Course Descriptions: Ministry in Church and Society
Area A: Biblical and Historical StudiesArea B: Phliosophy, Theology, and Ethics
Area C: Religion, Culture, and Personality
AREA D: MINISTRY IN CHURCH AND SOCIETY
Chairman Bryan Stone
Professors Stone, Westerfield Tucker
Associate Professor Wolfteich
Assistant Professors Newsome, Shenton
Adjunct Professor Hassinger
Lecturers Choi, Johnson, Messer, Morrison
Discipline Designators for Area D
TA Church Music and the ArtsTC Preaching, Worship, Administration, Field Education, and Spirituality
TE Religion and Education, Religious Development, and Human Learning
TJ Practical Theology
STH TA 721 Seminary Singers
Open to all students who are interested in singing. Participation in one weekly chapel service, all concerts, and tours. Credit given only on completion of the second consecutive semester’s work. C. Kidd. Available for 0 or 1 cr.STH TA 750 Minister’s Guide to the Musical Arts
This elective course will focus on the theory, history, and practice of music as it pertains to the worship of God in the Christian church. Students will also gain experience in reading and performing music within the context of a broader study of the vast repertoire (concert and occasional) of sacred music. In addition, issues of conflict management and aesthetic balance in the current musical pluralism will be addressed. Staff. 2 cr.STH TA 801 Music Practicum I
A course taken concurrently with STH TC 801 Field Education I for all Master of Sacred Music students. Course explores the nature of music ministry. Variable cr; MSM students take course for 0 credits.STH TA 802 Music Practicum II
A course taken concurrently with STH TC 802 Field Education II for all Master of Sacred Music students. Course explores the nature of music ministry. Variable cr; MSM students take course for 0 credits.STH TA 804 Seminar: Anthems for the Church Choir
Historical survey of music repertory for American church choirs: study of performance of various periods and genres of music. Consent of instructor with special consideration given to MSM and CFA students. Daw.STH TA 805 Church Music for Non-Musicians
The administration of church music based on philosophy and theology of music. To be taken concurrently with field education. Shenton.STH TA 808 Marsh Chapel Choir
Audition required. Schedule includes Sunday worship in Marsh Chapel and several major concerts. Jarrett.STH TA 810 Hymns and Their Music
Study of the history of congregational song in Protestantism and the music it has generated. Required of MSM students; others with permission of instructor. Daw.STH TA 826 Conducting Church Choirs
Prereq: persons enrolled must be serving as choir directors or assistant directors of a church choir or have access to conducting a church choir in one or two anthems. A study of the skills appropriate to the conduction and administration of church choirs. Half course. Staff.STH TA 827 Music in the Twentieth Century II
An in-depth look at styles, techniques, and repertoire in music after WWII, with a particular focus on the work of Olivier Messiaen. Cultural and artistic movements will be discussed, along with significant technological innovations. Shenton.STH TC 703, 704 Pastoral and Spiritual Formation, I and II
The course centers around weekly group meetings of masters students, facilitated by STH faculty. The course aims to create small faith communities for spiritual companionship and nurture, critical theological reflection, vocational discernment, and integration of academic study and faith. Required in first year of study for entering Master of Divinity students. Wolfteich, director. Faculty instructors.STH TC 715 Introduction to Preaching
An introduction to the theology and practice of preaching within the context of the ministry. Students develop skills necessary for preparation, composition, delivery, and critique of sermons. Andrews.STH TC 723 United Methodist Church Discipline
Polity, structure, procedures, and ritual of the United Methodist Church. Designed to meet one of the requirements for membership in a UMC Annual Conference. Johnson.STH TC 757 Spiritual Resources and Disciplines
An introduction to spirituality, both as a subject for study and as integral part of everyday life. Explores major currents in Christian spirituality and reflects on personal experience of faith. Participants develop an understanding of varieties of spirituality within the Christian tradition and seek to deepen their own spiritual lives. Wolfteich. 2 cr, offered as STH TC 857 for 4 credits.STH TC 801 Supervised Field Education I
Prereq: STH TC 703 and STH TC 704. Supervised practice of ministry in parish internships, student parishes, and hospital chaplaincies combined with peer reflection-learning groups. Fall sem.STH TC 802 Supervised Field Education II
Continues and presupposes STH TC 801 in the spring semester. See STH TC 801 for description. Spring sem.STH TC 803 Field Education III
Normally continues STH TC 802. Johnson. Variable cr.STH TC 804 Field Education IV
Normally continues STH TC 803. Johnson. Variable cr.STH TC 809 Proclamation
