Course Descriptions & Offerings: Fall

4 credits
David Carr

This course aims to introduce students to the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament) within its historical and cultural environment, and to explore major issues in biblical interpretation. Students learn about the ancient Near Eastern world of which the Israelites were a part, examine the diverse social and religious concerns of the biblical writers, and consider multiple contemporary approaches to biblical texts.

Note: Required weekly tutorial. Required for MDiv students completing option A of the Bible requirement.

3 credits
Jeremy Hultin

An introduction to the basic grammar and vocabulary of Biblical Hebrew. The course also focuses on skills in reading and writing Hebrew. OT 111 and OT 204 should be taken sequentially in one academic year.

Note: Language courses may not be taken for audit or reading credit except by permission of the instructor.

2 credits
Esther Hamori

This intermediate biblical Hebrew course meets online every other week. Students read prose texts as part one of this two-part course. Work includes issues of grammar, syntax, vocabulary, reading aloud, and use of critical tools. OT 313A and OT 313B must be taken sequentially in one academic year. Class meetings are determined between faculty and students in the fall semester, for both courses.

Prerequisites: OT 111 and OT 204, or permission of the instructor.

Note: Language courses may not be taken for audit or reading credit except by permission of the instructor.

3 credits
Alan Cooper

Close reading of selected texts, both in Hebrew and in English translation, including the entire book of Amos, and portions of Hosea, Micah, and Isaiah 1-29. Emphasis on the issues of social justice, the relationship between ethics and religious observance, and (particularly in Hosea) gender. Texts are read both in historical context and with concern for continuing relevance.

Prerequisite: OT 101.

Notes: Meets at Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) on Tuesday afternoon. Register with a Cross-Registration form. Equivalent to OT 337.

3 credits
David Carr

While attention is given to the broader book of Genesis, this hybrid course focuses particularly on the Primeval History: stories of creation, eating of the fruit of wisdom, brotherly murder, flood, drunkenness and more in Genesis 1-11. Additionally, some particular focus is on diverse readings of these chapters from ecocritical, post-humanist, feminist, LGBTQ and more perspectives. A mix of online and in-person teaching strategies are used.

Prerequisite: BX 101 or OT 101.

Note: An optional component for readers of Hebrew is included.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

3 credits
Jeremy Hultin

An introduction to the basic grammar and vocabulary of Biblical Greek. The course also focuses on skills in reading and writing Greek. NT 111 or NT 204 should be taken sequentially in one academic year.

Note: Language courses may not be taken for audit or reading credit except by permission of the instructor.

1.5 credits
Jeremy Hultin

Part one of a two-part course for students who have completed at least two semesters of biblical Greek. Students review grammar as well as further their linguistic and translation skills by reading a selection of different Greek texts. NT 315A and NT 315B must be taken sequentially in one academic year.

Prerequisites: NT 111 and NT 204.

Note: Language courses may not be taken for audit or reading credit except by permission of the instructor.

3 credits
Aliou Niang

This seminar studies the Act of the Apostles through a postcolonial biblical critical lens focusing on selected speeches. Themes and issues for exploration include contested divinities, images, spaces, faiths, missions, ethnicities, identities, politics, economies, and the role of empire in the making. The course cultivates understanding of the rhetoric of speeches and the stasis they engender as integral dimensions of identity and community construction.

Prerequisites: BX 201 and OT 101 and NT 101; or permission of the instructor.

Note: Enrollment limited to twelve students.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

2 credits
Brigitte Kahl
Amy Meverden
Aliou Niang

A seminar for PhD students with a concentration in New Testament discussing a variety of topics and themes. Work-in-progress is presented by students and professors.

Notes: Pass/fail. Required for first-and second-year PhD students. Open to other advanced students with permission of the instructors.

2 credits
Violet Lee

Seeking separation and independence, at one point, Baptists had become the largest Protestant denomination by the 20th Century. This course explores the Christological, soteriological, as well as the theological beliefs upheld within this tradition. Students examine Baptist history, beliefs, polity, and mission. This course is designed to assist in the understanding of Baptist Ordinances and life. Social movements and the role of women are a particular focus of this course. As a result of this course, students find support and assistance in preparation for ministry in a variety of Baptist contexts.

