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Welcome to City Seminary of New York's website. Here you will find many ways to learn more and get involved...

Welcome to City Seminary of New York's website. Here you will find many ways to learn more and get involved. Click on NEIGHBORHOOD, CITY, and WORLD here and above to find out more about our learning communities and areas of scope.

Attend an open house for our youth seminary WE LEAD NYC, Bible for Life course, Ministry Fellows Program, and a new MA degree in "Ministry in the Global City." For more information, email learning@cityseminaryny.org.

Mission

The mission of City Seminary of New York is to seek the peace of the city through theological education. Here we come together as neighbors, families, churches, and friends to listen for what God is doing in the city. We become God's peace by learning and growing together through the practices of ministry including Scripture, the arts, the senses, prayer, pilgrimage, and the classroom. Together we cultivate transformative and experiential learning, embody a model of applied theology, and develop generations of leaders for ministry.

City

Ministry Fellows Program

Understand the city better, experience the broader church, get equipped for ministry, and become formed for leadership...

Understand the city better, experience the broader church, get equipped for ministry, and become formed for leadership. Through experiential learning, dialogue and reflection, prayer, worship, and wrestling with Scripture, walk together with a diverse community of ministry leaders for a season.

The next Ministry Fellows cohort will meet from September 28 - November 13, 2024. Dates and times of meetings are below, and we invite you to attend an upcoming open house to learn more about the program!

The Ministry Fellows Program is a prerequisite for application to our Master of Arts Program in "Ministry in the Global City."

Sat. September 28, 2024, 10 AM - 4 PM
Wed. October 2, 2024, 6 - 8:30 PM      
Sun. October 13 2024, (church visit option 1) 10 AM - 2 PM
Sat. October 19, 2024, 10 AM - 4 PM      
Wed. October 30, 2024, 6 - 8:30 PM 
Sun. November 3, 2024, (church visit option 2), 10 AM - 2 PM
Sat. November 9, 2024, 10 AM - 4 PM
Wed. November 13, 2024, 6 PM - 8:30 PM

Click HERE to apply!

NEIGHBORHOOD + WORLD

WALLS-ORTIZ GALLERY AT LARGE

Creative Community Care: Artists Respond to Pandemic Times

Co-directors: Dr. Maria Liu Wong and Sarah Gerth van den Berg

Curatorial program assistant: Sasha Hallock

The Creative Community Care Virtual Residency brings together eight Christian artists in an exploration of creative practices in extending care through community engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath from March - December 2021. The spring 2022 collaboration residency will prepare for fall 2022 online public programming, and a group exhibition in 2024.

"Creative Community Care: Artists Respond to Pandemic Times" is an interactive group exhibit exploring concerns and questions arising from COVID-19 and racial violence at the intersection of the arts, learning, faith, and the city. Eight artists adapted their creative practices to process their own experiences with grief and memory, relationships as neighbors and friends, and roles as parents and caregivers. Their works invite us to consider the relevance of the arts for healing and dream of new ways we might care for our communities.

Next exhibition stop: St. Paul, MN, from November  1- December 15! Here's how you can engage with it:

*Join us for our opening celebration on November 7th. RSVP and more info HERE.

*Or check out one of our free exhibition workshops at the link HERE!

This exhibit is part of City Seminary of New York's Ministry in the City HUB, a national network that supports the flourishing of pastors, ministry leaders, artists, congregations, faith-based organizations, and theological education focused on cities.

Curated by Maria Liu Wong and Sarah Gerth van den Berg

Thanks to Lilly Endowment Inc. for making this possible.

