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About Ministry Today
and the Richard Baxter Institute for Ministry
Named after the 17th century pastor, Richard Baxter, whose ministry transformed the town of Kidderminster, the
Institute aims to provide a supportive resource for all in Christian leadership so that they may survive,
grow, develop and become more effective in the ministry to which Christ has called them.
We intend to fulfil this aim by encouraging theological reflection upon the pastoral ministry and by the updating of ministerial skills. We envisage:
- offering consultations to ministers, groups of ministers and local churches.
- organising short conferences.
- publishing three times a year the journal Ministry Today in association with the Bible society.
- promoting thinking, writing and reserach in the practice of ministry.
- developing links with similar organisations elsewhere in order to explore and contextualise new ideas.
- facilitating new networks of ministers both within and across denominations.
- encouraging all forms of ministerial development offered by theological colleges, denominational bodies and other agencies to whom we could be available as a resource.
We do not belive that these iniatives will solve all the problems of ministry but we are convinced that by encouraging creativity, vision and excellence in ministry the RBIM will be of benefit to:
- ministers who will continue to develop and thereby find personal fulfilment and enrichment;
- churches which would be led with greater effectiveness and which will enjoy the fruits of a more positive ministry;
- the wider church which will reap a greater investment from its resources as a result of improved ministerial morale and a reduced ministerial fall-out.
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