3 credits
Sarah Lenzi

The paradigm for our ministry has shifted from that of a learned ministry to a learning ministry. Guidelines for this developmental approach are found in the latest rubric of the seven ministerial competencies outlined by the Ministerial Fellowship Committee (MFC) of the Unitarian Universalist (UU) Association. MFC competencies include: 1) worship and rites of passage; 2) pastoral care and presence; 3) spiritual development and renewal; 4) social witness; 5) leadership and administration; 6) denominational service; and 7) future-oriented leadership. All seven areas are addressed during the course.

Note: Following completion of CI 206 and CI 222J, students compile a draft submission for preliminary fellowship and UU ordination to the MFC.

2 credits
Gregory Horn

This course examines essential elements of the practice of Presbyterian worship in the Reformed theological tradition and in light of the constitutional and the confessional foundations of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Emphasis is given to the practice of designing and leading worship in the parish setting. A goal of this course is to help prepare Presbyterian students for both the Worship & Sacraments and the Theological Competence examinations required for ordination in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Notes: Recommended for students with experience leading worship interested in developing their liturgical vision and voice. Open to all students.

2 credits
Heather Fosburgh

This online course examines the historical development and structural polity of the United Church of Christ (UCC). This course also focuses on the emerging UCC and gives students a chance to explore social justice, world missions, ecumenism, and new and renewing congregational ministry within the UCC.

Note: Offered by the Center for Progressive Renewal from September 4-December 11. Register with an Add/Drop form. Students are required to also register with the Center.

3 credits

A study of origins, mission, organization, outreach, religious life, and key ideas, issues, events, and figures in the development of United Methodism as an international denomination. Will enable students to understand and evaluate United Methodism in light of its antecedent organizations, the broader historical context of the history of Christianity, and especially its engagement in mission. Will enable students to engage in responsible and articulate participation in the life and leadership of the United Methodist Church, effectively represent the tradition, and perceptively participate in ecumenical and interreligious dialogue.

Notes: United Methodist course offered by Drew Theological School. View Complete Theological Listing section offerings and days/times here. Register with a Cross-Registration form.

3 credits

This course will focus on an articulation of a definition of evangelism, a biblical basis for evangelism and a theology of evangelism. It will provide students with a familiarity and practical tools for helping both individuals and congregations engage in evangelism. This course fulfills the Division of Ordained Ministry requirement in evangelism for United Methodist students.

Notes: United Methodist course offered by Drew Theological School. View Complete Theological Listingsection offerings and days/times here. Register with a Cross-Registration form.

3 credits
Cecilia deWolf

When we engage with others – teaching, preaching, counseling, community organizing – we can make something happen (or not) depending on how we show up. This course is designed as an interactive process: students learn by doing communication, receiving feedback, and supporting one another on a shared journey of discovery. Along the way, they become more aware of themselves as live communicators. Only with this awareness can they make critical choices, change habits, and practice new behaviors.

Prerequisite: CA 102 is recommended.

Note: Enrollment limited to six students per each of the two sections.

3 credits
Su Yon Pak

This course is the first half of a two-semester course, with six credits earned at the end of the spring semester upon completion of all related field placement requirements. Theological reflection and professional development through didactics and group process are components of this seminar. Students are concurrently in supervised field placements of twelve-fifteen hours per week. FE 103 and FE 104 must be taken sequentially in one academic year.

Prerequisite: Restricted to MDiv students. Permission of the senior director of integrative and field-based education.

Notes: Required for MDiv students. Enrollment limited to thirty-five students per section. All students register for waitlist. Students have the opportunity to apply to the hybrid field education-clinical pastoral education program. Access https://utsnyc.edu/academics/field-ed/hybrid-field-education-opportunities/for more information and application process. Students accepted to this hybrid program must register for section 02.