Theology and practice of preaching as pastoral, exegetical, and doxological. Workshop methodology with peer criticism and interaction. Particular attention to preaching at Sacraments and Offices of Marriage and Funeral. Staff.STH TC 811 Church Life and Administration
Consideration of local church systems and contexts; management by motivating and training of church leaders; envisioning, planning, boundaries, finances, and time priorities for those planning to be pastors, associate pastors, Christian education directors, youth ministers, and others on church staffs. Staff.STH TC 815 Worship in the Wesleyan Tradition
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. Westerfield-Tucker.STH TC 817 Introduction to Christian Worship
An introduction to the spirit and structures of Christian worship. Word, sacraments, calendar, music, and pastoral offices are analyzed and described in terms of their relevance to congregational life, spirituality, catechesis, and mission. Westerfield-Tucker.STH TC 818 Pastoral Offices: Christian Rituals for the Life-Cycle
An examination of historical, theological, and pastoral aspects of the occasional offices that address life’s passages and crises: birth, adolescence, Christian marriage, sickness and death, and Christian burial. An ecumenical and international approach will be taken in studying both historic and contemporary rites. Westerfield-Tucker.STH TC 821 The Book of Psalms
The Psalter, its development, organization, and content. The Psalms interpreted in their worship setting. Attention given to literary and devotional values of these lyrical classics of Israel.STH TC 822 Spirituality for Ministry
This course will explore how ministry is grounded in, flows from, and is sustained by a deep spiritual life. We will ask questions such as the following: What is Christian spirituality? How can we grow into a more authentic and responsive life of faith? How are we called to live as Christian ministers, and what are the varieties of forms Christian ministry can take? The course examines the particular spiritual challenges of Christian ministry in contemporary societies. At the same time, we explore different spiritual practices and disciplines to help the minister remain centered and grounded in God. Students reflect critically on topics such as vocation, the meaning of ordination, lay spirituality, ministry outside the churches, encountering racism and sexism in ministry, balancing action and contemplation, spirituality and social justice, balancing care of self and service to others, loneliness, prayer, authenticity in ministry, and spiritual direction. Students study biblical texts and both classical and contemporary spiritual writings. They analyze the texts and reflect on them in light of their own experience in ministry. The course includes guest speakers. Students also interview a minister about his or her spirituality and incorporate the interview in the final paper. Wolfteich.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 we will explore selected writings from the Christian tradition—both classic and contemporary. We 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. We will analyze the various theological commitments reflected in these authors’ spiritual teachings, and place them in their historical contexts. Then we 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. Wolfteich.STH TC 825 Prayer and Social Engagement
The seminar will address the relationship between prayer and social engagement. Prayer and social engagement often are separated entirely, or wedded uncritically. In this course, students will seek to deepen their prayer lives while thinking critically about the social situation. They will wrestle with the multiple theological questions surrounding prayer and social engagement. Topics will be approached using selected case studies from international contexts. By delving into the cases, students will see different models for how prayer can inspire a social vision, cultivate a social conscience, respond to social crisis, ground people’s dignity, and promote reconciliation. Wolfteich.STH TC 826 Women’s Spirituality for Ministry
Contemporary women’s search for a spirituality to undergird ministry in all its aspects. Course limited to 12; permission of instructor required. Half course. Choi.STH TC 828 Women and Ministry
This course will examine the reality of women in ministry, critically evaluating how women’s identities and roles have been structured in Christian contexts. It will also carefully analyze how these identities and roles can be re-evaluated and how women’s ministry can be envisioned in this modern ministerial context. Drawing on different women’s theological perspectives and identities, we will focus mainly on women and ministry in the areas of Biblical Studies, Worship, Preaching, and Pastoral Care and Counseling. Half credit course. Choi.STH TC 831 Relational and Personal Ethics for Ministry
An exploration of professional ethics for ordained and non-ordained ministers. Required of all students in the Master of Sacred Music degree program. Bohn. Half cr.STH TC 832 Biblical Preaching from the Lectionary
Exegesis, hermeneutics, and exposition of texts related to contemporary life issues. Use of lectionaries in the selection of texts for preaching. Also offered as STH TC 932 for doctoral students. Andrews.STH TC 834 The Word in Worship
