Mike Buckler was a little late for work one morning at South
Bend's Chapin Street Clinic. As he hung up his coat, he smiled
at the lone woman sitting in the waiting room of the free health
clinic.
"I just said 'Hi, how are ya?' and she immediately started bawling,"
Buckler recalls. When he sat down next to the woman, the story
gushed out. The day before, her son had been sentenced to life
in prison. She came to the clinic because throughout her son's
trial she had been experiencing chest pains from all the stress.
"She was early for her appointment. I just sat with her for
maybe half an hour or so. Just listening." Lending a friendly
ear and offering a good word when he could was, in fact, Buckler's
assignment last year. As a first-year student in Notre Dame's
Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program, Buckler had interned as a
chaplain at the clinic as part of his training for ministry in
the Catholic church.
"My goal was to bring people to a deep center, a place where
they could unwind a little bit, get something off their shoulders,
relax and know that someone has cared for them," says the University
of Florida graduate.
Sharpening such one-on-one counseling skills is a focus of the
M.Div. first-year field experience. The three-year graduate degree
program, originally designated at Notre Dame as an M.Th. degree
and later changed to M.Div., was established in 1968 to provide
ministerial training for Holy Cross seminarians. Buckler, however,
has no desire to be a priest. As a member of the laity, he hopes
one day to work full time in ministry. Currently there are 23
lay students and 20 seminarians in the Notre Dame M.Div. program,
which began admitting lay students around the time the program
changed its degree name in the '70s.
Professional lay ministers, virtually unheard of before Vatican
II, have become increasingly important in the life of the Catholic
church. The numbers tell the tale. In just five years,
from 1992 to 1997, the number of priests in the United States
fell 12 percent to 47,000. In the same time span the number of
lay ministers increased 35 percent from 21,569 to 29,146. Also
in the same time frame, the number of parishes employing lay ministers
rose from 54 to 63 percent. Increasingly, lay ministers have been
compelled to take leadership roles administering parishes because
of the priest shortage.
While the growth of lay ministry is partly a result of the shrinking
pool of priests, there's more to it than that. It is a logical
consequence of the theology of Vatican II, notes Father Michael
Connors, CSC, '83M.Div., director of Notre Dame's divinity program.
"Collaborative ministry is not just a good idea because many hands
make light work. It goes to the very nature of the church, working
together in the body of Christ."
The trend also goes beyond theology and demographics. "I think
a lot more is expected out of a parish now than just father saying
Mass on Sundays," says Connors. "We expect parishes today to offer
a range of services that require more professional qualifications.
"I served at South Bend's Little Flower Catholic church in the
'80s, and at that time we had a staff of seven full-time ministers,
just two of whom were priests. And this is only a moderate-sized
parish. It's not unusual today for some parishes to have professional
marriage counselors on staff or a nurse."
Sister Ann Goggin, R.C., director of lay formation in the ND
program, adds, "Lay ministers will be increasingly needed as we
have a much more diverse parish life. In some instances lay people
can minister to other lay people more effectively because what
they say has added weight just by the fact they are lay people.
There are things that mothers can say that nobody else can say
because they have that lived experience."
Notre Dame made a commitment to support lay leadership in the
church by offering full-tuition scholarships to all students studying
for the Master of Divinity degree. The program has 24 full scholarships
reserved for lay students and an unlimited number for seminarians.
"This commitment to lay leadership is one of the things that distinguishes
our program," Connors says. "It wasn't a particular endowment
or donor who came forward to do it. This is something that the
University decided was important for the church."
Last year, in an effort to increase the strength and diversity
of its applicant pool, the program launched a recruitment initiative
with a refurbished website and slick mailings to theology departments,
Newman Centers, bishops and volunteer organizations. "One day
we would also like to offer stipends as well as minority scholarships,"
says Connors.
In addition to offering full scholarships to all lay students,
Notre Dame's M.Div. program is distinctive in two other ways.
It is one of only a handful nationwide that trains both lay students
and seminarians together. Also, unlike most programs, it attracts
primarily younger lay students.
"Traditionally, M.Div. students have been folks who have been
working in the church for many years but want more training and
a formal credential," Connors says. "But since we are a full-time
residential program with no evening courses we tend to attract
younger, first-career students." For admission to its program,
Notre Dame requires a minimum of one-year's experience in social
work or ministry.
