Abstract
When Dr. Costen invited me to prepare this narrative commemorating his tenure as President of the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC), I was both elated and filled with dread. Elated because I had known him for many years—at least two decades—and had followed his development and accomplishments, both in the parish ministry and in the world of theological education. Filled with dread because I knew the intense joy of victory but also was aware of the painful dungeons of defeat. Therefore, I wondered aloud: “Has Jim experienced these same emotions, especially the more tortuous of the two?” Of course, I knew of his successes, at least some of them, but of his defeats . . . ?