We seek to train pastors, not professors. This is the goal of Emmaus Theological Seminary’s new Doctor of Ecclesial Theology program in partnership with the Center for Pastor Theologians.
For well over a decade the CPT has labored for the center of theological reflection to return to its natural home, the church. At the heart of this laboring is the advocacy for a theology that is distinctly ecclesial. Theology that is for the church and by the church.[1]
Such advocacy by the CPT is the impetus for Emmaus’s new ThD program (the question of why a ThD at Emmaus over a PhD or DMin is explored here). If we desire the fostering of pastor theologians, then we need institutional spaces distinctly and wholeheartedly committed to the task of forming ecclesial theologians. The objective is not the formation of pastors who are theologically competent, or theologians who are pastorally sensitive, but the formation of distinct pastor theologians.
This does not mean an Emmaus ThD must serve exclusively in the pastorate or that they would not be competent to teach as a professor. It merely means that the course of study for the Emmaus ThD is first and foremost for the church and by the church.
At Emmaus, ecclesial theology is not just something we do; it defines who we are. Theology for the church and by the church is the song we sing and the guide to all our programming.
For the Church
One common critique of seminary education is that it is irrelevant. The content being learned has no relevance for the day-to-day life of the church. In some circumstances, this critique is warranted. Too often information about God, the Scriptures, and Christianity masquerades as theology.
Learning about and studying God, the gospel, and the world without wrestling through its significance for the church is mere information. Theology, in the biblical sense, demands application within the context of God’s people. The Emmaus ThD is formed with this end of theology in mind.
Each ThD seminar is constructed considering its content’s significance for the church. Courses on Biblical Theology, Historical Theology, Dogmatic Theology, and Practical Theology are each arranged as they relate to practical questions and their consequences in the church.
In their research seminars, Emmaus ThD students are expected to read and discuss significant texts and ideas as they find their bearing in the community of God’s people. Their papers demonstrate succinct relevance to the student’s church context, tradition, or social location. The desire is to put into practice Helmut Thielicke’s reflection on the nature of the theological task, “As we are determined to be true theologians, we think within the community of God’s people, and for that community, and in the name of that community.”[2]
In their first stage, students will take part in eleven seminars covering everything from an Ecclesial Theology of Liturgy and the Sacraments to portraits of the pastor theologian in church history, along with three practicums fostering research, writing, and teaching in and for the church. Ecclesial theology requires integration across the disciplines with a constant eye towards the church. These seminars are designed to meet that need.
In their final phase, students complete comprehensive exams and work towards their dissertation and defense as ThD candidates (See the full program requirements here. Students will be able to select from a growing list of supervisors, each of whom are in vocational service to a local church.
These dissertations are not solely aimed to be contributions to scholarly research or in the service of ideas alone but to have real impact in the church. We believe this program will produce ecclesial theologians equipped to bridge the gap between the academy and the church—serving the Lord at their highest capacities to the glory of God and his kingdom.
To be sure, pastors and leaders do not need this degree, or any other, to be found faithful, but they ought to love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, strength, and mind as opportunity allows—and the ThD is designed to foster that love.
By the Church
It is easy to say one’s course content is ecclesial in its framework; however, it is more difficult to implement this goal. The temptation of contentment with mere information is constant and is a delight to our enemy Satan. How can we fight against this temptation?
A unique feature of the Emmaus ThD program is that seminars are taught by CPT fellows and those serving in pastoral ministry—individuals that find their primary identity in vocational service to the church rather than the academy.
As the ThD’s research seminars are not lecture-driven at their core, professors guide and facilitate conversations around the course reading and student paper proposals and research leads while also framing the course of study with two major field lectures each semester. This includes key Emmaus faculty and CPT fellows like Joel Lawrence, Chris Castaldo, and Ryan Fields, among others.
These professors read, think, and teach as pastors because they serve as pastors. They know which topics, questions, and theses have bearing on the church, because they have considered them in their sermons and pastoral care. Mark Dever often states, “Seminaries don’t make pastors, churches do.” The truth behind this comment is ecclesial theology can only reach maturity in the crucible of service to the church.
In addition to these major lectures, each course will also feature key guest lectures to highlight the significance of the topic in detail. These guest lecturers include the likes of Gavin Ortlund, Amy Peeler, Peter Leithart, and others who understand the need and weight of theology in service of the church.
As the CPT continues to advocate for ecclesial theology, Emmaus’s desire is that the ThD program will provide space and opportunity for the nurturing and blossoming of theology for and by the church.
Footnotes
[1] This vision is articulated in Gerald Hiestand and Todd Wilson’s The Pastor Theologian: Resurrecting an Ancient Vision.
[2] Helmut Thielicke, A Little Exercise for Young Theologians, trans. Charles L. Taylor (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1962), 4–5.
To learn more about Emmaus Seminary’s Doctor of Ecclesial Theology, you can listen to this conversation with CPT president, Joel Lawrence; read about what distinguishes a ThD from a PhD and DMin; explore Emmaus’s full range of ecclesial theology programs; or email us at info@emmausseminary.org.
Cory Wilson (PhD, Reformed Theological Seminary) is the President of Emmaus Theological Seminary in Cleveland, Ohio, where he teaches missions, Old Testament, and topics in Ecclesial Theology. Cory also serves as a staff pastor at City Church in Cleveland Heights. He is a member of the St. Peter Fellowship of the Center for Pastor Theologians.
