Date of Award

4-2022

Document Type

Project Portfolio

Degree Name

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Department

Seminary

First Advisor

Jason Wellman, DMin

Second Advisor

Jeney Park-Hearn, PhD

Third Advisor

Ken Van Vliet, DMin

Abstract

As the number of people marrying later in life or not at all in the church and world continue to rise, singleness as a significant stage of life and ministry area must also rise. However, with the Western church’s traditional focus on evangelism, family, and church growth, among other things, singleness is not given the attention it needs and results in single Christians languishing.

As a pastor at an urban church who has worked primarily with single people in their 20s and 30s, the issues related to a person’s singleness have been a reoccurring source of challenge regarding pastoral care, spiritual growth, community building, and leadership development. Just as one’s marriage affects every part of the person’s life, so too does one’s singleness. In my research, I discovered the enthusiasm of both singles and church leaders when talking about the challenges of singles to their flourishing. Issues such as loneliness, shame, frustrations with dating, and a lack of guidance in life, became apparent as common challenges.

What I ultimately discovered from both my ministry context and research is that single people need a community specific to their singleness, not for dating or marriage but for all of life. What emerged, as a result, is a digital course and community specifically for single Christians to experience a shame-free space on matters of discipleship and life, all in the context of singleness.

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