The FTE Guide to Theological Education: Chapter 7
Dan Aleshire, the executive director of the Association of Theological Schools and a trustee of The Fund for Theological Education, says that the shape and substance of theological education in North America in the near future will be most influenced by the following four trends:
- The increasingly multi-racial character of the larger culture and the church as the historically racial majority gives way to racial pluralism.
- The steady decline of the church’s social privilege and cultural influence as Christianity becomes far less central to cultural identity in North America.
- A shift of the geographic center of the church from the Global North to the Global South.
- The growth of religious communities other than Christian and Jewish in North America.
These trends are changing Christian churches in North America as a whole. It is natural, then, that they will create changes in the way leaders for those churches are shaped and educated.
Most schools are addressing these cultural shifts proactively though in varying degrees. Schools are making additions to their curriculum, developing new emphases in praxis and contextual education and providing new extra-curricular opportunities that in an effort to equip students – and the church as a whole – for ministry in congregations and communities that look very different than they did 50 years – or even 20 years – ago. For some, these efforts are central to the school’s mission and identity. For others, these changes are happening at the periphery of an otherwise traditional curriculum.
As a prospective student, you should recognize that these trends are shaping the congregations and communities in which you will work, minister and lead after you graduate. In that light, your theological education should equip you in some measure to read the changing cultural landscape, interpret what you see and respond in ways that are imaginative, courageous and faithful.
Here are a few questions that you might ask as you explore schools:
- Has the school revised its curriculum recently? If so, what major changes were made?
- Does the school offer courses in global Christianity and interfaith studies?
- Does the school offer opportunities to encounter other cultures and other faiths first-hand and experientially?
- What is the racial-ethnic composition of the faculty? Of the student body?
- Is there a significant presence of international students?
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