The curriculum is essentially the same for both seminarians
and lay students. Courses include study of sacred scripture, the
history of the Christian tradition, systematic theology, liturgical
theology, Christian ethics, and homiletics, the art of preaching.
Beyond the basics, the program offers four areas of concentration:
pastoral counseling, Hispanic ministry, religious education and
youth ministry. Those studying for the priesthood have a few more
requirements: a sacramental theology course, a course in reconciliation
ministry and an extra preaching course.
The divinity students take a minimum of two liturgy courses
and two preaching courses. "In the first liturgy course we look
at daily prayer and the Eucharist and in the second we examine
the pastoral rites: baptism, weddings, funerals, anointings,"
says Father John Melloh, S.M., director of the Marten Program
in Homiletics and Liturgics. "In the first course, for instance,
seminarians practice the Eucharistic rite, while lay students
practice the communion rite for Sunday liturgies without a priest.
We videotape them and go over very practical things: How do you
walk? What do you do with your hands? When do gestures look ridiculous?
It's all about learning a certain discipline so that the leader
of prayer helps the people pray and doesn't get in the way of
their prayer."
The first preaching course focuses on public speaking and the
special nature of the liturgical homily. The second introduces
methods of scriptural interpretation and preaching techniques.
While the third course, which is optional for lay students but
usually taken, covers preaching about social issues and develops
a theology of preaching.
The preaching courses are equally important to lay students
as well as seminarians, Melloh says. "The opportunities to preach
are not confined to the Sunday celebration. People preach in retreat
settings, in youth ministry, while bringing communion to the sick."
Arguably the best way to learn ministry is to do ministry, and
so the divinity program features three years of field study, one
more than most divinity or pastoral studies programs. With a minister
as their mentor, students intern in a variety of settings from
parishes to hospitals.
Field work follows a progression of themes. First-year students
are encouraged to work in hospitals and social service agencies
to sharpen one-on-one interpersonal skills. "In the first year
we emphasize integrating practical experience and theology, "
says Jan Poorman, director of field service.
Articulating faith is the theme for the second year. Field work
often involves work in Rite of Christian Initiation (RCIA) programs
or preparing couples for the sacrament of matrimony. "We encourage
our students to engage in faith sharing and reflection. We talk
about teaching the faith in parish settings, secular settings,
school settings and social service settings," Poorman says.
The final year focuses on leadership. "Students are encouraged
to work in collaborative leadership settings, in acknowledgment
that ours is a church and society that places high value on working
well with others," says Poorman. "We discuss models of leadership,
power and empowerment, decision-making and delegating."
Beyond the course work and field study, the lay spiritual formation
program is one of the hallmarks of Notre Dame's divinity curriculum.
"This is something the lay students really seem to want," Sister
Ann Goggin says. "Traditionally, religious formation has included
training in prayer and traditions of community life in order to
facilitate transforming the candidate into a more Christlike life
for ministerial activity or life in Christian community. When
it comes to lay formation the book is still being written."
Spiritual formation includes a weekly gathering of all lay students
for common prayer, a shared meal and talks or discussions on issues
related to ministry. The lay students also attend a weekend retreat
in January and meet once a semester as a group with the seminarians,
who have their own formation program geared toward their vocation.
"Most of the students also have personal spiritual directors,
and many attend Thursday night Lucernarium, a solemn evening prayer
at Moreau Seminary at which seminarians preach," Goggin adds.
A phenomenal 99 percent of Notre Dame's lay M.Div. students
find jobs in ministry within a year of graduation. About half
go into parish work of some kind, whether it's as director of
religious education, youth minister or pastoral associate. The
other half usually accept jobs in hospital ministry, high school
or college campus ministry or some form of social justice ministry.
A recent survey of M.Div. alumni found the vast majority are still
involved in ministry 15 years after graduation. Those who are
no longer involved usually say they've chosen to pause their ministry
career in order to raise a family, Connors notes.
"Somehow these young people catch a glimpse of discipleship
with Christ that is so compelling that they can't do anything
else," says Goggin. "That is how you will walk 40 years in the
desert. Not from church acclamation, not from big salaries. You
are not going to get rich working in a parish."
"Our students tend to be about theology as 'lived reality' and
a desire to make it so for others," says Jan Poorman.