3 credits
A. Meigs Ross

Independent study in connection with a supervised field placement. Required meetings with field education staff are arranged. Proposals must be submitted to the senior director of integrative and field-based education prior to registration.

Prerequisites: FE 103 and FE 104. Restricted to MDiv students. Permission of the instructor and senior director of integrative and field-based education.

3 credits
Su Yon Pak

A minimum of eight consecutive months of full-time supervised field experience in an out-of-seminary setting. Proposals must be submitted for approval to the senior director of integrative and field-based education in mid-March during the semester prior to enrollment. FE 303 and FE 304 must be taken sequentially in one academic year.

Prerequisites: Restricted to MDiv students. Permission of the senior director of integrative and field-based education.

Notes: Enrollment in other courses is normally precluded, and is limited to five students. Students are required to subscribe to student medical insurance if they do not have comparable coverage.

3 credits
Su Yon Pak

Clinical pastoral education (CPE) is graduate-level theological and professional education for ministry that takes place in a clinical setting. CPE students learn the art and skills of pastoral and spiritual care by providing pastoral and spiritual care to patients, families and staff, and then reflect on their ministry experiences with a certified CPE supervisor and a small group of peers. Students may request to receive academic credits for up to one unit of CPE to fulfill the field education requirement. The senior director of integrative and field-based education considers an application to substitute a unit of CPE taken on an extended basis through the academic year in order to fulfill the field education requirement. FE 363 and FE 364 must be taken sequentially in one academic year.

Prerequisites: PS 110 is required. PS 101 is recommended. Permission of the senior director of integrative and field-based education.

Note: Identical to PS 363.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

3 credits
R. William Franklin

This course surveys the history of the development of Anglican liturgies from the Reformation to the present, with specific attention to the influence of theological and social movements on Christian worship. The central theme of the course is the formation and revisions of The Book of Common Prayer in response to social, political, and theological debates, and the link between worship and movements for social justice and evangelism. The focus is on Anglicanism in Great Britain and the United States, but parallel developments of distinct, not just colonial, African, Asian, Oceanic, and Latino expressions of Anglican liturgy are addressed throughout in lectures and in reading assignments.

Note: Required for MDiv students with a concentration in Anglican Studies. Open to all students.

3 credits
Kelly Brown Douglas
Susan Hill

What does it mean to be called? What is the difference between a ministerial call and other vocational calls? How does one discern one’s call? This seminar is designed to explore the theological and spiritual meanings and practical implications of ministerial calls. Special attention is given to understanding the significance of a “call” within the Anglican Communion. Critical engagement with call narratives, a development of a vocational statement, and engagement with practitioners in diverse ministerial vocations provide the foundation for appreciating the complex dynamics of a call. Formerly PT 102.

Note: Required for, but not restricted to, MDiv students with a concentration in Anglican Studies.

3 credits
Jane Huber

The importance of musical practice to the rituals of believing communities is a formative expression of spirituality for faithful people. The course includes introduction to musical genres from different liturgical traditions and historical periods. Through review of historical documents, musical scores, liturgies, and historic recordings students are introduced to liturgical practice across faith traditions. Beyond historical practice, the sung liturgies that are associated with different believing communities vary from context to context. In addition to studying the liturgical repertoire, students travel to the Cloisters Museum, visit the Fort Tryon Jewish Eruv, and the Islamic Wing at the Metropolitan Museum to explore the different boundaries and peripheries of sacred space and to analyze the different spaces where each tradition engages the prayer practices and liturgies of their community. How do sacred spaces, sung or unsung practices, inform or shape faithful identity and concepts of the holy? Students review current research and develop liturgies for their own communities in contemporary contexts.

