This project sought to revise the Pastoral Theology program at Shepherds Theological Seminary in Cary, North Carolina. Chapter 1 presents the history and ministry context of Shepherds Theological Seminary and the goals of this project. Chapter 2 provides exegesis of three passages of Scripture (1 Tim 3:1-7; 1 Tim 4:6-16; 2 Tim 2:1-6) to show that…

The seminary endeavor has transitioned from a primarily residential full-time undertaking to a project assumed by individuals in a multiplicity of life-stages and in less traditional and less-residency-oriented formats. The burgeoning modality of competency-based theological education (CBTE) may offer an alternate approach to traditional…

Theological Education by Extension (TEE) programs seek to equip believers for a godly life and ministry through studying materials at home, discussing content with other students in regular meetings, and applying the knowledge to their lives and ministries. It is possible for TEE programs to impact students behaviorally, affectively, and…

This paper claims that programs in prisons are challenging the very who, where, how, and what of theological education. The author draws on research from the fields of pedagogy and prison studies, nearly a decade of experience teaching master's level seminary-style classes in prison, and the findings of a two-year cohort of prison educators…

The Loyola Institute for Ministry (LIM) developed a method of practical theology for ministry professionals and religious educators rooted in transformative learning theory to enable students to reflect more intentionally and theologically on their experiences in ministry. This study asks, by teaching students to engage in dialogue through…

What are the reasons behind the failure of the Islamic theology and imam-training programmes at the Dutch universities? To address this question, we employed qualitative content analysis of semi-structured interviews (N = 38) conducted between July 2016 and January 2017. The sample consists of stakeholders such as academics teaching in the…

Institutions of higher learning are located within the context of neighborhoods. But to what degree do they see themselves as neighbors? What does it mean to be an engaged institutional neighbor? Inspired by this question, I utilize place-based community engagement principles, combined with self-study research methods, to trace the development of…

We examined Israeli Reform rabbis' reflections on what components of their training most influenced the development of their rabbinical identity. Theoretical perspectives applied in planning the study and analyzing the data were: professional identity formation; pedagogies of training clergy; and taught vs. learned curriculum. We identified four…

Religious faith and spiritual practices, although increasingly important to some students, are often avoided in the Western University classroom and student experience. There are some understandable and valid reasons for this. However, when two academics (Education/Social Work and Theology) were asked to evaluate a co-curricular, interreligious…

Service learning holds the potential to educate for citizenship, preparing students as individuals who can respond not only to the daily challenges of an interconnected yet fragmented world but also to the emerging calls to rebuild disaster-stricken communities. Although seen by some as a cumbersome pedagogical approach, service learning can offer…

Nowadays, living in the communist society in Vietnam, two of the main issues that need attention in preparation of the candidates in the one-year pre-seminary program are developing their habits of prayer and strengthening their skills needed for a rich community life. For this reason, the project Using "Lectio Divina in a Support Group for…

This mixed methods study considered the relationship between the civic development of college students participating in the Serve Program at Ignatius University and the influence of these students' parents. The Serve Program is a community service learning program that combines coursework in philosophy and theology with a year-long service…

In 2011 members of the School of Philosophy and Theology at The University of Notre Dame Australia (UNDA) Sydney campus, designed two standards rubrics as part of a project aimed at undertaking research within the area of assuring graduate attributes and capabilities in Australian universities. The standards rubrics designed were oriented towards…

In seeking an understanding of the teenage brain, this author was struck by the interplay between the development of executive functioning and the development of the system that controls emotions and memory. This in turn has impacted her work as a member of faculty at a seminary with responsibilities for both directing a program with high school…

This article explores one seminary's methodology for addressing the challenges and opportunities that online theological education presents in a Master of Divinity program. An implementation model for online courses is presented to foster holistic theological development, thus ensuring the establishment and progression of a spiritual and learning…