Pittsburgh Theological Seminary master of divinity student Rebecca Jones has received The Phillips Talbot Global Ministry Fellowship, awarded by Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church (New York City). In late February, Jones, who graduates in June, was selected from a national pool of PC(USA) students nominated by their seminaries for the award. This highly competitive fellowship funds a two-year program of ministry that includes a year-long immersion experience in the dynamics of the Christian church in the “Global South.”
After ordination and a summer-long orientation in the U.S., Jones will head for Kitwe, Zambia, to work as an intern with Theological Education by Extension Zambia. Throughout Africa, the Church is experiencing such growth that the demand for ordained leadership cannot be met. With TEEZ, Jones will help train lay leaders, teachers, and preachers through classes on Scripture, theology, and skills for ministry in an effort to address the leadership shortage in Zambia. When she returns, she will put her experiences to work as a staff member of Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church for six months before pursuing her next call to ministry.
As the Madison Avenue Church says of its fellowship program, “Such experience indelibly shapes the pastoral outlook and character of . . . [Christian] leaders for the rest of their ministries, and thus helps ensure that the emerging leaders of the Presbyterian Church (USA) understand the dynamics and opportunities for ministry and partnership in a globalized context.”
Pittsburgh Theological Seminary is a graduate professional institution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A). Founded in 1794, the Seminary is located in Pittsburgh, Pa. and approximately 320 students are enrolled yearly in the degree programs. The Seminary prepares leaders who proclaim with great joy God’s message of good news in both word and deed. PTS is rooted in the Reformed history of faithfulness to Scripture and commitment to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
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