Note: Identical to CH 235.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

3 credits
Kelly Brown Douglas
Dave Giffen

Through both praxis and reflection, students engage with issues in modern-day homelessness and the role faith communities may play in addressing it. Students explore how modern-day homelessness developed and grew in the United States, how it has been understood as a social problem, the history of advocacy and activism in response, what role moral discourse (or ethical concerns) from faith communities can play in the public debate. Students engage these questions through advocacy/service opportunities and critically reflect on these experiences through readings and group discussion. The contemporary version of homelessness emerged in the 1970s and grew dramatically in the 1980s, expanding in numbers and demographic and geographic scope. As it took shape, empirical researchers illuminated dimensions of the problem and the people affected, bringing public attention to what routinely became referred to as a “crisis.” In over twenty other cities across the country, homeless leaders formed the National Union of the Homeless to organize for human rights. Together we examine the theological, spiritual, and moral framework needed to challenge a system that criminalizes poor communities in a time of great abundance. Faith communities can become much more engaged in the interplay of public policy/practice, empirical evidence, legal advocacy, and organizing, and the course explores how faith leaders can do so.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

2 credits
Jane Alexandre

What is the place for dance in worship? As worship? As ministry? How can we create, enrich, develop communities and faith through movement practice? How can we develop and foster deep investigation/interchange with oneself, with others, with our communities and societies, and with whatever the individual understands of the Spirit? The urge arises to “be ready”. The goal is to prepare in dance to live and work in a state/spirit of readiness. Incorporating and building on established practices of dance in worship – but also on contemporary forms that challenge, instigate, and commentate – this course explores possibilities for scholars who think in dance and through movement, to work at the intersection of faith, scholarship, social justice and the arts.

Corequisite: SU 112.

3 credits
Margaret Moers Wenig

This country is deeply divided. Preaching can cause, perpetuate or deepen the divide, especially when faith leaders are preaching “to the choir.” This course explores ways in which religious leaders might both speak to people who “sit across the aisle” and also model a different form of discourse that all those who hear our words might practice in their own encounters.

1 credit
Micah Bucey

An immersive exploration of the intersections of theology and creativity through a critical engagement with museum exhibitions, film, theatre, music and dance performances throughout New York City. Students make three group excursions to arts events arranged based on individual schedules.

Notes: Enrollment limited to twenty students. Meets once in September for orientation and scheduling, and once in December to discuss the class experiences.

3 credits
Claudio Carvalhaes

The earth must be the ground zero of our thinking and practice. In this course, we learn about the ways our world is organized around a capitalistic system called extractivism. Extractivism is the ongoing work of coloniality, the ripping off of all natural and human resources, exterminating life on earth. This system organizes the political, theological, economic and emotional resources of the anthropocene. We also learn how to respond to this way of being by creating rituals and liturgies based on readings, discussions and site visits.

3 credits
Claudio Carvalhaes

This course intends to create community through weekly Chapel rituals. The main thread of this course is guided by the demise of humanity and how rituals can help us engage the ongoing loss of natural biomes and the demise of the anthropocene. In this course, students 1) create rituals for our community; 2) learn rituals by actually doing them, engaging a plurality of voices. We strive to learn how to create rituals that help us do the work of mourning collectively. As we do this, we hope to help each other move away from apathy and despair, while embracing our vulnerability and strengthening our work for the healing of the earth and ourselves.

Note: Responsibility for each Tuesday worship service in James Chapel is required.

3 credits
Timothy Adkins-Jones

This course examines the history of norms, socio-cultural contexts, hermeneutics, and theologies that inform proclamation at the intersection of Black lived experiences in North America. This examination will include attending to Black preaching traditions alongside other forms of proclamation. The course assists participants in developing a critical appreciation of proclamation as an act connected to its contexts, while providing opportunities to explore how key learnings may further shape one’s ministry practices.

Prerequisite: CW 104.

Note: Enrollment limited to fifteen students.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

2 credits
Eileen Campbell-Reed

Students receive practical and theoretical grounding in the fundamentals of responding to common pastoral situations (such as illness, grief, couples and families, crisis, addictions and violence, and self-care), with attention to the impact of social context (race, gender, class). Students develop a theological framework for conceptualizing health and wholeness with reference to their own theological and cultural traditions, and a method of pastoral theological/spiritual reflection.

Corequisite: PS 110.

