Science for Seminaries: Grant Equips Baylor’s Truett Seminary to Incorporate Science into Curriculum
A short campus walk separates Baylor University’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary from the Baylor Sciences Building. In many settings, the perceived gap between the subject matter taught in those facilities is difficult to bridge. Baylor faculty, however, are training future ministry professionals to address that gap, thanks to a grant that integrates science curriculum into seminary classes.
The $75,000 grant was presented to Truett Seminary as a part of the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s (AAAS) Science for Seminaries program. The program—a project of AAAS’s Dialogue on Science, Religion and Ethics (DoSER) in conjunction with the Association of Theological Schools—provides nine seminaries nationally with funding and training to equip students to address science-related questions, which may arise within a ministry context, in a constructive manner.
“The primary goal of this grant is to integrate science into the curriculum so that people going into ministry and going into churches are informed about science, and will talk about science responsibly,” Kimlyn Bender, Ph.D., professor of Christian theology, said. “There’s an idea that there is an intrinsic conflict between theology and science, but that’s actually a construct. It’s not true to the history of the two fields. We want to equip people interested in questions of theology and science to navigate those questions in helpful ways.”
The grant has three primary applications. The first involves curriculum revision, which is accompanied by science faculty who are brought into the seminary classroom for lectures and discussion. The second application was the creation of a Science and Christian Ministry Conference which was held at Baylor in February and featured speakers from seminaries, research universities and healthcare organizations. The third grant application funds the opportunity for students to attend a national conference or meeting that supports dialogue on issues of faith and science (this portion of the grant is postponed due to the COVID-19 public health crisis).
Equipping Ministers
Since the start of the 2019-20 academic year, Science for Seminaries curriculum has been integrated into core Truett classes taught by Bender, Angela Reed, Ph.D., associate professor of practical theology and director of spiritual formation, and Roger Olson, Ph.D., professor of theology and Foy Valentine Chair of Christian Theology and Ethics. Some of that content is taught by Baylor faculty members from the science disciplines, who speak in Truett classes and lead discussions and readings. Topics range from the history of science and its relationship with religion, to similarities between the scientific method and theological method and more.
Graduates working in a ministry context are likely to find someone in their care with questions about science. Such questions can stem from personal health issues or stories in the news, to students grappling with science curriculum they feel challenges deeply held beliefs. Bender says it is important for those in ministry to be prepared to address those questions, and the discussions with Baylor faculty provide a framework in which to do so.
“Many churches, at best, don't talk about science at all and, at worst, set up a kind of antithesis between Christianity and science,” Bender said. “What happens to those young people who come to a place where they encounter questions in a class with which they’ve never been prepared to deal? Many pastors are not prepared to address those questions, and to talk intelligently about the history of science. They're not going to know that early scientists like Galileo, Copernicus, Newton and others were deeply religious people and that Christian teaching and science are not intrinsically at odds. We want to be a part of responsibly educating students on engaging these larger conversations.”
Surveying Mental Health Attitudes and Insights
Students in Angela Reed’s “Intro to Pastoral Care” class integrated science curriculum in interpersonal ways, surveying ministry leaders outside the classroom for their thoughts on mental health. Each student spent time with a ministry professional, discussing issues such as mental health care, the use of medications for mental health issues and relationships between the church and mental healthcare providers. From those conversations, students gleaned core findings that helped inform classroom discussions and a more acute focus on mental health going forward for those involved.
“Working in practical theology, I'm always interested in interdisciplinary research and interdisciplinary teaching and classroom discussions, and using that to shape the way we think about the work of ministry,” Reed said. “In this case, we’re drawing upon neuroscience and psychology to help shape the ways that students practice pastoral care and think about pastoral theology.”
Pastors are often an early contact for counseling and guidance. The individuals they see may be dealing with mental health challenges that pastors are often not trained to recognize, such as bipolar disorder, depressive disorders, anxiety disorders and more. Reed and her students have spent time in conversation with, or studied key works from, neuroscientists as a part of their efforts to address these gaps. They further gained insights from conversations with pastors to better understand attitudes towards these topics. Reed shares core findings from that survey work, which includes:
• Treatment: "Most ministers held a positive view of mental health care that incorporates counseling but were somewhat more cautious about speaking to the ways medications are best used. Though they recognize the need for modern medicine in its many shapes and forms, most were careful to point out that God is still ultimately responsible for healing.”
• Referrals: “Most agree that responsible ministers acquaint themselves with the appropriate resources for referrals. Interviewees were largely in agreement about referring persons to outside sources of care in instances where the need goes beyond the scope of their abilities. Fewer interviewees, however, discussed their roles after the referral.”
• Holistic care: “Ministers acknowledged the fact that pastoral care addresses the spiritual, physical, mental and emotional well-being of a person. Many even made mention of a pastor’s responsibility to seek a person’s wellness in each of these aspects, as a problem in one is often related to a problem with another. Several ministers noted that emotional, spiritual, mental and physical healing are all tied together.”
Students discussed those findings, as well as a variety of mental health topics, throughout the class, providing a foundation for these future professionals to be better prepared should they serve individuals dealing with mental health challenges.
A Theological Voice in a Research University
While the Science for Seminaries grant itself covers a two-year span, Bender says the experiences teaching material and insights gleaned will continue to inform curriculum in these core Truett Seminary classes going forward. Further, Baylor’s unique role in higher education and R1 research ambitions to become the preeminent Christian research university make Baylor a natural place to engage in scholarship of this kind.
“I think being an embedded seminary at Baylor is both a privilege and a responsibility for Truett Seminary in so far as the conversations that we have are taking place in the context of a research university, which includes STEM, the social sciences and more,” Bender said. “Not only do we want to be responsible on our part in how we're educating students, but we want to bring a theological voice to these conversations at Baylor and at large.
“Being part of a research university like Baylor means that the questions of how we form character and ministry, and how we do research are not antithetical. They have to somehow be complimentary. Science is a gift of God given for the understanding of our world and ourselves, and this grant has provided us with a unique opportunity and framework to engage these topics together.”