CONTEXUAL MINISTRIES
Contact: mchenners@united.edu
Contextual Ministries at United is designed to help each student assimilate theology, practical ministry skills, personal life and call exploration through hands-on experiences and small group reflection. Students, while actively serving in a ministry context, are placed into facilitated peer groups, which are guided by four questions from Luke 10:27.
- “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
1 | What is this “love”?
Each student will explore theological assumptions about the nature and mission of God and humanity’s relationship with a God defined as “love.” What do I believe?
2 | How am I to love God with everything?
There is a strong spiritual formation emphasis in each semester that aids students in the exploration of receiving God’s love and posturing one’s life toward continual spiritual renewal: How do I stay in love with God?
3 | What does it mean to love my neighbor?
We pray that each student would wrestle with his or her own calling while presenting case studies, weekly reflection reports and developing and staying accountable to learning goals. The covenantal community of MINgroup will be just one crucible from which to explore this question: How do I understand my unique calling?
4 | How can I love “as I love myself”?
We align many of the resources and experiences in the course to help you develop and name a rooted sense of self that is ironically forged in messy, authentic community with others: Who am I?
REQUIREMENTS
Contextual Ministries is part of the program requirements for the Master of Divinity, Master of Arts in Christian Ministries and Master of Ministry degree programs, and includes:
- Contextual Ministry coursework (MDiv, MACM, MMin)
- Field Education Placements (MDiv, MACM, MMin)
- Contextual Theology Immersion Trip (MDiv only)
See the academic catalog for the specific courses required for each program.