1 credit
Pamela Cooper-White

Students learn and practice pastoral listening skills through directed practicum work in small groups. The emphasis is on nondirective listening, but also includes spiritual companioning and crisis intervention and suicide prevention. This course is a prerequisite to receive academic credits for clinical pastoral education (CPE) courses: FE/PS 363, FE/PS 364, FE/PS 366Q.

Notes: Enrollment limited to forty-eight students. Cannot be taken as audit.

3 credits
Sarah Hill
Christopher Jones

This course introduces students to psychoanalytic concepts and theories concerning self and other as they relate to our multiple racial and cultural identities that develop through psychic and social interaction at both the individual and group levels. We look at race as a dialectical category, socially constructed as a symbol while also being a material reality, i.e. lived experience. We consider dynamics of privilege, prejudice and oppression through psychoanalytic and socio-political lenses. Students are asked to raise critical questions about themselves and others as they become more familiar with psychodynamic and socialpolitical underpinnings of racial and cultural phenomena. The focus is clinical with the objective that students bring greater racial and cultural awareness to their own identities and interactions.

3 credits
Su Yon Pak

Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) is graduate-level theological and professional education for ministry that takes place in a clinical setting. CPE students learn the art and skills of pastoral and spiritual care by providing pastoral and spiritual care to patients, families and staff, and then reflect on their ministry experiences with a certified CPE Supervisor and a small group of peers. Students may request to receive academic credits for up to one unit of CPE. The Senior Director of Integrative and Field-Based Education will consider an application to substitute a unit of CPE taken on an extended basis through the academic year in order to fulfill the field education requirement. PS 363 and PS 364 must be taken sequentially in one academic year.

Prerequisites: PS 110 is required. PS 101 is recommended. Permission of the instructor and senior director of integrative and field-based education.

Notes: PS 363 and PS 364, or PS 366Q, required for students with a concentration in Psychology and Religion. Identical to FE 363.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

3 credits
John Falcone

This synchronous/online course provides an introduction to the field of adult education, with a focus on key theoretical frameworks and implications for working with adults in formal and informal settings.

Note: Identical to DM 413.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

3 credits
Andrea White

This course takes on the so-called body problem in philosophical and theological discourse with special attention given to disability studies. The study covers such themes as the erotic, materiality, flesh, power and representation, race and gender in works by a range of thinkers in disability studies, French phenomenology, feminist, black, womanist theologies, and postcolonial traditions. Thinkers studied include Julia Watts Belser, Elizabeth Barnes, Michel Henry, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Jean-Luc Marion, Judith Butler, M. Shawn Copeland, Catherine Keller, Audre Lorde, Anthony Pinn and Mayra Rivera.

Note: Enrollment limited to twenty-five students. Identical to ST 450.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

3 credits
Roger Haight

This course explores the groundwork of Christian theology: its premises, logic, and methods in comparison with the critical inquiry for self-understanding that goes on in other religions. The goal is to examine and discuss things that theologians may take for granted in their engagement with the discipline. The underlying question of the course is whether the premises of theology can be defended in a secular, scientifically educated, religiously pluralistic, and seemingly relativistic culture in a way that makes sense to people sharing in this culture and approaching theology for the first time. It begins with the character of religious experience, and moves to a theory of why it takes different forms, the object of theology as “ultimacy,” the role of Jesus Christ in the structure of Christian faith in God, and two broad categorizations of modern Christian theology. The course is meant for those who question all of these topics either through inattention or after some thought.

Note: ST 101 or ST 103 or ST 104 required for MA and MDiv students fulfills foundational Theology requirement.

3 credits
Jawanza Eric Clark

The aim of this course is to provide a basic understanding of the nature of systematic theology as this discipline relates to contemporary social and political issues. Special attention is given to the emergence of liberal, orthodox, and neo-orthodox theologies in Europe and North America and to their impact on the rise of liberation theologies in Asia, Africa, Latin America, within U.S. minorities, and also among women in all groups. It is hoped that students not only clarify their own personal stance but, in addition, come to understand perspectives radically different from their own. Readings will be taken from twentieth-century sources.

Note: ST 101 or ST 103 or ST 104 required for MA and MDiv students fulfills foundational Theology requirement.

