Courses Offered in 2013-14

Please note that the syllabi attached to the courses below are preliminary and subject to change. If you have questions, feel free to contact the instructor.

Fall 2013

BTS-5080 Topics—Violence, the Mission of God, and the Meaning of Scripture [B]: (3.0 credit hours) The Bible has come under fire from various directions for its depiction of divine violence and divinely sanctioned violence. Yet Christians claim that God seeks the reconciliation, restoration, and healing of all relationships and all creation. By investigating a variety of troubling biblical texts, the course explores what it might mean to call the Bible “Scripture.” Among the texts to be considered are those that depict divine violence, genocide, divine judgment, imprecation, anti-idolatry polemic, and the vilification of enemies and opponents.

BTS-5150 Who is Jesus?: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) This course will explore the question of “Who is Jesus?” by examining various historical and theological perspectives on Jesus throughout history and in contemporary historical Jesus scholarship. Attention will be given to the use of Gospel sources and to the context in which Jesus lived. Students will be encouraged to articulate their own understanding of who Jesus was and is and to reflect on the significance of the various portraits of Jesus for the church. 

BTS-5246M Biblical Languages for Exegesis: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) This course introduces students to biblical Hebrew and Greek. It is designed for non-specialists looking for Hebrew and Greek language tools that facilitate study of the biblical text. The goal is to illuminate the characteristics and distinctive features of each language in order to help students evaluate commentaries, engage in advanced linguistic and semantic analysis, and use Bible computer programs and printed research aids.

BTS-5300M Christian Spirituality: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) This course examines various traditions, disciplines, and practices of Christian spirituality in the context of their historical development and contemporary expression. Students will be challenged to expand the scope of their understanding and practice of spirituality as they engage and process the course material from within the context of their own faith tradition.

BTS-5500 Topics – Theology of the Reformations: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) The multiple reformations of the sixteenth century (Lutheran, Swiss, English, Radical, Calvinist, Catholic and so on) produced a variety of theologies, the study of which will be the central concern of this course. While attention will be given to several dimensions of the reformations – imagination, art, hymnody, politics, women – the course will consist mainly in reading and thinking about theology produced by leading reformers of the age. The course will also consider ‘the unintended consequences of the Reformation.’

BTS-5720 Philosophical Theology – The Secular: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) Christian theologians have long turned to philosophy in order to develop key theological themes. But why and how have they done so? This course explores such a question by examining some important debates in contemporary philosophical theology. Recent courses have explored the following themes: knowledge and truth; the concept of the secular; and the interrelated questions of life, death, and happiness.

BTS-5900 Research and Methodology (3.0 credit hours) This course equips students with fundamental skills in theological reflection, research and writing. It examines theological methods with a particular emphasis on praxis approaches and assists students in the rudimentary steps of research and writing.

BTS-5910M Supervised Ministry Experience: (6.0 credit hours) This course provides an opportunity for a supervised internship experience in a congregation or other ministry type setting. The supervisor and setting will be selected in consultation with the student.  The SME can be done in either an intensive 3-4 month block or extended from 7-8 months to a year.

BTS-5920M Supervised Ministry Experience: (9.0 credit hours) This course provides an opportunity for a supervised internship experience in a congregation or other ministry type setting. The supervisor and setting will be selected in consultation with the student.  The SME can be done in either an intensive 3-4 month block or extended from 7-8 months to a year.

BTS-5930M Ministry Practicum Seminar: (3.0 credit hours) This seminar is taken concurrently with the course Supervised Ministry Experience and gives students the opportunity to critically reflect on their experience in ministry with particular attention to issues related to ministry and the life of the church.

Winter 2014

BTS-5010 The New Testament—A Theological Introduction: (3.0 credit hours) This course provides a general introduction to the New Testament focussing on topics such as the historical and literary context, basic theological themes, methods of interpretation, and relevance for today.

BTS-5170M Wisdom Literature: (3.0 credit hours) In an age characterized by the absence of moral consensus, Hebrew wisdom literature can make a significant contribution to Christian faith, inviting a perspective on faith and a vision of authentic human life. In this course Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon will be considered.

BTS 5276 Paul and His Letters: (3.0 credit hours) This course investigates the letters of Paul to discover how his thought guided the communities formed by his mission to the Gentiles. Attention will be given to Paul’s sense of call, his central convictions, method of argument, opponents, approach to cultural diversity, and view of the Jewish law.  

