This book serves as a great guide for anyone considering the vocational path.

Those considering seminary, those in seminary, and those preparing to graduate from seminary need help. They need help discerning their call, moving into the bewildering world of theological study, and balancing the competing claims of school, work, and family. This book proposes to offer that help, and more, because the seminary eperience is evolving more rapidly than at any time in its history. This book is an ideal textbook for introductory seminary or spiritual formation courses that the majority of seminaries now require of first-year students. The three sections of this book provide information and guidance to those who are discerning a call to ministry and considering theological education; introduces new seminarians to thinking theologically, forming supportive relationships, integrating what they are learning in school with their spiritual lives, and practical guidance on such matters is serving a local congregation while one is in seminary; and offers advice on negotiating the ordination process in different denominational traditions and making the transition from study to full-time ministry.

In What to Expect in Seminary, Virginia Samuel Cetuk looks at the various facets of theological education -- the call to ministry, classroom learning, community life, field education, financial realities, time-management challenges -- through the lens of spiritual formation. In each chapter she challenges readers to view the particular topic as an avenue to spiritual growth instead of as an obstacle to the same. Offering readers the conceptual tool of reframing, she draws upon psychology, Scripture, and her many years' experiences in theological education to help readers see both the challenges and the rich opportunities of theological education related to ministry and spiritual formation.

Chapters include: "Seminary and Elitism," "Occult Science," "What's Wrong with White Magic," "Territorial Spirits," "Human Cloning and the Soul," "The Biblical Approach to Evangelism," and "Reckless Recreation."

“Will resonate with any readers interested in understanding American landscapes where white, evangelical Christianity dominates both politics and culture.” —Publishers Weekly In the wake of the 2016 election, Lyz Lenz watched as her country and her marriage were torn apart by the competing forces of faith and politics. A mother of two, a Christian, and a lifelong resident of middle America, Lenz was bewildered by the pain and loss around her—the empty churches and the broken hearts. What was happening to faith in the heartland? From drugstores in Sydney, Iowa, to skeet shooting in rural Illinois, to the mega churches of Minneapolis, Lenz set out to discover the changing forces of faith and tradition in God’s country. Part journalism, part memoir, God Land is a journey into the heart of a deeply divided America. Lenz visits places of worship across the heartland and speaks to the everyday people who often struggle to keep their churches afloat and to cope in a land of instability. Through a thoughtful interrogation of the effects of faith and religion on our lives, our relationships, and our country, God Land investigates whether our divides can ever be bridged and if America can ever come together. “God Land, Lyz Lenz’s much-anticipated debut book, is a marvel. Not only is it a window into the middle America so many like to stereotype but fail to fully understand in all of its complexity, but it mixes reportage, memoir, and gorgeous prose so seamlessly I wanted to know how she did it.” —Sarah Weinman, author of The Real Lolita

A 10-session Bible study that examines Genesis 12-50 to discover how God orchestrates everything for His glory and the good of His people.

Nov. issue includes Proceedings of the annual meeting.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer is best known for his role in a plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler and his subsequent execution at the hands of the Nazis. However, readers are less familiar with his tireless work educating seminary students for a life of pastoral ministry. Anchored in a variety of influential lectures, personal letters, and major works such as The Cost of Discipleship, this book attempts to recover a largely unexamined part of Bonhoeffer’s life—exploring his philosophy and practice of theological education in his original context. It then builds on this foundation to address the drift toward increasingly impersonal educational models in our own day, affirming the value of personal, face-to-face seminary education for the health of pastors and churches.

Sometimes, grace gets messy. Caleb Kaltenbach was raised by LGBT parents, marched in gay pride parades as a youngster, and experienced firsthand the hatred and bitterness of some Christians toward his family. But then Caleb surprised everyone, including himself, by becoming a Christian…and a pastor. Very few issues in Christianity are as divisive as the acceptance of the LGBT community in the church. As a pastor and as a person with beloved family members living a gay lifestyle, Caleb had to face this issue with courage and grace. Messy Grace shows us that Jesus’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself” doesn’t have an exception clause for a gay “neighbor”—or for that matter, any other “neighbor” we might find it hard to relate to. Jesus was able to love these people and yet still hold on to his beliefs. So can you. Even when it’s messy. “Messy Grace is an important contribution to the conversation about sexual identity for churches and leaders. Caleb's story is surprising and unique, and he weaves it together compellingly. He states his views clearly, leaves room for disagreement, and champions love no matter where you are in this conversation.” —Jud Wilhite, Sr. Pastor, Central Christian Church