Integrating scripture, sermon, and sacrament in their liturgical context. Background and use of calendar and lectionary. Liturgical planning, public reading, and preaching evaluated. Staff.STH TC 835 Evangelism and Contemporary Cultures
Christians must find effective and faithful ways of inviting human beings to take on a public Christian identity within the plurality of contexts, cultures, and sub-cultures within which we find ourselves today. This course will pursue what it means to bear visible and embodied witness to the reign of God in a pluralistic and post-Christendom context. It will attempt to understand some of the more important dynamics at work in contemporary culture that shape how evangelism is to be practiced with integrity today. Stone.STH TC 837 Work and Faith
Have you ever wondered how your work life fits into your spiritual journey? Do you want to explore the various ways that people experience work and struggle with its meaning? This course provides a forum to explore these questions and their implications for ministry today. We approach the topic from a variety of angles, including historical, sociological, literary, and theological texts; interviews; case studies and site visits. We will explore themes such as: work as spiritual practice or challenge; work as vocation; creativity; prayer and work; fragmentation; use of time, and discernment. We will also explore how cultural forces and economic structures influence the contemporary person’s spirituality. The course includes specific attention to family and work, and to men and women’s various experiences. Students will reflect on the churches’ ministry with working people and will strategize about creative means of spiritual guidance. All will participate in a class project to sponsor a retreat for working people. Wolfteich.STH TC 838 Church Renewal
In every era, Christians must rethink what it means to be the Church in light of the Christian witness and given the unique challenges and opportunities of our particular situation. This course explores (1) what it means to be the church as an embodied witness to the reign of God in our present culture and (2) the various strategies and resources upon which Christian leaders might draw in guiding congregations through processes of formation, change, and revitalization. Stone.STH TC 842 Urban Ministry
An introduction to the specialized ministry to persons and churches in urban areas. Special emphasis on evangelism in a multicultural environment. Stone.STH TC 845 Parish Preaching
The preaching ministry in the parish congregation and its purposes and relationships to other parish ministries. Practice in preparation and delivery of sermons. Andrews.STH TC 847 Faith and Film
This course uses the medium of film as an avenue for reflection upon the meaning and truth of the central doctrines of the Christian church as expressed in the historic Apostle’s Creed. The course will use a broad cross-section of film genres to open up new and creative windows for understanding and communicating the Christian faith in a pluralistic, post-Christian culture and will also assist the student in thinking critically about the film from a Christian theological perspective. Stone.STH TC 849 The Preacher as Creative Theologian
The human experience of God is the overarching theme for preaching. Intended to help the student distinguish among this level of discourse and others, and to develop the ability to relate the gospel to the experiential issues, rather than the theological and religious commitments confronted by the congregation. Andrews.STH TC 851 Preaching and Worship in the African-American Traditions
Study of the preaching, prayer, and music in African-American churches. Andrews.STH TC 852 Leadership in Church and Community
The social sciences are used in the study of both church and community. Approaches to the church’s ministry in metropolitan through rural areas are examined in readings, discussions, and site visits. Attention is also given to community organizationand organizational development theory and practice through such leadership tasks as analysis, planning, and conflict management. Also offered as STH TS 852. Staff.STH TC 854 Leadership in Times of Change
Change is a constant, whether in the individual, the family, the local church, the university, the nation, or the world. How a leader defines, understands, and deals with change, both personally and in the leadership setting, is important both for the leader and those in the organization or group. Leadership for change may emerge from anywhere in the group/organization. What is the nature of change? How does our understanding of God shape our understanding of change? How does our understanding of change shape our understanding of God? Are there healthy ways to lead in times of transition and change? Are there leadership patterns that are counterproductive in times of transition and change? How does the leader or group member hold him/herself accountable to the change process? These are some of the questions with which the course will deal. Hassinger.
