Prophetic Community for Prophetic Preaching

Prophetic Community for Prophetic Preaching

Winter 2027

Application Deadline: November 13, 2026

Overview

We are living in troubling times. The depths of the fractures within American society have driven us to a polarization fueled by fear and anger from those on all sides of any given issue. We need leaders who will call the church to repentance and help facilitate its restoration, inviting others to participate in God’s vision of a just society. For preachers, the call is a prophetic one.

Prophetic preaching is not an exceptional calling for certain personality types, a reactionary response to the news cycle, nor a topic set aside for select Sundays. Rather, it is an ongoing practice of preaching that holds the justice and the mercy of God together, just as Christ modeled for us. The formation of such prophetic preachers requires a prophetic community, where the limitations of our perspectives can be constructively challenged and transformed through the wisdom of discernment among others on a common journey.

The Doctor of Ministry preaching cohort will equip preachers to strengthen their prophetic voice according to their unique contexts, gifts, and vocational callings, nurtured through the collective discoveries that emerge from our work together as a prophetic community. Along the way, students will refresh their technical preaching skills through creative approaches to biblical exegesis, hermeneutical application, and authentic communication.

Course content expands and builds upon a new curriculum from the Micah Groups program, which focuses on a threefold framework of prophetic posture, prophetic imagination, and prophetic authority. Students will participate in rigorous academic study and practice as they become a learning community, actively engaging with one another’s preaching as we seek to answer Micah’s prophetic call to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God, and lead others to do the same.

Schedule

Year One: Prophetic Posture (16 units)

Winter 2027: Reading/Seminar (6 units; online/in person) from February 1–5, 2027 in Pasadena, CA
Spring 2027: Doctoral Project Research (4 units; online)
Summer 2027: Reading/Writing (6 units; online)

Year 1 will introduce the foundational concepts of prophetic community for prophetic preaching, with a particular focus on the core concept of prophetic posture. Prophetic posture consists of knowing who you are, where you stand, with which community you stand, and what gifts you bring. Students will engage biblical, theological, and sociological models to explore their own self-awareness and social location within the context of their ministry communities, answering the questions: Who has God made me to be in this particular season of my life and ministry? How does that inform my prophetic voice as a preacher? Developing a strong prophetic posture will help students preach more effectively about the inbreaking of God’s love and mercy within their specific communities.

Year Two: Prophetic Imagination
(16 Units)

Winter 2028: Reading/Seminar (6 units, online/in person) from January 31–February 4, 2028 in Pasadena, CA
Spring 2028: Doctoral Project Proposal (4 units, online)
Summer 2028: Reading/Writing (6 units, online)

Ezekiel could not preach new life for Israel without having the prophetic imagination to see God at work in what appeared to be utter desolation. Having considered our individual and communal contexts, can our preaching imagine how God may be at work to put flesh on dry bones? In Year 2, students will develop spiritual and exegetical practices built on resources from the fine arts, worship, and spirituality, expanding their imaginations to preach a more truthful and vibrant gospel vision. Cultivating a rich prophetic imagination will enable preachers to proclaim a vibrant vision of good news that facilitates their community’s growth as creative, curious, and courageous disciples of Christ.

Year Three: Prophetic Authority (16 Units)

Winter 2029: Reading/Seminar (6 units, online/in person) from February 5–9, 2029 in Pasadena, CA
Spring 2029: Reading/Writing (4 units, online)
Summer 2029: Doctoral Project Writing (6 units, online)

Year 3 will explore prophetic authority as modeled by Jesus, who preached from his prophetic posture from within a marginalized community. He calls us to a new imagination for a completely different source of power—the transformative, reordering power of the realm of God. Students will be equipped to speak truth to power through engagement with biblical, theological, and sociological resources, helping them identify and address power dynamics at play in the church and the world.

Instructor

Since 2017, Jennifer Ackerman has been directing the efforts of Fuller Seminary’s Brehm Preaching—A Lloyd John Ogilvie Initiative, working to catalyze a movement of empowered, wise preachers who live and lead at the convergence of worship, preaching, and justice. In 2022, she joined Fuller’s faculty as an assistant professor of preaching in the School of Mission and Theology.