Creative Community Care virtual residents (from left to right, top to bottom): Alysia Harris, Julian Reid, Olga Lah; de'Angelo Dia, Sophia Dawson; Naomi Kuo, DeAmon Harges, Naomi Lawrence

CITY

FAITH AND FAMILIES

Faith and Families seeks to strengthen the spiritual formation of children and families in congregations across the New York City region, with special attention to inter-generational faith-sharing activities in diaspora and newer immigrant church communities. Our purpose is three-fold:

1. To listen to and document the work of spiritual formation in congregations across New York City, particularly attentive to pastors, children and youth ministry leaders, parents, extended families as well as inter-generational activities in diaspora communities. This will be done largely through research into multi-generational parenting, care-giving practices, and multi-directional dynamics of the transmission of faith;

2. To create and cultivate opportunities for Christian parents and caregivers to engage in reflective practices and learning postures as they discover and generate relevant and accessible resources for their own and other communities in the city (which could include rituals, family traditions, baby-naming services, etc.); and

3. To enrich and strengthen the ways that we walk holistically alongside the Church in the city through City Seminary's Learning Ecology.

World

Ministry in the City Hub

As congregations in cities across the nation and world face new challenges and responsibilities amidst our uncertain times, we are pleased to share the news that The Lilly Endowment, Inc. has awarded City Seminary of New York a grant to establish a Ministry in the City Hub.

As congregations in cities across the nation and world face new challenges and responsibilities amidst our uncertain times, we are pleased to share the news that The Lilly Endowment, Inc. has awarded City Seminary of New York a grant to establish a Ministry in the City Hub.

Supported by a three-year, $3.3 million grant, the Hub will provide time and space to gather, share, learn, encourage and cultivate the healing and hopeful work God is doing in cities nationally. This project is co-directed by Dr. Maria Liu Wong and Rev. Dr. Mark R. Gornik. Our program coordinator is April Picon, and program assistant, Rex Agyemang. In 2022, we are thrilled to announce that the Endowment has awarded a five-year $15 million grant to deepen and push outward the work of the HUB.
 
We are grateful to The Lilly Endowment, and want to remember and honor the life and friendship of The Rev. Dr. John Wimmer, our first Program Officer at The Endowment, who passed away in 2020.

Thank you for continuing to pray with us as we seek to serve Christ in our neighborhood, city and world.

City

pray and break bread.NEW YORK CITY
pbb.LONG ISLAND CITY Queens
November 9, 2024 | 10 AM - 1 PM

Join us for a time of communal scripture reading, prayer walks around the neighborhood, and a taste of New York’s City diverse cuisine focused on the year’s theme, Listen for the Peace of the City...

pray and break bread (pbb.NYC) is one of our core practices at City Seminary of New York. Each year we visit different neighborhoods in the five boroughs for a time of learning from ministry leaders, Scripture reading, prayer walking, and eating food specific to each neighborhood. This year we are focusing on the theme Sing for the Peace of the City. When we walk, pray, and eat together, how can we sing along with the melody of the Spirit's song? How do we create harmony with those who are already singing along in their neighborhoods?

Our 24-25 "pray and break bread" season continues with a stop in Long Island City, Queens! We are grateful to MA student Daniel Sanabria and the rest of our MA 2026 cohort for leading this pbb. They will invite us to sense the life and needs of this neighborhood and pray for the people that call Long Island City home today. Register here!

Join us as we Sing for the Peace of the City and see how the Spirit is at work! For more information or with questions, please email learning@cityseminaryny.org.

Community

We Are CSNY

As 2022 draws to a close, we want to share some of our students' stories with you, stories of how their learning at the seminary has supported or sparked their ministry dreams...

We want to share some of our students' stories with you, stories of how their learning at the seminary has supported or sparked their ministry dreams, and how their dreams are becoming reality by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Peter has lived in New York City his whole life. He joined City Seminary's second Ministry Fellows cohort in 2010, and later enrolled in the first MA cohort, graduating in 2020. He currently resides in East Harlem with his wife, Miriam, who is the Vice President of City Seminary. Together, they serve as associate pastors at Iglesia Pentecostal Camino a Damasco on the Lower East Side.

"One of the things I learned at City Seminary is about all of creation being image bearers. It's not 'us' the church and 'them' the world, but we're all God's creation and everyone deserves dignity and respect. Allowing God to move me in that area helped me to ask, Where can we meet God together? I'm really trying to discern how God would have me find ways to be present in the community, inviting the community into the church."

