Fun fact — I almost went to seminary. In my last year of undergraduate I took the LSAT twice, didn’t love my scores, and applied to a handful of law schools. I didn’t get into any of them. (For those wondering, this…
Fundamentalism and biblical inerrancy lite in the Global Methodist Church
When, on May 1, 2022, the Global Methodist Church announced itself to the world, more than 2,000 churches already had taken advantage of the disaffiliation process to break with the United Methodist Church. At the time of the announcement, I…
Trump’s war on international students could hurt private schools too
The Trump administration’s war on blocking international students from U.S. higher education could affect not only the Ivy League but even small Christian schools and Southern Baptist Convention seminaries. While Harvard University has drawn the most attention and headlines in…
With fewer ordinations, seminaries find ways to serve young professionals in other fields
On a Tuesday evening in early April, an audience sat enraptured in Princeton Theological Seminary’s dining hall as, one by one, adults in their 20s walked up to a platform, took the microphone and shared a story.
By FTEs, this SBC seminary is now the largest
There’s a new largest seminary in the Southern Baptist Convention. According to just-published comparative data for the six SBC seminaries, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kanas City, Mo., has jumped to first place in FTE enrollment of SBC-qualified students. The…
What can be learned from the SBC Book of Reports? The circle remains unbroken
The Southern Baptist Convention is so big and its empire so far-reaching that it’s hard to get true perspective on its scope and trends. One of the few snapshots to give insight is the Book of Reports, published just prior…
For first time, M.A. enrollment equals M.Div. enrollment at U.S. seminaries
After more than a decade of significant instability, enrollment in America’s accredited theological schools has found some stability, although the degree programs being pursued continue to shift and more schools are shrinking than growing. These are the findings of a…
Hartford Seminary is now a university with an interreligious peacemaking focus
One of the nation’s oldest seminaries has changed its name and removed the word “seminary” in the process. Hartford Seminary, established in 1833 by a group of Congregational ministers to train ministerial leadership for churches, now is known as Hartford…
Cathedrals of learning: A lament for the liberal arts
We built grand cathedrals. The arches and vaults reached toward heaven. Cathedrals of theology, art, literature, history, music. Cathedrals for the growing of souls. But the barbarians came with their budget officers, reducing souls to earning power. They took machetes…
The role of seminaries in guiding ex-evangelicals like me through deconstruction
Over the past decade, evangelicals have had to come to terms with the fact that people are leaving the church in droves. According to a recent Gallup poll, just 47% of Americans are members of a church, falling from 70% in…
Southwestern Seminary changes name of its undergraduate college
A Southern Baptist seminary in Texas has changed the name of its undergraduate college for the second time since its founding in 2005. The new name, Texas Baptist College, carries a state feel to it, yet neither Southwestern Baptist Theological…
SBC seminary presidents are propagating fear to maintain control
This is the first in a series of opinion columns to be published over the next three weeks exploring Critical Race Theory. Earlier this month, all six presidents of the seminaries controlled by the Southern Baptist Convention announced a total…