How the Pacific Coast Theological Society Works
(Information especially for new members)
Membership
Membership is open to all theologians and philosophers interested in theology.
Dues
Currently dues are $45 annually,
payable at the first (i.e., the Fall) meeting of each academic year.
Retired members and corresponding members
(who receive papers but live at such a distance
that it is impractical to attend Meetings)
pay one-half, i.e. $22.50 per year.
Corresponding members pay $10., and students $22.50.
Dues are used mainly to subsidize travel for members living more than fifty miles
from the meeting place.
Meetings
The Society meets twice each academic year,
Fall (usually the first weekend in November)
and Spring (usually the first weekend after Easter),
from Friday at 2:00 pm until Saturday noon.
Start times are variable,
but Friday at 2 pm and Saturday at 10 am are typical.
Consult your meeting program for the real start-times.
Reimbursement of Travel Expenses
Those on the program who come from outside the Bay Area are reimbursed for expenses of travel,
but not for lodging or meals.
Those not on the program but coming from outside the Bay Area are reimbursed
for 2/3 of their travel expense, but not for lodging or meals.
The Secretariat and Program Committee
The officers of the PCTS consist of a three-member secretariat,
elected on staggered three-year terms.
The secretariat is responsible for maintaining the society accounts,
arranging for meetings,
and planning the program.
Proposals for program topics and persons to present papers are solicited at each meeting.
Normally, programs are planned one year in advance.
Current (2003) members of the secretariat are
Sarah Lewis (510) 841-1842, svlewis@citycom.com
Andrew P. Porter, secretary, (925) 443-4041, app@jedp.com,
Sharon Burch, treasurer, (415) 256-1842, spburch@rcn.net
Content of Programs
The programs chosen for Friday afternoon and Saturday morning sessions
have customarily dealt with a theme or themes of current theological interest.
The typical format is three or four papers,
prepared by members and distributed ot the members by the author
(mailing lists are provided by the Secretary).
Each paper is introduced by a response,
followed by general discussion
and concluded by an opportunity for rejoinder by the author of the paper.
Liveliness of discussion is preserved by providing no ``summary''
or ``introduction'' of the distributed paper by the author,
and by providing each member
(including, of course, the author)
a fair chance for comment.
The prepared initial response,
not distributed in advance,
is brief and often deliberately provocative.
The Friday afternoon session is followed by a brief business meeting,
a reception, dinner, and an oral autobiography presented by a member.
Members assigned parts on the program by the committee
do not refuse the assignment
except for unusual or extraordinary reasons,
e.g., unforseen illness.
After the meeting, papers are deposited in the GTU library,
and catalogued into the Rare Book Collection for Library Use Only.
With this deposit, the authors give permission
for Library patrons to reproduce papers
according to the GTU Rare Book Use Policy.
Otherwise, copyright vests in the papers' authors.
Correspondence
Please address all correspondence
to the Pacific Coast Theological Society,
c/o The Graduate Theological Union,
2400 Ridge Road
Berkeley CA 94709.