Engaging a changing world - Rev. Dr. Minho Song
“It’s easy when things are changing so much outside to retreat and do your own thing, but the challenge is we need to impact society with the gospel,” says Rev. Dr. Minho Song. “For this to happen, the congregation needs to be equipped and leaders need to be trained to engage with the changing world. That’s what I’m hoping to cover this fall.”
How can Christians continue to share the unchanging message of the gospel in a rapidly changing world? This question is at the core of Rev. Song’s fall course The Missional Life of a Healthy Congregation. The newly appointed Adjunct Professor of Christian Ministry and Mission at Tyndale Seminary is focused on raising up the next generation for the multicultural church in Canada as well as the global church.
Rev. Song brings a wealth of experience in immigrant church ministry, international missions and theological education to his new role. He currently serves as Senior Pastor of Young Nak Korean Presbyterian Church of Toronto, one of the largest congregations in the city. He was part of Young Nak's growth from its roots as an immigrant church to a thriving missional church, serving not only Korean immigrants, but also those groups from South East Asia in the Greater Toronto Area. The church also has extensive ministries in Kyrgyzstan and Cambodia.
He will continue his ministry at Young Nak as he teaches part-time at Tyndale. He also serves as adjunct professor at Asian Theological Seminary in the Philippines and at Asia Research Institute of Language and Culture in Handong Global University, Korea. What he loves about teaching at Tyndale specifically is the opportunities his students have to engage with a multicultural city.
“At Tyndale we don’t just speak theoretically, the students can step outside of the classroom and feel what it’s like to live in a multicultural city,” he says. “I’m hoping to help students understand the ethnic demographics of the city. Go to Yonge and Finch or Yonge and Steeles and you will see Korean stores side by side with Iranian stores, and that’s just several kilometers from Tyndale’s campus.”
Rev. Song will also teach a course in Winter 2017 titled Theology and Practice of Ministry with a focus on how pastors can stay biblically rooted as they engage with culture. Tyndale is still accepting registrations for both his fall and winter courses either for credit or audit.