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 DM 901: Transformational Leadership
  This course explores diverse perspectives and practices of religious leadership and community transformation, drawing upon recent research and literature in dialogue with participants' experiences as community leaders. Students will explore their personal leadership strengths and goals, theological perspectives and social science findings as regards leadership and transformation, and the insights of living communities. The purpose is to engage with critical issues and to construct new approaches to leadership that can contribute to thriving and society-serving communities.
• STH DM 902: Contextual Analysis and Transformational Leadership
  This course aims to provide students with theories and practices of leadership and ethics that will assist them in coming into a sense of who they are as transformational leaders and to prepare them for the multiple contexts in which they will lead. Students will have a growing sense of their public role in respect to religious and faith-based communities and to religion as it operates in a variety of contexts.
• STH DM 903: DMin Research Methods Seminar
  RESEARCH METHDS
• STH DM 904: DMin Project Colloquium
  DMIN PROJ COLLQ
• STH MR 703: PBLC TH MN LEAD
  PBLC TH MN LEAD
• STH MR 704: Religion and Public Engagement through the Arts
  Because the arts are fundamental to religious expression and are a principal interface between religious communities and the public, this course provides competencies in a wide range of subjects needed for leadership in this field. Primary competencies include an overview of the history of Christian art and architecture in global context; engagement with several methodological frameworks for self-expression and criticism (including aesthetics, semiotics, the creative process, and theopoetics); and foundational skills in the field of arts administration.
• STH MR 706: Congregations and Communities
  The increasingly global work of ministry, social activism, and non-profit service often takes place within or alongside religious congregations. Such congregations often serve as local communities, and they are embedded within larger communities such as neighborhoods, ethnic groups, political blocs, and countries. The purpose of this course is to help students understand the significance of religious "community" and its role in society, using both sociological and theological resources. We will then focus on pressing issues within U.S. congregational life, including race, class, and gender divides; spiritual pluralism and individualism; and the polarization and decline of Christian organizations.
• STH MR 707: The New Testament in Crises: Reading Biblical Texts Amid Contemporary Global Crises
  The Bible is everywhere. The Bible enters political debates through references to biblical authority; it is present in the Museums via artistic references to religious motifs; it informs the so-called cultural wars on sexuality, abortion, reparations, migration, climate change or wealth distribution; it is read weekly by local religious communities across the Globe. Politicians, pastors, activists, artists, writers, and thinkers reach into the biblical past to think about the political, cultural, and social present and the future. The purpose of this course is to explore the ways New Testament texts pervade contemporary debates about contemporary topics, paying attention to how these debates show up in public scholarship.
• STH MR 709: The Social Gospel
  This course examines the impact of the theological movement commonly called, the social gospel. Emerging out of the historical context of the late 19th century, the social gospel played a major role in shaping numerous movements of religious-based social activism in the 20th century. In addition to reading important theological voices from this tradition, the course will enable students to examine the social gospel's ongoing influence upon 21st century religious movements. The course will also allow students to engage how the social gospel's legacy can contribute to models of religious leadership today. (Cluster 1 & 2)
• STH MR 711: Disability and Ministry in the Public Square
  This course is about developing leadership skills and practical wisdom that facilitates the welcoming and affirming of people with disabilities into the public square. Jürgen Habermas defines the public sphere as, "By 'public sphere' we mean first a domain of our social life in which such a thing as public opinion can be formed." This course looks at how that public opinion has been formed in terms of disability by examining disability from the vantage point of the three publics originally outlined by Catholic theologian David Tracy: the academy, church, and the public square. Disability in this course includes everyone covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Discussions and course work will also include hidden disabilities and embodied vulnerability that everyone experiences. This broad focus on disability establishes its relevance and connection to all of us. First, we will focus on the academy and on how to be a theologian and leader who focuses on disability. In this course, we turn our attention to the practice of doing theology as a liberatory praxis to develop an understanding of how disability operates in our culture, and to build practical wisdom and leadership skills to combat ableism. The aim of this course is to help students develop transformative proposals for the church and society. In this exploration, we will pay careful attention to the central themes of disability, namely embodiment and marginalization.
