A new doctoral program is set to launch at Eastern Mennonite Seminary next year.
The Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) in Peacemaking and Social Change program, approved by the EMU Board of Trustees at its meeting in June, is an advanced, professionally oriented degree that will equip graduates to lead in faith-based settings, including in congregations, nonprofits, community organizing, and some teaching roles. EMS faculty have designed this program to invite students to engage in embodied, critical theological reflection on theories and practices of peacemaking and social change, developing their capacity to strategically foster communities of action for constructive change toward peace.
Courses in the three-year program can be completed fully asynchronously online, and are expected to begin during the summer or fall term of 2025.
These courses include: Theologies of Nonviolence, Justice and Peace; Theologies of Liberation; Religion and Social Change; Peacemaking Practices; Scriptures and the Ministry of Peacemaking; Trauma-Informed Spiritual Care; Analysis of Self and Systems; and Research Methods and Design. Each of these courses has been designed specially for the D.Min. program.
In a 2021 survey of seminary alumni and students, 37 percent of respondents named a doctoral degree as something they believed EMS should consider adding. With enrollment in D.Min. programs steadily rising at ATS schools each year, the addition will help EMS meet an increased demand for a professional ministry doctorate.
“No other theological schools offer a D.Min. program in peacemaking and social change,” said Jacob Cook, academic program director for the seminary’s Pathways for Tomorrow grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc. and visiting assistant professor of Christian ethics. “This is who we are. This is at the heart of all we do.”
Candidates for the D.Min. program are required to have a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree from an accredited school — or achieve M.Div. equivalency — with three or more years of post-M.Div. ministry experience.
The new program is pending accreditation approval by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
For more information about Eastern Mennonite Seminary degrees and programs, visit emu.edu/seminary.
Stay tuned for future EMU News updates on this significant new academic program!
This is exciting!
What does it mean to “achieve M.Div. equivalency”?
Hi Lenore, We’re excited too! An MDiv or equivalent is required for admission to the DMin. We have an option for supplemental theological study at the master’s level that can bridge from a non-theological MA into the DMin program. Please reach out to semadmiss@emu.edu for more information.
This is awesome news to hear!
I’ve been looking into a DMin for awhile, but the growth of the organization we started – focused on supporting gun-violence survivors and peacemaking in local schools (check out website below) – has delayed my process of getting started. But I’ve also struggled to find a program that’s a good fit for the work I’m doing. It’s honestly surprising that, in this day and age, there aren’t more programs focused on peacemaking and justice. When do you anticipate having more info about this program? Start dates, curriculum details, etc.?
Super excited to hear about this!
Hi Angelo! I am the graduate recruiter for the Seminary. If you could email me at graduate@emu.edu, I’ll get you more information and add you to our interest list!!
Please add me to the contact/info list. I graduated from EMS with an M.Div in 1999. This looks both timely and relevant.
For the purpose of discussing this with our congregation, I would like to ask, as monitor for the St. Paul Mennonnite Fellowship:
What is the thinking behind offering this program?
What differences could its graduates make in our communities?
Hi Gerald,
I would interested in talking through these questions with you. Feel free to follow up over at jacob.cook@emu.edu.
Jacob Cook, Christian Ethics Prof., EMS