“When I was looking for a seminary, I was looking for (one) that was pastorally relevant, academically rigorous, and community grounded,” said Sam Ha, a student at Calvin Theological Seminary. “When I was considering Calvin, a cloud of witnesses told me their experiences. And all their stories led to those three things.”
Ha is one of more than 300 students studying at Calvin Seminary this year. This includes residential, online-only, hybrid (who study mostly online but are present on campus for short periods of time), and certificate students. Each of these students feels called to ministry in some form, and their time at CTS is helping them figure out what that might look like.
“There is a lot about seminary that is challenging,” said Evie Dykhouse, also a seminary student. “I really appreciate that at Calvin Seminary you get lots of environments to practice. To me, youth ministry is incredibly stretching, but I get to practice it. I get to try it out and see if that is something I have gifts in and passion for and, if not, I try something else.”
And this vocational journey is supported by peers and faculty.
“We have a really awesome community here,” student Leah Jolly said. “People are deeply caring and deeply loving.” She added that the faculty “believe in what we are doing and what we students are here for.”
Dykhouse said two classes that particularly stood out for her recently were on spiritual care in death and dying and providing Christian funerals. These are preparing her for pastoral ministry.
“There is so much hurt in the world and so much pain,” she said. “I appreciate that those classes didn’t try to skirt away from it. As ministry leaders and pastoral care givers, these are the types of things that we are going to see. Those two classes stand out to me for being tangible and real. They gave me the resources I am going to need to do the work I am called to do.”
Jolly added that rigorous dialogue in and outside of class has not only been part of her community experience, but it has shaped her for ministry. “I am still deeply Reformed and anchored in Scripture, but I am also able to engage in viewpoints that are different from my own in a respectful and charitable way,” she said. “Even if I don’t agree with someone 100%, I am able to ask ‘what can I still learn from you?’ and how can that inform my faith, my development, and my journey?”
Ha said that he has grown a lot academically and theologically.
“My theological training has been wide and deep. I have come to know a depth of knowledge but also the breadth of it. I don’t think any other place could have helped me that way,” he said, adding that the training at Calvin Theological Seminary also emphasized the heart. “I was always encouraged to remember that I am giving my whole self to God, not just my head, not just my body, but the whole thing. That holistic approach will always be in my ministry wherever that may take place.”