3 credits
Euan Cameron

Two years ago, in a surge of publicity, the Western Churches, Protestant and Roman Catholic, marked 500 years since Martin Luther wrote ninety-five theses to dispute the power of “indulgences”: instruments by which the Church claimed to reduce or eliminate the penalties imposed after confession in this life, and even in the hereafter. Martin Luther, a relatively young theologian in an obscure university in North-Eastern Germany, challenged authority in the name of Scripture and “evident reason”. Yet his theological innovations held far broader and more sweeping implications. Luther reinterpreted key biblical passages to invalidate the whole medieval system of purification through ritual practices encouraged by the Church. An extraordinarily creative thinker, and at the same time an intensely problematic personality. Luther’s comments about theological rivals, political authorities, the peasantry, women, Jews and Muslims are all immensely troubling, not least for those who in other ways revere his legacy. This course seeks to get under the skin of this complex and challenging figure, to trace his impact and address the difficulties which he presented in his own time, and still does.

Note: Identical to CH 359.

3 credits
Jason Wyman

Friedrich Schleiermacher is often called the “Father of Modern Theology.” Such a superlative title demands deep engagement. Heralded as a foundational figure in philosophy, hermeneutics, ethics, and of course theology, the question naturally becomes, “what did Schleiermacher do and what relevance does it have for theology today and tomorrow?” This seminar takes an extended, focused look at Schleiermacher’s core texts, On Religion: Speeches to Its Cultured Despisers and his monumental The Christian Faith. Throughout the semester, both the groundbreaking nature of Schleiermacher’s work at its publication and its actual and potential employments in contemporary theology are discussed, with an emphasis on his methodological innovations and how students can appropriate and converse with Schleiermacher’s work today.

Prerequisite: ST 101 or ST 103 or ST 104.

3 credits
Andrea White

This course provides an introduction to womanist theology through a study of three decades of scholarship produced by womanist theologians in the United States and placed in conversation with black theology. The course addresses a range of topics, including womanist biblical hermeneutics, Christology, pneumatology, soteriology, theological anthropology, theologies of embodiment, evil, sin and suffering, and eschatology. Womanist theologians (e.g., Delores Williams, Kelly Brown Douglas, M. Shawn Copeland) and scholars of black theology (e.g., James Cone, Willie James Jennings, and J. Kameron Carter) are interlocutors in genealogies of race, ontologies and physics of blackness, the cross and redemption, and black women’s literary tradition.

1-3 credits

Independent study for master-level students under the guidance of a member of the faculty. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Reading form for more details.

3 credits
Andrea White

This course takes on the so-called body problem in philosophical and theological discourse with special attention given to disability studies. The study covers such themes as the erotic, materiality, flesh, power and representation, race and gender in works by a range of thinkers in disability studies, French phenomenology, feminist, black, womanist theologies, and postcolonial traditions. Thinkers studied include Julia Watts Belser, Elizabeth Barnes, Michel Henry, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Jean-Luc Marion, Judith Butler, M. Shawn Copeland, Catherine Keller, Audre Lorde, Anthony Pinn and Mayra Rivera.

Note: Enrollment limited to twenty-five students. Identical to PR 450.

1-6 credits

Independent study for doctoral candidates under the guidance of faculty with whom they are doing their major work. A topic/title is established in collaboration with the sponsoring faculty.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

Notes: Cannot be taken for reading credit. See Guided Research form for more details.

1 credit
Barbara King Lord

This synchronous/online course addresses the breadth and variety of writing styles encountered by graduate students in seminary courses. By working on actual writing assignments students have in their current courses, this class seeks to illuminate the writing process in ways immediately applicable to students.

Note: May be repeated, but taken only once for credit.

1 credit
Malcolm Merriweather

Singing diverse works from across the sacred choral spectrum, with participation in periodic Monday noon chapel services.

Note: Pass/fail. May be repeated, but taken only once for credit.

1 credit
Gary Mitchell, Jr.

Exploring the styles and rhythms of gospel traditions, with participation in Wednesday noon chapel services.

