• Home
  • About
  • Writing
    • Books
    • Columns & Articles
    • Academic Essays
  • Resources
  • Contact

Andrew C. Thompson

Category Archives: Methodist House

Methodist House of Studies: Visiting with Bishop Debbie Wallace-Padgett

19 Thursday Mar 2015

Posted by admin in Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education, United Methodist Church

≈ Leave a comment

Bishop Debbie Wallace-Padgett visited the campus of Memphis Theological Seminary last month to share the story of her leadership in the North Alabama Conference of the UMC with our students. While she was here, Bishop Wallace-Padgett and other officials from her annual conference were also able to learn more about the ongoing work of the Methodist House of Studies at MTS.

The North Alabama Conference sends a lot of students to MTS. So we were glad to have Bishop Wallace-Padgett on campus to show her how the Methodist House is working to become a vital resource for the church, both in our training of men and women for pastoral ministry and in our outreach to congregations. It was also just exciting for our students to have a UM bishop on campus. Her address at our Methodist House luncheon gave the students a chance to engage her in conversation in an intimate setting.

Bishop Wallace-Padgett speaking with MTS students on February 3, 2015

Bishop Wallace-Padgett speaking with MTS students on February 3, 2015

Bishop Wallace-Padgett’s message was focused on sharing the Ministry Action Plan of the North Alabama Conference. While that plan has a comprehensive set of commitments regarding the vision, mission, and values of the annual conference, what I found most intriguing was the bishop’s comments about her personal views on leadership. Here are a few of them:

  • On a personal connection with Christ: “For me, I could not do what I do if I did not have a daily experience with Jesus Christ.”
  • On ongoing spiritual formation: “Whatever your leadership role, it is critical that the spiritual part of you is healthy and growing. Spiritual formation is key.”
  • On the renewal of leaders: “For an annual conference to be renewed, it is crucial that the conference’s leaders are experiencing renewal on a daily basis.”
  • On ministry with a holy urgency: “We live in a world where it is urgent that we share the good news of Jesus Christ at every opportunity.”
  • In answer to a student’s question about how we can get people in our churches to take the Holy Spirit seriously: “A starting point is acknowledging that without the Holy Spirit breathing life into us, we are dead in the water. We must have a sense of absolute reliance on the person and power of the Holy Spirit.”

In many ways, Bishop Wallace-Padgett exhibits the very best in United Methodist episcopal leadership. She is clearly focused on a mission only oriented future for her annual conference, yet she is spiritually grounded enough to be aware of the nuances and complexities of people and situations around her. I had had the good fortune to work with Bishop Wallace-Padgett last year in organizing the Aldersgate Covenant Gathering in Kansas City, Missouri. I got to see her at the Methodist House luncheon in a different light — sharing her vision for the church that she leads, and interacting as a true shepherd in a conversation with up-and-coming pastoral leaders who were eager to engage one of the UMC’s episcopal leaders.

2015-02-03_DWP visit 5

Events of this type are exactly what we want to do more of in the Methodist House of Studies. After all, not all formation for ministry happens around the seminar table in a classroom. Breaking bread together, engaging in conversation about matters of real importance, and shared fellowship are all vital aspects of how best to train men and women for pastoral leadership in the church.

For other posts about the Methodist House of Studies at Memphis Theological Seminary, click here.

Thinking about Seminary?

03 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by admin in Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education

≈ Leave a comment

Have you been thinking about seminary? Are you wrestling with a call to ministry but you’re not sure what that looks like? We are going to have a preview day at Memphis Theological Seminary that is specifically for students from Methodist backgrounds. It will be a great way to learn about our degree programs and about the Methodist House of Studies at MTS. Here are the details:

Methodist Preview Day_2

I hope you’ll come and join us! It will be a great day all around.


