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Pastoral Development Service Learning Program (Hawaii)


INTENSIVE SUMMER OR PART TIME YEAR LONG 2025 INTERNSHIP in Hawaii for Seminary, Bible, Divinity, Theological Studies, Social Work, or Non Profit Management students. Program begins June 1, 2025. Summer intensive run until August 17, 2025 and year long runs until May 24, 2026. Monthly stipend, health insurance, complimentary housing and utilities, complimentary transportation included.

Mission and Learning Objectives

Summary of the Service Learning Community Internship

Kailua Christian Church’s (KCC) service learning community is an exercise in preparation for the environment of ministerial job prospects in chaplaincy, local church pastorship, and international mission that participants may face upon graduating from their theological institutions. Additionally, for participants interested in international mission work, this is an enlightening environment to learn about Christianity in context of historically colonized populations. 

Participants will be held in supportive discernment while they navigate their ministry direction by a community that has years of experience guiding Seminarians through their pastoral calls, as well as having access to and education from a variety of professional pastors and chaplains. The declining church is the fact of life for many seminary participants' future job prospects and has a huge impact on the durability of chaplaincy careers, as the funding and support for most chaplaincy jobs comes from local church facilitation. Further, Christianity in historically colonized contexts often operates differently than Christianity in majority Western contexts, and the nature of the globalized, post-colonial world will impact future pastoral job opportunities.

Participants will live in a Service Learning Community, collaborating with ministry peers to develop pastoral leadership and voice within local church and chaplaincy contexts. The program focuses on three key objectives:

  1. Envisioning solutions for declining mainline churches, including contemporary worship and outreach.
  2. Expanding chaplaincy with Hawaii's largest homeless service organization, The Institute for Human Services (IHS).
  3. Exploring Christianity's role in historically colonized contexts to understand its impact on future ministry.

Learning Objectives and Activities
Participants will engage in:

  • Preaching or teaching quarterly and assisting Sunday worship.
  • Designing and leading a Vacation Bible School (VBS) for keiki (ages 6–12).
  • Designing and providing spiritual care programs at IHS’s Kilohana and Kalihi Uka Recovery House Shelters.
  • Facilitating a monthly spiritual pā’ina lunch “talk story” after worship.
  • Supporting KCC and IHS programs through advertising and outreach.
  • Studying Christianity in post-colonial societies, with a focus on Hawaiian, Japanese, Filipino, and Micronesian contexts.
  • Researching the connection between churches, chaplaincy, and social service systems.

Program Goals

  • Develop pastoral leadership in church and community settings.
  • Navigate the decline of mainline churches and its effect on chaplaincy.
  • Develop proficiency in spiritual care for vulnerable populations.
  • Analyze Christianity’s contextual practice in multicultural and colonized environments.

Weekly Commitments (35–40 hours for summer, 10–15 for yearlong)

  • Weekly reflection dinner with the Service Learning Community and Committee.
  • Monthly or on-call spiritual coaching with professional Spiritual Director.
  • Weekly workshop with rotation of guest Pastors (summer only)
  • Researching church and and its effect on social service systems (reading materials provided) 
  • Researching the effects of Christian colonization on indigenous and vulnerable populations, in particular common populations in Hawaii (reading materials provided)
  • Researching chaplaincy to individuals experiencing homelessness, addiction, and mental illness (reading materials provided)
  • Planning, advertising, and executing a Vacation Bible School for the week of July 28-August 1, 2025.
  • Designing and facilitating a monthly spiritual pā’ina lunch “talk story” program with the congregation post-worship.
  • Visiting and serving in a chaplaincy and/or social work capacity at the Institute for Human Services (homeless services) 
  • Both missions at the church or the shelters should intentionally integrate knowledge of cultural practices into ministry work.
  • Maintaining social media presence for the purpose of advertising programs facilitated by the service learning community.
  • All participants will be expected to attend and participate in traditional Sunday worship service weekly and provide a testimonial summary for the congregation at the conclusion of their program (summer) or on a quarterly basis (yearlong).
  • All participants will be expected to attend at least 1 Council and/or Deacons meeting to help provide leadership insight. 
  • All participants will be expected to preach for a worship service or teach a Christian Education class for the church once (summer) or quarterly (year long) during their service. 
  • Participants will be expected to take at least 2 trainings on Hawaiian history, culture, and spirituality.

Duties may be tailored to student interests.