Above Image: Peter Acevedo with Miriam Acevedo, on the steps of their church on the Lower East Side

CITY

Bible for Life

The goal of the Bible for Life course at CSNY is to read and hear scripture for ministry and every corner of life in a complex and ever-changing urban context. We will approach the whole narrative of the Bible as a story of neighbors, and the desire and challenges of our common life.

 

Bible for Life / Christmas Pageants: Retelling of the Miracle and Mystery

Fridays, December 6, 13 and 20, 2024 @ 12 - 1 PM EST

Online via Zoom

Christmas is a season filled with customs and traditions. Join us for a three-week, online Bible for Life advent series on "Christmas Pageants: Retelling of the Miracle and Mystery." Learning from ministry leaders in three different churches, we will explore how they see Christmas pageants as opportunities for passing faith and leadership responsibility to the next generation, deepening traditions of church family, and celebrating and reimagining spaces beyond church walls. 

Bible for Life is a non-credit, intensive course series that provides an overview of the Bible. Students come to understand their place in the unfolding story of God's relationship with creation, from Genesis through Revelation. The course is taught by a faculty team including Geomon George, Mark Gornik, and others. 

This course meets the prerequisite requirement for applying to the City Seminary of New York Graduate Center Master of Arts in Ministry in the Global City.  

The course is free of cost. Register here!

For more information, please contact Sarah at learning@cityseminaryny.org.

COMMUNITY

MARK R. GORNIK

Director, City Seminary of New York

Co-Director, Ministry in the City HUB

Pastor, Community of St. Luke, New York, NY

City Seminary of New York is a truly unique place to be. It is where the diverse Body of Christ comes together in a new "Ephesian moment" in our global city, learning and walking in mutuality...

City Seminary of New York is a truly unique place to be. It is where the diverse Body of Christ comes together in a new "Ephesian moment" in our global city, learning and walking in mutuality. From my community development days in Sandtown to the building of an evolving ecosystem of theological formation in New York City, my journey has been shaped by friendship and the movement of the Holy Spirit in our midst.

CITY

12TH ANNUAL SYMPOSIUM ON WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP AND MINISTRY

Listen for the Peace of the City

JANUARY 20, 2024, 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM

What is the role of listening in creating peace in our city? How can we as women take care to truly hear each other—and how are we empowered when we are heard? Join us for our 12th Annual Symposium on Women in Leadership and Ministry as we come together to grow as listeners. We will learn from Biblical women Lydia and Hannah how to listen well, and we will engage one another in practices and collaboration. Together, we will discover the meaning of this year's theme: Listen for the Peace of the City. There will be opportunities for worship, study, refreshment, rest, and reflection. With any questions about the symposium, please email events@cityseminaryny.org. We can't wait to share this time together soon!

Since 2013, women in leadership and ministry from across the city have gathered annually for a time of learning and retreat from the everyday challenges and opportunities of "being" in the city. This year, we consider the theme "Dream for the Peace of the City."

What is the role of listening in creating peace in our city? How can we as women take care to truly hear each other—and how are we empowered when we are heard?

Join us for our 12th Annual Symposium on Women in Leadership and Ministry as we come together to grow as listeners. We will learn from Biblical women Lydia and Hannah how to listen well, and we will engage one another in practices and collaboration. Together, we will discover the meaning of this year's theme: Listen for the Peace of the City.

There will be opportunities for worship, study, refreshment, rest, and reflection. With any questions about the symposium, please email events@cityseminaryny.org. We can't wait to share this time together soon!

Symposium Early Registration (before Jan 5 ): $25

Symposium Registration (Jan 6 - 15): $35

Symposium Care Package (pay for someone who can't): As much as you wish

 

REGISTER HERE! Please register NO LATER than Jan 15, 2024.

