Course Listings by Starting Date: Summer of 2013

A 400-hour supervised program to deepen and/or extend the personal and ministerial growth of IFM /MAMS participants. Several options available to students in consultation with Directors of IFM and MAMS programs. Integration paper, or Competency Interview. Pass/Fail course. For Regis IFM/MAMS students only. Prerequisites: RGP3687H and RGP3688H.

Explores the theory and practice of various types of prayer through the artistic mediums of pencil, pastel and ink drawing, including critical reflection on the theology and spirituality of these art forms and on their relevance to spiritual direction and emotional and spiritual healing. Lecture, discussion, short reflection papers and drawing assignments. Pass/Fail grade.

MTS Synthesis Paper

This seminar course will study the role that religion plays in psychological well-being, coping and adjustment. The approach will be both developmental and clinical. Religion's relationship to mental disorder, biologically, psychologically and socially, will be discussed. Religion's contribution to general adjustment, and its role in psychological intervention will be explored. Weekly written contributions to the seminar and final essay.

This course will examine a number of core issues which impact pastoral counsellors, marriage and family therapists, and chaplains who are currently working in a variety of private and institutional contexts. A case studies approach will be used in dialogue with the most current ethical codes of conduct outlined by several major certifying and regulating bodies in the Canada and the United States, such as the Canadian Association for Spiritual Care (CASC, formerly CAPPE), the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT/OAMFT), and the American Association of Pastoral Counselors (AAPC). The main purpose of the course will be to foster a deepening sense of the essential nature of ethical reflection and accountability to clients, and the counselling profession in general. Evaluation: class participation, weekly assignments/quizzes, major paper. This course has been pre-approved by the Canadian Association for Spiritual Care (CASC) as fulfilling the ethics requirement for their certification programs in Supervised Pastoral Education Certification (CPE & PCE).

This course explores the practical and theological intersections of suffering and hope. Drawing from the Scriptures, social sciences, constructive and pastoral theology and practice, we will consider ways to understand, recognize and practice hope in the context of the devastations and suffering in life. Far from dismissing suffering  in the face of hope, this course explores the hidden intersections and discontinuities between suffering and hope and seeks out a deeper ground for hope that does not flee or obscure the trauma, grief and injustice in life, but faces it head on in theology and practice. Lectures, readings, seminars. Reflection paper, book review presentation, case study, class participation, final paper. 

(For students taking field education of 500 hours.) A three-month ministry placement in a setting chosen by the candidate in consultation with the Director of Theological Field Education. Completion will be at one or more of the following levels. If a person begins at Level 1, he or she must progress to Level 2. The levels are as follows: 1) Observer Ministry Placement: Two to three weeks observing and dialoguing with a practitioner in a chosen field of ministry; 2) Intern Ministry Placement: Engagement in a supervised ministry placement; and, 3) Level 3: Resident Ministry Placement: In collaboration with the Director of Theological Field Education, a candidate will develop and execute a project that will enhance a chosen site

This course will investigate the sacramental celebrations, the liturgy of the hours and the liturgical year of the Roman Rite from their historical, theological, spiritual and pastoral dimension. Requirements: class attendance, short papers and final exam.

Families come to Canada from every society of the world, bringing their diverse relationships, roles, structures and understandings. Clergy, teachers and parish workers need an awareness of what those might be in order to serve individuals and families from diverse cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds. Whether in pastoral work, in teaching family life education or in other forms of service, awareness of possibilities and questions will be useful. Two presentations and final exam.

Mystery of the Triune God with its Biblical sources and Patristic development, and an examination of the development of the understanding of the Immanent Trinity, with attention paid to particular issues, e.g. Filioque, notion of 'Person'. Also stressed is the development of a Trinitarian spirituality with some attention to the mystics. Lectures, mid-term test, end of term test.

On-site study of Israel and the Sinai, studying the people, the story and the land of Israel and the Sinai as it can be known by history, archeology, anthropology, liturgy, and social study. The course will be offered in spring 2013.  Please note that for reason of personal security the group will not visit Sinai in 2013.  We will spend five days in Jordan including desert experience.  Tentative dates for the trip, April 20 to May 4.  Separate payment is required, amount to be established.

The course offers an interdisciplinary exploration of the role of emotion in Paul's communication with early Christian communities.  We will study emotional appeals as a rhetorical strategy of the letters as well as the effects of such emotions in human beings (including their cultural construction, biological and psychological effects, role in cognition). The overarching question of the course is how to cultivate emotional intelligence in our readings of Paul's letters.  Lectures, class discussions of assigned readings, graded presentations and writing assignments.

