Associate Professor of Christian Formation & Ministry
On Faculty since 2006
Phone: (630)752-7958
Email: Tom.Schwanda@wheaton.edu
Education
Ph.D. Durham University, 2009.
D. Min. Fuller Theological Seminary, 1992.
M.Div. New Brunswick Theological Seminary, 1975.
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, 1972-1974.
B.A. Moravian College, 1972.
About Tom Schwanda
I was born and raised in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. I was a pastor for over eighteen years serving in three Reformed Church in America (RCA) congregations. I met my wife, Grace, who was the minister of music, while serving in the first congregation. I have also been an editor for Baker Books and Zondervan and served my denomination as Associate for Spiritual Formation. Over the years I have been privileged to teach various courses in Christian spirituality and worship at numerous seminaries. I am also adjunct associate professor of Christian Spirituality at Fuller Seminar and teach a doctor of ministry course each summer. I find great joy in leading retreats, teaching adult classes, and offering spiritual direction.
Grace and I have two grown children; Rebecca Joy and her husband Jesse, live in Grand Rapids, MI and Steve and his wife Stephanie, live in Alma, MI. We are also blessed with three grandchildren, Brooklyn from Rebecca Joy and Jesse and Hailey and Pierce from Steve and Stephanie. We enjoy attending concerts, canoeing and kayaking. I begin my day with prayer, reading Scripture, and journaling followed by a three-mile run. I am proud of my Czech heritage and cheer for the Toronto Maple Leafs even though they have not played decent hockey for decades.
Bernard of Clairvaux wisely diagnosed a major problem of education in the twelfth century. He noted, “Unless it (e.g. knowledge) has been cooked on the fire of love, and thoroughly digested by the disciplines of the soul, it will also be damaging, instead of being nutritious.” I fear the same can be true today. One of my great challenges and joys as a professor is to guide students into discovering the rich treasures of Christian formation and worship. Too often we separate the mind and experience as if they are unrelated. However, truth that is removed from experience is always left in doubt. Over the centuries the greatest Christian leaders and educators have all grasped the importance of cooking knowledge on the fire of love. My commitment to creating an experiential foundation for learning invites us to keep company with Jesus through the guidance of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God, the Father.
Courses Taught
- CE 233 Discipleship
- CE 323 Dynamics of Spiritual Growth
- CE 341 Spiritual Theology
- CE 342 History of Christian Spirituality
- CE 344 Origins of Christian Worship
- CE 345 Worship and Spirituality
- CE 459/CFM 694 Recovering Monastic Wisdom
- CFM 512 Bible in Ministry
- CFM 522 History and Traditions of Spiritual Formation
- CFM 532 Discipleship
- CFM 538 Spirituality (for PsyD students)
- CFM 694 Mentoring in Ministry
- (Click here to view department syllabi--past and current.)
Membership in Professional Societies
- Who’s Who In America, 1995-present.
- American Academy of Religion
- American Society of Church History
- Calvin Studies Society
- Czechoslovak History Conference
- Czechoslovak Society for Arts and Science
- Evangelical Theological Society-Spiritual Formation and Sanctification planning committee
- Society for the Study of Christian Spirituality-Governing Board (2009...)
- Spiritual Directors International
Research
Current research interests include Puritan mysticism and contemplative Reformed spirituality, seventeenth-century spirituality including German pietism and the nadere Reformatie in the Netherlands, history of Christian spirituality, contemplative teaching, and spirituality of worship.
Papers Published and/or Presented
Select Publications:
"Reading Puritan and Pietist Spiritual Classics” in A Guide to Christian Spiritual Classics, eds. Jamin Goggin and Kyle Strobel. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, forthcoming.
Frank Laubach entry in Encyclopedia of Christian Civilization. Editor George Kurian. Blackwell, forthcoming
Eighteen entries (Historical: Anne Bradstreet, John Bunyan, Philip Doddridge, Frank Laubach, Jean Gerson, John Hus, Andrew Murray, Pachomius, Samuel Rutherford, and Nicholas Ludwig von Zinzendorf. Topical: Angels, Cistercians, Contemplation, Liturgical Year, Liturgy of the Hours, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Marriage, and Three-Fold Way) in Dictionary of Christian Spirituality. ed. Glen G. Scorgie. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011.
“’Hearts Sweetly Refreshed’: Puritan Spiritual Practices Then and Now.” Journal of Spiritual Formation Soul Care 3, no. 1 (Spring 2010): 21-41.
“Savoring the Word” The Banner 140, no 7 (July 2005): 15.
“Companions with the Spirit: The Ministry of Spiritual Direction“ Reformation and Revival 13, no. 3 (Summer 2004): 11-26.
“A Select Annotated Bibliography [on Spiritual Formation]” Reformation and Revival 13, no. 3 (Summer 2004): 167-172.
