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Oklahoma to get UM seminary

Written: 6/16/2006

The only United Methodist seminary in Oklahoma is expected to begin accepting students in Fall 2007.

An agreement in principle to establish the Saint Paul Theological Seminary at Oklahoma City University was announced May 29, during the 2006 Oklahoma Annual Conference.

Delegates responded with applause and cheers when Bishop Robert E. Hayes Jr. made the declaration in his Episcopal Address. They also warmly greeted OCU President Tom McDaniel when he, too, addressed the conference about the plan.

The new seminary will be a satellite of Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City, Mo. The master of divinity degree will be awarded by Saint Paul, one of 13 United Methodist seminaries in the nation.

The action has been approved by Saint Paul officials and faculty.

Hayes said, "I�m just elated this has come about. I know the importance of what a United Methodist education can do for people in the Church.

"You soak in everything from the United Methodist presence in that setting. I want our people to be prepared, to pass that on to those in the pews."

Hayes noted, "Saint Paul is a school steeped in issues of social justice, in working with people on the margins of society. Saint Paul teaches seminary students how to deal with churches in that situation. It�s a perfect match for Oklahoma."

McDaniel said, "I see (a seminary) squarely within the mission of OCU as Oklahoma�s United Methodist higher education venue."

Greater access to higher education is increasingly desired by students, McDaniel noted.

He said, "We have more and more non-traditional students. I�m defining them as people who are going back to the university after being out in the community doing something else�older students, more established" in their lives.

"For those who want to go to a United Methodist seminary, this will be more convenient. This will broaden the base of opportunity."

Both leaders believe the seminary also will appeal to people beyond those entering formal ministry. They envision pairing seminary study with other disciplines at OCU.

Among those: the highly acclaimed schools of law, business, and music. The new seminary will be the eighth college located at OCU.

"There is a need for people who don�t want to go into ministry but want to further their education in theological ways," Hayes said. "This will provide other opportunities: church administration, sacred music, church law."

Scholarships will be one focus of fund-raising for the school. McDaniel said the support of corporate citizens will be crucial.

Hayes said, "Probably the most rewarding aspect of this for me is the relationship the seminary will have to the Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conference (OIMC)."

The men are leading the way to secure funding to pay all seminary costs for United Methodist native Americans wanting to go into ministry. They hope to expand that to cover undergraduate degree costs, too. The bishop said about 10 ordained elders serve in the OIMC, which has 90 churches.

McDaniel reported 33 higher education institutions operate in the state. "There is competition and, in the long run, it makes us all better. What we want to offer is a choice," he said.

Hayes commented, "The word I want to use is �accessibility.� It is just simply us trying to look out after the needs of United Methodist students who want to learn in a United Methodist environment."

The bishop was serving in Texas Conference when Perkins School of Theology, based at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, expanded into the Houston area. Initial goal was 20 students; 80 were enrolled by the second year.

"You would be saturating this jurisdiction if you had more than two full seminaries," Hayes explained. "We already have two: Saint Paul and Perkins. We decided a satellite campus with Saint Paul is better for our needs."