As a generation of experienced pastors enter retirement age, many churches around the world are seeing a shortage of trained leaders. Pastoral candidates who have studied Anabaptist theology are even more rare. However, the three Anabaptist-Mennonite synods in Indonesia have proactive strategies to equip future leaders.

GKMI

“Pastors, teachers and evangelists retire at some point, or move on to a different calling. We want to make sure that GKMI has a ready pool of theologians, pastors, evangelists and church planters to continue leading GKMI into the future,” says Daniel K. Trihandoyo, head of human resource development of the GKMI synod.

It is in this spirit that GKMI started theological study bursaries in 2009, which it made official in 2014 during its national convention in Bali.

On average, three bursary recipients graduate each year and are recruited for ministry within GKMI. This roughly matches the number of pastors who retire annually.

GITJ

“GITJ has seen an upward trend in young people wanting to study theology. We are optimistic that the future need for pastors, assistant pastors and ministry leaders can be filled from our pool of graduates,” says Pendeta (pastor) Herin Kahadi Jayanto of GITJ Kudus, who is a faculty member of Wiyata Wacana.

GITJ began STAK Wiyata Wacana (Wiyata Wacana) in Pati, Central Java, in 2014 to address the need for Anabaptist-rooted theologians to lead its churches. Almost all of the 190 full-time pastors serving GITJ’s 120 congregations are graduates.

To stay rooted in its Anabaptist teaching and expose its students to global trends in ministry, Wiyata Wacana collaborates with Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) since 2022 to offer a theological program with global perspective, taught by AMBS professors but conducted at Wiyata Wacana’s Pati campus.

JKI

Meanwhile, JKI has a big vision for their theological school, STT Sangkakala, started in 1986. “Our vision is to have 1,000 local churches [in] Indonesia and 1,000 missionaries to send to various countries. This vision cannot be achieved without a training centre to prepare them,” said Yusup Rogo, head of STT Sangkakala’s undergraduate program.

Every JKI congregation has independence, so each is free to recruit pastors and church workers from any theological schools according to their needs.

His observation is consistent with that of GKMI and GITJ, which doesn’t see a decline in interest to study theology and entering full-time ministry: “It is not uncommon for people who have encountered God at personal level to want to serve God and accept the calling to full time ministry.”