The Bridges Project
The Bridges Project was designed to research life-giving practices of youth ministry, to address the burnout rate common to the first years of youth ministry, and to discover approaches to youth ministry that cause leaders and young people to thrive. The Bridges Project, sponsored by the Institute for Youth Ministry at Princeton Theological Seminary and funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc, concluded its work in January 2004.
The Building Bridges Project
The Building Bridges Project is a 3-year research project of the Institute for Youth Ministry and Lilly Endowment Inc. Building Bridges is designed to provide continuing education, community, and professional support for 18 pastors serving in congregational youth/young adult ministry. In consultation with the congregations that the 18 pastors serve, the Building Bridges Project will explore the ways congregations support ministry with youth and young adults.
Faithful Practices Project
The Faithful Practices Project is a 28- month research project sponsored by Princeton Theological Seminary and funded by Lilly Endowment, Inc. The main purpose of this project is to construct a new way to understand faith formation and discipleship, one that builds on the concept of congregational practices and empowers the church to deepen and broaden its witness in the world. These new understandings will not only inform how congregations do ministry, they also have implications for how theological education is done as well.
The Joe R. Engle Institute of Preaching
The Engle Institute is a weeklong continuing education event that was envisioned and made possible by the dream and generosity of Joe R. Engle, a member of the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City. The institute is designed to nurture and strengthen the craft of those who preach, whether weekly or occasionally, whether in city, suburb, small town, rural community, or other specialized ministries. Engle Fellows and faculty gather for the week to participate together in the hospitality of the seminar room, the dinner table, and the chapel pew. Engle Fellows reconnect vocationally with friends as they practice the craft of preaching in the company of colleagues.
Institute for Youth Ministry
Princeton Theological Seminary established the Institute for Youth Ministry in 1995 as an international center offering theological education and specialized training in youth ministry for church leaders. Princeton Theological Seminary carries out the mission of the Institute for Youth Ministry by initiating and integrating research related to the church's ministry with young people, offering doctoral and master's degree programs, and offering an extensive program of leadership development.
PTS Older Adult Ministry Aging Initiative
The PTS Older Adult Ministry and Aging Initiative, under the direction of Abigail Rian Evans, was formed with the three-fold purpose to: Provide future church leaders with the knowledge and skills to become educators of senior adults on human development issues, wholistic living, and end-of-life planning; Partner with older adults in enhancing their quality of life, regaining their honored place in society; and Awaken the church to the needs of our over 65 population, providing knowledge-based pastoral care, and empowering the elderly for leadership within the life of the church and community.
This Initiative will gather information from church-based programs, resources, and research centers around the country that focus on ministry with older adults and the aging population. In addition, the Initiative will develop specific courses and programs for Princeton Theological Seminary in order to equip the institution, our alumni, current and future students to assume an expanding role in this field and this important ministry of the church, here and abroad.
On March 15-17, 2006, a Consultation on Older Adult Ministries will be convened on the Princeton Theological Seminary Campus. Invited participants from a variety of pertinent constituencies (practitioners, ministers, Presbytery executives, seminary and university faculty) will participate in this important conversation.
The intention of the Consultation on Older Adult Ministries is to determine how pastors and seminaries can be equipped to create effective ministries to, with and from the older adult population. Among the questions to be discussed and responded to are:
- What do effective congregational ministries to, with and from the older adult population look like, and what ministries do they offer?
- What types of preparation do ministers need in order to provide vision, innovation and leadership in the development of these ministries? What are seminaries doing to train ministers?
- What educational and practical programs do seminaries need to offer for effective pastoral preparation in minstry with older adults?