About the Collegium
Purpose of the Collegium
When Jesus gave the church her mission, He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:18-19a). At Park our hope is to see fully devoted followers of Christ being transformed by the amazing power of the gospel. That means we hope to make disciples: to not only see people walk across the line of faith but also to grow deep in their love of God and to be equipped for the good works that God has prepared in advance for us.
With this in mind, Park launched The Collegium in the fall of 2009. The term “collegium” is a Latin word meaning partnership. When we come together as the church, we don’t come as consumers who take or consume resources for our own purposes. Instead, we are partners in the gospel striving together on the mission that Jesus has called us to. Thus, while the classes of the Collegium are educational, they are meant to challenge not only the mind, but the heart – and to do so in such a way that by God’s grace, we may be faithful to the mission Jesus has called us to as a church. The Collegium exists to equip people for life in the church, home, marketplace or wherever one is in their journey.
There are three tracks people can choose from in the Collegium: the Questioning Track, Growing in Christ Track, and Leadership Track. The Questioning track is for people exploring the claims of Christianity and the hope of the gospel but who are either not yet followers of Christ or hoping to revisit the basics of the faith. The Life in Christ track is designed for people who have crossed the line of faith but want to grow and to develop the tools helpful for living Christian life. Finally, the Leadership track is for anyone involved in or aspiring to Christian leadership wanting to hone the tools and skills God has given them for Christian ministry (e.g. small group leader, coach, church planter, etc.)
Classes in the Collegium are either semester (10-12 weeks) or modular (3-6 weeks) and are taught by pastors from
Classes are designed to accommodate people with busy schedules but will require commitments of time and energy. There are options to take classes early morning or evenings during the week as well as weekend classes so that an individual could complete all the classes of their chosen track in a reasonable amount of time. For instance, an individual choosing the Life in Christ track could finish each of the seven required classes of that track within 3 years if they took one class a semester and took the summers off.
Goals and Objectives of the Collegium
We believe education that glorifies God is one that, by God’s grace, transforms individuals into mature followers of Christ. With that in mind, the three primary objectives of the Collegium are[1]:
- Education for worldview – Goals for this objective are that people:
- Have a thorough knowledge of Scripture
- Comprehend essential Christian doctrines
- Value Scripture and theology in their lives
- Be able to study Scripture for themselves
- Think biblically about life decisions
- Education for service – Goals for this objective are that people:
- Practice regular pattern of devotion
- Exhibit a loving relationship toward God, fellow Christians, and community
- Affirm their commitment to Christ
- Exhibit a high level of theologically informed moral reasoning
- Maintain a consistent Christian witness
- Education for character - Goals for this objective are that people:
- Commit themselves to a ministry in the church
- Develop their talents for Christian service
- Value ministry as a means of spiritual formation
- Demonstrate a Christian motive and rationale for serving as (not in) the church
- Participate in training and equipping for service provided by the congregation
[1] A Theology for Christian Education by: James R. Estep Jr.