 

[Image credit: photo by Sara Bennett, Tracy at Church, 2016, sarabennett.org]

NEIGHBORHOOD

WALLS-ORTIZ GALLERY ON THE MOVE

Spring 2024 Public Art-Making Workshops

Listen for the Peace of the City

Join us for a series of free community art workshops led by local artists at the Fresh Oils Community Garden (Harlem). Sign up for one or for all. Materials are provided. These workshops are subsidized by the Walls-Ortiz Gallery, and participation is first come first served. Space may be limited.

Tuesday April 16, 1 PM - 3 PM  |  Make It and Take It! Silk Art Scarf Workshop with Omi Gray

Learn how to create a unique silk art scarf by experimenting with colors and designing one-of-a-kind patterns. This scarf will make a wonderful Mother’s Day gift.

 

Tuesday May 14, 6 PM - 8 PM  |  Fabric Greeting Cards Workshop with Thadine Wormly

Learn to create beautiful greeting cards for friends and loved ones with fabric materials from NYC-based quilter Thadine Wormly.

 

Tuesday June 11, 1 PM - 3 PM  |  Community Art Workshop

Details forthcoming!

WORLD

MINISTRY IN THE CITY HUB GRANTS

2020-21

As part of a multi-year grant awarded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. to create the Ministry in the City Hub, City Seminary of New York is pleased to announce a series of grants that further the work of doing, thinking about, and connecting together around ministry in cities across North America. We are truly inspired by the commitment of these churches, educational institutions, and community organizations.

As part of a multi-year grant awarded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. to create the Ministry in the City Hub, City Seminary of New York is pleased to announce a series of grants that further the work of doing, thinking about, and connecting together around ministry in cities across North America. We are truly inspired by the commitment of these churches, educational institutions, and community organizations.

 

Prophetic Ministerial Leadership and Creative Responses to COVID-19 Challenges in Inner-City Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministry at Boston College

Building Capacity for UniteBoston's Bridge-Building Work at Unite Boston

Community Greater than COVID (Community > COVID) Initiative at Esperanza Health Center, Philadelphia

Design for Cultural Exchange and Racial Reconciliation Among Children at Real Community Covenant Church in Marion, Indiana

"The Timothy Project" at DSI International, New York City

 Urban Ministry Leadership Cohort at Seattle Pacific Seminary, Seattle

 

We're grateful to the Lilly Endowment, Inc. for the opportunity to support these six groups and their important community work.

City

Thriving in Ministry

Become part of a growing community of pastoral ministry and leadership practice across church traditions and networks in the metropolitan New York area.

Become part of a growing community of pastoral ministry and leadership practice across church traditions and networks in the metropolitan New York area. The goal of the Thriving in Ministry initiative at City Seminary of New York is to walk alongside pastors and ministry leaders from the diverse Body of Christ in our city to nurture networks of mutual support, care, and well-being in a complex and ever-changing urban context. This is done through pastoral conversation collaborative inquiry groups, reflective praxis groups, spiritual direction retreats (fall and spring), pastoral portraits, and an annual reunion. New groups are formed and meet throughout the year.

These sessions will meet online via Zoom (or hybrid) until further notice. Attend an online open house or email us for more information.

This is for pastors (and their spouses) who are new to pastoral leadership, those seeking peers who have been pastoring for several years, or others are transitioning into retirement. This is also for those serving in an official ministry leadership capacity in a church or ministry context.

Retreat dates for 2024 are: April 12 and October 18. Learn more by emailing Geomon at learning@cityseminaryny.org.

Many thanks to the Lilly Endowment, Inc. for their generous funding and support.

COMMUNITY

MARIA LIU WONG

CSNY/WTS MA 2007

Provost, City Seminary of New York

Director, Walls-Ortiz Gallery and Center

Co-Director, Ministry in the City HUB

Fellowship Group Leader, Redeemer Presbyterian Downtown, New York, NY

 

At City Seminary, I have the privilege to cultivate spaces for faculty, staff, students, and visitors to interact in creative ways. We interpret Scripture together with our bodies in tableau...

