United’s influence
“United Theological Seminary has a unique strength in the faculty. Each professor and staff member shared their authentic faith and understanding of Scripture, yet those perspectives were not identical copies of one another. The beauty of a diverse people teaching from a variety of directions from living their faith out in their lives was my opportunity to experience a tapestry of faith viewpoints. This allowed me to see a more multifaceted view of God than I had when I entered seminary. During my time in seminary, my own faith grew in a deeper richness and depth than I expected. I was surprised to find that my personal faith growth at United was even more important to me than the degree that originally motivated me to attend seminary.
“As a United Methodist Provisional Elder who is pastoring a local church, what I learned at seminary has made a practical difference in my ministry. I learned many pastoral concepts at seminary that I would call “how to,” but I also learned why a pastor does what we do. The “why” matters in my local ministry. It makes a difference to myself and my community that I am completing the tasks of ministry with a motivation grounded in faith and love that blossomed within me at United.”
Advice for future students
“If you are thinking of attending a seminary, I would encourage you to call the seminary and speak to some of the staff that answers the phone in various departments. I did that when I was choosing a seminary and the faith of the staff at United stood out to me. I wanted to be a part of a place that was so genuinely seeking after God. Sometimes, it is hard to differentiate seminaries beyond location and cost but speaking to those at United showed me that the Holy Spirit was at work there.”