D O W N L O A D

Admissions Packet

Conscious Leadership Application
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Interfaith Seminary Application
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Recommendation Form  PDF 

Year Two

In every encounter with another human being we are impacting each other in one way or another. Either we are being of service by elevating each other’s experience of life, or we are limiting the kindness and compassion of that experience in some way.

The heart of true ministry is skillful service, doing or saying the right thing, in the right way, at the right time. Learning to be of skillful service is of great value to every human being in our increasingly interdependent world. Whether you seek to be a formal minister, or prefer to be an underground minister whose only distinguishing mark is your commitment to put love into action in all the events of your life, the second year curriculum will provide you with practical instruction in the essential skills for effective ministry and skillful service.

During your second year you will explore your relationship to the various stages of life by studying and experiencing the role of ritual in bringing deeper meaning to life’s passages. Be it birth, marriage, the changing seasons, or marking the end of life’s journey at death, you will have an opportunity to explore your own responses to these markers and to celebrate the lives of those you love through an authentic experience of collective ritual. You will also reflect on the spirit of service and explore the relationship between healthy self-care and caring for others.

The entire experience provides an opportunity to develop your capacity to relate more skillfully to others in one-to-one encounters and small groups, as well as to speak and minister effectively to larger gatherings through inspirational talks, weddings, funerals and other rituals. At the end of your second year you will be better prepared to be of compassionate service, both as an ordained minister and as a loving human being.

Course of Study
The Practice of Interfaith Ministry - The Path of Skillful Service

• Making Sense of Life: The Journey from Birth to Death
• Creating Rituals & Ceremonies to Deepen Our Experience of Life
• Providing Personal Encouragement: Prayer Support & Spiritual Counseling
• Offering Collective Inspiration: Creating & Facilitating Liturgy, Worship and Other Meaningful Gatherings
• The Heart of Skillful Service
• Authentic Leadership
Including: The Meaning of Spiritual Leadership; Personal & Professional Ethics; Issues in Spiritual Leadership; Formal & Informal Ministry; Creating & Building a Spiritual Community

Requirements

• Because of our emphasis on experiential learning, second year requirements include participation in the classroom experience through either attendance or listening to recordings of the class sessions.
• Active participation in ongoing study groups (in person, conference call, or on-line).
• Monthly reading and written assignments provide a focus for structured self-reflection, for developing the capacity for skillful service, and for demonstrating competence in performing the functions of an ordained Interfaith minister.
• Participate in a group process of planning and conducting an Interfaith worship service for your classmates during our monthly sessions.
• Continue offering volunteer service and, where possible, to pursue additional outside training in areas of formal ministry (chaplaincy, hospice work, congregational ministry, etc.) or informal ministry (communication, education, conflict resolution, coaching, etc.).
• Over the course of the year, you will receive feedback regarding your personal, spiritual, and professional readiness to function as an ordained Interfaith minister.
• Submission of a complete Minister’s Service & Reference Manual and successful completion of all second year writing assignments.
• Fulfillment of your tuition obligation.
• Training staff approval is required to qualify for ordination and graduation.
• Completing two electives, one in the area of personal enrichment and the other in the area of professional development.
• Attendance at the 3-day year-end Intensive is required of all students, corresponding as well as attending.