Note: Pass/fail. May be repeated, but taken only once for credit.

1 credit
Jane Alexandre

A contemporary dance technique class framed within the investigation of dance in the context of worship. The course consists of warm up, technique development, and movement/exploration.

Notes: Pass/fail. All levels of experience welcome, with the goal of advancing individual student development. May be repeated as audit, but taken only once for credit.

1 credit
Jane Huber

Current day interest and life in intentional community has a rich and diverse history. Within communities from the past to the present, the cultivation of spiritual practices is a central focus of intentional living. The medieval model provided by women and men living in Christian community furnishes a starting point for the historical study of intentional communities in this course, which also includes introduction to the different forms and orders of medieval monasticism and spiritual practice in community. Through review of historical documents, films and museum site visits, students are introduced to historical examples of life in intentional community. Through site visits to a Jewish eruv, Christian cloister and Islamic courtyard, students explore the different boundaries and peripheries of sacred space for each tradition. Students conclude the course with a review of current research and present their own proposals for intentional communities in contemporary context.

Note: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit.

0 credits
Jan Rehmann

This course is designed for students who are preparing for the language exam in German. Starting with the basic elements of grammar and vocabulary, the course requires no prior knowledge of German, but does require intensive commitment. Students are introduced to the main problems of reading German. Corresponding to the requirements of the exam, the training focuses on the understanding and translation of scholarly theological texts; i.e. exegesis, church history, Christian ethics and philosophy.

0 credits
Jan Rehmann

This course is designed for students who are preparing for the language exam in French. Starting with the basic elements of grammar and vocabulary, the course requires no prior knowledge of French, but does require intensive commitment. Students are introduced to the main problems of reading French. Corresponding to the requirements of the exam, the training focuses on the understanding and translation of scholarly theological texts; i.e., exegesis, church history, Christian ethics and philosophy.

0 credits
Carla Roland Guzmán

This course is designed for students who are preparing for the language exam in Spanish. Prior knowledge of Spanish is not required, and students are introduced to the study of the basic grammatical forms and functions of the language. The course includes translation practice corresponding to the requirements of the exam. The training focuses on the understanding and translation of scholarly, especially theological texts; i.e., exegesis, church history, Christian ethics and philosophy.

1 credit
Ben Connelly

How can we heal ourselves and our communities? How does our personal conduct, wellness, suffering, and trauma relate to interpersonal and transpersonal systems? How can we give our lives to universal liberation without sacrificing our own well-being? These are the questions at the heart of Yogacara Buddhism, which brings Early Buddhist and Mahayana thought and practice into an integrated approach to joyful, compassionate, altruistic living. This course focuses on the phenomenology and practices upheld in the Indian Yogacara master Vasubandhu’s Thirty Verses on Consciousness Only. We study and engage in mindfulness practices for healing patterns of emotional reactivity, and non-dual teachings to heal our alienation from ourselves, our communities, and the vast, ineffable universe. Students move towards a deeper knowing of the fact that in every moment we participate in the whole of the world in all its beauty and harms, and that in every moment we can act for the liberation of all.

Notes: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit. Part of a series of courses offered in the Thich Nhat Hanh Program for Engaged Buddhism.

1 credit
Donna Schaper

This course teaches queer and non-binary theology of sacred sites. It shows what the sacred sites are needed for, how endangered they are and how to save them. Establishing an incarnational approach to buildings that neither elevates nor demeans them, it offers ways to steward them. The course highlights multi-use of sacred spaces as a way to be green, to be neighborly and to establish less distinction between sacralized and desacralized spaces. It argues for hyper-use of open, public spaces in worlds where the privatization of space is rapidly increasing. Students learn how self-governing small institutions are foundational to larger democratic institutions.

Notes: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit.