Lynn Streefland, a second-year student from Webster, Minnesota,
is typical of many in the program. Streefland was involved in
volunteer service in high school and was active in campus ministry
in college. After a year of service working at a Catholic high
school in Milwaukee, she says she felt called to work full time
in the church but wanted more training. "I know this is what I
want to do with my life. I enjoy walking with people on their
faith journey, leading discussions on religious issues.
"There's something new happening in the church," she says. "And
I'm not sure exactly what it is yet. But I can sense it, and I
feel that it's where I need to be. I definitely believe lay ministry
is what I am called to, because it leaves so many options open."
Colleen Moore '98, who graduated from the program last May and
currently is coordinator of formation activities with Notre Dame's
Institute for Church Life, saw the divinity degree as a logical
next step in her own spiritual journey. After a two-year stint
with the Holy Cross Associates in Chile working in a parish and
teaching at a Catholic boarding school, Moore decided she needed
to deepen her understanding of Catholicism.
Like many younger Catholics, Moore felt shortchanged in her
development in the faith. "I said to my dad once, 'My generation
doesn't have a lot to grasp onto because your generation was filled
with the fear of God and dread in Catholic elementary school and
rejected that. So then when I went through catechesis it was all
love and rainbows. And that's just not it either. So now many
people my age and younger don't understand why we do what we do,
the rich meaning behind our rituals."
Stacey and Josh Noem, both 1999 graduates of Notre Dame, were
the first married couple admitted to the program. They decided
to pursue the M.Div. degree after completing a year of service
with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps in Sitka, Alaska, and working
for the church in Florida for two years. Their JVC experience
had a profound effect on them. It emphasized working for social
justice, living simply, living in community and spirituality.
Upon completing their service commitment, the couple decided they
wanted careers in a setting compatible with those goals.
"It seemed to us that working for the church would be more conducive
to this than corporate jobs," says Josh. He found a job as an
editor/reporter for the Diocese of Venice edition of the Florida
Catholic newspaper. Stacey, who by then had given birth to
their son, Oscar, became a co-director of the diocesan Family
Life Office, which oversees the domestic violence task force,
parenting groups, natural family planning and marriage enrichment
groups.
After working in Florida, the couple, who are third-year students,
decided they needed "more tools to sustain our service." At a
2001 family life conference in Washington, D.C., Stacey discovered
she felt energized by church work. "I like helping families grow
closer to God. At the same time I also knew I had no theological
training and it might be worthwhile to have that."
Meanwhile, Josh found he had an "overarching interest" in helping
adults connect with their faith. "I also had the growing realization
that the printed word can only go so far in inspiring conversion.
I had become really interested in reawakening the faith life in
adults, and it became clear that we both were interested in further
education and wanted a professional degree to help us serve."
The couple chose Notre Dame because they liked the balance between
pastoral involvement, lay formation and excellence in academics.
"There is this incredible world-class faculty here, like Eugene
Ulrich, one of the main international authorities working on the
Dead Sea Scrolls," Josh says.
When he graduates, Josh says, he intends to seek work in adult
faith formation tied to social justice. "It comes down to engaging
with the question of suffering in the world. I'm not sure exactly
where this will lead me, a position with a parish, at the diocesan
level, Catholic charities or something else." Stacey, meanwhile,
hopes to continue working in family life. "We like to think of
ourselves as a package, two-for-one," she says.
First-year students Grace and Jason Simon, like the Noems, are
married. They have an infant son, Nathan. "We've really been inspired
by Josh and Stacey," Grace says. "We wondered if working on this
degree together was really doable, and they've shown us it can
be done."
The couple, who were high school sweethearts and married right
after college, had been involved in ministry for five years before
joining Notre Dame's divinity program. After graduation from the
University of Wisconsin with a degree in Spanish, Grace took a
part-time teaching job and began volunteering at the University
Catholic Center on the Madison campus. Soon that led to a full-time
position on the campus ministry staff.
Jason, who had been raised in a Pentecostal church, converted
to Catholicism a year after their wedding. An engineer, he took
a job with a software development company. Six months later his
career path took a major turn when the pastor of their parish
asked him if he would be interested in becoming director of religious
education.
"Our pastor was interested in having a DRE who didn't fit the
normal mold. He wanted someone . . . who could make religious
education fun for kids," Jason says. "Actually some type of ministry
had been in the back of my mind at some point -- I was thinking
maybe in five years after our loans were paid off -- but after
our priest called and we had this great conversation, it just
became clear that this was where God was leading us."