BTS-5310 Topics—The New Christendom: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) Some observers argue that Christianity today has largely lost its prominence in society and is merely one voice among many competing voices. Thus the church is learning to live on the margins as a pilgrim community that must now depend on the persuasiveness of its witness to make itself heard. Other voices assert that a New Christendom is on the rise propelled by the dynamic Global Church in the non-Western world. In light of these competing interpretations, this course investigates the challenges of communicating the Christian Gospel, and reflects on the nature and calling of the church as a witnessing and reconciling community.

BTS-5310M Topics—Power, Change, and Conflict: (3.0 credit hours) This course will help students understand the role of power and how to mediate the use of power in equitable ways. It will provide an inside look at organizational change, particularly within faith-based organizations with a view to understanding how power intersects with these changing processes, recognizing that conflict often erupts at these power intersections. The course will also look at how students can address and transform interpersonal and group conflict as peacemakers.

BTS-5380M Missions and Evangelism: (3.0 credit hours) This course examines the historical and theological roots as well as biblical understandings and practices of mission and evangelism. Students will explore the challenges of communicating the Good News of the Christian faith and address issues such as the nature of the church and importance of belonging to a witnessing and reconciling community.

BTS-5730 Theological Ethics: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) This course will examine the development of Christian ethical reflection within a biblical, theological, liturgical, and historical framework.  Such an approach will provide students the possibility of entering into conversation with various Christian ethical traditions.  While this is not primarily a survey course in methods and theories, considerations of what it might mean to shape Christian ethics theologically will expose students to a variety of approaches and specific issues.

BTS-5820 Contemporary Theological Themes – Church and World: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) This course seeks to address various questions and issues of our time such as the following: the nature of creed and confession, the atonement, the Holy Spirit and the Christian life, the nature of the church and its sacraments, the nature of conversion, the origins of atheism and the secular, grace and free will, etc. The course will usually include a seminar component focussing on leading historical as well as contemporary voices.

Spring 2014

Norman Wirzba of Duke Divinity School will be teaching a course in the area of land, ecology and peacebuilding. Information on the website will be forthcoming.

BTS-5080S Topics—Parables of Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) Jesus lived in a world very different from ours. Without an appreciation of ancient Middle Eastern culture – much of which is similar with traditional Middle Eastern society today – we easily formulate a Jesus according to our western mindset. This will help the student of the New Testament to gain a richer and more thorough appreciation of Jesus’ life and teaching. 

BTS-5310 Topics—Practices, Rituals, and Christian Imagination: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) The most vital and subtle lessons of the Christian faith and life are conveyed in practices, rituals and gestures, which are formative and powerful because they are embodied theology that refuses to separate the mind, heart and body. Since the period of the early church, Christian practices and rituals have been places of the revelation of God and the encounter with Jesus Christ. They function as a prism allowing Christians to view the world through a particular lens, providing a new frame for interpreting life and imagining the world. This course will explore the nature of Christian practices in general and inquire into the Christian use of rituals in particular.  Ancient Christian practices as well as new rituals will be examined and practiced

BTS-5360M Pastoral Care: (3.0 credit hours) This course will attend to theoretical and practical issues related to pastoral care among persons in various stages of life, who may be encountering transitions such as birth, baptism, marriage, career transition, accident, illness, or death. Biblical and theological understandings along with a diversity of resources, methods, and approaches will give insight into effective ways of ministering to others.  

BTS-5530 Continuity and Change in Anabaptism: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) This course explores the dynamic and evolving character of Anabaptist identity over an almost 500-year period. It attends to the various theological impulses that shaped Anabaptism in its early phase as well as in the centuries that followed. The course also focuses on Anabaptism’s various contemporary theological expressions.

BTS-5800 Biblical and Theological Studies Tour—Ancient Stones, Living Stones—The Holy Land in Perspective: (Dual-Track; 3.0 credit hours) This is a three week encounter with the “Holy Land” (Israel/Palestine) and its people. Walk into the world of the ancient biblical texts.  Visit the ancient stones, the important biblical/archaeological sites and pilgrimage locations.  And engage in conversation with the living stones, the many and varied people-groups living in present-day Israel/Palestine (Jews, Christians, and Muslims).  Discover the complexity of conflict and the prospects for peace between Israelis and Palestinians.  In making the connection between the ancient stones and the living stones, tour members will discover the wonder and the complexity of these two worlds that coexist side by side—the world of the ancient texts and stories, and the press of the contemporary political agenda. Tentative dates: April 29-May 21, 2014.