed a moment — a moment of inspiration, celebration, and joyful splendor as Fuller Seminary officially installed Labberton as its fifth president.

First United Methodist Church, bathed in pastel colors as light filtered through its magnificent stained glass windows, was filled to overflowing as the Service of Inauguration began.

The clear call of a trumpet launched a “Festival of Flags” to initiate the service, in which 129 students carried flags representing the 129 countries in which Fuller alumni currently serve.

Edwin Willmington, director of the Brehm Center’s Fred Bock Institute of Music, led a choir from the Fuller community accompanied by a 20-piece orchestra in a performance of his composition Jubilate Deo!, a spirited, drum-punctuated piece with an African flavor that further conveyed Fuller’s international character.

Fuller faculty and honored delegates then proceeded  to the front of the sanctuary, their varied regalia producing a tapestry of royal blues, rich reds and gleaming gold.

Following more gifts of music from Dr. Willmington, a reading of Psalm 8 by Janet Labberton, and prayers and litany led by a diversity of members of the Fuller community, Fuller board chair Clifford Penner led the formal vows inaugurating the new president.

“It is with great joy and a great sense of history that we have come together this morning to install Mark Labberton into the office of the presidency of Fuller Theological Seminary,” he declared.

As he concluded the inaugural vows — with the statement “I, therefore, as chair of the Board of Trustees, do formally and officially declare you, Dr. Mark Labberton, to be installed in the office of the president of Fuller Theological Seminary” —the sanctuary erupted in applause as attendants rose in a standing ovation.

A time of anointing and prayer for the new president followed, with noted pastor, speaker, and longtime Fuller friend Lloyd John Ogilvie asking all in the sanctuary to reach out their hands in a blessing: “To communicate to Dr. Labberton your love, affirmation, encourage, and support,” he urged in a sonorous voice.

Elizabeth Sendek, president of Biblical Seminary of Colombia, prayed for Dr. Labberton in the Spanish language, and Fuller Professor of Theology and Ethics Hak Joon Lee spoke his prayer in both Korean and English.

“We celebrate and uphold Mark Labberton as the one you have called for such a time as this,” prayed Joy Moore, associate dean for African American Church Studies at Fuller.

“Have This Mind Among You,” based on the Apostle Paul’s charge to the church in Philippians 2:1-11, was the theme for Dr. Labberton’s inaugural message as well as for the service as a whole.

Paul offered these words in the midst of a sea of challenges just as we face a sea of challenges in our own turbulent times today, said Labberton, and we can learn much from his charge.

First, we must “remember what’s first”–God’s extravagant, self-giving love. Second, “make what’s first primary”–not only acknowledging God’s preeminence but living it out, with a willingness to let him lead us into risky places.

Third, we must “make what’s primary pervasive”–loving the world around us generously, extravagantly, and sacrificially. “The world is watching us; will we do what we say we believe?”

After his message Dr. Labberton was presented with four symbols of office representing principles to which the Fuller community is committed: the presidential medallion, a Bible, presidential stole, and a globe.

A triumphant, united singing of the hymn All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name concluded the service, with a visibly moved President Mark Labberton then offering his benediction from Ephesians 3: “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus.”

Following the ceremony, an international luncheon with food inspired by Korean, Chinese, and Hispanic cuisine was served on the Arol Burns Mall at Fuller’s Pasadena campus. Guests mingled in the warm sunshine and enjoyed the delicious meal accompanied by live music.

Fuller Seminary’s inaugural events began Tuesday evening with an evening of worship and film centered on the theme and film “Praying the Hours.” Read more about this powerful evening event here.

Events conclude Wednesday afternoon with an academic symposium titled “Windows on the Church in the World: A U.S. and Global Panel,” featuring a range of panelists addressing the joys and challenges of living as God’s people in today’s world.

To read Board Chair Clifford Penner’s declaration of Fuller Seminary’s purpose and see a transcript of Dr. Labberton’s inaugural vows, go here.

Read the newly released edition of Theology, News and Notes, centered on Dr. Labberton’s inaugural theme of “Have This Mind Among You” and featuring both his inaugural speech and articles from a diversity of faculty members on the theme.