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 ow to avoid the seminary letdown.
It’s normal to go into something new with high hopes. But sometimes things just don’t play out as we envisioned. So it goes for first-time seminarians who find by mid-semester that being spiritual and being a seminarian don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand. Three Ministry Mentor Advisory Board members, author Gordon MacDonald (A Resilient Life), professor Thomas Fuller (Beeson Divinity School), and professor George Hillman (Dallas Theological Seminary), offer practical advice on going into seminary with realistic expectations—so you come out ready to minister.
When entering seminary, what are some expectations seminarians have that aren’t always met?
GM: Most think they are entering a literal "Kingdom of God"—that it’s going to be a spiritually-charged community where every day is likely to have a "high." Students feel a let down when they realize that, while there is a certain Christian overlay, seminary is, nevertheless, a graduate school where corners can’t be cut. Papers are expected on time. Preparation must be done with excellence. Examinations are not easy. And people do not get away with laziness, sloppiness, or undependability just because it's a community of Christians who believe in grace.
GH: A lot of students come to seminary looking for a spiritual mountaintop experience, like a youth retreat on steroids. By October, reality sets in that seminary is just school, not a church revival. If a student is looking to the seminary classroom to be his or her source of spiritual passion and renewal, he or she will be sorely disappointed.
|  | What can seminarians do to ensure their expectations are realistic?
GM: Students need to get ready to have their minds blown away—and realize this is good. In seminary, students begin to realize that all the neat categories of faith they have learned are not as "neat" as they thought. Equilibrium can be upset as students are pressed to consider differing theological perspectives and recognize that biblical studies is far more complex than we realized.
First-year seminarians also have to understand that any spiritual vitality they wish to have will be their own responsibility. Seminaries do not cause one to grow closer to Jesus. There may be a few stirring chapel addresses, a few powerful lectures here and there, a wonderful book. And seminary may bolster one's faith. But the bottom line is this: you have to work out your spiritual life with a personal set of disciplines.
What can students do before they enroll to help recalibrate their expectations?
TF: Most seminaries offer preview days. One can attend classes, talk with students and professors, and gain a superficial feel for the community. Prospective students have the chance to interact with current students to gain their perspective on the seminary experience. I recommend that the prospective student ask them to share specifically on how their expectations were met—and what they would do differently if they could do it again.
And once they arrive, how can students do their part to maximize their seminary experience?
|  | GH: Students need to have significant relationships away from the classroom. Too many students miss out on life-changing relationships in their local church. I am amazed (maybe more horrified) to talk with students who are graduating from seminary who never significantly got involved in a local church and developed only a few friendships. Their world revolved around the classroom; they worshiped at the altar of their grade point average.
I advise this: seek spiritual renewal outside of class assignments; engage in ministry and serve others; learn to have a sense of humor. Do not look to the classroom to provide spiritual transformation, which it never was intended to provide. |
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|  |  art 1 of an interview with author and pastor Brian McLaren.
"Postmodernism" is a big, scary term tossed around a lot in postgraduate work these days. It seems to be the "thing" to talk about—particularly as it seems to aptly describe our age—the demise of modernism, the rise of relativism, and the inevitable clash between the old and new. Recently Ministry Mentor asked Brian McLaren, author, pastor, and thought-leader for the emerging church, what it really takes to be a leader during this transitional time and how seminarians can prepare now.
What are the characteristics of the today's era, which you describe in The Church on the Other Side?
Brian McLaren: It's as if we're crossing an un-built bridge, and we have to construct it as we go along, to traverse the known into the unknown. I often think these transitional times are like adolescence—when a 14-year-old, for example, might act four one minute and twenty-four the next. The one thing you can predict is unpredictability.
|  | Why unpredictability?
In churches, I think there is a common tension point. Those who are comfortable with the world as it has been (what I call the modern colonial world) are afraid that their world is unraveling, and they want to defend it. They can't imagine the Christian faith surviving the dissolution of the modern colonial mindset.
Meanwhile, other people—often younger or more educated, often the sons and daughters of the first group—feel the opposite. They are eager for something beyond the modern colonial mindset. They see it is inconsistent with Christ-centered faith for reasons that seem incomprehensible to their counterparts. They want change.
