Serving Classes, Church, and Culture

“I’m thinking about how we expand our understanding of race and ethnicity in a way that is not anthropocentric,” the Reverend Dr. Dong Hyeon Jeong shares with enthusiasm. “Perhaps a way to move forward is to deepen our understanding of ontology, of what it means to be human and—more particularly—an Asian human, not just by reverting back to our past but by connecting sideways to the neglected other and in our relationship to the Earth.” Garrett’s Associate Professor of New Testament Interpretation was granted tenure last spring, a recognition of his many gifts in both teaching and scholarship. Now, fresh from sabbatical, he returns eager to pedagogically incorporate both the fruits from that research and insights from Garrett’s diverse community.

Although Dr. Jeong has taught Introduction to New Testament for 15 years, he finds that Garrett’s unique academic context continues to shape his approach. “For the last two years, my class had about 80 students—both online and in-person. The online students aren’t just people in the U.S. I have folks from Korea, India, and Zimbabwe. The course offers a global perspective but also a global challenge to reimagine the course in ways that are sensitive to difference cultural contexts,” he says. “I’ve been asking them, ‘are the readings diverse enough?’ Do you feel like your community and context are represented by at least one required reading?’”

The challenges of a global classroom extend beyond what appears on the syllabus. It’s also crucial to consider how students can receive those materials. “It’s given me a chance to grow pedagogically, to be mindful of things like making sure textbooks are available online so students can easily purchase them,” he says. “You may think, ‘Oh, with Amazon they have delivery in two days,’ but is that the same when you are somewhere in Myanmar?” The stratospheric costs of many academic texts can also create burdens to access and affordability. “They don’t need another $100 textbook to buy,” Dr. Jeong contends. “So I look for cheap textbooks or even provide free ones when I can.”

On top of pedagogical shifts, Dr. Jeong’s teaching also increasingly employs insights he’s gained through research. Since the publication of his book Embracing the Nonhuman in the Gospel of Mark (SBL Press 2023), Dr. Jeong has become a frequent author of chapters and articles on the Bible and ecology, and particularly the ways that intersects with ethnic identity. “A lot of minoritized groups are accused of being speciesist, of not caring for the earth but instead only caring about issues of racism. But why can’t we do both?” he asks. “In the gospel of Mark, we see the animalization of the other, the turning of individuals into inanimate objects worthy of being killed.” Through a postcolonial lens, Dr. Jeong reinterprets the gospel as the story of a colonized messiah who embraces the nonhuman, while also encouraging readers to reimagine how humans, animals and our environment are interconnected.

While this may sound like a more academic approach to the gospel, part of what renders Dr. Jeong such a beloved professor is how he helps students draw connections between what they learn in class and what they teach from the pulpit. “Biblical studies can get very heady and technical, so I always edit my lectures to be mindful of the church. When students say, ‘What does this have to do with my ministry or my chaplaincy?’ those are legitimate questions,” he explains. “So, I’m not just thinking academically but also pastorally—and not just one church, but different church perspectives.”

His role as Director of Garrett’s Center on Asian/Asian-American Ministry offers ample opportunity to draw these kinds of connections. “One of my goals as CAAM’s director is to bridge academia and the church,” he says. “I always try to connect churches with classes, or offerings on the Garrett Collective, and to cooperatively create programs. In October, we’ll have an event featuring Dr. Eliezer Fernandez on migration and theology, inviting the clergy and lay members to come and share their thoughts.”

Dr. Jeong’s appointment to Associate Professor with tenure honors the many facets of his work as an educator, a scholar, and an ecclesial leader. The joy in this announcement, however, is tempered by what he sees across the field of biblical scholarship. “I’m so happy to be tenured, but also very sad about what’s happening across academia. So many seminaries are shutting down, or closing departments and firing tenured folks,” he explains. “I don’t have a magic solution, but I want to recognize their struggle. I’m humbled by this promotion, and I receive it as a way to serve better—to write and teach in whatever ways that contribute to society and the church.”