At City Seminary, I have the privilege to cultivate spaces for faculty, staff, students, and visitors to interact in creative ways. We interpret Scripture together with our bodies in tableau and practice hospitality with neighbors through food and art-making. This process is a way that we "become" God's peace in the city, living out our faith in unexpected ways as well as pointing others to Christ.

NEIGHBORHOOD

Walls-Ortiz Gallery at Home

Virtual Yarn Circle

Build for the Peace of the City

Join us for a bi-weekly virtual yarn circle from June until August 2021, as we support the Chinatown Yarn Circle project, a collaboration with Harlem artist Naomi Lawrence and community organizer Tina Lin.

Join us for a bi-weekly virtual yarn circle from June until August 2021, as we support the Chinatown Yarn Circle project, a collaboration with Harlem artist Naomi Lawrence and community organizer Tina Lin. Be part of a large-scale civic awareness and community solidarity yarn mural that will be installed in Columbus Park (in Manhattan's Chinatown) in October 2021.

Come to learn basic stitches to make a 2 1/2 inch square, flex your crochet creativity and make flowers or leaves, or just come and hang out for conversation. Materials pickup in person at the Lower East Side People Care Garden (25 Rutgers St, NYC) on August 1 and 8, 3:30 PM - 5 PM) or at the Fresh Oils Community Garden (Harlem; by appointment only).

Register for a virtual yarn circle date at the link below, or email wogc@cityseminaryny.org for more information.

Neighborhood

Planting for Peace,

A Justice Seedbed Project

2019 - 2020

Co-directed by Adrienne Croskey and Maria Liu Wong

The Walls-Ortiz Gallery and Center is "on the move" in the neighborhood.

The Walls-Ortiz Gallery and Center has been "on the move" in the neighborhood starting Fall 2019.

Last summer, we launched Planting for Peace, a Justice Seedbed Project, with a group exhibition exploring creative ways to respond to our environment's call for care. This past year, we partnered with the New York Public Library in East Harlem to host monthly art workshops for the Fisher Day Center. During the spring, we hosted weekly virtual art-making gatherings for a community outdoor yarn installation in collaboration with local artist Naomi Lawrence in the Fresh Oils Community Garden (163 St. Nicholas Ave.). We installed this bright colorful sign of hope in September 2020 and hope to continue adding to the collaborative work, as we meet together to crochet (virtually and eventually in person, socially distanced) over conversation and food.

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to see who we're connecting with in the neighborhood...

Above image: Clematis Vine Installation, Naomi Lawrence and the Walls-Ortiz Gallery community, Acrylic yarn, burlap, chicken wire, glue

City

Master of Arts Degree:
Ministry in the Global City

With the global city of New York as the classroom and the focus and background of every course, the MA degree program prepares students for the challenges of living and thinking theologically in a growing and changing, increasingly diverse world Christian church...

With the global city of New York as the classroom and the focus and background of every course, the MA degree program prepares students for the challenges of living and thinking theologically in a growing and changing, increasingly diverse world Christian church. It equips those living in the global city for ministry and leadership practice across generations, cultures, and traditions. Download the brochure here.

If you are interested in applying for the upcoming cohort (Spring 2024 start), attend an open house. Note: Ministry Fellows Program and Bible for Life courses are prerequisites for admission.

WORLD

Just Show Up

One way we hear God together is through the words of Scripture. Just Show Up (JSU) is a way of meeting regularly in community for extended listening and reading of Scripture...

One way we hear God together is through the words of Scripture. Just Show Up (JSU) is a way of meeting regularly in community for extended listening and reading of Scripture. In the Bible for Life and across program areas, City Seminary shares in this movement and the practice of the public reading of Scripture.

COMMUNITY

MIRIAM ACEVEDO

MF 2009-10

Vice President, City Seminary of New York

Director, WE LEAD NYC

Co-Director, Thriving in Ministry Initiative

Associate Pastor, Iglesia Pentecostal Camino a Damasco, New York, NY

I began my journey at City Seminary in the very first Ministry Fellows Cohort in 2009. Since then, I have come to be known as "the glue that holds things together"...

