Preaching Festival at Baylor University Offers a Chance to Hear Future Pastors

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WACO, Texas (Nov. 5, 2012) -- People who don't want to wait until Sunday for a sermon -- and who would like to hear preaching from the pastors of tomorrow -- can do so at a free festival at Baylor University's George W. Truett Theological Seminary on Tuesday, Nov. 6, and Thursday, Nov. 8.
Many aspiring pastors have only a limited number of opportunities to preach as they prepare for their ministries, said Kessa Payne, administrative associate with The Kyle Lake Center for Effective Preaching at Truett.
"This gives them a chance to do so," she said. "Some of these students have never preached a sermon in their lives."
Sermons will last about 15 minutes each, she said. The Truett students will preach in front of professors and local pastors as well as others who wish to attend.
The teaching chapel offers an intimate setting, and seminary students will receive immediate oral feedback from pastors and professors, she said. The panel also completes written assessments to be handed out at sermon's end, and a video is made of the sermon for the student's use in preparing future sermons.
Participants will choose from four themes: Preaching Gospel in the City; Doing Justice in the City; Making Home in the City; and Finding Hope in the City. They are given several Bible passages to choose from to prepare their sermons.
The festival, with no cost to attend, will be from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 6; and from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 8, in the Teaching Chapel, Room 109, at George W. Truett Theological Seminary, 1100 S. Third St. on Baylor's campus in Waco. Visitors may park in Dutton Parking Garage, 1111 S. University Parks Drive at the Dutton Avenue intersection. For more information, contact Kessa Payne at (254) 710-6874 or preaching@baylor.edu
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian university and a nationally ranked research institution, characterized as having "high research activity" by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The university provides a vibrant campus community for approximately 15,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating university in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 11 nationally recognized academic divisions.
ABOUT GEORGE W. TRUETT THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
Baylor University's George W. Truett Theological Seminary provides theological education leading to the Master of Divinity, the Doctor of Ministry or the Master of Theological Studies degree that is centered in the gospel of Jesus Christ and consistent with historic Baptist commitments to prepare persons to carry this gospel to the churches and the world. Within the M.Div. degree program, students can choose concentrations in Biblical Studies and Theology, Christian Education, Ministry Leadership, Missions and World Christianity, Worship Leadership and Youth/Family/Student Ministry. Truett Seminary also offers two Dual Degree programs - M.Div./MSW and MTS/MSW - through a partnership with Baylor's School of Social Work and an M.Div./Master of Music through a partnership with the Baylor University School of Music.