WHAT IS THE IONA REFORMED TRAINING PROGRAM?

Ministries In Action, headquartered in Miami, Florida, has taught church growth and leadership throughout Caribbean for about 30 years through its popular IONA program. The word "IONA" is Hebrew for "dove." (In Spanish, we call it, Visión R.E.A.L based on the acrostic Reformación En América Latina.)

Recently, MIA decided to add a special track for those interested in a distinctively Reformed program. This provides tools for pastors to train their leaders in Reformed theology and practice to be reformers, not just reformed.

Evangelical, trinitarian groups are welcome to use the program. We only request the courtesy of notifying us you are doing so. (It looks good on reports.)

What about degrees?

IONA Reformed does not grant degrees because it is not an educational institution. It is a revolutionary philosophy of leadership training to excite people about becoming reformers in their personal world. However, MIA has a convalidation agreement with Miami International Seminary, for those who wish to pursue degrees with that institution.

Just as Christ modeled the one and only biblical philosophy of Christian leadership, so there exists one biblical philosophy of leadership training: Mentoring.

The Point: This program is based on mentoring, not curriculum

What is mentoring?

Mentoring is the discipleship process involving a personal relationship between a leader and a person being trained for leadership. It is Moses with Joshua, Elijah with Elisha, Christ with his disciples, Paul with Timothy and Timothy with his elders. Mentoring is the core of biblical leadership training philosophy.

In the diagram, the circles are different sizes. This is deliberate. The mentoring is first and most important. The academic is important also, but secondary.

Why? If a person has been well discipled but lacks knowledge, he will be motivated to get the knowledge, even if he has to teach himself with books. He will be useful to God despite gaps in knowledge. What if a man has a dozen diplomas but is poorly discipled? What if his devotional life is poor, his family in disorder and he does not get along with his colleagues? He is useless, regardless of what he knows.

This diagram illustrates the two methods the mentor uses to train leaders:

Modeling and Teaching.

Modeling means, "Watch me do it and then you copy me."
Teaching means, "Here is why we do things this way and the theology behind it."




In this diagram, we see different aspects of Christian living. These are the entire foundation of a leader's usefulness. His ministerial effectiveness stems from these, not from diplomas on the wall. In the leadership training process, the mentor must evaluate and counsel the trainee in each of these areas, while teaching the academic aspects also.


How did we ever end up with a non-biblical concept of leadership development?

In the Americas, we inherited the university system from our european ancestors which evolved during the middle ages. It reflects an erroneous philosophy which assumes knowledge produces wisdom and virtue.

This was an ancient Greek notion which resulted a long list of useless humanistic philosophies, with no worship of the true God and not much virtue either.

In the early middle ages, some scholars were enamoured with ancient Greek culture and adopted similar assumptions. These scholars assumed that if they put a man through a series of "courses" with a variety of "professors," this ought to produce a man of God. Did it work? No. The middle ages are sometimes called the Dark Ages.

In biblical thinking, wisdom and virtue are products of relationships: First with God and then with man. Knowledge is a essential, but is acquired during the process of building relationships and real life ministry practice.

What is the result of the influence of western academic philosophy on Christian leadership training today? Look over programs offering to train Christian leaders. Nearly all are based on academic discipline through a series of "courses." The offer is, "take this series of courses and you will become a Christian leader." The root assumption: Acquiring knowledge will produce wisdom and virtue. Mentoring fits in wherever it can.


BIBLICAL Vs WESTERN
BIBLICAL WESTERN TRADITION
Relational Academic
Personal relationship with a mentor. This is the key. Relationships with teachers not essential. Some teachers even discourage it.
Teaching method: Modeling by a mentor. (Do it like I did. Here's why we do it that way.) Teaching method: A series of courses with 'professors.' (Here's the theory, now go out on your own and try to put it into practice.)
Learn by doing. Learn by hearing.
Theory and practice learned simultaneously through real ministry. Theory comes before practice.
Academic is essential but secondary. Academic is all-important.

How does Visión R.E.A.L address this problem?

Through the Mentoring Covenant. The mentor establishes a relationship with the trainee, evaluates and counsels him regularly, and helps him develop a ministry. The academic part follows after this.

This involves mutual commitment: The mentor is committed to modeling and teaching. The trainee is committed to being personally vulnerable to the mentor in all areas of evelopment, personal as well as ministerial practice.

We must never try to escape the academic part of leadership training. Knowledge is important, which is why we have a curriculum of studies. What we try to escape, however, is making the academic the principal part.