I began my journey at City Seminary in the very first Ministry Fellows Cohort in 2009. Since then, I have come to be known as "the glue that holds things together" in my role coordinating operations and leading the community as a prayer warrior. 

NEIGHBORHOOD

Brown Bag Lunch Talks

Brown Bag Lunch Talks are a daytime series of conversations with local partners and international scholars in the arts and public faith...

The Brown Bag Lunch Talk Series is a lunchtime gathering held on select Wednesdays during the fall and spring. This is an opportunity for us to dialogue and to interact with local partners and international scholars in the arts and public faith. Bring your lunch and join us for conversation. With the Walls-Ortiz Gallery "on the move," we will hold our Brown Bag Lunch Talk series at Hope Campus, 302 West 119th St, 3rd Flr, NYC, and other locations in the neighborhood.

Check back soon for details on upcoming events.

WORLD

The city is the seminary... All roads lead to New York. The whole world is there. A vision of world Christianity is already being lived out, right there in New York City.

"The city is the seminary... All roads lead to New York. The whole world is there. A vision of world Christianity is already being lived out, right there in New York City."

Emmanuel Katongole
“The Wonder of It All,”
Duke Faith and Leadership, 2009.

CITY

LIBRARY

City Seminary of New York's (CSNY) library and reading room, located on Hope Campus, is focused in four specific subject areas: Global Christianity (defined as works on Christianity in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the West Indies), Urban Ministry and Mission Studies, Biblical Studies, and Applied Theological Studies.

City Seminary of New York's (CSNY) library is focused in four specific subject areas: Global Christianity (defined as works on Christianity in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the West Indies), Urban Ministry and Mission Studies, Biblical Studies, and Applied Theological Studies. Because of our specialization in Global Christianity, we have internationally published materials that are not available anywhere else in the city. 

The library has a small but focused collection of journals mainly within the subject area of Missions Studies and Global Christianity. Additionally, we subscribe to more general theological journals and a small number of journals that examine urban Christianity, as well as the American Theological Library Association's journal database ATLAS, an online full-text collection of major religion and theology journals. 

We welcome pastors, ministry leaders, researchers, and students to use our library as a resource on campus during library hours (Monday through Friday, 10 AM - 5 PM). Books are for reading-room access only. Contact library@cityseminaryny.org for more information.

COMMUNITY

GEOMON GEORGE

Dean, City Seminary of New York

Co-Director, Thriving in Ministry Initiative

Co-Director, MA MIGC 2023

Pastor, International Gospel Church NYC, Bronx, NY

As an administrator, faculty member, and pastor, I enjoy introducing people to our learning communities as well as walking alongside students and alumni over time...

As an administrator, faculty member, and pastor, I enjoy introducing people to our learning communities as well as walking alongside students and alumni over time. It has been a joy to play the role of mentor as well as co-learner over meals, on walks around the city, and in prayer together.

WORLD

Ministry in the city begins with what is right in front of us, perhaps right under our feet or just out of the way, but unfolds in ways that fit into the context.

"Ministry in the city begins with what is right in front of us, perhaps right under our feet or just out of the way, but unfolds in ways that fit into the context.

Look around, pray, think, share this journey with others, wait on the Spirit, try to see afresh what is right in front of you, and take the time that is needed. Because no two settings, neighborhoods, or cities are alike, the Gospel takes shape in the local."

Mark Gornik and Maria Liu Wong,
Stay in the City: How Christian Faith is Flourishing in an Urban World, 2017

NEIGHBORHOOD

WALLS-ORTIZ GALLERY ON THE MOVE

"Summer in the Garden" Outdoor Art Exhibition

Dream for the Peace of the City

What sights, smells, sounds, tastes, and textures do you associate with summer in the city? What colors and feelings, people and places do you think of in a garden in the city?

This outdoor exhibition features artwork created during nature-inspired workshops with artists from the Fisher Center led by Huibing He at the New York Public Library and Fresh Oils Community Garden in the fall of 2019 and spring / summer of 2022.