Rev. Dr. Ackerman has nearly thirty years of experience facilitating the worship and preaching efforts of churches in multiple denominations across the US. As an ordained pastor in the Presbyterian church (USA), she serves as the seminary’s liaison to the denomination. Her current research interests include Howard Thurman and sacramental silence; worship in postmodernity; prophetic preaching; facilitating sacred space for courageous conversation; and art-based training to increase capacity for church leadership at the convergence of worship, preaching, and justice. She is the author of the book Preaching the Gospel of Justice: Good News in Community (2024).

You will also have opportunities to engage with many guest lecturers, including:

E. Trey Clark, assistant professor of preaching and spiritual Formation, Fuller Seminary

E. Trey Clark joined Fuller’s faculty in 2021 after previously serving as an adjunct instructor and vocation and formation group leader at Fuller. Over the last twenty years, Dr. Clark has served in diverse ministry contexts throughout the US, most recently, in pastoral ministry in Southern California. He holds degrees from Wheaton College and Fuller Seminary, where he completed his MDiv and PhD. His current research interests include preaching and spiritual formation; the history, theology, and practice of preaching, especially contemplative preaching; African American Christian spiritual traditions, especially Black contemplative spirituality; and Howard Thurman. Dr. Clark is the author of Black Contemplative Preaching: A Hidden History of Prayer, Proclamation, and Prophetic Witness (2024).

Jaclyn Williams, assistant professor of the practice of preaching and chaplaincy, Fuller Seminary

Before joining Fuller’s faculty in 2022, Jaclyn Williams had served since 2014 as an adjunct instructor in preaching. She holds four degrees: a PhD in Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham (UK), an MDiv from Fuller, an MFA in Acting from the University of Washington’s Professional Actor Training Program, and a BA in Theatre from the University of Houston. Her research interests include incarnational and embodied preaching, performing artist training as spiritual practice, and resiliency resources in pastoral and spiritual care practice. Dr. Williams is an American Baptist-ordained minister and an Alliance of Baptists-endorsed chaplain.

Joy Johnson, president of PICO California (Pacific Institute for Community Organizing)

Joy Johnson leads the mobilization of public sentiment around social justice grounded in faith as president of PICO California. She also helps build bridges among diverse clergy as part of the leadership team for Sacramento City Pastors Fellowship, in addition to her leadership in Micah Groups for over a decade. Rev. Dr. Johnson has a doctorate degree from Sacramento Theological Seminary. Currently, she serves as lead minister for Dr. Joy Johnson Ministries and as associate pastor at Faith Fellowship Church in Sacramento, California.

Jin Cho, Anglican priest and consultant

Jin Cho is an Anglican priest who has worked for over twenty years as a pastor and a church planter. In June 2018, he received his Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary, where he wrote on the topic of race, evangelicalism, and the local church. Rev. Dr. Cho now consults with churches and nonprofits on neighboring and community building in Orange County, California.

Bret Widman, associate professor of ministry and director of contextual and lifelong learning, North Park Theological Seminary

Bret Widman is a faculty member at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, where he directs CRUX—an intercultural, city-centered discipleship cohort for first-year students to be formed in Christ and participate in the unfolding kingdom of God. Previously, he served in various pastoral positions as an ordained minister in the Evangelical Covenant Church. Rev. Dr. Widman holds a Master of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry from Fuller Theological Seminary.

Mary Ellen Azada, pastor and spiritual director of the Pastoral Formation Initiative, Fuller Seminary

Mary Ellen Azada is a seasoned pastor in the Presbyterian church (USA) with nearly thirty years of ministry, primarily in the areas of mission outreach and church planting. As associate pastor at First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley, she led the development of a new worship service designed to embrace mission outreach as an act of worship and oversaw the creation of an annual Global Church Conference that invited Christian leaders from the majority world to speak truth to power in the American church. More recently, as an executive director at Fuller Seminary, she launched a brand new Center for Careers and Personal Development, following her successful revitalization of the Office of Academic and Vocational Formation. Today, Rev. Azada continues in ministry leadership as a spiritual director, leadership coach, and DEI consultant to numerous churches and nonprofits.