College of Arts & Sciences
A New Seminary Program Fosters Community Leaders and Urban Ministry
Bethel Seminary offers an accredited M.A. in Community Ministry Leadership to prepare leaders for service in urban churches, mission agencies, or public or private organizations.
The new program, launched in early 2007, emphasizes the influence of the Christian church. It aims to equip leaders who can sensitively and appropriately change communities through what program founders describe as “formative ministry.”
“It’s not just about feeding the poor,” says Mark Harden, Ph.D., who designed the curriculum. “It’s also about equipping seminary students to empower individuals and families through transformational ministry in the urban context.”
Harden brings more than 26 years of urban ministry and community development
experience to the table as founder of urban youth programs and winner
of distinguished awards in law enforcement. He has also worked in church
mobilization with World Vision and authored Making a Choice: A Practical
Guide Toward Surviving in the Streets.
Along with a strong biblical grounding and general courses in theology and leadership, students in the M.A. in Community Ministry Leadership program also learn community-building principles. They learn steps toward strengthening community, and how to build bridges through effective urban ministries. The model is called “holistic provision.” In the final quarters of the program, students have a ministry mentor and connect classroom skills with a local faith-based outreach.
Harden says this approach is “applicable to any context.” In fact, current students have intentions to start an orphanage in Honduras, begin an urban café church, and work with disadvantaged and at-risk kids.
“Jesus met human needs as He traveled from city to city,” Harden points out. “Life experience ignited my passion for city ministry, but Jesus’ life and ministry are what fuel it.”
An additional SemPM version of the M.A. in Community Ministry Leadership program is slated to begin in fall 2008. For information about the program, call 651.638.6180.