That's a recipe either for disaster and division or for the development of virtue and mutual understanding. I try to work for the latter!
What can seminarians do to prepare for church leadership during this transitional time?
I would recommend they use their education to accomplish four things.
1. They need to go deep into biblical and historical-theological studies, while being suspicious of theological systems that are too deeply embedded within the modern colonial mindset. Those systems will domesticate the Bible and subtly focus them on some areas and issues while distracting them from others. It’s far better to be exposed to a variety of competing theological systems than to be too thoroughly indoctrinated in one.
Their biblical studies will serve them well if they can get the Bible in all its raw, dynamic, tense, creative power. The resources we need are all there.
2. They need to learn about the world—global politics, poverty, the crises facing our world. If they prepare for ministry as "aquarium management," I think they're missing their calling. The church needs to be missionally engaged with the 21st-century world—not with the 16th-, 18th-, or even the 20th century world.
3. They need to focus on learning about and practicing leadership. They should be especially interested in transformational and missional leadership, conflict resolution, and related matters.
4. They should pay close attention to their own spiritual formation. Seminary is the time to begin practices like spiritual direction, solitude, and silence, practices that will sustain them throughout their ministry years.
More and more seminaries are paying attention to some of these areas, and a few to all four. If their seminary is weak in one or two, they need to take control of their education and make sure they develop ways to grow in those areas. |
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 he best advice one seminarian learned to follow.
by Sheldon Mann, Talbot School of Theology
It was the final stretch of the semester. The previous week we had submitted a major paper. Many of my classmates and I have doctoral aspirations, so getting a high mark on this project was vital. As he returned our graded papers, the professor (obviously sensing our nervousness) made a comment about seminary ambition that piqued my curiosity. He said grades are important, but not at the expense of your joy being robbed. He said, "Don’t be hard on yourself. Be good to your soul."
In that moment, I realized I had no idea what he meant by that. For the first time I actually began to ponder the state of my own soul.
For most of us, each semester begins with anticipation and optimism about doing better, but soon thereafter, the real work and reality sets in. Theology, language studies, Bible exposition, the seemingly endless hours of reading, research, and papers start to press out other priorities. Seminary is a notoriously hard period of life.
And if you work, are married, have children, and have ministry commitments on top of it all, there really does not seem to be enough hours in the day to accomplish everything you have listed in your BlackBerry. You beat yourself up because you can't seem to balance it all, let alone do the things that satisfy your soul.
Before I knew it I was in this predicament. I now realize I was slowly abandoning activities that were good to my soul. Somewhere along the line I started to fudge on my devotional time. I justified it by saying the personal application portion of class projects was essentially a "quiet time."
Not too long after that, my relationship with Christ began to suffer. I knew academic studies bring on fatigue and that deadlines would affect my personal life, but I didn’t anticipate my heart would grow distant from God’s call. Without even knowing it—little by little, right in the middle of seminary—the voice of Jesus was becoming a faint whisper.
Soul Food
But then, as the Holy Spirit prompted me, "Be good to your soul" began to resonate with me. Simple and profound. But how was I going to do it?
|  | | First, I dove into Scripture to understand what it teaches about my soul. The Psalms mention the soul more than any other book in the Bible, and I believe it's because of the rich, intimate relationship with God demonstrated in the psalms: "As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God (Psalm 42:1-2, NLT)."
|  | What I discovered was nothing earth shattering but a simple reminder of how God sees me, how he takes notice of my life. Nothing passes by his concern. Like the psalmist, "I will be glad and rejoice in [God's] unfailing love, for [he has] seen my troubles, and [he cares] about the anguish of my soul (Psalm 31:7, NLT)."
Once I was reminded that God cares about my soul, I began to care for my own soul—through reading Scripture, the Lord’s perfect instruction (Psalm 19:7, NLT). I remembered anew that the Lord’s Word will accomplish all that is intended. And to those who seek and apply that instruction, I learned, the Word will revive their soul. God’s Word is food for the soul.
And so I realized—it was time to eat! If God’s Word is life, then I knew I had to spend time (and not just academic time) seeking God’s voice daily. I also learned it meant avoiding things that rob me of a rich and robust devotional life.
Yes, grades are important, but not at the expense of our physical, spiritual, and relational health. So, just a friendly reminder: "Be good to your soul." |
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