1 credit
Adam Barnes 

As seminarians graduate into economic crisis, how are we prepared for the poverty that awaits us in our congregations, our communities, our family, and even our debt-saddled job searches? The Kairos Center believes that we are living in a kairos moment: A moment of great change and transition, where the old ways of doing things are breaking down, new ones are trying to emerge and decisive action is demanded. This course explores how religious leaders, local congregations, and poor people’s organizations can be part of growing efforts rising up to respond to the injustice and violence our communities are facing. Special attention is given to the history of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1968 Poor People’s Campaign (PPC) and the efforts of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival to re-ignite that campaign and challenge the interconnected evils of systemic racism, poverty, the war economy, ecological devastation and the nation’s distorted morality. Students examine lessons gained from the history of the PPC, learn some basic information on poverty and community organizing, and participate in biblical study and theological reflection on building a social movement to end poverty, led by the poor.

Notes: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit.

1 credit
Julie Novas

What does it truly mean to minister and to serve as a chaplain that is oriented and rooted in Theravada Buddhism? How can we bring the practices of Vipassana, (seeing things as they are coming to be, moment to moment, without judging what’s arising) into our work in the world? In this course, we explore what the Theravada tradition brings to chaplaincy, including the influence of Buddhist ethics in the role as chaplain. This course is designed to support development and expansion in this sacred role. All interested in spiritual care through early Buddhist perspectives are welcome.

Notes: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit. Part of a series of courses offered in the Thich Nhat Hanh Program for Engaged Buddhism.

1 credit
Chris Lee and Steven D. Paulikas

As our country endures one of the stormiest seasons in its political history, the witness of its faith leaders is more important than ever. Like many dissenting voices, however, progressive religious perspectives are too often either dismissed outright or confined to conversations happening far from the public square. This course aims to foster the skills necessary to conceive, write and place articles in the opinion sections of daily print newspapers and various online outlets. First students study successful opinion writing from a faith perspective, then they focus on developing students’ own ideas in a workshop environment. Students are required to bring at least a pitch, and preferably a rough draft of a piece, to the first session.

Notes: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit.

1 credit
Nahum Ward-Lev

Through text study, conversation, and experiential exercise, this course is a community inquiry into the role of prophetic wisdom in societal transformation. Drawing insight and inspiration from sacred Scriptures as well as our own life experience, we ask: What wisdom can we draw from the Hebrew prophets to guide our social action? How does the liberating energy flowing throughout creation support our social justice endeavors? What practices cultivate our capacity to perceive the world through the eyes of God’s love and concern? How do we discern the prophetic action that we are called to engage? And how might this inquiry shape our next steps, individually and collectively? Students have an opportunity to explore spiritual practices that might help ground us in our most loving, wise and resilient selves while pursuing the challenging work of uprooting oppression. This course draws from the rich exploration in Nahum Ward-Lev’s book, The Liberating Path of the Hebrew Prophets: Then and Now (Orbis Books, May 2019). In addition to Hebrew Scripture, students engage with the writings of modern prophets, ranging from Erich Fromm, Gustavo Gutiérrez and Abraham Joshua Heschel to bell hooks, Martin Luther King Jr., Paulo Freire and Grace Lee & James Boggs.

Notes: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit.

1 credit
David Wildman and Katie Reimer

In the ten years since the launch of the Kairos Palestine Document, churches and Christians around the world have joined Palestinian Christians in taking up the call of loving non-violent resistance. This course looks at the Kairos Palestine Document, a statement of faith written prayerfully in 2009 by Palestinian Christians. These Palestinian Christians reflect on the 50+ year military occupation of their land, calling upon churches and Christians worldwide to stand against injustice and apartheid, and work for a just and lasting peace in Israel and Palestine. The document is a “cry of hope, with love, prayer and faith in God,” and it holds a clear position of loving non-violent resistance as a response to apartheid and military occupation. The Kairos Palestine Document uses 1 Corinthians 13:13 to frame Palestinian experience and struggle. The course explores forms of loving resistance developed by the Kairos Palestine Document. It also reflects on the ways Palestinian Christians have called churches and Christians worldwide to stand in solidarity with Palestine. Finally, the course looks at the lessons that have come out of the Palestinian struggle and how these connect with other liberation struggles today.

Notes: Pass/fail. Cannot be taken for reading credit.