Eastern Mennonite Seminary hosts consultation on the future of theological education
May 22, 2023 [Last updated May 22, 2023] by Eastern Mennonite Seminary
On Friday, May 19, 2023, faculty and staff from Eastern Mennonite Seminary hosted a full-day consultation with an ecumenical group of about 25 national, regional, and local ecclesial leaders from 8 denominations. Dan Ott, Dean of the Seminary said, “Our goal was to dream together about the future of theological education, pastoral leadership, and the Seminary’s role in preparing the next generation of leaders. The church is changing fast. Theological education is changing fast. We need faith leaders, congregations, scholars, and theological educators to think together about how seminaries will continue to resource people of faith for their mission in the world.”
Two plenary sessions were facilitated by Ted A. Smith, Charles Howard Candler Professor of Divinity and Associate Dean of Faculty at Emory University’s Candler School of Theology. Smith serves as director of the Theological Education between the Times (TEBT) project, which aims to “gather diverse groups of people to think in critical, theological ways about the meanings and purposes of theological education.”
Throughout its several phases, the TEBT project has produced countless conversations and a book series “to provoke smart, richly plural conversations about the highest ends of theological education that may be able to help readers understand and imagine what might come next.” Smith’s contribution to this series, The End of Theological Education, was released this summer, and his plenaries applied insights from that book to help participants see the opportunities and challenges in this season in the life of the church.
Convened by Dan Ott, Dean of the School of Theology, Humanities, and the Performing Arts, and Sarah Bixler, Associate Dean of the Seminary, the group included representatives from a number of Christian denominations: Mennonite, United Methodist, Baptist, Church of the Brethren, Episcopal, Lutheran, and Presbyterian. Several members of EMU’s Board of Trustees also participated in the consultation.
EMS faculty guided conversations around “what might come next,” inviting lively discussion about new ways the Seminary can engage a wider variety of students in the life-giving work of theological education. “We need to reimagine seminary-based education as a hub of Christian learning,” one participant offered, “connecting and supporting all learners, from those enrolled in graduate programs to those engaged in newer, more accessible learning opportunities like certificate programs, communities of practice, and short-form workshops.”
Two grants from the Lilly Endowment, Inc. play a key role in the Seminary’s development of new models for learning and formation. The “Strengthening Foundations for Thriving in Ministry” program, directed by Courtney Joyner, supported this consultation and, among its offerings, provides training for cohorts of ministers in areas like spiritual direction, family systems theory, and pastoral care for climate.
The “Pathways for Tomorrow” program, directed by Jacob Alan Cook, has piloted a series of conflict transformation workshops to resource congregational leaders for tough conversations, trauma awareness and resilience, and other practical approaches to the troubles faith-based communities now routinely encounter. EMS has organized a number of customized on-location workshops for church groups for the fall and will release a schedule of online offerings soon.
