Course Description

A study of methods and ways of analyzing the community and building relationships between the church and community.

The analysis will discover and classify the different elements that impact the life of the community. Students will identify the specific needs or issues in the community where the church is, that could facilitate a positive change while building relationships with their neighborhood. Students will demonstrate how to prioritize those needs or issues in order of urgency, capacity to address, and effectiveness in building relationships. Then students will show how to apply appropriate solutions to those priorities with a goal of building relationships. These should be some of the first things a new pastor does when assigned to a new church. This information will become very valuable in orienting and tailoring a community engagement plan that will benefit the individual, the church, and the community.

Course Rational

Community Engagement is a core expression of love for others by a pastor. Many pastors lack the skills and attitudes necessary to deal with community leaders or to understand their community in a broad perspective. Some pastors spend forty hours in study and no hours at all with the unsaved community around them; at times this comes from fear of people. This course is designed to help give tools to reduce the fear and give confidence and joy to the beginning pastors as they reach their community.

Intended Course Outcomes through Engagements

Students will show growth in the following ways:

  1. Character formation: Develop a consistency between public and private life in ethics and decision making as spiritual formation continues.
  2. Content processing with peers: Develop tools of analysis and engagement with church and community for effective analysis of contemporary context. Use Biblical stories to illustrate engagement.
  3. Ministry capability development: Ability to apply biblical principles within the secular environment and to encourage positive living amongst community leaders.
  4. Application in mission and community: Identify and engage in acts of compassion while developing a team to engage in similar acts of compassion.

Resources 

  • Syllabus
  • Asia-Pacific Module Handbook