Major in Intercultural Studies

Dr. David Vila came to John Brown University in the Fall of 1999 from Saint Louis University where he completed a Ph.D. in Historical Theology.  His dissertation, Christian Martyrs in the First Abbasid Century and the Development of an Apologetic Against Islam, focused on early Christian-Muslim relations, especially as seen in the hagiography of the period.  He spent the 1995-96 academic year on a Fulbright grant in Jordan, studying Arabic and working on his dissertation.  Prior to his doctoral work, Dr. Vila completed a B.A. in English Literature at Covenant College, an M.A. and an M.Div. at Covenant Theological Seminary, and worked for two years with a Spanish language publisher in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

Much of Dr. Vila's research and publications focus on early Christian-Muslim relations and the early development of Arabic Christianity.  In addition, since 1990, he has been involved with an archaeological excavation in northern Jordan at the ancient site of Abila of the Decapolis.  In 2008, he was named Director of the Abila Archaeological Project and has been leading the excavation ever since.  In 2006, he started the Jordan Summer Studies Program at JBU which provides the opportunity for students to work with the excavation while earning JBU academic credit.  Most summers find him traveling or excavating in the Middle East.  During the 2006-07 academic year, he was a Fulbright Scholar at Jordan University where he taught in the Department of English Language and Literature and did research in the Department of Archaeology.  He is currently working on a book entitled The Churches of Abila that documents the five Byzantine churches found at Abila.  He is also in the midst of a book on the 11^th-12^th century Muslim theologian al-Ghazali. 

Dr. Vila's teaching includes the Old and New Testament Survey courses in the University Core Curriculum as well as four courses on Islam (Islamic Art, The Life of Muhammad, The Qur’an, and an Introduction to Islam) as well as a course on Hinduism and Buddhism.  He has also taught Greek, advanced Biblical Studies courses, History of Philosophy, and both Honors Integrated Humanities and Honors Integrated Theology in the Honors Scholars Program.

Dr. Vila has been married to Susan Vila since 1991.  They have four children, Samuel (’95), Charlie (’99), Henry (’02), and Alice (’12), as well as four cats and a Chihuahua.  Their home is wonderfully chaotic. 

My work as Chief International Programs at John Brown University allows me to do what I love: create a global learning environment for university students. My vision and passion for international education have helped establish JBU’s program as one of the top within the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. I often say that I have the best job on campus, doing what I love and love what I am doing. JBU is a terrific place to serve, I can’t think of anything else I’d rather do.., other than taking Jeremy Clarks post on Top Gear.

My life has followed a circuitous route -- starting with an early childhood in Northern Ireland, moving on to South Korea and, ultimately, bringing me to the United States. My own intercultural experience has equipped me to understand the unique struggles and challenges that face students studying in different countries.

I grew up in Belfast then lived in Korea for 8 years as a student. In 1979 and 1980, I used my knowledge of Korean to translate for the US and British Embassies. I first came to the United States in 1983 to study at Emmaus Bible College in Chicago, Illinois. In 1983 I transferred to JBU, graduating May 1988 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. I remained at the university as associate registrar. I completed JBU’s master’s program in counselor education in 1997.

Within the campus community, I oversees international student programs, study abroad opportunities, and all international mission projects. In addition, I manage the Irish Studies Program which includes the management of Lakeside Manor, JBU’s campus in Northern Ireland. Professionally, I stay active in the National Association of Foreign Student Educators (NAFSA) Teaching a course in Peace & Conflict Reconciliation in Ireland during the spring term of the Irish Studies Program is a highlight for me.

My work has enabled me to travel to more than 70 countries. Speaking engagements take me on the road nationally and internationally. I am called upon to discuss topics as diverse as international travel risk management, conflict resolution, cross-cultural leadership, Irish Politics and society, as well as to share my personal testimony.

I am currently conducting research on Pilgrimage. Pilgrimage incorporates three main elements: travel and movement; veneration in some form; and a special place or places considered to have some deep significance, often associated with sacred figures or founders. Ireland is just one of these significant locations. I am mapping out a pilgrimage suitable for education.

Dr. Aminta Arrington spent eight years serving with an organization that places Christian teachers at Chinese universities, most recently at Renmin University of China in Beijing. Prior to the four years she spent in the Chinese capital, she spent an additional four years in the agricultural hinterlands of eastern China's Shandong province teaching at Taishan Medical University. She chronicled those experiences in the edited book Saving Grandmother's Face and Other Tales from Christian Teachers in China, and the memoir Home Is a Roof Over a Pig: An American Family's Journey in China.

Dr. Arrington wrote her dissertation on the Lisu — a people dispersed throughout southwest China, eastern Myanmar (Burma), and northern Thailand. The Lisu converted to Christianity approximately one hundred years ago after evangelization by the China Inland Mission and other mission organizations. She spent several months living with the Lisu in woven bamboo huts on steep mountain inclines participating in the rhythm of village life: planting corn, feeding animals, eating food cooked over a fire, washing dishes, and five times a week, sitting on hard pews in church singing hymns in four-part harmony. Through the Lisu, she learned about a Christian faith that is focused on togetherness within a community of fellow believers, a faith most authentically expressed through music and song, a faith directed outward toward God and neighbors.

Dr. Arrington has traversed both major and minor waterways throughout Southeast Asia: the Mekong River from northern Thailand, through Laos, Cambodia, and the Mekong Delta in Vietnam; the Irrawaddy river from Mandalay to Bagan in Myanmar (Burma); and, trekked through northern Thailand on foot and via bamboo raft. She has explored the ruins of ancient civilizations at Siem Reap, Cambodia; Ayutthaya and Sukhotai in Thailand; and, Hue, Vietnam. She has traveled across the length of Java (east to west) and Vietnam (south to north) by rail. She spent a year studying Japanese in Tokyo. She has participated in homestays with the Karen of northern Thailand and the Bidayuh of Malaysian Borneo. She has been attacked by monkeys in Bali and eaten mango sticky rice in Thailand too many times to count. But her greatest joys are found in worshipping God with Christians from the Global South, and in teaching her students to better understand and appreciate the depth, diversity, and beauty of what the Greek New Testament calls the pante ta ethne — the world's peoples and cultures.