Leadership in Ministry Montreat 2026 (Fall Session)
Leadership in Ministry Montreat 2026 (Fall Session)
Leadership in Ministry is a twice-a-year, peer-based clergy leadership development program. It is part of the Pastoral Excellence Program of the Center for Lifelong Learning of Columbia Theological Seminary. Many participants have attended for several years, with some participating for over a decade, reaping the benefits of long-term commitment to person and professional growth. This program’s goals are to:
Provide a peer-learning forum for clergy to explore the issues particular to their congregational or non-profit ministry contexts;
Help participants develop a theoretical framework for interpreting ministry practice and context using Bowen Systems Theory;
Help clergy and organizational leaders to accurately identify and name the particular challenge of ministry in their context;
Provide clergy and other religious professionals with a safe and stimulating peer group experience for renewal and challenge.
The Leadership in Ministry workshops will apply Bowen Family Systems Theory as further developed by Edwin Friedman, author of Generation to Generation and A Failure of Nerve, to ministerial and organizational leadership. Most of the time is spent in peer group case studied led by experienced faculty coaches. As such, participants work to apply the theory to the “real world” realities of their ministry context.
