The Work and Words of the Holy Spirit
In
John 14:26, a portion of the farewell discourses delivered before his death,
Jesus assures the disciples that although he himself will be departing, the
Father would send the Holy Spirit to be with them in Jesus' absence.
According to that verse there are two tasks that the Holy Spirit would
undertake: 1) teach the followers of Jesus 2) remind them of Jesus'
words. The United Library embodies the teaching/reminding activity
of the Holy Spirit. It preserve for future generations the words and
records of the saints, scholars, and faithful who have reflected on the mystery
of God. Indeed, the United Library is a loyal servant in the task of
reminding and teaching others by making available for study and reflection one
of the premier collections in Christianity.
How can you participate?
There are many opportunities, both small and large to participate in the mission of the United Library as it serves Seabury-Western, Garrett-Evangelical, and the world-wide Christian community.
- Donate items. The library is happy to accept individual items or personal library collections of books, media, and archival items. At the discretion of the library staff, such items may be either entered into the collection or, if the items duplicate holdings, distributed to partner libraries, needy students, etc. Please contact Beth Sheppard, the Library Director to discuss donations of this type.
- Purchase a book program. For every $50 donated, we will purchase a new volume for the collection and include a bookplate with your choice of inscription or dedication. This is a wonderful way to honor friends, relatives, pastors, church leaders, and mentors for special occasions. We will happily send a note to the individual you designate, or their heirs, to inform them that the gift has been made. Contact the United Library at United.Library@Garrett.edu or UnitedLibrary@Seabury.edu for more information.
- Perpetual Endowment. Similar to one's own
personal retirement account, an endowment is a deposit of funds from which
only the interest is spent each year. Thus the principal remains
untouched and generates a steady stream of income that may be used by the
library year after year. Endowments for the United Library may be
managed by the finance and development teams at either
Garrett-Evangelical or
Seabury-Western.
- Subject Endowments may be set up to purchase library materials, both electronic and in paper formats, for a particular field of study. We are seeking funds on a broad range of topics from Biblical Studies to Church Music, to Methodist and Anglican History, to the Christian Experience in Asia and other countries. The topics are endless. What is the theological discipline or book of the Bible about which you are passionate?
- Endowed Positions In addition to supporting the collection, endowments that fund library positions such as archivists, preservationists, catalogers, and reference librarians are also welcome.
- Special Initiatives. The library also seeks
partners to provide support for special projects. The
Library Director can provide details and in some cases, even vendor
supplied graphics and estimates about these initiatives. Current projects
include, amongst others:
- a handicapped accessible ramp in the main level of the Seabury periodical room.
- library-wide installation of a new RFID security tag system to facilitate inventory and prevent loss of materials
- purchase of new circulation and check-out computers
- Purchase of "Ariel" scanning and Inter-library Loan system to share digital documents with other libraries nationwide.
We look forward to working with you as we ensure the excellence of the United Library's collection and services in support of the next generation of church leaders! Truly this is the work of the Holy Spirit!