Eden Theological Seminary will be the site this week of a program sponsored by the Fund For Theological Excellence designed to help people explore their call to ministry.
ST. LOUIS - The Fund for Theological Education is looking for a few good ministers.
The Atlanta-based program will host 110 students from 16 denominations at an event in suburban St. Louis next week, aimed at helping them decide if they want to pursue life in the Christian clergy.
The fund's work to attract the best and brightest may be more important than ever: A large numbers of pastors are preparing to retire, there's a declining image in some quarters about going into the ministry, and high amounts of seminary debt may keep young people from pursuing a religious life, said Melissa Wiginton, the fund's director of ministry programs.
When young people determine if they are meant to be in the clergy, they often don't have friends wrestling with the same issues, Wiginton said.
That's part of the reason why the Fund for Theological Education, which awarded more than $450,000 this year to undergraduates and divinity students, also began bringing its scholars together in recent years for an annual conference. The excellence in ministry conference will be held Wednesday through Sunday at the Eden Theological Seminary in the St. Louis suburb of Webster Groves.
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The average seminarian leaves with over $30,000 in debt for positions that often pay little. Programs like those offered by the Fund For Theological Excellence can be of tremendous value.
If you’re a member of the United Church of Christ and feel you have been called to ministry please visit Ask The Question for information.
