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Theological education has always been vital to the Church’s life and mission; yet today it is in crisis, lacking focus, direction, but also resources and even students. In the early Church, there is no doubt that to lead worship one had to be able to read and interpret the Bible. In order to lead, it was necessary to know at least something about the history of Israel and the work of God in the Gospels, and interpret that history, making it relevant to daily living. Quickly the Church developed schools for its teachers, whether lay or clergy. A catechetical system was organized through which candidates prepared for baptism were given a basic form of theological education. Hence to be a Christian meant persons knew what and why they believed. But over the years, theological education has come to mean education for clergy and church professionals. It has drifted, seeking new moorings.
From the urbanization of the Gilded Age to the upheavals of the Haight-Ashbury era, this encyclopedic work by Glenn Miller takes readers on a sweeping journey through the landscape of American theological education, highlighting such landmarks as Princeton, Andover, and Chicago, and such fault lines as denominationalism, science, and dispensationalism. The first such exhaustive treatment of this time period in religious education, Piety and Profession is a valuable tool for unearthing the key trends from the Civil War well into the twentieth century. All those involved in theological education will be well served by this study of how the changing world changed educational patterns.
What should theological education become? Theological education has long been successful in the United States because of its ability to engage with contemporary cultural realities. Likewise, despite the existential threats facing it today, theological education can continue to thrive if it is once again reinvented to fit with the needs of current times. Daniel Aleshire, the longtime executive director of the Association of Theological Schools, offers a brief account of how theological education has changed in the past and how it might change going forward. He begins by reflecting on his own extensive experience with theological education and then turns to reviewing its history, dating back to the seventeenth century. Amid this historical survey, he uncovers an older model of the field that he believes must become dominant once again—what he calls formational theological education—and explores educational practices that this model would require. The future of theological education described here by Aleshire would return seminaries to their original role as places where a “deep, abiding, resilient, generative identity as Christian human beings” is fostered within emerging Christian leaders. This, he argues, more than professional preparation, is what theological education must be most essentially about.
CONTRIBUTORS: E. Byron Anderson, K. K. Yeo, Margaret Eletta Guider, OSF, Lester Edwin J. Ruiz, Brent Waters, Namsoon Kang, Luis R. Rivera, and David Esterline. Theological education in the United States finds itself in untested circumstances today. Rapid social change is creating an increasing multicultural, multiracial, and multireligious context for leadership formation. At the same time, international enrollment, cross-border educational initiatives, student and faculty exchanges, and more are connecting US theological schools with a global community of Christian teaching and learning. How do US theological institutions “locate” themselves within this global ecology of theological formation so as to be both responsible participants and creative shapers within it? That is, how do they discern their proper place and role? It is questions like these that the contributors to this volume explore. Building on the decades-long discussion about the globalization of US theological education, this book argues that, in engaging such questions, US theological institutions have much to gain from a sustained conversation with the burgeoning literature on the internationalization of American higher education. This research offers theological institutions a trove of insights and cautionary tales as they seek to discern their rightful place and role in educating leaders in and for a global Christian church. CONTRIBUTORS: E. Byron Anderson, K. K. Yeo, Margaret Eletta Guider, OSF, Lester Edwin J. Ruiz, Brent Waters, Namsoon Kang, Luis R. Rivera, and David Esterline
The Handbook of Theological Education in World Christianity is the first attempt to map and analyze developments in theological education on a global scale. This volume, with contributions from 98 leaders in theological education from around the world, provides a comprehensive introduction to the major themes and contexts in the international discourse on theological education, surveys of the issues and challenges faced in different regions, and introductory essays on the developments in the major denominational families in World Christianity. The editors are Dietrich Werner, World Council of Churches, Geneva; David Esterline, McCormick Theological Seminary, Chicago; Namsoon Kang, Brite Divinity School, Fort Worth; and Joshva Raja, Queen's Foundation, Birmingham.
This book explores the interconnection of theological education and Christian scholarship, cultural and theological hermeneutics, pedagogy and community knowledge, democracy and citizenship. Yet, the three major disciplines or discourses covered in this work include multicultural education, theology, and hermeneutics through the lens of human flourishing and the concept of the good life. From this angle, this project is written from three different methods and approaches that intersect with each other: a theology of contextualization, a hermeneutics of interculturality, and a pedagogy of cultural literacy and transformative community knowledge. The book advances the idea that theological education should be the starting point to foster candid conversations about the importance of democracy and human rights, civic engagement and the political life, inclusion and diversity, and pluralism and difference in our multicultural society. The book uses the tools of multicultural education and cultural knowledge to enhance democracy and promote fundamental human virtues that would sustain the good life and human flourishing in the world—in the Aristotelian sense and in the Socratic idea of local and world citizenship. Finally, this text offers an alternative vision to contemporary theological education, to deconstruct the white, male, and Eurocentric narratives of theological education and Christian scholarship.
This volume draws upon historical and theological sources and empirical research to provide a unique and diverse perspective on theological education in the twenty-first century. The volume develops and promulgates the best thinking about theological education by drawing upon the breadth of expertise represented by the faculty of colleges within the Australian College of Theology. This volume not only produces crucial insights for the future of theological education around the world but gives the Australian theological sector a voice to make its own unique contribution to the global dialogue about theological education.
What is the place of corporate worship in theological education? Certainly it is not unexpected to have ministry students attending seminary chapel, but what are the expectations for the students who attend chapel? Is it to form their liturgical sensibilities into conformity with a particular worship tradition or style? Or is it to provide a safe place to try things that one would be reluctant to experiment with in congregational worship? Although common worship for ministry students is almost a given in all theological schools, there are few common understandings about it goals and purposes. Common Worship in Theological Education is the first book to address the theological, pedagogical, and political issues involved in the planning and execution of seminary chapel. It offers voices from across the theological and ecumenical spectrum about chapel, as well as involving multiple disciplines in the conversation. This volume provides the first comprehensive survey of the worship issues at stake in seminary education today. The essays in this collection provide the foundation for a productive conversation within a seminary faculty or among colleagues within a theological discipline. This volume makes the case that the chapel ought to have a seat at the table when the education mission of a theological school is being discussed. So pull up a chair and prepare for a fascinating conversation.