Collaborations: Mission as an interactive endeavor

Traditionally, pastors have dispensed the sacraments of Jesus Christ, interpreted scripture, pointed others to God, set an example in moral living, and provided reassurance in times of distress. A generation ago, this tradition focused upon the individual pastor and his or her professional preparation by the Seminary.

Today, we live in a world with less confidence in finality, and growing awareness of the human cost of individualism and the importance of the biblical vision of a people called and formed for God’s mission.

The same pastoral responsibilities continue, but the rapidly changing global and local contexts require more collaboration with other disciplines and engagement with other faith traditions. This strategic document addresses new and expanded initiatives that can enhance our service to the gospel in the decades ahead. That service to the gospel remains crucial, which means that our long tradition of theological scholarship in service of the church will not be compromised.

A responsibility for pastors today is to enable others in community to see beyond shallow certainties. All our seeing is limited; all our judgments are partisan; and much of the world is beyond Christian comprehension.

Therefore, the Seminary’s service to the church in the 21st century must include the following objectives:

• Formation of leaders who will be fluent, courageous spokespeople who are capable of being both insiders and outsiders. They will be leaders who do not fear, but welcome, what is unfamiliar and complex.

• Challenge the sectarianism of modern intelligentsia and cultural and national xenophobia.

• Engagement in interfaith dialogue with the world’s religions, both here and abroad, with special attention to the Abrahamic family. Involvement in building two-way bridges toward the Hispanic presence in the U.S. in which all leaders will learn to negotiate cultural differences from either end.

In furtherance of these objectives, the Seminary will seek to create a series of collaborations of different kinds. They might include:

• Collaboration with world-class research institutions (dialogue and multifaceted collaboration with Princeton University will be encouraged at every level).

• Collaboration with world institutions in the southern hemisphere (possibly Near East School of Theology; Trinity, Singapore; St Paul’s, Limuru; Bangalore)

• Collaboration with a selection of American graduate and professional schools (law schools, medical schools, business schools)

• Collaboration with local congregations both at home and abroad

All faculty would be encouraged if possible to engage in at least two such exchanges during any 12-year period at Princeton Theological Seminary, thereby gaining cross-cultural experience, and enabling exchange partners to teach on our campus.

In a similar way, we would seek to encourage at least four kinds of visitors:

• Those with brilliant research records and reputations who will challenge us intellectually, and make specialist use of our libraries

• Those from places where Christianity is either struggling or abundant in very different ways, who will challenge our parochialism and the narrowness of our plenitude

• Those from sister professional schools who have greater wisdom and experience than we of contemporary secular culture and the world our students will enter.

• Those who are on the cutting edge of truly effective ministry in this country.

Strategic Plan 2006–2009 Home