STH TC 856 Preaching to the Modern World
Consideration of the ways in which the contexts of preaching today differ from those in which the familiar formulations of theology came into being as well as the theological implications of the differences. Also offered as STH TT 856. Wildman.STH TC 857 Spiritual Resources and Disciplines
An introduction to spirituality, both as a subject for study and as an integral part of everyday life. Explores major currents in Christian spirituality and reflects on personal experience of faith. Participants develop an understanding of varieties of spirituality within the Christian tradition and seek to deepen their own spiritual lives. Offered as STH TC 757 for 2 credits. Wolfteich.STH TC 861 Seminar: 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. Westerfield Tucker.STH TC 862 The Liturgical Year
The historical development of a Christian calendar of both weekly and annual cycles. Descriptions of related liturgical and catechetical customs and contemporary calendar revision. Staff.STH TC 866 Faith-Based Non-Profit Organizational Development
The purpose of this study is to assist students in (a) understanding and assessing the organizational structure, operation, and management of faith-based non-profits, (b) gaining an awareness of how faith-based non-profits go about the tasks of effective fundraising and grant writing, and (c) designing and writing a workable program strategy, organizational and strategic plan, and grant proposal. Stone.STH TC 867 The Gospel and Popular Culture
This course places the Christian gospel into dialogue with a variety of expressions of North American popular culture (film, television, art, music, entertainment, sports, etc.) in an effort to understand the complex relationship between the two. The course takes up with this dialogue against the wider background of the study of religion and popular culture and by exploring the nature of self and transcendence, morality and the spiritual quest as those are constructed and configured within popular culture. The course asks to what extent contemporary expressions of Christian worship, preaching, ministry, evangelism, and spirituality might better engage popular culture and to what extent these expressions already reflect (perhaps uncritically) the values, patterns, and practices of popular culture. Stone.STH TC 890 New Church Development
The planting and birthing of new congregations requires careful planning, innovative leadership, organizational savvy, a strong spiritual base, and endless creativity. This course is a study in the theology and practice of starting new congregations and covers such topics as contextual worship, organizational development, finance and facilities, exegeting a community, and creative community outreach. Coursework includes specific congregational development research projects. Stone.STH TC 902 Ministry in Multi-Cultural Contexts
Christian ministers increasingly find themselves in contexts where cultural pluralism is the rule rather than the exception. This course will focus on the challenges and opportunities created for theology, communication, worship, ministry, evangelism, and prophetic witness in a multicultural context. Stone.STH TC 905 The Study of Congregations
A course in the field of congregational studies. Critical application and study of methods used to understand local churches and their worship programs. The case-study method will be used. Stone.STH TC 909 Spiritual Autobiographies
Participants in this course will read selected spiritual autobiographies in order to gain an understanding of the varieties of religious experience and the interrelationship between spirituality, theology, and historical and cultural context. We will examine the nature of religious experience and the difficulties in translating this experience into language. Moreover, we will explore the important issue of how spirituality relates to the institutional churches, and the various shapes spirituality takes outside these institutions. Through close, empathetic, and critical examination of the texts, participants also will reflect on their own spiritual journeys and spiritual identities. They will prepare written analyses of course texts and, by the end of the course, will write a portion of their own spiritual autobiography. Wolfteich.STH TC 919 Sacramental Theology
Redefinition of sacraments in light of recent ecumenical liturgical developments and bibliographical studies. References to Barth, Schillebeeck, the World Council’s BEM document, and COCU’s Consensus. Also offered as STH TT 919. Staff.STH TC 932 Biblical Preaching From the Lectionary
