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PLANO, TX: Seminary Panel Hold High Hopes for Anglican Church in North America

PLANO, TX: Seminary Panel Hold High Hopes for Anglican Church in North America
Leaders press faithfulness to Scripture, message and proclamation for Mission advance

By David W. Virtue in Plano
www.virtueonline.org
February 23, 2010

A panel of orthodox Anglican seminary deans and professors told 325 orthodox Anglicans at an Anglican-1000 church planting conference that Anglicanism in North America has a bright future, if next generation missionaries are creative, empower the laity, implement new worship models, are faithful to Scripture and stick to gospel proclamation.

Panelists included Rev. Jon Abboud, Reformed Episcopal Seminary; Dr. Justyn Terry, President and Dean of Trinity School for Ministry, Ambridge, PA, Dr. Robert Munday, President and Dean of Nashotah House, Wisconsin and Dr. Sam Schutz, Professor of Anglican Studies at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary, Massachusetts.

The panel was chaired by the Rev. Geoffrey Chapman, rector, St. Stephen's, Sewickley, PA.

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Dr. Jon Abboud, Provost at Reformed Episcopal Seminary (REC) in Blue Bell, PA, said he has been involved in the resuscitation of 30 churches. "The REC supports the work of church planting. All our theologians are pastors. Every member of the faculty is or has been a church planter. We have an Anglican studies program where I have been personally involved in planting five churches. We bring in church planters to teach church planting." He said his seminary offers a Masters of Divinity in church planting.

Dr. Justyn Terry, President and Dean of Trinity School for Ministry (TSM) in Ambridge, PA, said his seminary stands in the evangelical Anglican tradition as a reaction against liberalism. Terry said he is originally from London where very few have confidence in the gospel. He said he has planted a church in the inner city of London. His seminary offers several degrees in missions and church planting.

Dr. Robert Munday, President and Dean of the Anglo-Catholic seminary Nashotah House, Wisconsin, said the crisis in Anglicanism is because of years of bad theological training that have undermined the church's mission. "Sound teaching got a hold of us. It should have happened in all the Episcopal seminaries. At Nashotah House we are working with Dr. William Beasley in a 'Green house' strategy empowering the laity to make 1000 churches. We have a distance learning program training the trainers and priests to empower the laity."

Chairman: I see flexibility in your institutions, opening up new tracks of leadership and training. In view of the overwhelming challenge of so many leaders and the call from new Anglican dioceses to open up creative non-residential options, what are some of the initiatives you are undertaking?

Abboud: The first is a licentiate in diaconal ministry. People are being trained to begin a church plant or support a local ministry. Those going out to resuscitation ministries where financial resources are limited do so without debt. We can't do it with students carrying a lot of debt. We have full tuition scholarships. We don't think that seminaries should leave carrying debt. We offer Seminary funding for those heading into the ordained ministry. Our goal is to equip the equippers. We need to remember that the first church planters were persecuted Christians in Jerusalem. They went to Antioch and thence to the uttermost parts of the earth.

Schutz: We have an apprenticeship program with generous scholarships. At Gordon Conwell the focus is on praxis, praxis praxis. We are working our way out of the the old German theological model. Students come for a brief concentrated period of time. We combine theological courses with practical work. Our doctrinal programs focus on church planting and growth. We are pioneering a new literature for the 21st century that is more biblical less materialistic and more prayerful. We are also working with Bishop Bill Murdoch to model ministry in houses, and developing the Anglican Way of community into the larger communities. We need synergy to plant 1000 churches in the next five years.

Terry: One third of poor students are lay leaders engaged in lay ministry planting churches. We encourage them to get on with the training. We want to keep clergy to continually training. The UK (my former country) is deeply secular. People pat you on the head and hope you grow up one day when you talk about the Christian Faith. We should not inadvertently lower the standard. We offer a stage by stage growth. We have Masters Degree level training. We have a deep confidence that the gospel is true. We don't compress it and stop it short. We seek the best qualified trained clergy. My prayer is for a revival in this land and the hope of the nations.

Munday: Jesus spent three years teaching his disciples the Gospel. After his Damascus Road conversion, Paul needed three years to be formed before beginning his apostolic ministry. We have developed a distance learning program to teach people who cannot relocate for three years. We believe the training of leadership is vital and necessary for the coming century.

Chapman: You talk about teaching theology and teaching skills for ministry and forming character and spirituality. Which of those do you find most critical and challenging in the emerging situation?

Abboud: We need a proper hermeneutical approach to scripture. We must not twist the scriptures to make them say what they want them to say. With respect to Anglican theology and formation and the Articles of Religion, we need to preach and proclaim them. God chose to use the foolishness of preaching. We require mentorship and planters are required to be involved with a local pastoral mentor. We need to increasingly be in the classroom and listen to what the students practice in their own churches and community.

Terry: We want to send out teachers, pastors and be involved in character formation. We want to see authentic character formation.

Munday: All faithful ministry must be grounded in the word of God. Abiding in Christ we should be transformers. Pastoral skills must reflect our ministry.

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