Gordon Conwell with D.Min. on Global Pentecostalism

First Residency Dates: March 2016

Informing

The growth and expansion of the church in the global south is widely recognized by church historians, missiologists, and the popular media.  For example, it is widely recognized that more people read the Bible in Spanish than in any other modern language.  A significant segment of this growth is to be found within the Pentecostal Christian experience.  This specialized Doctor of Ministry track will seek to provide a historical and theological overview of the Pentecostal experience (examining the past) while preparing students for service now and throughout the 21st century.

The primary aim is to equip men and women with the insights and tools that will empower them to lead Pentecostal congregations and denominations in vibrant ministry in the 21st century.

Forming

A variety of adult educational methods will be incorporated into this program, meaning that the overall thrust is learner-driven, facilitated by expertise of our world-class faculty-mentors.  It is up to the student to tailor the program to suit his/her needs and interests.  In general, the program is constructed around three annual residency periods.

During the six months prior to each residency period, students will reflect on a number of books and articles in a reading journal.  In total about 6,000-9,000 pages will be read by the end of the program, including required texts and selections from the bibliography.  A number of assignments will need to be completed before each residency period begins.

In our two-week residency periods over the three years, we will utilize diagnostic tools, case study discussions, practical lectures, task force groups, mentoring sessions and on-site consultations with seasoned experts in a variety of fields.

Sample readings include:

• Albrecht, Daniel E. “Rites in the Spirit: A Ritual Approach to Pentecostal/Charsimatic Spirituality.”  JPTS 17. Sheffield, Sheffield Academic Press, 1999.
• Alexander, Estrella and Amos Young (eds.). Philip’s Daughters: Women in Pentecostal-Charismatic Leadership. Eugene, Oregon: Pickwick Publications, 2009
• Alfaro, Sammy. Divino Compañero: Toward a Hispanic Pentecostal Christology. Eugene, Oregon: Pickwick Publication, 2010.
• Álvarez, Carmelo, ed. Pentecostalismo y Liberación: Una Experiencia Latinoamericana. Costa Rica: DEI, 1992
• Álvarez, C.; Correa, P.; Poblete, M.; and Guell, P. Historia de la Iglesia Pentecostal de Chile. Santiago: Ediciones Rehue Ltda. No date.
• Althouse, Peter. Spirit of the Last Days: Pentecostal Eschatology in Conversation with Jürgen Motlmann. London: T&T Clark International, 2003.
• Jones, Charles Edwin. A Guide to the Study of the Pentecostal Movement. 2 Vols. Metuchen, Scarecrow, 1983.
• Jones, Charles Edwin. Black Holiness: A Guide to the Study of Black Participants in Wesleyan Perfectionist and Glossolaic Pentecostal Movements. Metuchen, Scarecrow, 1987.
• Mills, E. Charismatic Religion in Modern Research: A Bibliography. Macon, Mercer University Press, 1985.
• Stanley, Burgess, Gary McGee, Patrick Alexander. Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements. Grand Rapids, Regency Reference Library, 1988.

To order these books through Christian Book Distributors, visit gcts.christianbook.com.

Transforming

Here is how your studies will transform you and your ministry:

• To resource students through a biblically-grounded educational program taught by faculty who are committed to God’s Word and the application of principles of Scripture to the issues of contemporary culture.
  • Students will be able to explain how all authentically relevant pastoral ministry must flow out of the truth of God’s Word and be filled with the same Holy Spirit who inspired Scripture.
• To form in students a sound foundation of theological and biblical inquiry in their professional doctoral program’s specialized track that they are able to integrate into the life of Christian ministry.
  • Students will be able to begin formulating their own distinctively Pentecostal pastoral theology that will inform how they live out their own relationship with God and how they seek to encourage others to do so.
  • Students will be able to more intentionally apply a Pentecostal hermeneutic to their application of Scripture in their preaching, teaching, caregiving, and leadership.
• To provide students with the skill set and understandings in a specialized area of ministry to such an extent that they can impact their congregation or community more powerfully for God.
  • Students will be able to help believers experience God more fully through their preaching and caregiving.
  • Students will be able to develop strategic plans for mission and ministry and lead others in carrying these out through the power of the Holy Spirit.
• To create through the cohort model of the program a dimension of Christian community and spiritual nurturing so that students form strong friendships with one another and enter long-term relationships with the scholars who guide the learning experience.
  • Students will be able to experience corporate dimensions of Pentecostalism as an interdenominational and multi-cultural movement though shared times of worship, testimony, and prayer.
• To develop in students a deeper understanding of Christ’s lordship in all areas of life for the common good of the contemporary world.
  • Students will be able to lead others in applying biblical truth to engage ethically their broader social contexts.
• To cultivate within students through critical reflection and careful research through the residencies and projects an enriched Christian witness in the places of society they are called to serve.
  • Students will be able to bridge the “credibility gap” between what they profess to believe and what they are actually experiencing in their relationship with Christ, leading to more authentic, compelling witness.
• To instill in students a refreshed view of their ministry as it relates to the proclamation of the Gospel among all people.
  • Students will be able to experience and explain that spiritual formation is not a form of sanctified self-help but the foundation of the Great Commission, as they grow in appreciating the reality of Christ’s living presence in their lives:  “And surely, I am with you always”—Matthew 28:20