World

Join with City Seminary in person, by reading, and by digital connection and become part of a learning community for ministry in the city.

Practices of Ministry in the City identifies and encourages the practices of ministry across all types and locations of churches and cities. We ask a number of questions: How does God dwell in us, individually and as a community, but also act in and through us, to be a blessing to others in our urban world? How is Christian faith a way of life in the city, in our church communities and in our places of work, families, and everyday lives? And how can we learn from one another, from the diverse body of Christ and across generations, as we seek the peace and blessing of our city?

Stay in the City is the first of a series of handbooks based on our research. The theme, staying (or remaining) in the city for its peace and flourishing, is unpacked with stories and reflections on how Scripture is being lived out in families and communities throughout the city.

Sense the City is the second of a series of books on the practices of ministry in an urban world.  A handbook based on our research, it revolves around how we are bodily present in the city, what we see, smell, taste, touch and hear.

With partners in North American cities and around the world whom we learn from through Urban Pilgrimages, we encourage each other on our faith journeys and ministry practice. 

We want to learn how to learn.

As Emmanuel Katongole explains, pilgrimage is a way of life, a way of listening and feeling the dust beneath our feet as we learn from cities and churches around the world. 

To do so, we emphasize and are developing new materials around the senses. With the support of the Lilly Endowment, the Practices of Ministry in the City project identifies and encourages the faithful practices of ministry across churches, cities, and communities.

In tune with the city, learn with us through how and what we see, smell, hear, taste, and touch.

Utilizing new technological capacities, the Global New York Church Project is a longitudinal research initiative documenting how faith and ministry are evolving and flourishing in our city. Focused on the five boroughs, the project highlights the transnational ties of congregations, parishes, and ministries. This includes the Next Generation project that examines more closely the transmission and life of faith among first, 1.5, second, and third generations.

A critical piece of our learning is based on the life of the church in the city.

The Global New York Church Project is one way we better understand the church in its diverse lived reality in the city.

This also includes the Next Generation Project, which focuses on the transmission of faith between generations.

"The question isn't whether you'll live out a public faith but how."  - Miroslav Volf

Every fall, the Faith and the City Conference offers a larger forum for sharing and learning around the intersections of faith and ministry in the city. In particular, topics from our research from the Global New York Church Project and Practices of Ministry in the City are addressed, through panels and conversation, as well as experiential learning and reflection. Details each year are published in early fall.

Every fall, the Faith and the City Conference provides a larger forum for presenting research and cultivating conversation through experiential learning and reflection.

We also learn what God is doing in other cities through a relationship with the PASCAL Learning Cities Network and the Ministry in the City HUB.

Only together can we grow and serve God in our urban world.

As a way of extending our conversation partners, we are part of PASCAL International Observatory's Faith / Spirituality-based Learning City Development Network. We host gatherings and collaborate locally as well as internationally with practitioners and scholars to make connections between faith, spirituality, and lifelong learning in an urban context. We ask not only how learning happens in cities but how cities learn and become a space for flourishing and sustainable development.

As an element of the Global New York Project, the Next Generation project examines the transmission and life of faith among first, 1.5, second, and third generations. Through comparative studies, surveys, and ethnographic research, our learning helps to inform the development of our WE LEAD NYC youth seminary curriculum.