 

 

Wesleyan Practices of Evangelism

05 Thursday Feb 2015

Posted by admin in Evangelism & Mission, Local Church Ministry, Methodist House, United Methodist Church, Wesleyan Theology

≈ Leave a comment

Here’s what we’ve got coming up with the Methodist House of Studies. I’m excited about the possibilities that these conversations could hold for how we are engaging in Wesleyan ministry in the Memphis Conference of the UMC:

Wesleyan Practices of Evangelism Flyer


 

Lunch with Bishop Debbie Wallace-Padgett

02 Monday Feb 2015

Posted by admin in Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education, United Methodist Church

≈ Leave a comment

Bishop Debbie-Wallace-Padgett_Photo courtesy of the UM Council of BishopsThis week the Methodist House of Studies welcomes Bishop Debbie Wallace-Padgett, who serves as the episcopal leader of the North Alabama Conference (UMC). Bishop Wallace-Padgett will speak with students over lunch along with other representatives from her annual conference.

Bishop Wallace-Padgett has led the North Alabama Conference since her election 2012. Her previous pastoral appointments have included eight years as the Lead Pastor of St. Luke United Methodist Church in Lexington, Kentucky, and six years as the district superintendent of the Prestonsburg District (Kentucky Conference).

The Methodist House luncheon will take place at 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday, February 3rd., in the Brockwell Room in Founders Hall. Pizza and cookies will be served, along with soft drinks, water, tea, and coffee. All are invited to attend!

 


John Wesley Seal (1)_vectorizedlargetransparent

The Methodist House of Studies is a program at Memphis Theological Seminary that draws on the seminary’s rich, ecumenical tradition while providing a robust Wesleyan theological formation designed to prepare men and women for pastoral ministry in Wesleyan and Methodist church contexts.

Methodist House: Courses in Wesleyan Studies

20 Thursday Nov 2014

Posted by admin in Church History, Doctrine & Theology, Means of Grace, Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education, Wesleyan Theology

≈ Leave a comment

Spring 2015 Courses in Wesleyan Studies_Methodist House at MTS

Click to enlarge

One of the ways that the Methodist House of Studies is expanding its work at MTS is through expanded course offerings in the area of Wesleyan Studies. I’m excited to be able to announce the following four courses on our Spring 2015 course schedule. (If you would like to inquire about enrolling or auditing courses at the seminary, find the contact information here.)

Here’s what we’ve got on tap for the upcoming semester:

Women in Methodist History  |  Dr. Andrew Thompson
Mondays, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Encounter the historic role of women’s leadership in Methodism. This course surveys the history of women in Methodism from the time of the late 18th century to the late 20th century. It will examine the role of women’s leadership in the Methodist and Wesleyan movement—from Mary Bosanquet Fletcher to Jarena Lee, and from Amanda Berry Smith to Mildred Bangs Wynkoop. The course focuses on themes of women’s leadership, the challenge of women responding to calls in ministry, the role of spiritual autobiography, and the contribution of women to the vitality of the Wesleyan tradition.

The Prophetic Rhetoric of Bishop Henry McNeal Turner  |  Dr. Andre Johnson
Mondays, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Engage the remarkable life, career, and prophetic rhetoric of Bishop Henry McNeal Turner (1834-1915) of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Bishop Turner was one of the most dynamic, influential, and eloquent African American church leaders of the post-Civil War period—yet today he is largely forgotten. This course highlights his historical importance and rhetorical power. By engaging in a careful reading of Turner’s writings and speeches, students in this class are able to examine the theoretical, methodical, and practical applications that make up Bishop Turner’s discourses.

American Methodism: History, Doctrine, & Polity  |  Dr. Andrew Thompson
Tuesdays, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Prepare for ordained ministry in the United Methodist Church through an immersion in the history, doctrine, and polity of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America (MEC) and its successors from the time of its founding in 1784. This course follows the ecclesiastical line that leads to the United Methodist Church at the time of its formation in 1968. It is designed to fulfill the second half of the ordination requirements for history, doctrine, and polity as outlined in the United Methodist Book of Discipline (¶324.4, ¶330.3, & ¶335).