• STH MR 713: Ministry and Leadership in Interfaith Contexts
  This course offers an entry point into the emerging field of Interfaith Leadership. It will provide students with an analysis of the power and potential of interfaith leadership in justice work, community building, and personal spiritual maturation. It includes the study and interpretation of historic and contemporary examples of interfaith leadership primarily in the United States, requires students to hone an articulation of their own faith-based motivations for interfaith engagement, and teaches best practices for engagement across differing belief systems. Students will engage in interfaith dialogue as part of their course work. Upon completion of the course, students will have increased their ability to engage in interfaith settings, understand how interfaith leadership differs from intra-faith leadership, and be clear on their individual points of tension in interfaith leadership settings, as well as those of their faith tradition. The course understands interfaith engagement to be inclusive of all people drawn to interfaith efforts including those who do not claim membership or affiliation with a religious tradition.
• STH TA 715: Organ Seminar
  Intended for organ majors, but open to others, this course covers repertoire, organ building and maintenance, technique, performance practice, and keyboard skills (sight-reading, score-reading, transposition, harmonization, improvisation and continuo). This is a two semester course. MSM organ majors must enroll in both semesters. (Cluster 3)
• STH TA 721: Seminary Singers
  Open to all students who are interested in singing. Participation in one weekly rehearsal and chapel service, including any special concerts/events/tours that may come up during the semester. Please note: students who are employed by the Seminary Singers may not take the course for credit (Cluster 3)
• STH TA 722: Seminary Singers
  Open to all students who are interested in singing. Participation in one weekly rehearsal and chapel service, including any special concerts/events/tours that may come up during the semester. Please note: students who are employed by the Seminary Singers may not take the course for credit (Cluster 3)
• STH TA 808: Marsh Chapel Choir
  Audition required. Schedule includes Sunday worship in Marsh Chapel and several major concerts. (Cluster 3)
• STH TA 810: Congregational Christian Music
  Study of the history of congregational song from biblical practice to the present day. Emphasis will be given to the development of theological, textual, and musical patterns, with special attention to incorporating both historic and emerging materials in worship. Strongly recommended for all MSM students; valuable for MDiv and doctoral students with special interest in worship. (Clusters 1 and 3)
• STH TA 815: World Religions in Boston
  In an increasingly pluralistic society it is essential to have some understanding of the beliefs and worship patterns of other religions and to be able to engage in dialogue with them. This course utilizes the Pluralism Project at Harvard to explore new forms of interfaith engagement. Seven weekly lectures introduce the issues surrounding interfaith work and a basic understanding of the tenets and practices of five major religions. Site visits (to Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist and Jewish worship services) offer first- hand experiences and the opportunity for discussion and interaction with religious leaders and lay people. (Clusters 1 and 3)
• STH TA 830: Passions & Requiems
  An examination of the legacy of music written for liturgical and non-liturgical use, using longer text, tracing the origins, formulary, and development of the texts (including discussion of the authors). Case studies will form the basis of further inquiry. Cultural, social and historical context of the first performance will be discussed, along with an examination of the theology behind the text setting. There will be comparative analysis of other examples of the same genre, discussion of post-Reformation changes in text and approach, and national differences in style and technique. (Clusters 1 and 3)
• STH TC 703: Spiritual Companioning Group 1
  These small groups are designed to provide mutual support in spiritual journeying and questing, the exploration and sharing of spiritual life and practice, and of maintaining spiritual balance and integration as an intrinsic dimension of one's scholarship and vocation.
• STH TC 704: Spiritual Companioning Group 2
  These small groups are designed to provide mutual support in spiritual journeying and questing, the exploration and sharing of spiritual life and practice, and of maintaining spiritual balance and integration as an intrinsic dimension of one's scholarship and vocation.