Personal Statement, Master of Theological Studies, Boston College

[Seatbelt Blue]

I'd like to share my personal statement for my application to the Master of Theological Studies program at Boston College to get some reactions and see how it is. Personal statement requirements may be found at http://www.bc.edu/co...ss/degree2.html

I used the same personal statement at Fordham, and I believe I used this at Seton Hall, to which I was accepted.

Feedback and criticism is appreciated. Please don't troll on the subject of religion, and speak about the personal statement itself.

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After nearly a decade of discernment, in August 2010 I entered seminary for the Diocese of Brooklyn. In eight months I would withdraw, get a job and an apartment, and move on with my life.

What always appealed to me the most about the priesthood was the theology. As much as I tried to drum up enthusiasm for the pastoral end of things, the goal in sight was always to be a dedicated theologian and academic, to discuss and discern and define the faith I’ve confessed since I was sixteen. Theology has been an enormous part of my life for that entire time, from my first forays into the basic, core doctrines, to my present reconstructivist analysis of the same. The theology, so rich at its core, so malleable on the edges, which both defines and defies the scope of the Church, has from the beginning been that to which I have always tended. It’s beautiful -- poetry, in a way. In fact, I could call it the science of poetry itself. It’s an attempt to plumb the depths of God and the universe and of man’s own heart. Hard to resist.

After I left seminary, I spent months thinking and wondering where to go next, what to do next -- I could never be satisfied at my current job. My intellect is wild and restless and seeks new frontiers, and every day all I get is the same old recorded lectures, endlessly through my iPhone, as I sit at a desk and put products up on a retail website.

My undergraduate work was in English, a field I chose because I thought I’d get some significant opportunities to refine my writing, which proved rather elusive, but it did help me put my brain to work in unpacking complex ideas from tightly-woven texts, and only encouraged my natural inclination towards theological thinking; not without cause did I seize onTess of the d’Urbervilles as an icon of Persephone, or on Maggie Tulliver from The Mill on the Floss as an explication on the moral life and apocalypticism. I naturally tend toward larger explanations, and enjoy making small things much bigger than they might otherwise be.

My research interests, then, tend toward both the large and the small -- I like unpacking the theology present in any text, from classic works of English literature to comic books, with a particular emphasis on Superman as an exemplary moral figure rather than the savior image so often presented. Further, I have a large interest in ecumenical theology and ecclesiology, and I’ve been kicking around an idea, probably not terribly original, that there can in fact be no such thing as a divided body of Christ.

These contribute to society inasmuch as any theology does; religion informs who we are, how we see ourselves, how we think about the world and others, and resultantly, how we act in the world. It’s the queen of sciences because it undergirds the whole human endeavour as fundamentally as the presence of six inches of topsoil and the fact that it rains. And what is more, there is something to be said for the vigorous pursuit of the truth of the world, knowable by human reason, discernible from the chaff of human thought, pursued under the light of revelation. These are self-evident goods, and do not need defense.

This is why I seek the insane privilege of being able to devote my life to them, to learn at this institution more of how it’s to be done and to be equipped with the tools for the digging.

[goodbye I]

This SoP centers on you and your personal interest in theology. Obviously this is important to some extent. What is missing, in my opinion, is why Boston College is a good place for you to pursue your interest in theology generally, or reconstructivist analysis, or whatever else you may pursue at BC. You need to talk about their program and why your interests fit the interest of the faculty there.

What you bring to the program is also missing here. Why should BC choose you? How will you benefit the program and how is this demonstrated in your past work, even if it is not in theological studies. You cannot be reserved here. You may not have a groundbreaking theory that is going to take the theological world by storm, but you need to puff yourself up a little more. Saying things like "probably not terribly original" is not advised. They may recognize that this is not a new thought if you don't include the caveat, but there is no need to demean your own interests and thinking, there are plenty of other people in academia who will do that for you as you continue your studies.

I would also avoid the excessive use of unnecessary adjectives ("large interest", etc.). In sum, I think that you have a good start to introducing yourself and why you want to study theology at the master's level. I think this should be one to two paragraphs of your SoP--at most. You should work on demonstrating your specific interests, how BC fits with those interests, and what you will bring to their program.

Good luck!