Three local institutions of higher education --- Loyola Marymount University, Mt. St. Mary's College, and St. John Seminary --- have reshaped their graduate theology programs to assist the Archdiocese of Los Angeles to prepare and form pastoral associates for ministry and leadership in the parishes.

National trends indicate that the need for educational programs for the laity has never been greater. A study commissioned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and published in 1999 estimates that 29,145 lay persons -- including vowed religious -- work full- or part-time in formal pastoral roles. The number represents a 35 percent increase from a similar study published seven years earlier. Sixty percent of U.S. parishes now employ lay ministers.

The development of master's degrees to support lay ecclesial ministers has its roots in a subcommittee of the USCCB, which in 1995 undertook the Leadership for Lay Ecclesial Ministry Project. Its goals were to assist U.S. bishops to understand and provide leadership to the phenomenon of lay ecclesial ministry and to develop policy for formation, education, placement, evaluation, accountability, certification, ministerial collaboration, and theological and canonical considerations. The group also engaged in conversations with lay formation programs and universities about how to ensure high quality pastoral ministry for the Catholic Church.

Locally, Religious of the Sacred Heart Sister Mary Genino, former archdiocesan director of the Office of Pastoral Associates, convened representatives from Loyola Marymount University, Mount St. Mary's and St. John's Seminary to examine how the degrees could better support the need to educate and spiritually form new pastoral associates.

"It was truly a collaborative effort," said Sister Genino. "Do you know what it takes to move an educational institution? I'm grateful for their attentiveness to the needs of the local church."

The results are three distinct master's programs offered at each institution to prepare pastoral associates to serve their church and minister to God's people.

Loyola Marymount University
LMU's department of Theological Studies now offers Master of Arts in Pastoral Theology for pastoral associates and lay ecclesial ministers. The program consists of 36 units (most courses are 3 units each) which includes core classes in biblical, historic and moral theology and systematics; theology electives in pastoral theology; the integration seminar; and a pastoral synthesis project.

A large full-time faculty of 20 theology professors means students can choose from a wide variety of courses and receive personal attention for advisement.

Dr. Michael Horan chaired the committee to revise LMU's graduate theological program and was part of the collaborative efforts between LMU, Mount St. Mary's and St. John Seminary. He currently chairs the advisory board for the Office of Pastoral Associates. The universities, he said, are graduating a "new generation of well-educated, well-prepared and spiritually grounded ministers."

To assist the Office of Pastoral Associates in the spiritual formation of ministers, LMU offers a one-unit integration seminar which students take three times to integrate their academic learning with their ministry and spiritual life. Students, said Horan, ponder the question, "How are my theological studies enriching and challenging me in my identity as a minister and my spirituality as a Catholic Christian lay leader?"

Linda Schultz, who coordinates the integration seminar, said some theological questions challenge students "to the core." In a seminar class of six to 10 people, students engage in theological reflection in a classroom faith community. They contextualize Scripture and connect it to their lives, parishes, cultures and families, said Schultz.

For the pastoral synthesis project, students analyze an issue that impacts the contemporary practice of ministry and propose how to design and implement a pastoral response.

Rosie Hernandez, pastoral associate at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church (Hammel Street) in East Los Angeles, focused her synthesis project on researching and implementing small faith communities at her parish.

"The project really gave me a hands-on experience of planning things within a parish, beginning a new ministry, training leaders and getting training for myself," said Hernandez. "I had an advisor at LMU who was wonderful and would help me to hash out the problems."

Most graduate theology students have full-time jobs and families. To facilitate students' busy schedules, LMU's classes generally take place weekdays, 4:30-7 p.m. and 7:15-9:45 p.m. and most students finish the degree in an average of three years.

Mount St. Mary's College
Mount St. Mary's College's downtown Doheny Campus offers a Master of Arts in Religious Studies, and for years courses have been taught Thursday evenings to accommodate working students.

Mount St. Mary's has a core group of faculty and relies on adjunct professors and renowned visiting theologians, invited by Dr. Alexis Navarro, who chaired the department for more than two decades.

The degree "gave me a theological background that has helped me a great deal in the parish," said Bill Shaules, pastoral associate at Incarnation Church in Glendale, where he frequently teaches Bible study classes.

Beginning in 2002 the degree was adapted to meet the needs of pastoral associates by offering a focused track called Studies in Ministry, which includes courses like "Ministering Across the Life Span," "Psychological Dimensions of Pastoral Ministry," and "Ministry and Diversity."

The master's program consists of 30 units with core courses in Scripture, Christian ethics and systematics. Students may also elect to complete a certificate program in a specialized area such as Hispanic Pastoral Ministry, Pastoral Care/Counseling and Youth and Young Adult Ministry.

