ONE-MINUTE COMMENTARY
Things are looking up!
Perhaps I'm naïve. After all, war rages in the Middle East. Record heat has been baking North America and Europe. Several denominations seem to be splitting apart over differences in theology, morality, and polity. Many seminaries are facing budget or leadership crises. It's very easy to read about bad news, and I do so every day.
But the good news is hidden. More than 10,000 new graduates entered Christian ministry in India this year. Here in North America, seminaries continue to be incredibly creative and entrepreneurial, adding new academic programs and new extension sites. And struggling schools are staying faithful to their missions, even through the hard times, because their people -- boards, administrators, faculty, students, alumni, and supporters -- care about them so deeply.
I shouldn't be surprised at this. In a world full of bad news, Jesus himself was good news. For the sick, he brought healing. For the oppressed, he offered freedom. To the dying -- sometimes even the dead! -- he gave life. That wasn't just pie-in-the-sky piety for the downtrodden masses. Rather, Jesus showed people an alternate reality that transcended what was merely obvious.
The stewards of North American theological education can also experience this alternate reality. Every school faces challenges, but God still gives hope. There are still people excited when a single theology course is offered in a new town. Schools are still designing innovative new programs. And there are still new seminary graduates moving to their first ministry assignments armed with a one-way train ticket and a bicycle. And that gives me hope indeed.
--Jay Blossom
Editor, In Trust Now
JOIN THE IN TRUST TEAM
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COMING SOON
What to expect in the Summer 2006 issue of In Trust
The next issue of In Trust will help you stay "fully on board from start to finish." Guest editor Rebekah Burch Basinger has assembled a practical collection of articles on the life cycle of a board member -- recruitment, orientation, education, assessment, and saying goodbye. It's an issue you'll want to keep and refer to, time and time again.
CHANGING SCENES NOW
Six news items you may have missed
1. NEW RESEARCH
The Council for Christian Colleges and Universities has released a study of average tuition increases at member schools from 1988 to 2005. Among the findings: average tuition has almost tripled since 1988.
One-page summary of survey findings (PDF)…
The Lewis Center for Church Leadership at Wesley Theological Seminary has released a detailed study of clergy age trends in the United Methodist Church from 1985 to 2005. It found that the proportion of ordained elders older than 55 has increased from 27 percent to 41 percent during that time, and the median age of all elders is 52.
2. EVANGELICAL SEMINARY OFFERS NEW ANGLICAN DEGREE PROGRAM
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, a 2,000-student evangelical school based in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, is preparing to launch a new Anglican studies program. The program will be designed for students from the conservative wing of the Anglican tradition, including both Episcopalians and members of churches that have left the Episcopal Church USA and the Anglican Church of Canada.
3. CATHOLIC VOCATIONS
The new rector of the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, New York, was profiled in the July 9-15 issue of the National Catholic Register. Msgr. James McDonald has never taught in a seminary and holds no advanced theological degree, but he is known in the Diocese of Rockville Centre as an extraordinary mentor and an effective recruiter of future priests.
Earlier this year, the Tidings, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, published a helpful article titled "How Is a Candidate 'Screened' for Entry into the Seminary?" The piece explains the interviews and psychological testing that all Los Angeles candidates for ordination must undergo.
4. EXTENSION EDUCATION
St. Paul School of Theology, a United Methodist seminary in Kansas City, Missouri,
is pursuing an agreement
with Oklahoma City University to establish an extension campus at the school, which is also related to the United Methodist Church.
United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, a United Church of Christ school in New Brighton, Minnesota, has begun offering classes in Duluth, Minnesota. The school hopes that the Duluth courses may eventually lead to an extension campus in the northern city.
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, the Southern Baptist school in Fort Worth, Texas, has opened a new campus in Houston. The J. Dalton Havard School for Theological Studies has a $5.3 million campus, formerly owned by Park Place Baptist Church, and more than 200 students. It gained its first resident dean last fall.
The Rev. Lawrence J. Clark has been named the executive director of the Lutheran Theological Center in Atlanta, an extension program of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia, South Carolina. The Atlanta center works closely with all eight seminaries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and with other Atlanta theological schools.
5. PROMOTING MORE EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
Boston College has announced two new degree programs designed to promote more effective church management. The two-year master's degree in pastoral ministry with a concentration in church management will incorporate four management courses from Boston College's business school into the standard master's curriculum in ministry. The joint MA/MBA, a three-year program, is intended for clergy, laity, and members of Catholic religious orders who are working in significant roles in church business.
The W. K. Kellogg Foundation has announced a new partnership with the Fieldstone Alliance (St. Paul, Minnesota) and the Nonprofit Finance Fund (New York), giving Kellogg grantees access to new resources to promote organizational capacity. The $9.3 million grant makes consulting, training, professional association membership, and other tools available to more than 800 organizations.
6. INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Anglicans in Sydney, Australia, have a vocations problem -- too many students are swamping the diocesan seminary. The school had 314 students last year, up from 235 in 2001.
United Methodist theological schools in Europe are facing increasing financial pressures and are exploring creative ways to balance budgets.
In Kota, India, a record-breaking class of 10,137 students graduated this spring from the 92 Bible institutes and one seminary affiliated with Hopegivers International. The school provided each graduates with a bicycle and a one-way train ticket to their first ministry assignment.
CHRONICLE FOCUS
Several articles of interest to theological schools have recently appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education and the Chronicle of Philanthropy.
Chronicle of Higher Education (subscription required)
Chronicle of Philanthropy (no subscription required)
FOCUS ON… IN TRUST MEMBERSHIP
Last month, the chief executive of each North American theological school received membership information from In Trust. What does membership in In Trust offer?
Has your school joined or renewed its membership yet? Check here! For more information, contact Dr. Christa Klein, president of In Trust, at crklein@intrust.org.
FROM THE ARCHIVE... BEST ARTICLES OF THE PAST YEAR
Five articles worth another look
On the presidency
On the board and finances
On the board and the real questions
FEEDBACK
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