2 minute read
from the president
Contrary to sensible conclusions about the sway of secularism in today’s society, religious values and language have not been banished from culture. Instead, language and beliefs that found their source within the institutional church have found new messengers in the vast ecology of the public and of social media. Those who want to remain faithful to the teachings of the church and to long-standing Christian tradition(s) need to find their voice in the conversation, and this may require developing sharper skills to interpret and communicate those traditions with higher levels of authenticity. This is where theological education becomes an essential companion in the development of faithful believers. By providing tools to help Christians give reasons for their faith, theological education equips Christian believers—clergy and layperson alike—to be the bearers of a meaningful gospel that refuses to be reduced to simplistic sound bites or dogmatic clichés.
Understanding this important responsibility, Austin Seminary is committed to offering high-quality educational opportunities through its certificate programs (see pages 6-11) to those who serve as church leaders in various local ministries and to other lay people devoted to growing in their knowledge of faith. Offered in English and in Spanish, these programs take learners through a sequence of courses designed to introduce them to the most important questions of theology, biblical interpretation, Christian ethics, church leadership, and ministry. We strongly believe that once you discover how such conversations open minds and strengthen the spirit, you will find value in the continuing cultivation of Christian wisdom—wisdom that is necessary to sustain life in a secularized world. The old sage who penned the Book of Proverbs was more succinct in his counsel: “whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life” (Proverbs 10:17).
As you will read in the stories that follow, many have heeded instruction by engaging our certificate programs and have discovered, as Austin Seminary’s former colleague C. Ellis Nelson (MDiv’40) stated, “how faith matures.” We pray that whatever is learned through these certificate programs is already guiding the path to life, to growth, and wisdom.
Faithfully yours,
