Support Missional Theology Initiative
Most evangelical theological institutions are located in the West. Therefore, the way teachers present biblical doctrine is usually tailored for Western culture. This means that for many all over the world, the Bible can feel like a foreign story.
This is why the Missional Theology Initiative (MTI) was created.
Your support is critical as we develop the MTI program to train the next generation of leaders.
The Problem
It’s a problem when theological education either alienates or confuses students who simply want to reach their culture for Christ. Without contextualizing the curriculum, the gospel can feel inaccessible to people unless they culturally convert to Western ways of thinking. This causes cultural and communal divisions.
The Solution
MTI seeks to provide a contextualized theological curriculum with the opportunity to earn a Master of Arts in Missional Theology. This hybrid, ready-made program is being created for and will be led by the Global Church. It will give access to theological teaching that is meaningful for students across an array of cultural contexts.
MTI will change the way the world learns theology.
This new theology degree program will make more communities like the Kingdom of God by effectively training missional leaders for the realities they face in equipping God’s people to be a faithful witnessing presence in life, word, and deed.
Advik’s Story
Advik is a young man from India. If he decides he wants to become a pastor, he must learn a Western contextualized theology. This would cause him to become more detached and perhaps too alienated from the local community with whom he is trying to share the gospel.
One solution to this problem is to create a degree that gives students a rich theological education that both allows students to remain in their local context and teaches them to apply a biblical worldview to that setting.
Prioritizing the Bible’s overarching narrative is a major facet in teaching a theological approach that is both biblical and missional. Teaching in and through narrative well suits the way people learn in the Majority World. It helps students to communicate the gospel better reaching their communities and their families in ways that are accessible to them.
Your support will help create a critical foundation as we develop the MTI program.
Phase 1:
Audit various theological institutions, reviewing current programs being offered, including both framework and subject matter. We then research the standard core competencies of various courses as well as what relevant specializations and contextualized content. This phase requires around 8-9 months and involves creating draft syllabi for each course, which are reviewed by subject matter experts, who provide feedback.
Phase 3:
This phase overlaps with phase 2 as we begin to receive recorded courses. We will set those up on an online platform (LMS).
Phase 2:
Recruit professors to record their courses from a variety of theological backgrounds and cultural contexts. Our goal is to recruit at least 25 different scholars from around the world, intentionally seeking both men and women. This phase should be 12-18 months.
Phase 4:
Here is where we focus on course details such as quizzes, assignments, editing videos, making keynotes etc. This phase should take about 6 months to complete.
Want to Know More?
Do you want to learn more about this innovative teaching program? Click below to get a more in-depth look at MTI.
We Need Your Help
Our estimated start for students is Fall 2023. Please give now and help us reach our goal. Your support means we can bring contextualized theology to students across the globe and train the theological leaders of tomorrow.
Are You a Professor?
MTI seeks to find professors from around the world who specialize in different academic areas of study who can bring diverse approaches to theological learning. Find out more about how you can join us!
About Mission ONE
MTI is a Mission ONE project and we're proud to continue making communities around the world more like the Kingdom of God through theological training.
Mission ONE envisions a world where every community is transformed for the glory of God and the honor of all peoples. Through the Global Church, we provide creative solutions, training, and support to help strengthen communities and bring hope to people in the hardest places. Working globally, with national and indigenous leaders, together we are making communities more like the Kingdom of God.
Mission ONE addresses a variety of problems from unemployment and unclean water to faithlessness and poor theology through strategic projects, training, and relief.