Finding oneself in the midst of a community is a particular joy when one has been accustomed to being alone. And although ministers, by virtue of their work, have many opportunities to be with other people, ministry itself can be a lonely business. The Episcopal Seminary of the Southwest (ETSS) offers an experience of community for youth ministers and directors of Christian education, which is a boost not only professionally, but personally and spiritually.
The Certificate Programs in Youth Ministry and Christian Education at ETSS provide a foundation of theological education and training to develop much-needed skills in ministers who often feel ill-prepared and isolated. The professional-level training goes beyond typical Sunday School teacher training. Basic, associate and advanced certificate courses are designed as a strong, theologically sound alternative to typical methods of training for Christian educators. Study and prayer are both integral to the program. A former participant said, "It's definitely not like learning 20 things to do with a paper plate."
“We all need help in realizing our calling and making sure we are doing what God wants us to do,” says Juanita Sabochick, Director of Children’s Ministries at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Beaumont, Texas. “The surprises [in the program] have been overwhelming! The week spent with others who are doing the same job and facing the same problems is comforting. You always think you are in a world by yourself and other churches/ministers are perfect. Just knowing you can have someone to talk to and solve problems with is a relief.”
“Our students are a rich mix of beginners and old hands, men and women, old and young, liberal-minded and conservative,” says program director Molly Bennett, a 20-year veteran director of religious education. “The one thing they all have in common is lots of creative energy and a devotion to bringing the Gospel to God's people.”
Youth ministers and other Christian educators are often hired for their potential and their zeal for the work at hand, but it is less common for them to arrive on the job as professional theologians. And to be honest, the position can be one of the hardest and least-supported spots on the parish staff. But since healthy Christian formation programs are imperative for a healthy congregation, the benefit of such a program can spread a long way.
Now the Certificate Programs Director at ETSS, Bennett’s intention is to give Christian educators the skills, theological education and encouragement they need. “Our program is not so much intended to teach folks how to be youth ministers and Christian educators, but to give them the theological underpinnings for the ministry. It’s as much formation as information.”
Participants come to the program for a variety of reasons, but always get more than they expected. “I thought this program would be a way to get ‘certified’ in youth ministry, validating what I’ve been doing with young people for the last 30 years,” says Scott Moore, formerly of St. Andrew’s Church in Allentown, Penn. “While it does that, the program is so much more – horizon widening, eye opening, and thought provoking, all in a community stronger than any I’ve ever been in.”
Gaye Jones is Youth & Young Adult Minister at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Houston. She was looking for a boost in confidence in something to which she had already given her heart. The program is not only gives her a solid education, she says, but “it creates such an excellent network for support and ideas, and it gives me the opportunity further to grow my faith, confirm my calling, and stirs an even deeper drive to serve Christ.”
The six-year-old program balances instruction in scripture and theology with theological reflection, practical ministry skills, worship and spiritual formation. The interplay of study and prayer, grounded in worship, is at the heart. Professors from the Seminary of the Southwest and other educational institutions comprise the faculty. One-week sessions take place in the last week of June and second week of January each year. Cost is $1,500, which is inclusive for both sessions: room, board and tuition.
Current students, who are both lay and ordained persons, are from the Episcopal dioceses of Arizona, Arkansas, Atlanta, Bethlehem, Central Gulf Coast, Fort Worth, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Lexington, Louisiana, Northwest Texas, Oregon, San Diego, Southeast Florida, Tennessee, Texas, and West Missouri. Also represented are the United Methodist Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Hershel Hartford, director of Youth Ministry for St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, Arkansas, says “The surprise for me was just how much that original feeling was an underestimation of the benefit of the program. Not only have I received a first class theological education experience, I have also enjoyed the powerful addition of an extended community of colleagues, instructors and chaplains through which ideas are shared, triumphs celebrated, concerns raised up and communication is strengthened.”
For additional information check the program’s website at www.etss.edu/youthdre.shtml or contact Bennett at 512-472-4133, ext. 340 or mbennett@etss.edu.
