Courses

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

• STH TH 821: History and Doctrine of United Methodism
  An exploration of Methodist origins, the Wesleys, the rise of Methodism in England, and the distinctive doctrines of Wesleyan theology. There is a particular focus on the development of the various United Methodist traditions in America and their impact on society. The course is designed to meet one of the requirements for membership in a UMC Annual Conference. (Free Elective Only)
• STH TH 825: The Medieval Church
  Survey of social, personal, institutional, and theological aspects of reform and renewal in the late medieval and early modern periods, including Nominalism, Conciliarism, the papacy, Luther, the German and Swiss Reformations, Anabaptism and radical reformers, Calvin, the French Reformation, the English Reformation, Catholic Reform, and the Council of Trent. (Requires TF 701/702 or equivalent) (Cluster 1)
• STH TH 826: The Reformations
  Survey of social, personal, institutional, and theological aspects of reform and renewal in the late medieval and early modern periods, including Nominalism, Conciliarism, the papacy, Luther, the German and Swiss Reformations, Anabaptism and radical reformers, Calvin, the French Reformation, the English Reformation, Catholic Reform, Ignatius and Theresa, and the Council of Trent. (Requires TF 701/702 or equivalent) (Cluster 1)
• STH TH 827: American Church History
  The development of American Christianity as a social, intellectual, institutional, and cultural movement. The course includes visits to churches in Boston. COUNTS AS A MDIV CHURCH HISTORY II CORE REQUIREMENT. (Requires TF 701/702 or equivalent) (Cluster 1)
• STH TH 832: Modern Church History
  This Church History II period survey (ca. 1600-1865) examines Christianity in light of social, economic, and political trends in the geographic regions of Europe, North America, and Latin America. COUNTS AS A MDIV CHURCH HISTORY II CORE REQUIREMENT. (Cluster 1)
• STH TH 847: Global Christianity
  The course is an overview of the changing status of global Christianity in the 20th and 21st centuries. It covers the whole world with lectures comparing the global context of 1910 and 2010, including each of the major Christian traditions. Each tradition (Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, Orthodoxy, etc.) will be covered in-class by a scholar self-identifying with that tradition. The course takes a regional approach to analyze specific and local changes in Christianity and their connection to the global movement. This course additionally focuses on the history of Christian mission in relation to global Christianity and encourages students to self-theologize concerning their role and place within the world Christian movement. (Clusters 1 and 2)
• STH TH 848: World Christianity
  Historical development of world Christianity. Emphasis on social, cultural, spiritual, and political issues in African, Asian and Latin American Christianity in the nineteenth through twenty-first centuries. (Requires TF 701/702 or equivalent) (Clusters 1 and 2)
• STH TH 853: Christianity in Colonial Latin America
  Christianity in Colonial Latin America is a graduate-level survey course that introduces students to the historical trajectory of Christianity in Latin America from the arrival of Christopher Columbus (1492) to the period of the Latin American wars of independence (1791-1821). Attention is given to the encounter with pre-Colombian religions as well as the transactional adaptation of core Christian theological, institutional, and ascetical traditions. Accordingly, special consideration will be given to theological discourses of the other, the adaptation of ecclesiastical institutions such as the episcopacy, and missionary practices. Reading selections include primary source material as well as secondary scholarly literature. Students will have the opportunity to acquire both a general appreciation for the historical trajectory of Christianity during the colonial period as well as an in depth understanding of selected topics intended for independent research. (Cluster 1)
• STH TH 859: The Social Gospel in American Religion
  This course examines the impact of the social gospel movement on American religious history. Focused primarily upon historical and theological developments in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the social gospel's emphasis on what contemporaries called "social salvation" had a major impact upon wider developments in Protestantism, Catholicism, and Judaism. The course will explore important leaders and movements associated with the social gospel, as well as examine how this tradition influenced a range of religious-based social movements that extend into the 21st century. Please note that this course cannot be used to satisfy the Church History II requirement for School of Theology masters-level students. (Cluster 1)
• STH TH 869: Religious History of Boston
  The Greater Boston area contains one of the richest historical legacies in the United States. This course examines distinctive aspects of that historical legacy, by focusing upon the religious history of Boston. The course will include selected visits to specific Boston area historical sites. (Clusters 1 and 2)
