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Lux Lex Pax

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Everything posted by Lux Lex Pax

  1. I'm pretty sure whites, males, heterosexuals, and Christians still constitute the majority at most, if not all, seminaries and divinity schools.
  2. As a PTS alum, I can say that this is not necessarily true. It's viewed as preparation for ministry, with a select few going on to do Phd's. When I was there, many students made a big deal of the clear division between future Phd students and those headed for ministry. Also, the M.Div. at PTS is unique in that it doesn't offer a two-year degree like an M.T.S. or M.A.R., so the M.Div. plays that role by default. But the question still stands, why do a three-year degree when a two-year degree is just as good if not better? Unless one really wants to study at PTS or go into ministry, doing an M.Div. to go into a completely different professional field doesn't make sense.
  3. The M.Div. isn't only for people who intend to go into church ministry; people with M.Div.'s go into other kinds of ministry or manage non-profits, etc. If you know for sure that you don't want to go into ministry and are interested in a completely different professional field, I'd recommend doing an M.T.S. or M.A.R. They're usually two years long, more academically oriented, and give you the training of the M.Div. without all the training in preaching and pastoral theology and the extra field education.
  4. You can start here: http://graduate-scho...______________U This info isn't the most up to date, but it should give you a rough a idea of where they stood before the recession. You should also ask current students and faculty. If they aren't open and honest about it, that may be a sign of trouble down the road. *Edit: I should also say, judging by some of the results, that even when this info was up to date it doesn't mean it was completely accurate. It looks like some schools manipulated the data, so take it with a grain of salt.
  5. Instead of giving you my honest opinion, I think the best way of ascertaining GTU's reputation is to see what the job placement rate of their graduates is and where they place them (research universities, liberal arts colleges, seminaries, post-docs, etc.). Anything else is too subjective and manipulable. Look at the cold, hard data.
  6. These are interesting points. The point about the church losing when it climbs into bed with the state was actually one of the concerns driving the founders when they disestablished the church from the federal government in the First Amendment. However, I want to push back a little on the point about the church's prophetic role. I think there's a lot of talk nowadays about being prophetic, but can't the church play other roles as well? Perhaps we err when we ascribe to the "church" any role. Perhaps we should only talk about the role of individuals and groups of Christians, but not about the "church" in its institutional form. I think it's inevitable that Christians will occupy positions of power in a country where they are the majority. If they abdicated their civic responsibility, who would govern? Non-believers? It seems to me that Christians can and should play various roles -- prophetic, priestly, kingly, etc. -- because all of them are necessary. The difficult part is finding the right balance between them.
  7. Onoma, I agree. I think the current configuration of political ideologies and parties is such that it's nearly impossible for a candidate to be for economic justice, immigration reform, environmental protection AND pro-life or at least for reducing the number of abortions. The first 3 have been the traditional bailiwick of Democrats; whereas, the latter of the Republicans. Some Republicans have hinted at immigration reform, but each time they were chastised by the far right, nativist/xenophobic element of their party. I think the Democrats can really reach out to this demographic, but the Democrats are unlikely to budge on abortion.
  8. These boards are slow. I'm kind of hoping to start an interesting discussion. Here's an article: http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/09/the-new-evangelicals/?hp. Anyone have any thoughts?
  9. Performing well at any of the first 8 programs on your M.Div./M.T.S. list could get you into a good Phd. program. [i noticed you didn't apply to Yale Div.; you should.] Obviously the more competitive programs -- like Duke, Yale, Princeton, Harvard and to a lesser extent U. Chicago -- tend to place more people into elite programs, but that outcome is not set in stone. You want to do very well in whatever program you end up at in order to make up for your low undergraduate gpa. Work closely with faculty and secure good letters of recommendation. Study for and retake the GRE, as those scores are not competitive. Produce a good writing sample and statement of purpose. In short, the door is not closed, but you will have to work hard to compensate from a slightly weaker undergrad record. My recommendation is that if you get into Duke, Yale, Princeton, or Harvard, go if it's economically feasible, as those schools based on my own observations tend to produce an inordinate number of Phd. students in elite graduate religion/theology programs.
  10. Yeah, it's a crap shoot. Unfortunately, the objectivity of the law school application process is only made possible by over emphasizing quantifiable metrics like the GRE and GPA. I can see why such a mechanical process of admission isn't amendable to the kind of critical and creative thinking encouraged by Phd. programs. I just want to know my odds! Haha.
  11. This whole process is so nerve wracking! I wish applying to Phd. programs was like applying to law school in that you can quite accurately determine ex ante your odds of admission. We need something like this: http://www.hourumd.com/
  12. I wasn't accepted anywhere; I was invited to recruitment weekend.
  13. I was notified by phone. I'd rather not share information that can be used to identify me. However, I will say that I think there is a push to get everyone who is going to the recruitment weekend to make arrangements soon because airfare is a lot cheaper if tickets are purchased at least two weeks prior.
  14. Emory recruitment weekend is on February 3 and 4. They are already notifying applicants for interviews.
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