Educating Leaders for Ministry: Issues and Responses

The Catholic church in the United States today faces challenges as it continues its mission of testifying to Jesus Christ in the world and living as a community of witness. In an increasingly secular society, the Christian community must witness to way of life that produces whole and holy people who testify to the truthfulness of the story of Jesus by their lives. Internally, church membership reflects nearly every race, language, culture, spirituality, and Christian theology in existence. While cause for great celebration, such differences do not always evoke a spirit of joy within the Christian community. There are three particular challenges for those who prepare people for the Church's ministries and those working in ministry itself: diversity, integration, and assessment. Educating Leaders for Ministry examines what each challenge means and identifies ways to respond that reflect the deep marks of a theological vision through the lens of theological education. The material presented here draws on a six-year project, the Keystone Conferences. The project involved twenty Catholic seminaries and schools of theology in reflecting on the mission of their institutions within the life of the Church as it becomes manifest in the processes of teaching and learning. As these conversations continued over seven years, the issues of diversity, integration, and assessment emerged as persistent and defining aspects of every school in some way.