COMMUNITY MINISTRY PROGRAM

The CM program's underlying theory comes from these theological and experience based understandings:

  • "Public ministry”–serving the world’s needs – is the proper work of the Church.

  • Successful public ministry requires leaders who can motivate church members to become involved in such ‘external’ work.

  • This motivation will require the leader to be able to nurture the members adequately so they are able to look beyond their own needs.

Thus, to be successful, “public ministers” must have two sets of skills – in parish work and in social change work – and know how to integrate them in practice. Standard theological seminary training does not provide this type of training, nor is it currently being provided in this form by any other training program in the United States of which we are aware.

 

2022-2023 Community Ministers

 

Emily Farthing (she/her) is from Eugene, Oregon but comes to New York from Rio de Janeiro where she has been living for the past 5 years studying housing in Rio’s favelas and growing her passion for photography. She is a second-year Master of Divinity Candidate from Union Theological Seminary interested in exploring how arts, specifically photography, can help us dive deeper into knowing historical female figures in sacred texts. She worked last year with the Poor People’s Campaign doing photography and social media and is excited to be at Judson this year learning with you all!

 
 

Nebraska-born, Florida-raised, and recent New York transplant, 2022 has been a major year for Brooks Rumer Snedeker-Applegate (he/him). He got married to the love of his life in May and is working towards a Master of Divinity at Union Theological Seminary. Beginning his second year, his scholarly interests center on philosophy, theology, and social ethics; while his professional aspirations have him seeking ordination in the United Church of Christ. At Judson, he hopes to serve the community by promoting Fellowship, Love, and Justice.

 

Vashti Valerius (she/her) received her calling to attend New York Theological Seminary in the winter of 2020. She is working toward obtaining her Master's in Divinity while specializing in Chaplaincy. Vashti is passionate about mentoring women from underserved communities that lack educational resources. Seeing inadequate support in these communities, Vashti created a nonprofit called Crowned for Greatness Inc. This organization focuses on mentoring young women from disproportionate communities by helping them receive scholarships for college. Once Vashti receives her Master's in Divinity, she plans to obtain her Doctorate.

 

Gillian Walsh (she/her) is a queer performing artist and craniosacral therapist from Brooklyn, NY. She is a choreographer and has presented work in recent years at The Kitchen, Performance Space New York, Performa and others. Her newest work is going up at Gropius Bau in Berlin this Fall and her next dance will premiere at Danspace Project at St. Marks Church in 2023. She has worked as a performer for a range of experimental artists in downtown NY for the past decade and is currently working for Richard Maxwell/New York City Players and is 1/2 of the band Gods Not Finished with friend and performance artist Neal Medlyn. Gillian works at the intersection of theology and performance, understanding the artist as prophet and art practice as sacred ministry. Gillian runs a sliding scale craniosacral practice (a holistic trauma informed bodywork practice) focused on accessibility and low income queer/trans clients. She’s a second year MDiv student at Union Theological Seminary.

 

Elliot Weidenaar (they/he) is a former political operative, most recently from the midwest. They've been working in politics for the past twelve years. They come to Judson from the Dutch reformed tradition and currently go to Union Theological Seminary. They are very excited to learn and serve in the continued legacy of Judson.

 

PROGRAM BACKGROUND

Soon after Donna Schaper was called as Judson Church’s Senior Minister in 2006, she proposed a new program to train a small group of seminarians in the kind of progressive, inclusive, world-serving ministry that both she and Judson Church had been doing for many years: a “Training Program on Public Ministry from a Parish Base”. Judson’s lay leaders agreed to try this idea and created a pilot program for the 2006-07 academic year, with five students, financed by spending down a donor-designated fund from the church’s small reserves.

That pilot program, which is now familiarly called the “Community Ministry” program, proved successful and Judson was eager to continue it, but could not, without significant outside funding. The E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation came to the rescue with a generous grant that completely underwrote the 2007-08 academic year, and 10 students were trained that year. In subsequent years, the Community Ministry program has tried varying formats and class sizes – all with continuing partial funding from the Carpenter Foundation, plus gradually increasing funds from additional sources – for all of which Judson is immensely grateful.

The Judson program assigns the students to work at least 15 hours a week, including attending Judson worship on Sundays and participating in a weekly three-hour seminar led by Judson’s two clergy and two lay leaders, at which a combination of formal instruction and mutual discussion helps students solidify their learnings from their experiences of the prior week. The rest of their time is spent on their assigned tasks, both standard pastoral tasks (which can include aspects of worship leadership, education, pastoral care, and administration) and also external ministry tasks. Students are paid a small monthly stipend for the academic year and receive regular individual supervision from the clergy.