The Means of Grace in Wesleyan Theology  |  Dr. Andrew Thompson
Wednesdays, 8:00 to 11:00 a.m.
Come and explore the theology of the means of grace in the Wesleyan tradition. As the “sacramental grammar” of Wesleyan theology, the means of grace are at the heart of the doctrine of sanctification and the practice of discipleship. This course engages both primary sources (from John and Charles Wesley) as well as secondary sources (from contemporary scholars). Half the course focuses on a study of the sacraments (i.e., Baptism and Holy Communion) and the other half considers the other means of grace in the categories of “instituted,” “prudential,” and “general.” Attention is also given to the practical implications of the means of grace for Christian ministry.

MHOS Banner Quote

Methodist House: The Path to Ordained Ministry

14 Friday Nov 2014

Posted by admin in Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education, United Methodist Church

≈ Leave a comment

Dr. Johnny Jeffords joined us at Memphis Theological Seminary this week to discuss the journey towards ordained ministry in the United Methodist Church. The luncheon was part of the Methodist House of Studies‘ ongoing series of fellowship gatherings designed to build community and provide opportunities for Methodist students at MTS to draw on the wisdom of ministry practitioners.

In addition to serving as senior pastor of St. John’s United Methodist Church in Memphis, Dr. Jeffords is also the chair of the Board of Ordained Ministry for the Memphis Conference. That means he has a unique insight into how ordination candidacy works for those seeking to become deacons or elders in the UMC.

2014-11-11_Jeffords visit 4

One of the real highlights of our lunchtime conversation was in getting to hear Dr. Jeffords speak about how he sees the candidacy process both from the annual conference-side of things and from the candidate’s perspective . Here are some of the things he mentioned:

  • We need to clearly understand the relationships between the local church, the District Committee on Ministry (or DCOM), and the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry (or BOM). Local churches should only put forward candidates for ministry that they would want to have serve as their own pastors. (That’s a pretty good criterion to go by, if you ask me.) The DCOM also needs—for practical reasons—to understand itself as the primary body to discern which candidates will ultimately be ordained or not. That’s not to deflect the responsibilities of the BOM; it is rather a reality about how much time a given body will spend with a candidate and how workload is distributed.
  • Formal training for both DCOM and BOM members is essential for these bodies to understand their roles and perform them well. That has to be matched by a personal commitment of each DCOM or BOM member to undertake his or her work with seriousness, intentionality, and prayer.2014-11-11_Jeffords visit 5
  • Candidates themselves need to know that the church will be more discerning in the future about who needs to be a pastor in the United Methodist connection. Knowing and embracing our Wesleyan doctrinal distinctives is necessary. Understanding and agreeing with our polity and form of ministry—also necessary. It isn’t up to a DCOM or a BOM to determine who is called to ministry; it’s just up to them to determine who is called into ministry in a particular annual conference of the UMC. The church is in a stage where it has got to be more robust about how it goes about identifying and preparing its future leaders. And this is ultimately a good thing.
  • In preparing for both written and oral responses to doctrinal questions, a candidate should be able to articulate answers in a couple of ways: 1. Knowledge and agreement with our core doctrines with reference to Scripture and the Wesleyan tradition. 2. How our core doctrines relate to ministry and the living of the Christian life. You can be too academically sterile on one extreme, and you can be too mushy/personal on the other. So the balance would be in having the ability to respond with theological rigor and integrity while also being able to speak meaningfully about how our understanding of the triune God, the Lordship of Christ, the sacraments and other means of grace, justification & sanctification, etc., make a different in ministry and discipleship.

These are just a few of the highlights. There was much more, and it was all great. (All the summaries above are, of course, from my own notes and are not a transcript of what Dr. Jeffords said.)

2014-11-11_Jeffords visit 3I’ve been counseling students for years who are working through ordination candidacy while they’re also going through seminary. I’ve never found that they have an issue with candidacy being a demanding, even rigorous process. The objections they tend to raise have to do with the seeming opaqueness or confusing aspects of the process. Usually that is due to poor communication of one sort or another, and sometimes it is due to the inherently “institutional feel” that candidacy processes have taken on in the contemporary church.