• STH TH 902: Christianity Beyond Early Modern Europe
  The course is dedicated to an in depth study of the reach of Christianity in the early modern period (c. 1450-c.1650). Our narrative follows the path of early modern Catholicism from fifteenth-century Europe, through the ascent of the Portuguese and Spanish seaborne empires, and examines the role of the missionary religious orders in the processes of Christianization and inculturation.
• STH TH 915: Radical Christian Spiritualities (DMin)
  The present course is an overview of radical forms of Christian spirituality. It takes a historical approach to the study of eight expressions of radical Christian spirituality and relates them to the notion of transformative leadership. The aim of the course is to equip students with methodological tools for the historical examination and appropriation of spiritual practices. Its narrative parallels the diachronic development of global Christianity from the sixteenth to the closing decades of the twenty-first century. It is prefaced with an introduction to the historical-critical study of spiritual practices. It will examine the meaning of radicalism as a highly contextualized historical construct, a modality of practicing faith, and a contemporary sociological category. The course then examines eight expressions of Christian radicalism, namely: Swiss Anabaptism, Diggers, Quakers, Christian Anarchism, the Catholic Worker Movement, African-American Liberation, Latin-American and 2/3 Worlds Liberation, and the Sanctuary and New Sanctuary Movement. Special attention will be given to spiritual practices articulated as an expression of Christian non-violence, anti-militarism, and anti-imperialism. Movements and figures considered include Thomas M?ntzer (1490- 1525), Andreas Rudolf Bodenstein von Karlstadt (c. 1480-1541), Gerrard Winstanley (1609- 1676), Margaret Fell (1614-1702), Nat Turner (1800-1831), Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), Luisa Capetillo (1879-1922), Dorothy Day (1897-1980), Jacques Ellul (1912-1994), James H. Cone (1938-), and Jon Sobrino (1938-). While emphasis will be placed on the synchronic interpretation of practices, due attention will also be given to their development over time.?
• STH TH 920: History of American Theological Liberalism
  American Theological Liberalism is a doctoral-level seminar that provides an overview into the historical and theological development of liberal theology in the United States. Through reading a variety of primary and secondary sources, the course is designed to provide students an historical and theological overview into the development of liberalism and assess the ongoing significance of theological liberalism in church and society today.
• STH TH 924: Gender and the Reformations
  Examination of the participation of women in the reformations of the sixteenth century and the effect of theological and ecclesiastical changes on women and gender roles in early modern society. Topics include marriage, childbirth, household management, education, authorship, exercise of power, and cloistered life amid the different confessional movements of the early modern period.
• STH TH 925: The Bible in the Reformation
  Examination of the role of the Bible in the reformations of the sixteenth century, including the development and divergence of Reformation hermeneutics in late medieval and Renaissance context. Special attention will be given to the vernacular translation and popular presentation of the Bible in the sixteenth century press and pulpit.
• STH TH 927: Early Modern Piety
  The literature and practice of Christian devotion between the Reformation and Pietism, in national and confessional contexts within Early Modern society. Catechisms, hymnals and prayerbooks in production, distribution, and use. Special attention to the relation between theology and forms of devotion, public and domestic piety, and to the devotional roles of women and children.
• STH TI 801: In-Service Contextual Ed 1
  Supervised practice of ministry in a congregational setting focused on the integration of theology and practice. MDIV CORE REQUIREMENT. Background check is required. FOR STUDENTS IN THE INSERVICE M.DIV. PROGRAM ONLY.
• STH TI 802: In-Service Contextual Ed 2
  Graduate prerequisite: STH TI 801. Continues and presupposes STH TI 801 in the spring semester. M.DIV CORE REQUIREMENT. Background check is required. FOR STUDENTS IN THE INSERVICE M.DIV PROGRAM ONLY.
• STH TI 811: Inservice Degree Seminar: Ministry in the 21st Century Context: Challenges and Possibilities
  The rapidly changing circumstances of life in contemporary society provides challenges for pastoral ministry. This seminar will engage some of the latest research and reflection on effective strategies for ministry in the 21st century and explore skills in reading one's contexts. Online course (Cluster 3)
• STH TI 812: Inservice Seminar: Ministries of Education and Formation
  Participants in this seminar will explore a variety of pedagogical strategies for forming youth, children, and adults as disciples in their faith tradition. Online course (Cluster 3)

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