"When HTI Shows Up"
Dr. João B. Chaves reflects on the relationships that have carried HTI across places, generations, and 30 years of life together.
~4 min read
Colorful round tables filled the room, crowded with plates of food as members of the HTI community shared a meal and conversation. Scholars, mentors, colleagues, and friends caught up with familiar faces and welcomed new ones around the table.
Conversations settled as Dr. João B. Chaves (HTI Graduate, 2022 HTI Book Prize Winner, HTI Mentor) made his way to the microphone. For 30 years, HTI has supported hundreds of students, many of whom now serve as presidents, deans, and faculty members across theological and religious education.
The legacy of HTI can also be found in the bonds formed along the way: the friendships, mentorships, collaborations, and acts of generosity that have connected people across institutions, countries, and generations.
That evening, Chaves offered a few stories to illustrate what those relationships have meant in his own life. “There is so much that could be said. But instead of leaving you with too many numbers and figures, I decided to tell you a quick story about how this community has shown up in my life, in the hope that it might suggest how it will continue to show up in yours.”
"When HTI Shows Up"
For Chaves, HTI has shown up in unexpected places.
“HTI showed up on East 44th Street, across from the United Nations headquarters in New York City, as I was returning to my hotel after a meeting with the Ambassador of Togo. I ran into my Argentinian brother, Dr. Santiago Slabodsky (HTI Mentor), who happened to be in the area, and we stopped to visit and share our common struggles. He immediately invited me to dinner with him and Rev. Dr. Claudio Carvalhães (HTI Mentor). Although I could not make it, the invitation itself reminded me how special the HTI community is.”
In Puerto Rico, that same sense of connection took the form of shared knowledge and opened doors.
“It showed up when I was in Puerto Rico, when Dr. Elias Ortega (HTI Graduate, HTI Mentor) went out of his way to open pathways that allowed me to have deep conversations with Afro-Caribbean artists and thinkers on the island for a project I was working on. That reminded me how many resources I can access—because we can access them communally.”
The connections continued across continents: in Oxford, over a beer with Dr. Filipe Maia and Dr. Edgardo Colon-Emeric (HTI Member Council Representative), and in Paris at the Sorbonne, where Chaves heard Dr. Raúl Zegarra (HTI Graduate, HTI Editor, HTI Faculty, HTI Curriculum Review Committee Member) deliver a lecture.
For Chaves, however, the most meaningful moments extended beyond academic and professional life.
“It showed up when I became a full-time single father of two teenagers, through the prayers and support of so many people, some of whom are here tonight. They reminded me that when they called me family, they did not mean only an academic family.”
These stories give life to the meaning of en conjunto: It is sharing knowledge, extending an invitation, opening a door, gathering around a table, offering prayer, and being there for one another when it matters.
And Chaves knew his stories represented only a few among many.
“The list goes on. I am sure that many, if not all, of us here tonight have many more stories to tell. But I want to underscore that this is a community worth celebrating, worth preserving, and worth moving forward.”
Building the Stories Still to Come
As HTI celebrates its 30th anniversary in Denver, Chaves’s stories offer another way of understanding HTI’s legacy. The impact of HTI lives in the scholars it has supported and the institutions they have strengthened, the scholarship they have produced, and the communities they serve.
Chaves closed with an invitation that extended beyond the anniversary itself:
“I hope you won’t miss [HTI's 30th Anniversary] and that, even after it comes and goes, you’ll keep taking opportunities to celebrate and build our stories together. We are family, not just an academic family.”
Thirty years later, HTI’s story continues to be written. Every generation adds another piece to the mosaic. And, together, those pieces tell the story of 30 years of impact.
Be Part of the Stories Still to Come
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