How does someone financially prepare for ministry?

[DiscussingTheTopic]

I am really confused about what I should do

I have been working on a secular graduate degree and in the middle of my school study I felt very strongly that I should teach at Seminary School, because the leaders just are not teaching Pastors the right stuff at least for the most part.

I realized that their are a certain set of rules that you must follow to interpret the Bible and the only way to come to the conclusion that polygyny is forbidden is to break these rules.

I realized that people including my past self engage in "double-think." They think two irreconciably contradictory things at the same time for the sake of a perceived reward (or lack of punishment.)

For example if you read the Bible with method A, you would come to the conclusion the Bible is self-contradictory. If you read the Bible with method B it is not self contradictory

But if you read it with method A you can claim polygyny is morally wrong and get a perceived reward (or lack of punishment) so everyone chooses to read the Bible with method A instead of method B even though

1. If you interpret anything other than scripture with method A it will destroy your life so people choose to interpret everything but the Bible with method B and the Bible with method A when it comes to topics where knowing the truth would result in a perceived punishment
2. Method A interpretation if done consistently would mean the Bible is full of contradictions and imaginary data that people add even though it is not there. Yet people choose method A will proclaiming to believe the Bible, but under method A the Bible cannot be true because it is self-contradictory


So anyway to make a long story short I realized that all these double-thinking pastors come from Seminary school and are not being taught proper methodology or intentionally choosing to negate what they are taught in methodology in order to fit in with what the same professor teaches in terms of the great traditions of men.

So I know no one else face to face who can fix this.

So I feel I am called to do full-time teaching work in the future, because I am the only person I know face to face who is qualified.

I am not trying to sound arrogant. I consider myself in need of much improvement and wish there was someone more qualified to teach me, but I have not found someone yet face to face.

But I do not know what I should do. Should I rush to get a seminary degree so I can teach and fix up the Seminary Schools hermeneutics or should I try to get some other sort of way to teach people on a mass scale? Or should I work on getting a non-teaching job even though my goal is a full-time teaching job, simply because the truth is rejected on such a large scale so who would support me to teach anyway?

I do not know if I explained my question well, you can ask further details.

 

[Anonymous]

It is highly unlikely that any institution of higher learning will yield a teaching position to someone who is not in general agreement with the school's doctrinal position or methodology. You may have to find another venue, perhaps starting your own school in real-time or on-line.

 

[Tlaloc]

What can you do on the micro scale to pursue this role? Both changing seminaries and teaching masses are macro scale, and it's not bad to work on that scale, but you normally have to start micro. Gather sympathetic friends in a small group and expand from there. While at it do some tentmaking ministry to support yourself until you have a large enough group.

If you're keen to be an understudy move to where one of the teachers who believes in polygamy live, or move somewhere where you are near enough poly supporters to get yourself started.

Confront where you need to confront, let it go when people refuse to change (dust off their feet and all) and try not to stress over what you should be doing too much, God will let you get where he wants you to go. Patience sucks, but God thinks it's a virtue so I've got to recommend it.

In your case I doubt a degree will help you're goals, but if that is where you are supposed to be that is where you should go. If you do go, be prepared to fail or get expelled based on what you believe, I know I've failed over being a Christian before back in my college days. If you fail, take it in stride, if you succeed, take it in stride. Not much more you can do.

 

[DiscussingTheTopic]

What can you do on the micro scale to pursue this role? Both changing seminaries and teaching masses are macro scale, and it's not bad to work on that scale, but you normally have to start micro. Gather sympathetic friends in a small group and expand from there. While at it do some tentmaking ministry to support yourself until you have a large enough group.

If you're keen to be an understudy move to where one of the teachers who believes in polygamy live, or move somewhere where you are near enough poly supporters to get yourself started.

Confront where you need to confront, let it go when people refuse to change (dust off their feet and all) and try not to stress over what you should be doing too much, God will let you get where he wants you to go. Patience sucks, but God thinks it's a virtue so I've got to recommend it.

In your case I doubt a degree will help you're goals, but if that is where you are supposed to be that is where you should go. If you do go, be prepared to fail or get expelled based on what you believe, I know I've failed over being a Christian before back in my college days. If you fail, take it in stride, if you succeed, take it in stride. Not much more you can do.

It is really important to me to learn Greek, History and Hebrew very well. I am wondering if I should get a secular PhD instead or in addition.

It is ironic that Ehrman can "teach" because of his "credentials" yet someone supporting the truth of Biblical polygyny would get kicked out of school unless they are a Muslim. Although even more ironically Muslims quote Ehrman to refute the new testament and he helps confirm it

White: You discussed the length of time that exists between the writing of Paul’s letter to the Galatians and the first extant copy, that being 150 years. You described this time period as “enormous”. That’s a quote. Could you tell us what term you would use to describe the time period between, say, the original writings of Suetonius, or Tacitus, or Pliny and their first extant manuscript copies?

Ehrman: Very enormous... ginormous. Ginormous doesn’t cover it. (For) the New Testament we have much earlier attestation than for any other book from antiquity.

http://www.answeringmuslims.com/2009/04 ... ebate.html

So if the Monogamy Only Position people are right and Polygyny is evil, maybe quoting Pro-Polygyny professors can help confirm that Polygyny is evil, just like Ehrman helps confirm the validity of the new testament while raging against God.

 

[DiscussingTheTopic]

I think the conclusion I came to after doing some research is I will get a secular degree to study Greek unless someone can show a seminary school that can provide a better education in Greek and in methods of determining what historical events happened.

But I still need to figure out how to fund my way through college, but that might be another topic.