Higher education
ELCA seminaries prepare W
for demographic change One answer continues to be TEEM
By Robert Elliott
issues will impact the future of your congregation and the church at large.
These issues are coming to the forefront in many U.S. churches. In The Chronicle of Higher Education’s May issue, two Princeton [N.J.] Theological Seminary doc- toral students challenged seminaries to meet the changes in the U.S. population by revamping how future pastors are educated. The two asked that several questions be considered: • How do we do ministry in immigrant and ethnic communities? • How do we prepare pastors to serve them? • Where do those pastors come from? • How do we make preparation affordable? Change is necessary because around 2050 there will be no racial or ethnic majority in the U.S.—it will be a nation of minorities. This has been a
factor in mission and ministry for the ELCA since the 1987 merger. Even before then, it was accepted that the Lutheran com-
TEEM (Theologi- cal Education for Emerging Ministries) graduates from Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn./Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley, Calif., celebrate fin- ishing their program in 2010.
munion had to expand beyond its European origins to become more expansive and inclusive, not just in the makeup of its congregations but also in how ministry is done. (See page 14.)
hen you settle into your pew on Sunday morning, you’re not likely giving a lot of thought to the demographic changes in the world outside the sanctuary walls. And you probably aren’t troubling yourself about where your next pastor is com- ing from. Yet in many ways these
Emerging ministries Within the ELCA, the past 25 years has seen an evolving approach to preparing leaders for the Lutheran church of today and the church of 2050. For some years it was known as an “alternate route to ordained ministry.” Today it comprises TEEM or Theological Education for Emerging Ministries. Gregory Villalon, director for leadership for mis- sion/candidacy in ELCA Congregational and Synodical Mission, has had primary responsibility for developing TEEM. He calls the program an opportunity for “lead- ers who for various reasons cannot enter a regular M.Div program and are called to put their missional imaginations into action. [It allows them] to participate in a formation program that prepares them for ordained word and sacra- ment ministry in specific ministries in the ELCA.” All eight seminaries and their two extension centers have candidates registered in their TEEM programs. “Seminaries with the largest number of TEEM students are Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary/Luther Sem- inary, Wartburg Seminary and the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg,” Villalon said. The longest-running program is jointly based at PLTS in Berkeley, Calif., and Luther in St. Paul, Minn. Direc- tor Moses Penumaka said that over the last 25 years, 350
48
46 The Lutheran •
www.thelutheran.org
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72