‘Equip the Called’ website eases access to Southwestern ministry resources

A new website launched this month brings together scholarly Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) publications and websites, such as the Southwestern Journal of Theology, Preaching Source, and Artistic Theologian, with other seminary resources previously available on different platforms. The new site, “Equip The Called” (ETC), creates a more visible and accessible platform for established and new faculty-led content and seminary resources.

The site, equipthecalled.com, houses a library of ministry content and resources including blogs, preaching tools, academic articles, and more. Jaclyn Parrish, director of marketing in the seminary’s Office of Communications, spearheaded the project, which has been more than a year in the making.

“The project began by consulting with our provost and faculty stakeholders,” Parrish said. “The idea was presented to them for their discussion and consideration, allowing time for each professor to give careful thought to how this move might affect their work.” This allowed the team ample time to not only address potential concerns or pitfalls, but to also discuss ideas for new content, she added.

Content moved to the ETC website includes:

Southwestern Journal of Theology (SWJT)

Volumes 48-66 of the historic academic journal of Southwestern Seminary have migrated from the seminary site, with plans to continue posting additional past and future volumes on ETC. SWJT is the oldest Southern Baptist theological academic journal still in publication today.

Preaching Source

This ministry resource includes a library of articles, Sermon Starters, Sermon Structures, videos and podcasts of sermons (including historical footage and audio from SWBTS chapels), videos of conferences (including footage from events such as the Text-Driven Preaching Conference and the Expository Preaching Workshop), and more.

Artistic Theologian

All 11 volumes of the academic journal and the blog for the School of Church Music and Worship are on the ETC site.

Southwestern News

A total of 51 issues of Southwestern’s flagship magazine, dating from 2008 to the present, have been added to ETC, with plans to add previous issues when possible.

Other Content

While serving as the new home to these resources, the ETC site also provides a live portal for Southwesterners to attend and participate in Southwesterners’ Forum, held monthly during the fall and spring semesters, connecting Southwestern alumni with seminary professors to address current topics in ministry. Video-on-demand episodes will be available about a week later as video and podcast content.

The forum, an initiative launched in 2023 by the seminary’s alumni engagement team, completed its first season in May, with several episodes for the fall 2024 already released.

An alumni portal with on-ramps to alumni benefits, live online events, and upcoming in-person events is another feature of the ETC site.

Additional content on ETC includes videos of seminary chapel services as well as videos and podcasts of Ministry Now, a previous series of interviews with Southwestern Seminary faculty.

“If you’ve enjoyed and been edified by articles, podcasts, or videos from these SWBTS projects, then you’ll be happy to hear that this site will make that content even easier to find, and there’s more coming,” Parrish said.

A new blog on Equip the Called features articles and resources from seminary faculty. Initial articles include:

• “Pastor, Your Emotions Matter” by Lilly Park, associate professor of biblical counseling
• “How Not to Build Your Church’s Budget” by John Mann, associate professor of business and technology
• “Your Church Needs Your Seminary Degree” by Michael Wilkinson, professor of theology and director of professional doctoral studies
• “How Seminary Prepared me for the Mission Field” by Michael Copeland, assistant professor of missions and associate director of the World Missions Center

To build the website, the Office of Communications worked with Interactive Supply Company (ISC), based on its extensive portfolio “as well as our shared faith and evangelical beliefs,” Parrish said.

Next came the design phase of working with ISC and the Communications’ graphic designers crafting the look, feel, and functionality of the ETC site.

“We wanted a design that would be familiar to our Southwestern family, but also distinct from our main website,” Parrish said. They also needed a site design that would make navigating the many content pieces and publications intuitive and user-friendly, she added.

Once the website structure was complete, the team worked with ISC to ensure that each content piece was successfully migrated and placed in its proper spot on the ETC site.

“Imagine the digital equivalent of taking thousands of books from eight different libraries, transporting them across town in a thunderstorm, and placing them in perfect order in a new building,” Parrish said. “That’s about what it took!”

Parrish believes the most exciting part still lies ahead.

“We now have a place where our faculty members can publish new articles, ministry resources, interviews, and more,” she noted. “We have already begun discussing ideas for new content with our SWBTS faculty members, and we’re honored to provide a new place for their work to live and remain accessible to our Southern Baptist family.”

Explore the site at equipthecalled.com.