Mount St. Mary's is acknowledged as a "Hispanic Serving Institution" by the federal government for its commitment to reaching out and educating Hispanic students. Since 1985 the Hispanic Ministry certificate program has offered qualified immigrant students an opportunity to take graduate level courses in Spanish, whether or not students have completed a BA degree. Students with a B.A., who have completed the certificate program in Hispanic Ministry, can apply those credits towards the master's.

St. Joseph of Carondelet Sister Mary McKay, currently department chair, said Mt. St. Mary students receive community support from their professors and from one another.

"Students get to know each other and they end up helping each other," said Sister McKay. "We try to be practical and give assignments that are real."

Students have written about contemporary issues such as the developing role of laity in the church, women and the church, and ministry with homosexual Catholics.

In the classroom, students have opportunities to reflect "on the tensions they feel in lived ecclesial ministry," said professor St. Joseph of Carondelet Sister Darlene Kawulok.

This fall the program will add a Saturday course. Next spring one course will be offered on a flexible schedule: The class will meet together during the opening weekend and closing day, but the rest of the course will be taught via the Internet. The Mount is experimenting with ways to meet the needs of students who live far away.

"We're trying to teach in traditional and non-traditional ways," said Sister McKay. "We want to honor the integrity of our program, but also honor the fact that students' lives are complex."

St. John's Seminary
Last fall St. John's Seminary in Camarillo launched the Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministry for pastoral associates and other lay ecclesial ministers, including religious.

The two pioneering students are Notre Dame Sister Anncarla Costello, who will soon become the new archdiocesan Vicar for Women Religious, and Noël Becker, who works full-time in parish ministry at St. Raphael Church in Goleta. Becker also is a pastoral associate candidate in formation with the archdiocesan Office of Pastoral Associates.

St. John's offers students --- lay and seminarian --- the unique opportunity to study, learn and work side-by-side in a way that complements each other's unique calls, said Vincentian Father Richard Benson, academic dean. "St. John's Seminary is looking forward," said Father Benson.

Sister Costello was able to complete the degree full-time during her sabbatical, and Becker's pastor, Father Bruce Correio, allows her some work time to attend the mostly daytime classes.

Becker, a single mother of two daughters who previously worked as a technical writer for a software company, brings her laptop to St. John's so she can work on the parish bulletin between classes. The seminary also has supported her to do some independent study so she can continue progressing towards the degree. "Everyone is wanting this to succeed," said Becker. "Flexibility is key."

So is spiritual formation. Master's students are invited to attend monthly days of recollection, and every student has a spiritual director. Like all seminarians, master's students must also go through a psychological evaluation before being admitted into the program. And all students complete supervised field education.

Sister Costello has taken two courses in homiletics, which included being videotaped and critiquing one's public oratory skills. "I've grown in appreciation of seminarians and the crafting of a homily," she said.

Father Pat Mullen, seminary professor, said having women in the classroom speaking from their own experiences, perspectives and insights is a "huge bonus," especially for seminarians coming from other countries where women may not have had as many parish leadership roles as they do in the U.S. church.

In interacting with women in the classroom, Father Mullen said, "It becomes apparent to everyone that these are people who deserve respect and can be a collaborative ally rather than women who need to be directed."

In the class, Introduction to Canon Law, Sister Costello and second year seminarian Tim Klosterman designed a power point presentation together.

"The diversity of insight is enriched," said Klosterman of having lay people and religious in class. Klosterman said he valued learning from Sister Costello's experience of serving as a superior in Rome to her religious congregation, "and what it means to be collaborative in a religious community."

Collaborative vision

The three institutions also share and promote a collaborative vision towards preparing pastoral associates. Some adjunct professors teach at all three schools. Students can transfer credits and LMU and MSMC students can complete their supervised ministry through St. John Seminary.

Financing the preparation of lay ministers is one of the challenges facing the Catholic Church today. Courses at St. John's Seminary, Mount St. Mary's and LMU cost $1,074, $1,590 and $2,085, respectively, per three-unit class. And students in these programs, admittedly, don't have nearly the same kind of financial future to look forward to as graduate students in law, medicine or other professions. Low-income parishes that want to educate their parish leaders, who are often immigrants and people of color, also face the financing challenge.

To assist students and the local church, LMU and Mount St. Mary's cut their tuition by one third if a student is working for the church full-time. Some parishes subsidize the costs for their lay ministers. Students can also apply for various loans, grants, scholarships, and graduate assistantships.

Editor's note: To contact the archdiocesan Office of Pastoral Associates, call (213) 637-7533. For more information about master's degree programs see Loyola Marymount University, http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/theology/graduate/; Mount St. Mary's College, www.msmc.la.edu/rstudies; and for St. John's Seminary, call (805) 482-2755, ext. 1012.