The Esoteric Interfaith Church, Inc. and its earlier branch the unincorporated Metaphysical Interfaith Church have been ordaining ministers since 1987. But two years later the church also established a seminary to further train our ministers and alternative clergy and has been granting religious degrees ever since.
Today one of our degree candidates — who will also become an ordained minister at no extra cost — asked about the Ph.D. versus the Doctor of Divinity degree. She has studied the Barbara Brennan healing system and is already working in the field as a spiritual healer. Of course she wants ordination as a minister in order to protect herself legally and be able to set and accept suggested donations for 
her pastoral counseling and spiritual healing practice. But she also wants a religious doctorate degree to reassure those in her circle and give her parishioners / members added peace of mind. The word “Doctor” in front of a spiritual healing minister’s name isn’t about prestige but about reassurance and confidence in the one who is serving humanity. She asked:
QUESTION: My intention is to teach workshops at bookstores, healing centers and workshop centers as well as having my own “clients” in my spiritual ministry. I also wish to reach Hospice Centers and Rehab Centers that are connected to the Hospitals. Do you still think the Ph.D. in Metaphysics is more beneficial than the Doctor of Divinity degree? Which religious degree is more ‘beneficial, accepted and known’ in mainstream hospitals and healing centers?
ANSWER: Both degrees allow you to attach Dr. to the front of your name, but the PhD in Metaphysics also allows you to attach PhD to the end of your name. The PhD is known all over the world and is the most widely recognized and highest ranking doctorate degree compared to the Doctor of Divinity. Some mainstream hospitals and healing centers might not understand what “Metaphysics” is, but they also won’t necessarily know what a doctorate in “Divinity” is. If you were in the U.K., I’d tell you to go with the Doctor of Divinity because that degree is the highest pinnacle of education for the U.K. and Europe. But the Doctor of Divinity doesn’t mean healing to them, rather academic achievement. In your case, I keep leaning toward the PhD in Metaphysics for you because it is for religious philosophers, but also has to do with spiritual healing. The PhD in Metaphysics is the most common degree of choice for spiritual healers and actually allows the holder to call themselves a “metaphysician” and a “doctor”. Many like the term meta-physician meaning “beyond a physician”, or a different kind of healing, not “mere” physical healing. Some do hypnotherapy, Reiki, EFT and even NLP.
Of course our metaphysicians do not practice medicine without a license, we are only talking about spiritual healing here. Even so, the words have power and are applied to all healers, all practitioners of body, mind and spirit healing modalities. We have conferred the PhD in Metaphysics on dozens of graduates over the years.
I AM INTERESTED TO OBTAIN Ph. D. IN RELIGIOUS STUDIES. PLEASE LET ME KNOW IN IN DETAILS. I ALREADY HAVE OBTAINED B.A. (Honors) DEGREE IN PHILOSOPHY AND MASTER’S DEGREE IN PHILOSOPHY FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF DHAKA, DHAKA, BANGLADESH.
I ALSO HAVE PASSED LL.B. ( BACHELOR OF LAW ) DEGREE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF BANGLADESH.
I ALSO HAVE OBTAINED 36 MASTER’S LEVEL CREDITS IN EDUCATION FROM VARIOUS COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITY OF U.S.A. AND ALSO HAVE OBTAINED 11 CREDITS OF LL.M. ( MASTER OF LAW ) FROM TOURO LAW SCHOOL, NEW YORK.
I have a B.A. in Political Science, a Master of Divinity with double majors in Education and Psychology and Doctor in Juris Prudence. I also have 500+ hours work in the field. If I sent in this portfolio, how much prep could I exempt how soon could I receive my Phd?
Hello. I am interested on the metaphysics Ph.D. Does it work in other countries? I am from Mexico.
Please I wish to donate and earn your honorary doctorate of divinity.I am Rev.Ankrah,general overseer and founder of DOOR OF HOPE OUTREACH MINISTRIES.
I studied new testament Greek for 4 years and I am still able to function in the language after 30 years. I spent 3 years in the mission field with Y.W.A.M in Mexico. I was lecturer and on New Testament Exegesis and also am a worship leader and a musician. But the last few years I have been exploring ancient mysticism and tea leaf reading and Devine healing. A advanced degree in metaphysics would be a great addition to my doctor of divinity.
The PhD in Metaphysics sounds like it would suit you well. We will email you a list of requirements.
I will like to know if you have financial aid available. I have a masters in psychology and I am interested in the metaphysics PhD.
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am interested in the PhD in Metaphysics in Leadership and Emotional Intelligence. I am a Christian (Roman Catholic).
Kind regards
Peter Harrison
I have a Bachelor’s in Sociology and am trying to figure out the best route to working as a counselor and/or chaplain. I’m highly interested in Metaphysics, New Thought, Spirituality & World Religions, Psychotherapy and would like to eventually get trained in EMDR. I’m currently researching Master’s programs and find myself lost in the maze of MA vs. MS, Divinity, Counseling, Psychology etc. I’ve considered the Holmes Institute for their Master’s in Consciousness Studies but not sure where that would leave me. Any help/suggestions is sincerely appreciated.
Dear Mike: Considering your erudite background and current admirable goals, you might do well with the Ph.D. in Spiritual Counseling or a Ph.D. in Metaphysics. The Holmes Institute is awesome, but their degree programs take much longer than ours. We also offer the M.Div. (Master of Divinity) if you have gotten thru that maze you mention above yet. (smile)
Dear Sirs: Am I eligible to receive Fed student loans for my PhD in Metaphysics? Thank you for your valuable assistance!
Dear Jack: The Seminary is only authorized to confer religious degrees, and banks usually grant student loans for academic degrees. So I doubt you would be able to receive Federal student loans for a seminary degree. Luckily our suggested donation amounts are very low (less than a thousand dollars) and have never been raised in our 25+ year history. We do also have payment plans in which you submit half down, receive your credentials and then make monthly donations for a few months until the entire amount is submitted. Here is a link describing our payment plan for the Ph.D. in Metaphysics and any other spiritual or religious Ph.D. offered by the Seminary.
Iv many years of study in Field of religion spiritual healing study of angels demons and the promise of Jesus holysprit prayer and iv study s in amrican indian religions my life was spent searching for the face of or God and im thinking people would be more likely to here the words i have to share if i had a degree to back them up
I got my Phd/ Doctorate from University of Sedona, would my studies be valid in your school?
Dear Joe: Yes, we definitely recognize spiritual and religious studies from other spiritual institutions. Email us with the degree you are interested in pursuing, and we will email you the exact requirements of that degree.
This program is excellent for anyone interested in furthering their education in the fields offered. If one comes to this with extensive life experience and both a BA and MA, the PhD program is an obvious extension.
I am interested in one your Ph.D programs, but I would to know if your institution is accredited
Dear Joel: The Seminary is exempt from accreditation because we confer only religious degrees. Our degrees have been used successfully by thousands of graduates since the 1990s. Some religious degree-granting institutions can apply for accrediting to accrediting agencies designed for religious schools, but our seminary doesn’t fit into any one faith, we are interfaith / multi-faith, an “alternative” seminary. All of the accrediting agencies that we qualify for as a religious school either think we’re heretics because we don’t believe like them or are infidels. Here is our FAQ page which describes more of why we did not go thru the accreditation process and spend the tens of thousands of dollars every couple of years to keep it. https://northernway.org/faq.html