A Historic Commitment to Pluralism

Exploring Differences, Deepening Faith

HIU is committed to building and fostering an educational environment that is inclusive of people from every walk of life and every way of looking at religion. Our shared responsibility is to embrace, cultivate, and respect differences in all forms. We aim for inclusive excellence by creating effective systematic policies and practices that advocate and champion equality for everyone.

With the same commitment we have to religious pluralism, we respect the various differences that reflect humanity. Our community is grounded in empathy, respect, and love.

History

Hartford International University, founded in 1834, has a commitment to exploring religious differences that dates to the late 19th century. Congregationalist for much of its history, HIU began to open the door to the study of other religions not long after its founding. Hartford was representative of most Christian seminaries, viewing the study of other religions through the lens of Christian mission. But unlike others, it developed a trajectory away from exclusivism.

The hiring of a young Scottish professor named Duncan Black Macdonald in 1892 eventually led the institution in the direction of pluralism and interfaith dialogue, two of its main areas of interest today. Macdonald had a passion for Islamic studies and Arabic, and though he taught these subjects in the context of educating missionaries, he studied Islam with an attitude of appreciation instead of criticism or superiority. In the 40 years Macdonald served as a professor here, he fostered the idea of building bridges between Christians and Muslims rather than the idea of conversion. The Muslim World journal, founded in 1911 and published at Hartford International University today, is evidence of this journey toward a dialogical approach.

As religious and cultural shifts took place in the 20th century, then Hartford Seminary lessened its emphasis on training clergy and missionaries. In 1973, Professor Willem Bijlefeld launched the Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations to continue the institution’s work in this area. In the 1980s and 90s Hartford was involved supporting and leading international dialogues between Muslims and Christians. In 1993, Hartford hired the first full-time Muslim at any American seminary, Dr. Ibrahim Abu Rabia’. Interest in Islamic Studies grew in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, and Dr. Ingrid Mattson launched the first Islamic Chaplaincy program in the nation under President Heidi Hadsell, who was a leading voice worldwide in interfaith dialogue.

During President Hadsell’s tenure, the institution hired a marketing firm to create a tagline that summed up its mission, and it’s one we still use today: Exploring Differences, Deepening Faith. President Hadsell also hired a Jewish Studies faculty associate with the intention of increasing religious representation across the Abrahamic faiths. In 2015, an endowed academic chair was added for Shi’a studies, the first of its kind in North America, bolstering our commitment to intra-faith dialogue.

Expansive Mission

HIU has a long record of supporting pluralism in all its forms. In 1889, it was the first seminary in America to admit women on the same terms as men. Leadership skills for women became a focus again in the late 1990s, with the establishment of the Women’s Leadership Institute under Sister Miriam Therese Winter, an internationally known feminist theologian.

Since 1982, HIU has offered a program that builds leadership and preaching skills for laity and clergy in the urban church. The Black Ministries Program is a national model for giving people of faith the tools they need to put their love of God into action for their church, their families, and their communities.  

In 2021, under the leadership of President Joel N. Lohr, Hartford Seminary changed its name to Hartford International University for Religion and Peace. The intent was both to drop the word “seminary,” since the institution did not focus on Christian clergy, and to lean into the focus on interfaith dialogue, peacebuilding, and chaplaincy. One of our main degree programs, an MA in Religious Studies, was changed to an MA in Interreligious Studies, a sign of our deep commitment to interreligious understanding. President Lohr also advocated for the establishment in 2022 of the Howard Thurman Center for Justice and Transformational Ministry, which expands our efforts to create social change through advocacy.

Today, HIU draws students from a variety of religious traditions from around the world. Though historically focused on the Abrahamic faiths – Islam, Christianity, and Judaism – the student body and faculty also represent other faiths and no faith. There are few institutions in the U.S. – or the world – that have such a longstanding commitment to religious pluralism and understanding.