Wednesday, July 01, 2009
COB-Alt, a new blog for progressives in the Church of the Brethren
I started a new blog last week, COB-Alt News at http://cobaltnews.blogspot.com as the Church of the Brethren met at Annual Conference. Conference is over now, but I'll keep blogging news items for progressives in the Church of the Brethren at COB-Alt. Over time, I'll also be transferring some COB news posts from this blog to COB-Alt. I haven't forgotten about this blog, but look for more religion-specific items at COB-Alt instead of here.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
For the Conceptual Age, is it MFA or MBA? or MDiv?
I'm reading Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind, and just read about how the MFA is the new MB. Graduates in business administration are seeing their jobs outsourced overseas, while graduates in design and writing are getting recruited by corporations more and more, since products must stand out above all the others amidst the abundance of good and services available today. It makes good sense, and sounds promising. I don't know what the case is today, in this economy, four years after Pink's book came out. But I would say an overall trend since even as far back as the 1970s is hard to beat in a several months or more of recession.
This reminds me of the increase in seminary enrollment in the past five years, and the more holistic approach many are taking, seeing seminary like law school--a place to get training that can apply to nearly any field, and not necessarily aiming for congregational ministry after graduation. It is interesting to notice seminary enrollment rise but preachers diminish. The definition of ministry has broadened (I would say "is broadening" but that's simply not the case; it already has broadened, regardless of whether the institutions realize and support this shift or not). I haven't seen any figures, but I would guess that employers, religious or not, are coming to value seminary education, with its focus on empathy, creating meaning, and nurturing communities.
Some schools are combining the Master of Divinity with a Juris Doctor (JD), Master of Social Work, and Master of Business Administration.
We have yet to see how this trend affects us long-term, and how quickly seminaries jump on board, if at all. In any event, this signifies a significant change for the way we approach vocation and life in general.
This reminds me of the increase in seminary enrollment in the past five years, and the more holistic approach many are taking, seeing seminary like law school--a place to get training that can apply to nearly any field, and not necessarily aiming for congregational ministry after graduation. It is interesting to notice seminary enrollment rise but preachers diminish. The definition of ministry has broadened (I would say "is broadening" but that's simply not the case; it already has broadened, regardless of whether the institutions realize and support this shift or not). I haven't seen any figures, but I would guess that employers, religious or not, are coming to value seminary education, with its focus on empathy, creating meaning, and nurturing communities.
Some schools are combining the Master of Divinity with a Juris Doctor (JD), Master of Social Work, and Master of Business Administration.
We have yet to see how this trend affects us long-term, and how quickly seminaries jump on board, if at all. In any event, this signifies a significant change for the way we approach vocation and life in general.
