Curiously I find myself currently unequally yoked with believers. While loosely following my brother-in-law’s theological training I notice he is continually venting his frustration that his studies keep circumventing his personal interest and passion, that the required reading is too limited and boring, and that he must continually parrot back his instructors perspective. Maybe such leadership training includes the hidden benefit of discouraging those predisposed to critical thinking?
You’re not the only one who finds themselves in this predicament. I have several degrees which offer virtually no advancement without doubling down on further debt.
If your BIL is in grad school, then I would suggest he transfer his credits or find a a specific field of study suited to his interests and abilities. It’s a lot of money and time invested, only to realize that none of it got your further in your vocation.
You may have questions that remained unanswered (which means you have to design your own job requirements). Or you may have to comport yourself to the current state of religious devotion and understand which questions are intentionally unasked (which in many cases means you have to agree to lifelong precepts) .
In my experience, academics is actually the ideal place for finding out how to ask questions in a way that doesn’t denigrate religion. “Leadership training” should be more than rote learning. At the grad level, this often requires more credit-hours than a standard 40-hour MA and involves understanding multiple languages and cross-disciplinary fields.
Critical thinking is what you make of it: in many cases a “guaranteed” ministerial position is not comparable to academic tenure. In fact, it’s highly conditional depending upon the church or denomination. It would be best if your BIL did not try to shortcut the system, but rather find a school that allows a larger breadth of exploration.
Accredited ATS schools are still stuck in a model that limits flexibility. You have to find a school that already encompasses a multitude of theological debate and options. There are usually only a few choices for schools of this type (which makes it easier to choose, but harder to commit).
