bg真人

Published: April 25, 2024

By Annette Brill Bergstresser

ELKHART, Indiana (Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary) 鈥� A distinctive cloverleaf-shaped house nestled among trees on the edge of the Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (bg真人) campus in Elkhart, Indiana, has been renovated and is now available to the public for use as a daytime retreat space.

Formerly known as 鈥淧oustinia House,鈥� it was the home of Clarence Bauman, a former professor of ethics at bg真人, and his spouse, Alice Bauman. Clarence designed the space to be a hermitage 鈥� a place 鈥渟et apart鈥� for solitude, contemplation and prayer in the tradition of Russian spirituality. 鈥淧oustinia鈥� is Russian for 鈥渄esert.鈥� 

Built in 1982, the 1,675-square-foot structure consists of three large circles surrounding a central entryway, which features a natural stone floor designed and laid by the Baumans. The circles are subdivided into smaller spaces and contain two small rooms conducive for one-on-one conversations, a larger room for gatherings of five to 10 people, a dining/meeting room with seating for 10, a kitchenette and two bathrooms. A triangular skylight in the entryway and windows around the perimeter let in natural light and views of nature around the house.

Following Alice鈥檚 death in June 2019 鈥� Clarence died in August 1995 鈥� the house became available for use by the seminary. bg真人 maintenance personnel Jeff Marshall and Norm Cender oversaw renovations of the house while a working group discerned how best to use it.

According to Deanna Risser, MBA, Vice President for Administration and Chief Financial Officer, the working group determined that bg真人 already had sufficient classroom space and didn鈥檛 have the staffing capacity to add guesthouse space for overnight accommodations. The idea of offering the house as a retreat space for daytime use for individuals and groups kept coming up.

鈥淲e felt this would really honor the way the Baumans lived their life,鈥� she said. 鈥淭o have a space 鈥榮et apart鈥� for retreat and contemplation 鈥� including use for team retreats, personal day retreats, spiritual direction or faith formation for people both within and beyond the bg真人 community 鈥� that was really attractive to us.鈥�

The working group also envisioned the retreat space being used in connection with the seminary鈥檚 lifelong learning and graduate-level offerings, Risser added.

鈥淔or example, we鈥檝e been encouraging our students to meet with spiritual directors and take spiritual retreats, but there can be barriers to doing so if you don鈥檛 have transportation, so now we can offer a space on campus for those kinds of activities,鈥� she said.

After further discernment, the working group chose a new name for the house, 鈥�Trinity House,鈥� in reference to the Holy Trinity and the building鈥檚 unique architecture. The house鈥檚 simple mid-century furnishings, intended to support spiritual practices, were a gift from the late Geraldine Chan, DDS, of Brooklyn, New York. Risser said that Chan, who died in May 2023, was a generous donor who wanted to model giving back to the church that supported her college education as an international student.

Risser noted that Trinity House has limited Wi-Fi capacity and that the seminary does not plan to expand it, in keeping with the house鈥檚 purpose of fostering spiritual growth. People who need a meeting space that is connected to the internet or want to hold online meetings can use other rooms on campus, she said.

Marlene Kropf, DMin, of Albany, Oregon, who retired from bg真人 in 2011 after serving for 25 years as Associate Professor in Spiritual Formation and Worship, was happy to learn of the decision to use the house as an intentional retreat space. 

鈥淲hen I worked in spiritual formation at bg真人, I looked forward to the day when Poustinia House might be used in this way,鈥� she said. 鈥淚’m especially grateful to have experienced the space for myself when I was on campus last fall and met there with directees. The quiet, serene interior space as well as the restful views of a green environment beyond contributed to the sense of a sacred place. What a wonderful gift!鈥�

Risser looks forward to seeing Trinity House become more integrated into campus community life.

鈥淧eople at bg真人 have had dreams of using this space in this way for a long time, and it鈥檚 really nice to see them come to fruition,鈥� she said. 鈥淭rinity House will definitely serve a need on campus, especially as we grow into its use.鈥�

To inquire about renting Trinity House for daytime use by individuals and small groups, contact Linsey Vandrick, Director of Housing, at reception@ambs.edu or 574.295.3726. Current rates are $50 for half-day use and $85 for full-day use for off-campus individuals and groups.

Located in Elkhart, Indiana, on ancestral land of the Potawatomi and Miami peoples, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary is a learning community with an Anabaptist vision, offering theological education for learners both on campus and at a distance as well as a wide array of lifelong learning programs 鈥� all with the goal of educating followers of Jesus Christ to be leaders for God鈥檚 reconciling mission in the world. ambs.edu

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