Apologetics and Outreach:
FSI and Missions
Reaching the World for Christ
Training future pastors and other leaders for Christ's Church to communicate God's Word effectively involves not only deep study and understanding of the Bible, but also an understanding of and love for the cultures and peoples in which those leaders will be living and ministering. To that end, Covenant Seminary seeks to prepare students to engage compassionately with the contemporary world -- both in the United States and abroad -- while also defending reasonably the truth claims of the Gospel.
Francis A. Schaeffer Institute
Begun in 1989, the Francis A. Schaeffer Institute (affectionately known as FSI) is a ministry of Covenant Theological Seminary that provides training in the areas of evangelism, apologetics, and cultural analysis. The Christian Gospel is universal and unchanging, but the cultural contexts in which this message must be proclaimed is ever-changing. The Institute's task is to assist the Church in making that message comprehensible and relevant in the contemporary cultural context.
The Institute is named for the late Dr. Francis Schaeffer, who, with his wife Edith, began L'Abri Fellowship in Switzerland in the 1950s. The Schaeffers sought to develop a Christian community committed to demonstrating the reality of the God of the Bible and to answering the heartfelt questions of visitors in an atmosphere of hospitality. Their commitment was to intellectual integrity and an authentic spirituality. The Institute brings these same emphases and some of the same methods to the academic environment of the Seminary. The Institute engages in various ministries itself, models ministry for students, and provides ministry resources to congregations or groups eager to reach out in meaningful dialogue to the surrounding culture.
Learn more about the Francis A. Schaeffer Institute.
Learn about upcoming events sponsored by FSI.
World Mission at Covenant Seminary
"Behold, I am making all things new" (Rev. 21:5).
The grace-driven ministry of God's Word involves leading God's people as they participate in His mission to redeem the cosmos, to make all things new. The triune God graciously works among all peoples to grant faith in Jesus Christ, maturing of the Church, and foretastes of the heavenly city.
Covenant Seminary's emphasis and training in World Mission is to integrate this type of mission mindset throughout the curriculum and seminary community. Because communication of the Gospel across cultures is an essential aspect of Christian world mission, World Mission instruction seeks to cultivate an understanding of each student's own culture, as well as that of others. Additionally, the World Mission emphasis at Covenant Seminary includes opportunities for practical experience in cross-cultural ministry to equip students for lifelong participation in God's mission to the world. These opportunities include unique internships under the direct guidance of Presbyterian Mission International (PMI) missionaries who are serving in their own (or similar) countries.
Learn more about World Mission studies at Covenant Seminary.
Learn about Upcoming Events sponsored by World Mission.
Urban Ministry Initiative
Covenant Seminary's Urban Ministry Initiative (UMI) seeks to help every seminary student develop a broader Kingdom perspective through an emphasis on Biblical principles -- such as justice, mercy, and reconciliation -- and a consideration of the implications of those principles for the Church as it ministers in the urban centers of our nation and the world. UMI's goal is to prepare God's servants to proclaim and demonstrate the Gospel of the Kingdom in a variety of urban and multi-cultural contexts around the globe.
UMI works in close partnership with both the World Mission department and the Francis A. Schaeffer Institute. Training takes place through courses and special seminars that survey subjects such as church-based community ministry, the Gospel and race, urban and multi-cultural church planting, youth ministry across cultures, poverty from a Biblical perspective, and more. Through networking with local urban churches, Covenant Seminary students have the opportunity to gain valuable ministry experience and fulfill field education requirements.
Learn more about Urban Ministry Initiative at Covenant Seminary.
Learn about Upcoming Events sponsored by UMI.
Center for Ministry Leadership
Covenant Seminary is concerned not only with finding the best ways to train pastors for future ministry, but also with how to sustain them for long-term service to the Church. In 2004, with the assistance of a generous grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., the Seminary instituted the Center for Ministry Leadership, an education and research initiative focused on changing lives and transforming churches through engagement with effective ministry leaders. The Center, under the direction of Dr. Bob Burns, explores issues related to sustaining pastoral ministry.
Learn more about the Center for Minstry Leadership at Covenant Seminary.
Learn about Upcoming Events sponsored by the Center.