The Upper Room Dictionary Of Christian Spiritual Formation, Keith Beasley-Topliffe, ed. Nashville: Upper Room Books, 2003 (seven entries: John Amos Comenius, Philip Doddridge, John Hus, John Newton, Charles Spurgeon, A.W. Tozer, and Nicholas Von Zinzendorf).
“Gazing at God: Some Preliminary Observations on Contemplative Reformed Spirituality” Reformed Review 56, no. 2 (Winter 2002/2003): 101-121.
“Growing in Christ: Glorifying and Enjoying God through Reformed Spiritual Disciplines” Reformation and Revival 10, no. 1 (Winter 2001): 19-45.
“Jan Hus” and “Hussites” Encyclopedia of Christianity. vol. 2. Eerdmans-Brill, 2001.
“Maturing in Christ: The Dynamic Process of Pilgrimage” Reformed Review 53, no. 3 (Spring 2000): 196-211.
“The Transforming Power of Silence in Personal Prayer and Public Worship” Reformed Liturgy & Music 33, no. 4 (1999): 21-25. .
“Autobiographies of Giving: Dorcas” Reformed Review 53, no. 1 (Autumn 1999): 54-59.
Introductions and devotional study notes for Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Hebrews, and the Epistles of John in the Upper Room Spiritual Formation Bible. Zondervan, 1999.
“Praying the Scriptures with Head and Heart: Rediscovering Lectio Divina,” Banner 133, no. 23 (Nov 9, 1998): 24-26.
“Seeking Family Wellness” The Church Herald 53, no. 5 (May 1996): 30-34.
“The Hidden Voice of Worship” The Church Herald 53, no 4 (April 1996): 37-39.
“The Unforced Rhythms of Grace, A Reformed Perspective on Sabbath” Perspectives 11, no. 3 (March 1996): 14-17.
“Closing the Gap: Recovering the Experiential Nature of Reformed Spirituality” Reformed Review 49, no. 2 (Winter 1995-96): 109-25.
Celebrating God’s Presence: The Transforming Power of Public Worship. CRC Publications, 1995.
Reformed Spirituality. CRC Publications, 1995.
“Improving Our Baptism” Reformed Worship 34 (Dec 1994): 25-27.
13 articles in The Complete Library of Christian Worship. Robert E. Webber, ed. 7 vol. Nashville: Star Song Publishing, 1994.
“Worship: Coming into God’s Presence” The Church Herald 51, no. 5 (May1994): 30-32.
“Amazing Grace, A Paradigm for Piety” Perspectives 9, no. 1 (Jan 1994): 11-14.
I have also reviewed over 110 books including 57 books reviews for the Calvin Theological Journal, 46 book reviews for the Reformed Review, eight book reviews for Reformed Worship, and two book reviews for Perspectives, two book reviews for Spiritus and one each in the Christian Education Journal and Journal of Reformed Theology. Most of these books were related to Christian spirituality, spiritual formation, spiritual direction, or worship.
Consulting editor for the Journal of Spiritual Formation and Soul Care, 2008--
Select Academic Presentations:
“’A Lovely Taste of Heaven’: Sanctification through Solitude in Puritan Spirituality’” Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, November 17, 2010.
“Jesus is Your Husband: Spiritual Marriage and Intimacy in Early Modern Protestantism” Wheaton College Humanities Colloquium, October 22, 2010.
“’Hearts Sweetly Refreshed’: Puritan Spiritual Disciplines Then and Now” Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theology Society, November 19, 2009.
Missions Trip to Bangalore, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi. Teaching three sessions on Christian Spirituality for the Institute of Global Leadership (Bangalore, India), March, 2008.
“Feb by Christ, Formed in Christ: Spiritual Formation through the Lord’s Supper” Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, November 15, 2007.
“Retreating and Advancing: Two Spiritual Practices in the Life of Isaac Ambrose” and “Spiritual Marriage and Gender Dynamics in Isaac Ambrose” lectures presented at Oak Hill Theological College, London, May 17, 2007.
“Spiritual Formation through Worship” Mini-Forum, Spiritual Formation Forum, Long Beach, CA, May 2006.
Assorted worship and spirituality of worship presentations at the Calvin Symposium on Worship and the Arts (January 2006, 2002, 1996, and 1991) and COLAM (Conference on Liturgy and Music) Grand Rapids, MI 1995.
“Soul Recreation: Recovering a Contemplative Spirituality for Today” University of Glasgow, Centre for Advanced Studies in Christian Ministry, May 2004.
“The Life and Times of Isaac Ambrose” and “Spiritual Marriage and the Enjoyment of God” Oak Hill Theological College, London-May 2004.
“Spiritual Formation Inside the Heart of the Faculty” co-presentation with Jim Wilhoit and “Spiritual Marriage: Cultivating Our Union and Communion with Christ” Spiritual Formation Forum, Los Angeles, May 2004.
“Learning to Pray with Jesus” Spiritual Formation Forum, Dallas, May 2001.
“Learning to Tell Time: Using the Christian Year as a Means of Spiritual Formation in Worship” Evangelical Theological Society Midwestern Conference, March 2001.