After working in ministry for a while, the couple decided they
needed advanced training and enrolled in the summer master's program
in theology at Notre Dame. However, they were frustrated by the
part-time aspect of that degree program. "To be formed by something,
you really need to be immersed," Jason says. "And we realized
that's what we wanted and so switched over to the M.Div. program.
We both wanted to broaden our experience in ministry and this
offers the structure to do that."
Like Stacey and Josh, Grace and Jason hope to split a position
in ministry after completing the program. "We both would like
to be at home with our children at some level and want to work
for the same community that our family is part of. Right now,
we feel drawn to campus ministry work," Grace says. "Both Jason
and I enjoy that age and believe it's a real prime time for people
to experience God in their lives."
Mimi Arima '98, who received her M.Div. last May, came to the
divinity program after three years as the youth minister for three
parishes clustered under one pastor in Seattle. "It was good experience;
I got a good look at the workings of parish life and youth ministry
for high school-aged students," she says. Arima, who double majored
in theology and Japanese as a Notre Dame undergraduate, decided
to pursue the M.Div degree to improve her effectiveness as a minister.
"I was sure of my faith and had a firm foundation, but I found
I couldn't articulate it as well as I wanted to, as well as I
felt I should."
The 27-year-old native of Maryland said she felt called to some
form of ministry her junior year when she declared theology as
her major. "I started thinking about how best I could serve God.
I was really excited about my faith. The more I learned, the more
I fell in love with the church, the treasures that are in the
Catholic church. I remember thinking, 'I'm a cradle Catholic,
why don't I know all this about my faith?' I felt as if I had
just found a pot of gold and wanted to share it with everybody
I knew."
Following M.Div. graduation, Arima returned to parish work in
the Seattle area. High on her list in seeking employment was to
find a situation with a cooperative spirit. "I want to work somewhere
that has a healthy collaborative team setting, a healthy staff.
That can make or break a job," she notes.
Fostering such collaboration is the goal of the third year of
field education. But students in the program reflect tensions
within the church as a whole, so achieving that collaborative
spirit has not always been easy.
"The issue of women's ordination is a flashpoint, with lots
of pain on both sides," Goggin observes. "It puts seminarians
on the defensive. When it comes time for ordination, and the women
feel they are really called to it, it's heartrending." At least
two female graduates of the program have left the Catholic church
in order to be ordained, one in the Lutheran church, the other
in the Episcopal church.
It would be a mistake to characterize the division among students
as simply lay-clerical. Some lay students are more traditional;
some seminarians are more progressive. "It often comes down to
different experiences of church," Father Connors say. "And different
expectations of what it means to be church."
Two years ago tensions were so high that seminarians did not
attend the commissioning service for their lay classmates. Last
year's graduating class, however, worked hard at collegiality
and cooperation. Seminarians were involved in the service and
the celebration was hosted by Moreau Seminary.
Colleen Moore's attitude characterizes her class. "I realized
I can't expect to go out and work in a parish and preach the gospel
in all that I do if I'm alienating a classmate who doesn't agree
with the same theology I do," she says.
"One thing I've learned is that you can't pigeonhole people,"
Lynn Streefland adds. "We all have very traditional views on some
things and progressive views on others. People are open and willing
to listen to one another, even if we don't always agree. We all
came here to learn."
The Noems see a harmonious relationship between lay students
and seminarians as a strength of the program. "One of the benefits
for Stacey and me," Josh says, "has been the dynamic between the
lay students and the seminarians. There has been a mutual enhancement
of our vocations. In fact, we've had some discussions with our
seminarian friends, and they've said, 'I see you and Stacey as
an example of how I can be a better brother to my fellow seminarian.'"
"Lay and ordained vocations complement each other. Each of our
vocations offers complementary talents and skills and has complementary
roles to fulfill in the church. The two pieces fit together to
make the whole stronger," Stacey adds.
Making both of those pieces stronger, training both the laity
and the clergy for leadership roles in the church to serve the
faithful, give good counsel and preach the gospel is precisely
the goal of M.Div. at Notre Dame, Connors says. "That's what we're
all about."
John Monczunski is an associate editor of this magazine.
(January 2005)
