Collaborative Chinese Doctor of Ministry
Chinese Churches around the globe are among the fasting growing segment in world Christianity today. To meet the increased need for training, York Theological Seminary (NYTS) and New York Theological Education Center (NYTEC) have entered into a collaborative effort to offer a Doctor of Ministry for Chinese speaking church leaders.
At a ceremony in Queens, New York, NYTS President Dale T. Irvin and NYTEC’s Timothy Chiu signed a historic “Memorandum of Understanding.” The memorandum calls for NYTS to begin offering the Doctor of Ministry to Chinese-speaking candidates in the fall of 2010. Candidates will form a new cohort group within the Seminary’s existing doctoral program. NYTS will oversee instruction in English and Chinese and grant the degree.
Existing Online Chinese Resources Tapped
NYTEC has been developing online Chinese language resources for theological education for more than a decade. The NYTC Master of Divinity degree is now in process of review for accreditation in Asia. Members of the NYTEC faculty who teach in the D. Min program will join the NYTS faculty as Affiliate members, and will be joined by other members of the NYTS Core Faculty in offering instruction in the program. Coursework will be completed in intensive formats in New York City, supported by additional work online.
Churches in China as well as among Chinese speaking communities around the globe are among the fasting growing segment in world Christianity today. This growth has significantly increased the needs for ministerial training in China and elsewhere. For many Chinese church leaders, opportunities for advanced theological education are severely limited. Many Chinese church leaders are also seeking to gain a greater understanding of Christianity in other parts of the world. The NYTS-NYTEC partnership, supported by the diversity of world Christian experience now found within New York City today, will address those needs.
New York Theological Seminary has long been training women and men for ministry in China and among Chinese speaking communities elsewhere throughout the world. Over the past four decades the Seminary has also increasingly partnered with both educational institutions and churches whose mission aligns with that of NYTS.
NYTEC has been a pioneer in developing theological education on a global scale in Chinese through online learning. The Chinese Online School of Theology now offers a Master of Divinity degree, which is in the process of application for accreditation through the Asian Theological Association. NYTEC works as well with accredited schools of theological education in China. Among its graduates are a number of emerging church leaders in China and other parts of the world. Making use an extensive network of relationships in China, NYTEC promises not only to be able to recruit candidates for the program, but to secure the necessary permissions to allow those who are accepted and enrolled to come to New York City for the required periods of intensive study.
NYTS and NYTEC will be jointly working to identify new sources of scholarship and support for this program. In return, candidates in the program will be invited to visit supporting churches during the periods of intensive instruction in New York City in order to preach as well as provide information on the situation of Christianity in China today. Candidates who receive scholarship support will also be asked to commit themselves to returning to serve in the regional or national context from which they come for a minimum of three years following graduation from the NYTS program, in order to insure that the benefits of the degree are passed along to the churches in these parts of the world.
A video of the signing ceremony as well as comments by President Irvin and Vice President Moody-Shepherd can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/user/NewYorkTheoSem?feature=mhw4
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NYTS and NYTEC in the News
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