After exhaustive search, Fuller Theological Seminary names new president

Following a 10-month search that at one point included some 250 candidates, Pasadena’s Fuller Theological Seminary have announced the appointment of Mark Labberton as the school’s new president.

Labberton has taught for four years at Fuller and leads its Lloyd John Ogilvie Institute of Preaching.

He will take the helm on July 1, when current Fuller President Richard Mouw is set to retire, spokesman Fred Messick said.

Labberton, 59, will be Fuller’s third president in five decades.

Mouw, who will return to teaching at Fuller after his retirement, has been president since 1993. Mouw’s predecessor, David Hubbard, served for 30 years.

“It’s an extraordinary legacy to follow. It’s exciting, but also a daunting challenge,” Labberton said.

Fuller’s more than 4,000 students hail from 70 countries and more than 100 religious denominations, according to the school. In addition to theology, Fuller also operates schools of psychology and intercultural studies.

Labberton said his leadership at Fuller will focus on encouraging faith practitioners and religious institutions to be more responsive to the social mainstream.

“What makes Fuller a unique place in the theological landscape is it holds on to Christian orthodoxy while remaining creatively engaged in culture,” Labberton said.

Before arriving at Fuller, Labberton was senior pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley for 16 years.

“There’s an understandable cynicism that the church’s voice and actions are not always consistent with one another and often in opposition to one another,” he said. “What’s at stake at Fuller, and what I care deeply about, is the integration of talk and action.”

-- Joe Piasecki, Times Community News

Follow Joe Piasecki on Twitter: @joepiasecki