We invite you to see and sense the world anew through the colors and textures of summer captured in these multimedia works. Public hours are 12 PM - 3 PM on Tuesdays from October 4 – November 1. We also invite you to join us for our Community Conversation about the exhibition, on Tuesday October 11 from 6 PM - 8 PM, by RSVPing here.

On display at the Fresh Oils Community Garden (West 119th Street between St Nicholas Ave and Frederick Douglass Blvd, enter at the gate with the crocheted flowers). In addition to this multimedia installation, you can view our in-progress community textile installation at the Fresh Oils garden, also created in collaboration with the Fisher Center.

The Walls-Ortiz Gallery and Center is currently “on the move” in the neighborhood. We are hosting outdoor events at the Fresh Oils Community Garden located on West 119th St between St. Nicholas Ave and Frederick Douglass Blvd. For questions, please email wogc@cityseminaryny.org.

Community

Vivian Grubb

CSNY/WTS MA 2007

Faculty, City Seminary of New York

Bishop, True Holy Church "City of Refuge," Brooklyn, NY

 

My relationship with City Seminary is a match made in heaven. I was introduced to the seminary at a time when I was desperate for direction and tools for doing ministry in the urban context of New York City...

My relationship with City Seminary is a match made in heaven. I was introduced to the seminary at a time when I was desperate for direction and tools for doing ministry in the urban context of New York City. I not only found a seminary but I found a community that embraced me and helped to mold my theological view of ministry in the city. It is the only place that I know of where I can say you will truly learn how to view ministry in the city. 

Neighborhood

Urban Pilgrimage 2019: Medellin and Sao Paulo

March 30 - May 18, 2019

Curated by Anthony Artis, Sarah Gerth van den Berg, Maria Liu Wong, and Jenny Tibbels

Journey with us to Medellin and Sao Paulo. We invite you to wonder about how the stories of these cities illuminate aspects of your own context... 

In January of 2019, the first cohort of the MA in Ministry in the Global City program went on a pilgrimage to Medellín & São Paulo. As Father 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. Many of our cohort came to New York by way of other global cities, and immediately saw connections to Medellín and São Paolo, which you can read about in the journal excerpts displayed.

As you journey with us, we invite you to wonder about how the stories of these cities illuminate aspects of your own context. How might you be an everyday pilgrim in the city, attentive to the forces of urbanization, spiritual life of the city, and encounters with the suffering, joy, and humanity of your neighbors?

Featuring work by the MA in Ministry in the Global City Class of 2020

Above Image: Medellin, Colombia, Mitchell Kelly, 2019

City

WE LEAD NYC

A Youth Seminary Initiative

The goal of WE LEAD NYC is to nurture youth communities in the city for lives of purpose and joy through leadership development, spiritual formation, and ministry practice. The program is open to high school students (rising 9th–12th graders), college freshman, and their church youth leaders.

The goal of WE LEAD NYC is to nurture youth communities in the city for lives of purpose and joy through leadership development, spiritual formation, and ministry practice. We cultivate active Listening as a practice, encourage vocational Exploration as a journey, equip Ambassadors to build bridges, and root Disciples in the Word. With the city as our classroom, engage in experiential learning, Scripture reflection, prayer, worship, and fun. The program is open to high school students (rising 9th–12th graders), college freshman, and their church youth leaders. Email us to learn more (learning@cityseminaryny.org).

WORLD

Christ's completion as we have seen, comes from all humanity, from the translation of the life of Jesus into the lifeways of all the world's cultures and subcultures through history.

Christ's completion as we have seen, comes from all humanity, from the translation of the life of Jesus into the lifeways of all the world's cultures and subcultures through history. None of us can reach Christ's completeness on our own. We need each other's vision to correct, enlarge, and focus our own; only together are we complete in Christ.

Andrew Walls
“The Ephesian Moment,”
The Cross-Cultural Process in Christian History, 2002.

