Great question!!!
I am torn on this. On one hand, I would love to see a 60 credit MDiv w/ prompt to a specialized ThM or something. But I also realize that ministry requires a large many fields to cover: languages/linguistics, Bib studies, theology, history, and then actual ministry stuff (preaching, shepherding, church structures, etc.). Modern day ministry is complex and requires many avenues of studies. This is probably what spurred (in part) the Bible college movement.
You know the Bible college movement was a response to two things: 1) the Liberalism of too many of the seminaries (or at least the perceived liberalism by fundamentalists) and 2) the need for ministry training that worked for their churches. So I agree with your point...as well as the other points here.
I just don't see how you can do a MDiv in under 90 hours. Keep the 90 hours, but make it more significant. Make it a rigorous, a law school and medical school rigorous, degree. Require practicums and internships. Have student interact with actual ministers in lab environments. Make them be provoked to learn ministry paradigms. Bring in experts, not just theoreticians (i.e. scholars) who are building sustainable ministries. Have them talk to a minister who has been serving the same church for 40 years and have faithfully led it.
Keep the theological foundations and the language requirements. But if a student wants to load up on extra theology and biblical studies credits, point them to the ThM after their MDiv.
The degree is a good degree but it isn't producing leaders who are ready for ministry. If a medical school was turning out class after class of doctors who couldn't perform basic medical tasks we'd demand it to be shut down. If a law school was producing lawyers who couldn't pass the bar exam year after year it'd be sanctioned and lose it ability to place lawyers. Yet we see these basic failures, in ministry perspective, from seminaries too frequently.
It's got to change. And lowering the bar won't help. But making the degree more theological won't either.
I disagree with this. I would qualify and say "only by scholars." Balance.
A fair point.
As the MDiv stands today it has been designed for a church of last century and is led mostly by academics who have little to no church ministry experience. I remember sitting in more than a couple seminary classes with a professor (often younger guys, but also an established one) who would say things about ministry that those of us in ministry would roll our eyes and know it reflected a perspective unfamiliar with actual ministry.
There are parts of the MDiv curriculum that are vital and should be maintained. Yet, as I mentioned above, as a full time minister, there is stuff that isn't helpful for actual ministry. Better classes could be inserted and the students better prepared.
A lot of this is, and its not just my opinion, is due to academics maintaining the education paradigm and a lack of input from present day practitioners.