The good news is that these challenges can all be fixed. The bad news, if that’s the right word for it, is that the work of fixing our problems is dependent on intentional, focused work by those in the relevant leadership positions in each annual conference. The Memphis Conference at least is fortunate in having a leader the caliber of Johnny Jeffords as it moves forward with the work of its own Board of Ordained Ministry.

For other posts about the Methodist House of Studies at Memphis Theological Seminary, click here.


 

Methodist House: Words of Wisdom

20 Monday Oct 2014

Posted by admin in Arkansas Conference, Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House

≈ Leave a comment

This past week Methodist students at Memphis Theological Seminary met with the Rev. Mark Norman. Over pizza and soft drinks, Rev. Norman shared some words of wisdom on the topic, “Things I wish someone had told me when I was in seminary.”

Rev. Norman serves as the district superintendent of the Southeast District in the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church.

Because there are a lot of Methodist students on campus both Tuesdays and Wednesdays this semester, Rev. Norman was generous enough to visit with students on both days. The lunchtime gatherings were hosted by the Methodist House of Studies at MTS as a part of its ongoing luncheon series designed to promote fellowship amongst Methodist students at MTS while also equipping them for practical ministry.

During the lunch conversations, Rev. Norman shared these thoughts:2014-10-15_MHOS Mtg 4

  • Your devotional life is deeply important. You can never get too advanced for basic prayer and daily devotional reading of Scripture. Commitment to ongoing spiritual formation is essential, especially during the crowded time of a seminary experience.
  • Seminary is about preparation for real ministry. As students, the academic context can cause us to struggle at times to relate what we are doing to actual ministry. So we should always remind ourselves that the seminary is a place to be formed as pastors. Our calling is to love our people, like a shepherd loves the sheep. When we remember that foundational truth, we will go a long way in preserving the deeply spiritual component of both seminary (and pastoral ministry itself, for those students who are already serving as pastors). But it takes work!
  • Preparation for the practical side of ministry can be very helpful. If your seminary offers courses in business administration, financial leadership, or grant writing & fundraising, you should think hard about taking advantage of them. These sound like secular topics, but they are a part of every local church. And they can be embraced in very theological ways. [When Rev. Norman mentioned this topic, I thought immediately of the new Financial Leadership for Ministry program at MTS.]

2014-10-15_MHOS Mtg 3

  • The hunger for theology will never go away. In fact, it will only grow stronger the longer you are away from seminary. Reading and meditating on theology can truly feed the soul of a pastor. So don’t throw those seminary books away—and plan on making the time to keep engaging thinkers and ideas as you move fully into pastoral ministry.

A lively conversation followed Rev. Norman’s talk on both the Tuesday and Wednesday gatherings. The lunchtime fellowship captured the best of what the Methodist House of Studies seeks to promote, which is the integration of theological conversation with a concern for practical ministry and the life of the church.

 


 

Certificate in Wesleyan Studies

08 Wednesday Oct 2014

Posted by admin in Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education, United Methodist Church, Wesleyan Theology

≈ Leave a comment

John Wesley Seal (1)_vectorizedlargetransparentWe’re offering a Certificate in Wesleyan Studies to students in our master’s-level degree programs here at Memphis Theological Seminary. The certificate program was approved by the MTS faculty last spring, and it is now available to students as of this academic year.

I’m really excited about this new development. I see the Certificate in Wesleyan Studies as the centerpiece of the new Methodist House of Studies here at MTS. Let me tell you about it…

What’s the purpose of the Certificate in Wesleyan Studies? It is really two-fold. First, the certificate program will give students the ability to focus a certain number of hours in their elective coursework around courses grounded in the study of the Wesleyan tradition. The courses that already exist offer a diverse range of subject areas: theology, church history, pastoral care, evangelism, rhetoric & religion, denominational studies, and leadership studies. Future courses are in the planning stages that will broaden that range into both preaching and spiritual formation. By taking advantage of these offerings, students can immerse themselves in a level of Wesleyan theological formation that we believe is unique.

