Growing in Faith Program Overview
Longing to Grow? Plant yourself in good soil!
Foundation Year for both tracks – Six 5-week classes
Growing in Faith is a ministry within the ELCA committed to fostering learning environments for followers of Jesus to grow in faith. We believe that lay members of our parishes are integral to healthy discipleship in our churches and communities.
So, we gather followers across congregations to grow in faith together. Inside you will find an overview of our courses, but we invite you to begin by hearing from our graduates, who tell the story of this ministry better than we ever could!
GROWING IN FAITH is a community of followers growing in Jesus through classes, retreats, and mutual care. A two-year curriculum allows folks to move at their own pace to progress through foundational and practical learning.
“So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” -1 Cor. 3:7
Growing in Faith/Diakonia Curriculum
Christianity in a Lutheran Key
While all Christians share a common set of theological beliefs, Lutherans look at things through a filter of grace. In this course we will discover more about our Lutheran roots. We will also look forward to challenges that face us in the future.
Introduction to the First Testament/Old Testament
The aims of this course are: to give the students an overview of the structure and theology of the Hebrew Scriptures and present the varieties of forms used to communicate the truth of God’s Word contained in them. Special attention will be given to covenant theology and to relating Old Testament theology and history to our understanding of the New Testament.
Introduction to the New Testament
The goals of this course are to understand the gospel message as revealed in the New Testament (NT), to explore the life and faith of the Christian church in the first century, to understand how the Bible came down to us in its present form, and to understand and use a variety of tools for interpreting the Bible. Throughout the course students will reflect on how the New Testament Gospel has shaped our Christian lives.
Lutheran Creeds and Confessions
This course provides an analysis of the historical context and theological content of the Book of Concord (the Lutheran Confessions) with an eye to establishing the importance of its witness for Christian mission and ministry.
Living as a Christian in the World
Students will discuss and explore their role as a member of a Christian community and the community at large. This course allows students to explore their place in a community that is not necessarily predominately Christian. Begin discernment on future service and ministries in their congregations and communities.
Worship and Sacraments
Why do we worship Sunday after Sunday? Is worship intended for an ‘in group’ to comfort and console? Is worship intended to equip for mission and service? Is worship for God or for us? As we explore these questions, we will discover tensions in worship: a God focus or a communal focus, a head focus or a heart focus, a structured worship or a free worship, a universal church focus or a focus on the local assembly and its needs.
The Road to Service
- Healthy Congregational Dynamics
- Christian Caregiving
- Cultural Diversity & Anti-Bias Training
- An Overview of Church History
- 2 – Electives
Faith Formation
- Cultural Diversity & Anti Bias Training
- An Overview of Church History
- 4 – Electives
Electives options for either track:
- Christian Doctrine
- Communicating the Gospel I: Living Out Our Baptismal Promises
- Christian Ethics/ELCA Social Statements
- Living in a Multi-Religious World
- New Testament In Depth Courses
- The Letters of the New Testament I: The Letters of Paul
- The Letters of the New Testament II: Deutero-Pauline and Catholic (General) Letters
- Synoptic Gospels and Acts
- Gospel and Letters of John and Other Early Gosples
- Old Testament In-Depth Courses
- Witness and Outreach
Feedback from students
“I hadn’t anticipated learning so much from classmates and class discussions. In each course, I learned from my fellow students; questions, answers, insights and ponderings, as well as the diverse life experiences they brought.”
“I find that I cannot grow spiritually without sharing my faith with others. The members in the class have become my friends in Christ.”
History of Diakonia/Growing in Faith
Where It All Began
The Diakonia program was started by the Rev. Dr. Stephen P. Bouman in 1977 when he was pastor at Atonement Lutheran Church in Jackson Heights, Queens, NY. Atonement, along with a church in Connecticut (First Church in Stamford) and a church in Harlem (Central Methodist) received a grant from Union Theological Seminary for a one-year study to determine what each needed to do to reach out to the community.
As a result, Pastor Bouman developed Diakonia to take the message of the font and the altar out the front door of the church into the community. This would be a program of spiritual formation and theological education of the breadth, but not depth, of theological education pastors receive in seminary. To maintain the grassroots emphasis of the program, local parish pastors were invited to teach the courses, and the courses were offered locally. The first classes were held in Queens, New York and 6 students completed the two-year program of study in 1980.
Through the efforts of graduates who have relocated, Diakonia has been planted in other ELCA Synods. The Diakonia National Board continues to be engaged in expansion and publicity efforts in a number of additional ELCA Synods. In almost 40 years of the program, more than 2000 persons have completed the diakonia Program course of study.
After over 40 years of success in providing quality lay education in 11 synods across the ELCA, the national board has taken on the monumental task of re-designing the program to meet the needs of our 21st century churches and students. The new program consists of a 2-year program with flexibility to suit the interests and needs our students. Our new name is “Growing in Faith” and we have an updated curriculum and more options including online courses. Visit the Curriculum and Find a Program sections for more info
Mission and Vision
Our mission:
Engaging in faith formation to equip disciples
to live out their baptismal call.
Our vision:
A world where all the baptized see themselves blessed to be a blessing.
Our Graduates
Turning Faith into Action
In the Gospel of Mathew, Jesus calls us to go forward in faith and action, making disciples of all nations. Students and graduates of Growing In Faith/Diakonia respond to this great commission in a variety of ways.
Based on their spiritual gifts, they may apply personal ministry to administration or lay teaching; the pursuit of social justice; environmental stewardship; or service to the youth or the elderly. Living out their Baptismal vocations, they seek to be God’s Light in this world, bearing witness to Christ in word and deed.
Some Growing in Faith/Diakonia graduates feel called to continue theological education at an ELCA seminary and go on to become ordained pastors or rostered leaders.