COMMUNITY

SARAH GERTH VAN DEN BERG

MF 2019-20

Dean of Pedagogy and Curriculum,            City Seminary of New York

Co-Director, MA MIGC 2023

Fellow, Walls-Ortiz Gallery and Center

Fellowship Group Leader, Emmanuel Presbyterian Church, New York, NY

As an educator, lifelong learner, and creative, I enjoy designing and curating learning experiences for theological education.

As an educator, lifelong learner, and creative, I enjoy designing and curating learning experiences for theological education. I love drawing on the arts, place, and community to spark ways of thinking and doing theology together in a global city and learn alongside the vibrant body of students at City Seminary.

Neighborhood

Conversations with Harriet and Frederick: Stories Told, Journeys Unfold

December 13, 2018 - February 28, 2019

Curated by Anthony Artis, Adrienne Croskey, Sarah Gerth van den Berg, Maria Liu Wong, and Jenny Tibbels

Explore the legacies of Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass through the perspectives of contemporary artists.

Explore the legacies of Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass through the perspectives of contemporary artists. Douglass advocated for freedom and justice as an orator and writer while Tubman journeyed under the cover of night through the Underground Railroad. This portion of Conversations with Harriet engages ways in which their legacies continue in the public and private domains, making visible the stories of lesser known journeys and inviting us into dialogue and inspired action.

Artwork by Maria de los Angeles and Mahtab Petrami, Carol Fields, Naomi Kuo and Queens Memory, Nate Ladson, Camilo José Vergara, and Kim Worthmann.

Above Image: MLK Jr. Mural through Chain Link Fence Frederick Douglass Blvd at West 154th Street, Harlem, Camilo José Vergara, 2009, Digital C-Print, 20 x 30

World

No longer "wandering and lost," Brian expressed a sense of home in God, in the body of Christ, and in the city of Toronto.

"No longer "wandering and lost," Brian expressed a sense of home in God, in the body of Christ, and in the city of Toronto."

Mark R. Gornik and Sarah Gerth van den Berg
"One Day I Walk: Pilgrimage and Finding our Way Home,"
Empire Remixed, 2020

NEIGHBORHOOD

City to Sea: Coney Island

September 13 - November 16, 2018 (extended)

Curated by Rebecca Locke &

David Kendall

Presented by City to Sea artists and community residents in association with Goldsmiths, UOL, UK at the Walls-Ortiz Gallery and Center. Through photography and audio visual installations, the exhibition explores narratives of Coney Island, from amusement parks and rides to the ongoing recovery from Superstorm Sandy.

Above Image: Mermaid Ave, Konstantin Sergeyev, photograph, 2015

City

8th Annual Symposium on Women in Leadership and Ministry (WILAM)

Grow for the Peace of the City

At this year's women's symposium, we unpacked ways to "grow for the peace of the city." 

Every January, women involved in leadership and ministry from across the city gather for a time of learning, sharing, reflection, and retreat from the everyday challenges and opportunities of "being" in the city. The symposium, which began in 2013, focuses on the annual seminary theme. The year we will unpack ways to "grow for the peace of the city." An integral part of this gathering is intentional space for quiet and restoration of the body and spirit through the arts and reflection, as well as the engagement of the mind through panels and conversation.

How does life in the city shape our growth, and how does our growth contribute to the peace of the city? How might our lives be the water, nutrients, and soil for the growth of others? How can the stories of Biblical women inspire our approaches to growing? Our 8th Annual Symposium on Women in Leadership and Ministry was spent collaboratively reflecting and learning in response to this year's theme, Grow for the Peace of the City. 
 

WORLD

At City Seminary of New York, we have found that ministry in the city is most generative and sustainable when it begins with the senses...

"At City Seminary of New York, we have found that ministry in the city is most generative and sustainable when it begins with the senses, with our everyday experiences as embodied beings with diverse callings and vocations. Our approach to ministry begins with how we see, hear, taste, smell and touch the city."

Mark R. Gornik and Carrie Myers
"Sensing the City -- Practicing Christianity in an Urban World"
Duke Faith and Leadership, 2014

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