Exegesis, hermeneutics, and exposition of texts related to contemporary life issues. Use of lectionaries in the selection of texts for preaching. Also offered as STH TC 832 for master’s-level students. Andrews.STH TE 814 Minister as Educator
An introduction to the ministry of religious education by the ordained pastor. Helps students identify and develop religious education curricular materials and discusses the theological underpinnings of a religious education program. Staff. 2 cr.STH TE 845 Religion and Education
The relationship of government with schools and colleges based upon religious convictions and the efforts of educators to shape and maintain a distinctive character in such institutions. Issues of educational freedom and the rights of parents in historical and comparative international perspective. Offered with SED AP 630.STH TJ 876/976 Church and Theology in the Contemporary World
Church and Theology in the Contemporary World is an advanced research seminar in practical theology. The course enables students to design and carry out a research project in practical theology under the guidance of the instructor and with constructive feedback from fellow students. Assignments are designed to help students to articulate a clear, significant, and manageable research question; to design a practical theological approach to the question; to develop relevant bibliographies and other research sources; and, ultimately, to complete a final project in practical theology. Through this work and additional readings, including careful reading of and theological reflection on daily newspapers, we will together identify and address a range of issues facing the church in diverse cultures and contexts. Students gain skills in identifying practical theological questions and interpreting contexts; critically incorporating social scientific research in a theological project; making normative judgments; and thinking through strategic practical theological responses to guide faithful Christian practice. The course is a required core course for all doctoral students majoring in Practical Theology. Wolfteich.STH TJ 910 Proseminar in Practical Theology
This course introduces the major changes that are under way in practical theology as a discipline, reviews the methodologies upon which these changes are based, and examines the implications of these changes. Stone, Wolfteich.STH TC 912 Classics in Christian Spirituality
The course serves as an introduction to advanced study of Christian spirituality through in-depth reading of selected classics in the tradition of Christian spirituality and analysis of secondary literature in the discipline. The course will expose students to significant works in the tradition and will train them to read such texts with theological, historical-contextual, and practical theological perspectives. Primary texts will rotate each time the course is taught. Critical issues raised will include: relationship between spirituality and theology, relationship between spirituality and ecclesiology, spiritual practices, the human sciences and the study for spirituality, apophatic and cataphatic spiritual paths, and contemporary pastoral appropriations of classic texts. The course is required for all ThD minors in spirituality, DMin students completing plans of study in spirituality, and STM students with a specialization in Spirituality. Masters students admitted with permission of instructor. Wolfteich.STH TJ 940 Ecclesiology
This course explores the question of the nature and mission of the church as a systematic orientation guiding practical theological research, preventing it from being reduced to mere social scientific description on the one hand, or a capitulation to practical considerations and contextual forces on the other. Accordingly, this course asks the question, “What is the church?” both in abstraction from and within the context of research into the lived faith of Christians in congregations and in the world. While one of the critical aims of this course, therefore, is that students be able to identify and articulate an implied ecclesiology in this or that context or practice, it ultimately aims at the construction of creative new practical ecclesiologies that are able to understand the contemporary situation, recover and reinterpret the Christian tradition, develop effective strategies for Christian practice, and mobilize resources for carrying out these strategies. Stone. Also offered as TT 940.
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