Courses

The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.

• STH TC 823: Spiritual Guidance in the Christian Tradition
  Are you seeking a "word of life"' Do you hunger to know more about the wisdom of Christian spiritual traditions' Do you feel called to grow in your ability to guide others' In this course students will explore selected writings from the Christian tradition -- both classic and contemporary. They will read the pithy sayings of the early desert abbas and ammas, the gentle counsel of Francis de Sales, the spiritual teaching of John Wesley and his mother Susanna, and the insights of the Russian pilgrim who wanted to pray without ceasing. They will analyze the various theological commitments reflected in these authors' spiritual teachings, and place them in their historical contexts. Then they will move to contemporary texts about the practice of spiritual guidance, addressing concerns such as spiritual direction of women, group spiritual direction, prayer, and cross-cultural spiritual guidance. (Cluster 3)
• STH TC 826: The Ecumenical Movement: Streams of Engagement and Liturgical Intersection.
  Graduate Prerequisites: Permission of instructor required. - This course examines the Ecumenical Movement--a "defining fact" of Christianity in the 20th century--and its implications for the life of the churches in the 21st century. The class will treat major streams of interchurch engagement including mission, faith and order, and life and work, and will give attention to ecumenical questions regarding worship and sacraments. In addition, the course will consider contemporary models of Christian unity as well as Christian dialogue with other faith traditions. (Cluster 1 & 3)
• STH TC 829: Spiritual Autobiographies
  In the course, students will explore classic and contemporary spiritual autobiographies. These autobiographies reveal the diverse paths of religious seekers, the crises and epiphanies that became focal points of meaning and revelation. Students will learn about the practices of faith that sustained and challenged religious people from Augustine to Teresa of Avila to Tolstoy. Through close, empathetic, and critical examination of the texts, students will reflect on their own spiritual journeys and identities. They also will engage first-hand in the crafting of spiritual autobiography, and students will have the opportunity to work intensively in small groups throughout the writing and sharing process. Throughout the course, students will explore potential uses of spiritual autobiography as pathways of discernment and growth in congregational and retreat settings, small faith groups, spiritual formation and companionship. (Clusters 1 and 3)
• STH TC 835: Evangelism and Contemporary Cultures
  This course explores the practice of bearing faithful, visible, and embodied witness to God's commonwealth in contemporary contexts and cultures. The course covers the biblical, historical, and theological foundations of evangelism, its practice within congregational life, and contextual strategies. (Clusters 2 and 3)
• STH TC 836: Gender, Culture, and Transformational Leadership
  This course examines the relation between race, gender, and ethnicity from the perspective of different multicultural identities and theological understandings, evaluating how religious structures have constructed these relations and challenged these dynamics. Analyzing various church contexts and social constructions, we will aim to re-evaluate diverse theoretical and experimental discussions among different ethnic groups in a global context as well as in the American context. This course introduces students to of the multiple dynamics present between race, gender, and ethnicity in various church contexts such as White/African American/Asian/Asian American/Hispanic/other immigrant churches and multicultural congregations. It investigates how church life and ministry interact with sociopolitical and cultural structures and how these processes impact people's everyday lives. The course analyzes the issues of race, gender/sex, body, age, and class in the North American context seeking also to understand colonial and post-colonial structures within American society and beyond. (Clusters 2 and 3)
• STH TC 837: Vocation, Work and Faith
