The task of theological training is to nurture gifted leaders who are in turn to nurture other believers so that the church can effectively fulfil her missional mandate. Because of the relationship between theological training and the practice of ministry, enriching theological training will enhance the ministry in the churches, thus translating theological training into practical ministry. The effectiveness of theological training must therefore be measured by how it enhances the practice of ministry in the work of its graduates. The question of the relationship between theological training and practical ministry has arisen from a concern about the quality of theological training. Over time, there has been growing dissatisfaction with the state of the theological training, also in East and Central Africa. Dissatisfaction has mainly been coming from the churches which are the producers and the recipients of the theological schools graduates. The seminary has come to be viewed as irrelevant in training people for church ministry. The trainers have been accused of being ‘theoretical’ rather than ‘practical’ in training for ministry (Murdock Charity Trust 1995:9−24). The graduates, in turn, point an accusing finger at theological institutions which they feel do not adequately prepare them to deal with life issues that they encounter in ministry (Morgan & Giles 1994:71−72). Church-Based Theological Model This model of training is probably the latest initiative that seeks to offer an alternative to the Western traditional theological training model. The model uses the nonformal education paradigm with serious ordered learning that fits culture whilst combining elements of formal and informal. This new paradigm is a call to return to training leaders in the way of Christ and apostles following the model of the Antioch church in Acts 13:1−14:28. Leading proponents of Church-Based-Theological Education Model include BILD International based in the United States of America. In this article we will use BILD as a representative of the Church-Based Model of Training. The model is made up of resources designed to integrate with a community-based process of equipping ministers of the gospel, with the aim to accomplish two primary objectives: • To equip the apprentice in a sound church-based philosophy of ministry, godly character, and essential skills required of those with equipping gifts. • To guide the apprentice in the formation of a biblical theology of the Bible and in the completion of a ‘Comprehensive Belief Framework in Culture’, to address contemporary cultural issues on the foundation of the biblical narrative. They also are arranged according to three different emphases: character, ministry and academic. The Church-Based Model of Training follows a learning system based on three steps (Reed 1995:7−13): 1. an in-service or ministry training taking place in the context of ministry 2. mastery of the Scriptures, which involves character development, ministry skills and biblical mastery 3. mentoring and assessment or qualification and assessment. The Church-Based Model of Training is one good example of a model that takes theological training back to the church, where it belongs. Church-based training calls for training to be done in the church (the power of context), under the church (the power of responsibility), through the church (the power of community), with other churches (power of partnership), for the church (the power of mission), and to the glory of God (the power of worship). The effectiveness of this form of training may be attributed to the fact that the programmes are designed to be led by church, leaders training future leaders in the context of their churches and not in sort of a school. The effectiveness of this programme could be attributed to its competency-based design where the focus is not on courses and grades but on measuring competence based on designed outcomes.Competency-based approach The objective of theological training responds to the students’ needs, producing growth in knowledge, maturity in character development and competence in ministry skills. Students progressively grow in relationship to God as they explore the tensions between their experiences, the Bible’s teaching and their individual response in obedience. This being the objective of theological education, a better way to encourage this process is to apply the elements of competency-based learning. As a curricular model, competency-based learning seeks to develop competencies in persons at different stages of their maturation journey. The competencies encompass the development of the whole person: affect understanding, character, and skills. Competency-based learning does not focus on courses and grades but on measuring competencies based on designed outcomes. In contrast to the Content-Transmission Model that relies on subject matter as the organising principle, the Competency-Based Model is a flexible representation that provides a framework for learning in a variety of contexts. In the Content-Transmission Model, excellence is measured mainly by the nature of the process and not by the product as is with theological training. The criterion of excellence in the competency-based learning is the extent to which the graduate is ready for functioning effectively in that ministry, showing potential for continued development (Youngblood 1989:29). The basis for Integrated Competency-Based Training Model Four fundamental questions were used to form the basis for an integrated competency-based ministerial training. The first question is what competencies should ministerial trainees’ possess? This question focuses on the selection of the outcome that the training will help students reach. The list of competencies is developed, firstly from gleaning principles from the Scriptures as to what a competent church minister looks like and secondly, from research as to what a competent minister is perceived to look like in their context of ministry. The most significant characteristics or criteria that people across denominational lines are looking for in their ministers are the following, in order of preference (Chow 1982:52): • Sacrifice without regard for acclaim. This means a minister who is able to accept personal limitations and is able to serve without concern for public recognition. • Personal integrity. Able to honour commitments by carrying out promises despite pressure to compromise. • Christian example. The minister should be one whose personal belief in the gospel manifests itself in generosity and, in general, in Christian example that people in the community can respect. • Pastoral skills. People want a minister who shows competence and responsibility by completing tasks and by being able to handle differences of opinion, and who senses the need to continue to grow in spiritual skills. • Leadership. The minister must be able to build a strong sense of community within a congregation. Taking time to know the people in his church and developing a sense of trust and confidence between the congregation and himself. The second question to be asked is: ‘What knowledge, skills and attitude do the ministerial trainees currently possess?’ This question acknowledges that each trainee already has been formed by informal and formal means that requires prescribed sources to meet his present developmental needs. This question intends to diagnose the learner’s needs. This need is defined as ’the gap between the present level of competencies and a higher level required for effective performance‘ (Knowles 1980:88). Thirdly, how can ministry trainees participate in value added experiences that contribute to the desired outcome? On focus here is the selection of learning activities most appropriate for producing a competent Christian minister. This may include learning contracts, mentoring, internships, or specific training modules of instruction within the student’s context. The training of church workers must be conducted in ’light of personal, situational and contextual demands of biblical norms and cultural dimensions‘ (Cole 1991:42). The selection of learning activities should reflect both spiritual and character development as it prepares a student to minister in Word and life as a true believer. The fourth question is ‘how will we know when the ministerial students have changed, acquired new understanding, deepened their character, examined their attitude and sharpened their skills?’ The focus here is evaluation. Evaluation in the competency-based training is an integral part of the whole process. To qualify for training, the students need to be able to do more than passively collect and casually dispense information on command. They must be a living, active and personal demonstration of the biblical truth they have learnt and are capable of giving insight and proposing initiatives (Youngblood 1989:28). Despite the difficulty in evaluating spiritual formation in objective and measurable ways, this is a base against which spiritual and character development should be monitored. In addition, for one to claim to have been trained, the qualities and behavior of the Christian minister within the church must have been taught, modelled and stimulated within the training programme. Ability to feed and tend the flock and make disciples would demonstrate competency. Excellence in theological training should therefore be measured in terms of the servant hood quality that the student possesses and the effectiveness of ministry which he performs. This will involve both being and doing in addition to knowing.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Sep 2014 09:29:00 +0000
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