The Rev. Rosa Young Singleton didn’t have college, but she had a calling.
Singleton started as a youth minister at a nondenominational church in 2000. But when she went back home to Georgetown’s St. Luke African Methodist Episcopal Church in 2013, she was told that she would need a bachelor’s degree if she wanted to pursue a pastoral ministry.
Raising two children and working, Singleton enrolled at Allen University and commuted from the Lowcountry to Columbia for classes every week.
“I got weary,” she said. “I was like ’Lord, do I really need to go through all of this to preach your gospel?‴
There are many in the faith community who contemplate whether a church has the authority to restrict a person from pursuing God’s calling based on their level of education.
"Lord, do I really need to go through all of this to preach your gospel?"
While college requirements help prepare many SC preachers for ministry, they also create a barrier for some.https://t.co/QxTwr2NfjE
— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) November 27, 2018