  Who am I called to become' What am I called to do' What are my gifts and where will they be recognized and of service' These kinds of vocational questions are fundamental to our lives. The course seeks to open up reflection, study, and dialogue about vocation, work, and spirituality in religious traditions and in our own life experience. Work and vocation are often connected. Work too is a crucial religious question in contemporary society. Work exerts a powerful--and often unrecognized--influence on human beings. It can support life, develop talents, elicit creativity, and enable people to contribute to the common good. Work also can demean human beings, undermining their dignity, perpetuating unjust structures, overpowering values, and crowding out other important spheres of life. Labor issues are important concerns for faith communities and faith-based community organizations. This course explores vocation and work as theological/spiritual issues, including implications for ministry. We will explore themes such as: work as spiritual practice or challenge; labor and justice issues; discerning vocation; creativity; Sabbath; "time poverty"; and work-life balance. The course involves site visits, vocational mentoring, seminar presentations, and individual research/ministry projects. (Clusters 2 and 3)
• STH TC 839: Suffering and Healing
  This course will examine the understanding of human suffering in personal and communal space and explore the possibilities of healing in church and ministry. Through a range of readings, films, case studies, and a church or non-profit organization site visit, students will critically reflect on various conditions of human suffering including sickness, joblessness, homelessness, racial prejudices, immigration issues and others. The course will employ interdisciplinary study methods, from pastoral/practical theology to cultural studies. Building from these experiences and reflections, students will work to develop practical ministries that aim to restore and heal individuals and communities. (Clusters 2 and 3)
• STH TC 840: Paradigms of Racism, the Ignorance They Hide, and the Harm They Sustain
  Racism is ugly, painful, and seemingly inimical to understanding much less constructive intervention. When it comes to race, people often yell at, talk past, or simply avoid each other. Experiencing frustration, rage, and despair, some fear and may conclude that racism is intractable, even insoluble, while others "know" that racism does not exist. This course offers hope, exploring how groups of people form and defend competing systems of truth (that is, "paradigms") that hide ignorance and sustain harm. By discussing eight "paradigms" of racism and attendant forms of ignorance, we seek to enlarge our understanding as a basis for concrete practical steps that could be taken by different people in different sites. (Cluster 2 or 3)
• STH TC 845: Parish Preaching
  The central, crucial role of preaching in a parish setting involves engagement with other congregational ministries and with the needs and resources of the larger community. This course is intended as a second level, advanced preaching course, with emphasis on the context of preaching. The course offers multiple opportunities to develop and preach sermons. Attention is given both to regular Sunday preaching and also to particular sermons for various occasions: special events, Stewardship Sunday, funerals and weddings, Advent and Lent, national observances (Fourth of July, Mothers' Day, New Year's, Thanksgiving, other), denominational requirements, and civic addresses. The interactive engagement of the preaching ministry with parish ministry as a whole is the focus of the course. (Cluster 3)
• STH TC 846: Postcolonial Theology and its Practices
  This course provides critical postcolonial lenses through which students will understand postcolonial theology and explore how persons and communities exercise theological practices in postcolonial contexts considering culture, race, gender/sex, religious traditions, and religious communities. Through analyzing various concepts of postcolonial theologies and investigating historical sociocultural religious practices in postcolonialism, class, race and sex/gender, students will critically reflect on challenging conditions of power and privilege and engage with the complexities of postcolonial theological practices. Building on these studies and reflections, students will gain a keen sense of different concepts of postcolonial theology and its practices interculturally, and develop their own approaches to understand the postcolonial dynamics in their varied context. MDiv and MTS students must complete their History of Traditions & Institutions and Theology & Meaning-Making core requirements before registering for this course.