The second purpose of the new certificate program is to demonstrate to church judicatory bodies that the Methodist House at MTS is serious about Wesleyan formation for pastoral ministry. Take my own church as an example: the United Methodist Church. We want our United Methodist graduates to be able to go before their Boards of Ordained Ministry with an M.Div degree under one arm and a Certificate in Wesleyan Studies under the other. We want bishops and annual conferences to know that they can send their students to MTS with the knowledge that they’ll be able to take advantage of innovative coursework designed to bring theory and practice together—all in a distinctly Wesleyan accent.

It is true that the requirements for the Certificate in Wesleyan Studies are not particularly easy to attain. Earning the certificate requires 15 hours of coursework in approved courses, in addition to active participation in the Methodist House of Studies during one’s student career here. We allow no transfer hours—all of the courses that apply for the certificate must be earned here at MTS. In our research about certificate programs during the development stage last year, we found that almost no certificates require more than 15 hours save those that are intended to result in some type of professional certification. In other words, we’ve set the bar high on what a student will have to accomplish to graduate with the certificate. But here’s the truth of the matter: That’s exactly how we want it.

We want the Certificate in Wesleyan Studies to really mean something, and we want our graduates who earn it to know that as well.

I am not exaggerating when I say that I believe Memphis Theological Seminary will be offering a wider range of coursework in Wesleyan Studies than any seminary in the United States within two years. We have a critical mass of faculty here who believe that the kind of traditioned approach to theological education that the Methodist House of Studies is advancing is crucial to how we will be going about forming men and women for ministry in the future.

We want to be on the leading edge of those changes.

And you know what? There are plenty of people out there who are considering seminary and wrestling with God’s call right now. If you are one of those people, I hope you’ll join us.

 


 

Methodist House of Studies Online

02 Thursday Oct 2014

Posted by admin in Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education, Wesleyan Tradition

≈ 3 Comments

One of the ways we’re going to make the Methodist House of Studies visible here at MTS is through a new website that we launched a few days ago. Go ahead and take a look!

My hope is that this website can serve a number of purposes. The primary purpose will be informational. I want the website to provide helpful information for current and prospective students. It will highlight what we’re doing through the Methodist House, and what we’ve got planned for the future.

John Wesley Seal (1)_vectorizedlargetransparentAnother role the website will fulfill is in outreach to the church. Every one of the Methodist professors here at MTS is also an ordained minister with significant pastoral experience. We believe that the academic work that we do ought to be directed at helping to equip the church to fulfill its mission more effectively. Our professors engage in work related to youth ministry, urban ministry, addiction recovery, local church ministry, and Wesleyan approaches to evangelism—all of which are deeply relevant to the day-to-day ministry of the church. As the Methodist House website develops, it will be a resource both to provide churches with helpful resources and to highlight some of the speaking events and workshops that our professors are doing.

Finally, my hope is that our new website will simply serve as a network to further the work of Wesleyan revitalization. We live in a time when the ‘catholic evangelicalism’ of the Wesleyan tradition is needed more than ever. In a world where cynicism and discord often seem to be ascendent, I hope the Methodist House can be a community where the ‘hope that is within us’ can be the primary mark of how we serve God and one another. If the website can contribute to that work in some small way, then it will have served a good purpose.

Methodist House of Studies @ MTS

29 Monday Sep 2014

Posted by admin in Memphis Theological Seminary, Methodist House, Theological Education, United Methodist Church, Wesleyan Tradition

≈ 1 Comment

Good things are happening at Memphis Theological Seminary! I am excited to be able to announce publicly our new initiative known as the Methodist House of Studies. There will be much more to come. In the meantime, see the introductory video below:

 

 


 

Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: Chateau by Ignacio Ricci.