Baylor Receives $9.76M Lilly Endowment Inc. Grant for Truett Seminary
Pathways for Tomorrow funding supports Truett Seminary’s innovative Ministry for Life initiative
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Baylor University has received a $9.76 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to launch and provide financial support for the innovative Ministry for Life initiative at Baylor’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary.
The Ministry for Life initiative is funded through Lilly Endowment’s Pathways for Tomorrow Initiative, which is designed to help theological schools across the U.S. and Canada as they prioritize and respond to the most pressing challenges they face while preparing pastoral leaders for Christian congregations now and into the future. The grant to Baylor University is one of 45 approved in this competitive round of Lilly Endowment funding to support theological schools as they lead large-scale collaborations with other seminaries, colleges and universities, and church-related organizations.
Ministry for Life
Truett Seminary’s Ministry for Life initiative is based upon and animated by a collaborative, comprehensive approach to pastoral formation intended to span the ministerial lifecycle. The program is organized around four related pillars:
- Shaping cultures of call,
- Educating the called,
- Placing the educated and
- Supporting the placed.
The grant-funded effort aims to build rich, reciprocal relationships among leaders, congregations, denominations, educational institutions and church-related organizations through the Ministry for Life Center with a view to equipping healthy ministers to lead healthy churches over the long haul.
“For a number of years of now, several of my Truett colleagues and I, along with many of our ministerial partners, have grown increasingly concerned about a decreasing number of people embracing and preparing formally for vocational ministry and an increasing number burning out and dropping out of the same,” said Todd D. Still, Ph.D., The Charles J. and Eleanor McLerran DeLancey Dean and The William M. Hinson Chair of Christian Scriptures at Truett Seminary. "This generous, indeed transformative, grant from Lilly Endowment, which is the largest such gift Truett Seminary has received to date, enables us to collaborate with others to address this systemic concern. At scale, we are convinced that Ministry for Life will have a considerable impact and will help to create and establish virtuous ministerial cycles that will extend the gospel and strengthen congregations.”
Supporting “faithful, healthy congregations”
Truett’s Ministry for Life program, which is due to become an endowed, permanent center at the Seminary, will be supervised by Truett faculty and staff members Angela Reed, Ph.D., associate dean of academic affairs, associate professor of practical theology and director of spiritual formation; Jack Bodenhamer, D.Min., assistant dean of external affairs; and Michael Mauriello, Ph.D., associate clinical professor of youth and family ministry. The five-year grant will allow for a number of staff hires to support the initiative’s work.
“We are beyond grateful for this opportunity to build upon the work of teaching and encouraging those with a call to ministry by developing new collaborative degrees and academic certificates, mentoring young people drawn to ministry leadership and walking alongside pastors already serving for the long haul,” said Reed, who is the grant’s principal investigator. “No theological school does this work alone, and we are very pleased to collaborate with denominations, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations in this project to support faithful, healthy congregations for God’s purposes in the world.”
Additionally, Bodenhamer, co-investigator on the grant, said, “We are honored to begin this collaborative work and are confident that this generous grant will help shape the landscape of the Church in North America for generations to come. Its holistic approach – supporting ministers, churches, denominations, educational institutions and para-church ministries – positions us to serve individual pastors and congregations while also fostering meaningful change at a broader systemic level.”
Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana, Pro Mundo
“In keeping with Baylor's expansive motto, Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana, Pro Mundo, Truett Seminary’s innovative Ministry for Life initiative with ecclesial partners both within and beyond Texas reflects our deep, abiding commitment to the Church in North America and to equipping future leaders for vibrant, lifelong ministry, not least through our Seminary,” said President Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D. “We are deeply grateful for the Lilly Endowment's continued partnership with Baylor University and for their faithful investment in the renewal of the Church and support of congregations. We look forward to continuing this good work together to strengthen the Church and support its leaders, both for today and for future generations.”
Lilly Endowment launched the Pathways for Tomorrow Initiative in 2021. Since then, it has provided grants totaling more than $700 million to support 163 theological schools in efforts to strengthen their own educational and financial capacities and to assist 61 schools in developing large-scale collaborative endeavors.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for 20,000 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 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.
ABOUT GEORGE W. TRUETT THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
George W. Truett Theological Seminary is an orthodox, evangelical, multi-denominational school in the historic Baptist tradition embedded into Baylor, a Christian R1 University. Truett’s mission is to equip God-called people for gospel ministry in and alongside Christ’s Church by the power of the Holy Spirit. Accredited by the Association of Theological Schools and affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas and the Baptist World Alliance, Truett Seminary provides theological education leading to the Master of Divinity, Master of Arts in Christian Ministry, Master of Arts in Contextual Witness and Innovation, Master of Arts in Theology, Ecology and Food Justice, Master of Arts in Theology and Sports Studies (online), Master of Theological Studies, Doctor of Ministry, and PhD in Preaching. In addition to a number of distinctive programs, institutes, and centers, Truett Seminary also offers joint degrees through Baylor University school/college partnerships in social work, business, law, music, and education. Besides its flagship Baugh-Reynolds Campus in Waco, the Seminary also has locations in Houston and San Antonio. Visit the Truett Seminary website.
ABOUT LILLY ENDOWMENT INC.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is a private foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion and maintains a special commitment to its hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana. A principal aim of the Endowment’s religion grantmaking is to deepen and enrich the lives of Christians in the United States, primarily by seeking out and supporting efforts that enhance the vitality of congregations and strengthen the pastoral and lay leadership of Christian communities. The Endowment also seeks to improve public understanding of about religion and lift up in fair, accurate and balanced ways the roles that people of all faiths and various religious communities play in the United State and around the globe traditions in the United States and across the globe.