next Start date
Aug 2026
Classes Start
Sep xx
Program Overview
The Master of Religious Education in Missional Leadership recognizes that Christian leaders now find themselves in an ever-changing culture and new missional era. Christian communities in the U.S. can no longer assume, “If we build it, they will come.” Things have changed. Christian leaders are often doing everything they’ve been trained to do, better than they’ve ever done it before, but with diminishing impact. Churches and Christian organizations in the U.S. can no longer assume a place of prominence.
While this shift can feel as a threat and discouragement to some, the MREML believes this is an opportunity for Christian leaders to reimagine what it means for communities of faith to partner in the work and mission of the living God. The MREML equips leaders to discern the activity of God with others in their contexts and to join God in seeking the flourishing of their local community.
Ministry challenges in a new missional era do not always come with obvious solutions. Leaders, therefore, must be able to interpret their own cultural settings, recognize new opportunities to experience the hospitality of God on terms other than their own, and engage spiritual practices necessary to experiment in the midst of ambiguity and anxiety. These are challenging times, but they’re also exciting times for those who have a sense of adventure and willingness to trust the leading of a living God into a new future.
degree requirements
The Graduate Program of Theology will prepare you for ministerial leadership with courses in biblical studies, theology, Christian history, ministry, and spirituality. You’ll receive a broad educational experience to help you determine your personal calling within Ministry. The program includes real-world experience on campus and through internships.
The curriculum of the MREML is structured around six competencies:
- Missional leaders serve in the mission of God in relation to a God-centered identity. They lead, in other words, out of a clear and cultivated sense of calling, or vocation, and not in relation to their role. They cultivate habits and practices that help them to better discern and participate in the life of God.
- Missional leaders center the margins, locating their lives and communities among the suffering with the belief that hearing the experiences and perspectives of the powerless deepens compassion, ignites works of justice, and helps communities more fully embody the eschatological vision of the kingdom of God.
- Missional leaders interpret local contexts culturally, using the tools of ethnography. By attending deeply to a congregation and its immediate context, the missional leader provides thick descriptions that serve the task of doing local theology.
- Missional leaders enable congregations to interpret their shared life in light of the global and historical story of Christianity, including theological themes that have been central to understanding God’s work in the world.
- Missional leaders practice hospitality as they convene and lead groups for the sake of discerning and joining the mission of God. They do this primarily around rhythms of action, reflection, and articulation.
- Missional leaders maintain environments that allow congregations to develop a shared, biblical imagination for mission. This includes teaching and preaching, but also necessitates slow, communal readings embodied in practices like Dwelling in the Word.
Total Credit Hours: 36
- MRE Major: 36 hours
Program Statistics
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Career Opportunities
Types of Jobs
- Seminary
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student experience
Internships
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Activities
Student testimonials
If you’re looking to get smarter so you can be more successful as a minister, keep looking. Graduate programs that promise ‘success’ are easy to find and won’t require as much from you. But if you’re looking to put yourself in a place where God can change you, form you, and prepare you to follow God to people and places that will surprise you, then this may be your kind of program. If you want to take God to the world, this program is not for you. But if you want to follow God into God’s world and be part of God’s active love for that world, don’t wait: Take the first step!
The program's dedication to centering God in our identity, the excellence in teaching, and the innovative approaches expanded my gospel imagination. The way the intensive experiences are crafted and the theological depth in the subjects taught left a spiritual mark on me. The program influence extended beyond the classroom, shifting my perspective on leadership, mission, and the Triune God.
This program was life-changing for me. I have grown to value theology over strategy, posture & practices over ministry technique, being a spiritual ecologist (setting up environments of learning and discernment) over being a triumphant leader (telling people what to do), and always staying on the lookout for the Spirit's surprise.
FACULTY
Assistant Professor of Theology and Ministry
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead
(248) 218-2355
bbowers1@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead
(248) 218-2355
bbowers1@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead 125
(248) 218-2124
khuey@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead 125
(248) 218-2124
khuey@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
(248) 892-5048
mlove@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
(248) 892-5048
mlove@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead 126
(248) 218-2125
gstevenson@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead 126
(248) 218-2125
gstevenson@rochesteru.edu
Professor of Theology and Ministry
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead 123
(248) 218-2143
nwalters@rochesteru.edu
School of Theology and Ministry
Muirhead 123
(248) 218-2143
nwalters@rochesteru.edu