• STH TC 850: Identity, Preaching, and Leadership in Postcolonial Contexts
  This course provides distinctive postcolonial lenses through which students will explore and examine how persons and communities practice intercultural preaching (alternatively, public speech) and leadership in relation to identities: culture, race, gender/sex, religious traditions, and religious communities. Through investigating various historical sociocultural religious traditions and religious leaders in terms of postcolonialism, class, race and sex/gender, students will critically reflect on challenging conditions of power and authority and engage with the complexities of leadership and preaching. Building on these studies and reflections, students will gain a keen sense of understanding different leadership and preaching practices interculturally, and develop their own approaches for their varied contexts and identities. (Clusters 2 or 3)
• STH TC 853: Liturgical Leadership
  LITURGICAL LDRP
• STH TC 857: Anglican Formation
  An integrative weekly session incorporating worship, spiritual practice, and group reflection on significant texts within the Anglican spiritual and theological tradition. Students will take turns leading the Daily Office and guiding group conversations. This course aims at grounding students in the Anglican spiritual tradition and helping them to develop their own practices of prayer, worship, and spiritual leadership. It is especially recommended for Anglican/Episcopal students but is open to all regardless of religious tradition. (Cluster 1 & 3)
• STH TC 861: Theologies of Church Music
  The Church, throughout its history, has sought to clarify its relationship to culture. In particular, is the Church to accommodate its worship to culture or avoid adoption of cultural forms' The relationship of culture and worship will be explored in this course from the angle of the historical Church's use of music. How have the Church's theologians defined the role of music in the Church' What are the most appropriate musical forms for use in the Church' These issues will be examined with an eye to discussing and evaluating contemporary Christian musical expressions. (Clusters 1 and 3)
• STH TC 865: Disability and Theology
  This workshop serves as an introduction to disability as it relates to the study of theology and the practices of ministry. The purpose of this workshop is to expose students to people with disabilities through narratives, film clips and a panel discussion to help students think through the theological issues disability raises while developing potential responses to future encounters with people with disabilities. To this end the workshop will first explore the question: "What is disability'" as it has been defined from historic, social and medical perspectives. The workshop will explore disability through a theological lens exploring concepts, such as, creation, theological anthropology, and theodicy while attempting to answer critical theological questions related to disability. The workshop extends the reflection on disability and theology into the practices of ministry. This will involve reflection upon the meaning of welcoming and inclusion, worship and preaching when examined through the lens of disability. Clusters 2 and 3)
• STH TC 868: Worship in the Anglican and Wesleyan Traditions
  A study of the historical, theological, liturgical, and sociocultural influences which have shaped the worship patterns of the major American denominations claiming a Wesleyan heritage. (Clusters 1 and 3)
• STH TC 870: Women/femmes and leadership
  This course aims to deconstruct and demystify "leadership", encourage active participation in discovering individual and communal leadership styles, and expand how we approach leadership through the lens of women/femmes. (cluster 2 & 3)
• STH TC 872: Healing Relationships with Animals
  Explores various dimensions of divine/human/animal interactions, but with a focus upon healing relationships. The course ranges across the areas of theology, spirituality, liturgy, pastoral care, history, psychology, mind/body medicine (stress reduction), and public policy. While Christian theologies of creation and stewardship/ecology are central, the approaches of other religions and their practices will also be examined for purposes of comparison (and perhaps dialogue). (Clusters 2 and 3)
• STH TC 877: Sabbath: Theology and Practice
  This course explores Sabbath keeping as a central practice of faith and a core practice of transformative religious leadership. Drawing upon Jewish and Christian traditions, we will study theologies and practices of Sabbath keeping and reflect upon their meaning in contemporary contexts. Topics include Sabbath keeping and spiritual formation, Sabbath and "time poverty", Sabbath and the Lord's Day, Sabbath keeping as a dimension of pastoral excellence, Sabbath keeping as countercultural practice, Sabbath and ecological stewardship, and Sabbath and social justice. The course includes contextual site visits in an effort to learn across traditions. Students will be encouraged to cultivate a practice of Sabbath keeping throughout the semester and are invited to draw upon music and the creative arts in their practice and reflections. As the culmination of the course they will have the opportunity to do a substantial research paper or design a practical theological project relevant to their own community and context of leadership.
• STH TC 880: Claim Your Superpower for Ministry
  In this leadership development workshop, students engage in discerning and more fully owning their "superpower" for ministry--an extraordinary ability at the heart of one's vocation to perceive, analyze, and respond to harm that others ignore. Drawing on feminist epistemology and practical theology, the workshop provides tools and case studies in Christian ministry. We explore the complex and sometimes hidden origin of one's superpower, the challenges of drawing on it as a leader, the importance of learning from others, and the wisdom of helping others discern and more fully own their superpower. Notice the word their in the last line is italicized for emphasis.