Thomas John Hastings

Thomas John Hastings is Director of Research at the Center of Theological Inquiry. Before coming to CTI in 2008, he spent twenty-three years teaching in Japan, mostly as a mission co-worker of the Presbyterian Church (USA). From 1995-2008, he was Professor of Practical Theology (Christian Education) and Director of the Certification Course for Teachers of Religion at Tokyo Union Theological Seminary. He lectured in Japanese in Practical Theology and on the Philosophy, History, Methods, and Politics of Education. While concentrating on the formation of pastors and educators for the Japanese Protestant churches and Christian schools, he has also worked closely with students and scholars from other Asian countries, Africa, Oceania, Latin America, Europe, and North America. He is a practical theologian and educator whose experience has equipped him for working in culturally and theologically diverse interdisciplinary educational contexts, helping others discover a genuine appreciation for such diversity without losing their own sense of identity. He was elected as a member of the International Academy of Practical Theology in 1998. Along with numerous articles and translations in English and Japanese, he is the author of Practical Theology and the One Body of Christ (Eerdmans, 2007) in the International Series, Studies in Practical Theology. He is an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the PC (USA).

B.A. English Literature, Boston College
M.A. Educational Ministries, Wheaton College Graduate School
Courses for Ordination, Princeton Theological Seminary
Ph.D. Practical Theology (Christian Education), Princeton Theological Seminary