This course explores the logical structure of moral awareness, moral thought and moral communication, and the role of Ethics as a reflective theological discipline in illuminating it. Theses with which the class with le expected to engage include the relation of practical to theoretical reason, the self as agent, divine command and creation, moral knowledge, time and salvation history, moral law, deliberation and vocation, the operation of the Holy Spirit in the moral life, the foundational place of the virtues of faith, love and hope.

This course will examine the presuppositions and first-principles that enable one to speak coherently about leadership. It will introduce students to definitions of leadership, and traits and characteristics of leaders. It will also develop a template of the Catholic understanding of leadership.

Sketches 4 major cultural challenges facing the pre-Vatican Church, 1900-1960.Explores various individual attempts to find creative solutions to these problems, as well as the main official responses from the Magisterium. Lecture-Seminars and readings. Weekly email questions, three 2-page papers and final exam [take-home].

This course will explore the theory and practice of working with couples in pastoral counselling and marriage and family therapy, and will focus on family systems theory, Imago therapy and emotionally focused couple therapy. Attention will be given to premarital counselling, developmental issues and relationship breakdown, as well as interventions and strategies related to conflict and intimacy. Spiritual themes will be examined that enhance and deepen work with couples.

This course provides the perspectives within which the participants can identify 5 variables in their work, craft or profession that become the basis for developing a spirituality that could be deepened by the Christian tradition . Online discussions. Assignments. Written final examination.

A scientific approach to the evangelization of adolescents in the contemporary context enables participants to understand their pastoral role and to develop and execute an effective ministry with youth.

Scripted improv and writing styles, dialogue, storyline, language, editing and mime script as elements of writing plays and stories for faith communities and seekers. A writing course to develop sacred stories for one person or many to present as homily or drama and to contribute to God’s ongoing living Gospel. A good companion course to TRP2871HF We The Storytellers.

This course will engage the questions of interreligious dialogue and comparative theology on the theology on the theological issues of redemption and salvation by comparing the work of some key Christian thinkers with themes in Buddhism.  We will also engage comparative questions such as desire, imitation, prayer, mediation and responses to suffering and violence.  BD Evaluation; papers, book review, presentation, final synthesis paper and participation.  AD Evaluation: paper, presentations or research, participation, final research paper.

This course will explore the foundations of ministry in the New Testament, the manifold expressions of ministry in the history of the Church, and a variety of contemporary issues related to the theology and practice of ministry from a Roman Catholic perspective. Also important will be the relationship of ministry to other aspects of theology, such as Christology, pneumatology, grace, mission, ecclesiology, and sacraments.

This course is intended to open multiple avenues of spiritual growth and formation through a dedicated study of the first half of the gospel of Mark. Student participants will participate in 14 two and a half hour studies over the course of 7 days. These studies will consist of an individual study component, a small group discussion and a large group discussion with application. Topics covered include: the authority of Jesus, fear versus faith, the secret of the kingdom of God, conflict, questions of what true unbelief is, and the identity of Jesus. Teaching methods: Pre-course Reading & Writing assignment; Class participation in Inductive scripture study; Communal living arrangement (Ontario Pioneer Camp at a cost of approximately $500); Journalling; Post-course reflection and summation in final paper. Means of evaluation: Pre course reading assignments with paper; course participation and reflective journaling and final summative paper.

This intensive course will examine the puzzling phenomenon of death from a variety of perspectives, including theological, biological, philosophical, and political. We will explore the thesis that while all people die there is no single thing called “death,” but that death’s meaning is always governed by some larger narrative of divine and/or human realities. Particular attention will be paid to Christianity’s situating of death in an apocalyptic context, the death and resurrection of Jesus as the undoing of death, and the particular ways in which death is denied or eclipsed in modern liberal capitalism. We will also draw on literary sources, from the ancient Greeks to contemporary novels, to lend depth and texture to our study of “the last enemy.”  Lectures, seminar discussion, small groups. Class participation, précis, final paper.

From the subapostolic age to the "Triumph of Orthodoxy" in the East and the Carolingian revival and Treaty of Verdun in the West. Geographical expansion of the church; the relation of Christian faith to cultural settings and other religions; the development of doctrinal and ethical positions; forms of Christian life and worship; the rise of Islam. Attendance at lectures, participation in discussions, one book review, final exam (part multiple choice and part synoptic essay) In lieu of a final exam, an academic paper on a topic agreed to by the instructor may be submitted within the month following the course's end.

This course is designed for new students, and acts as an introduction to a number of central pastoral responsibilities: teaching the faith to new Christians, grasping the overall shape and purpose of Christian theology, assessing and meeting the demands of local culture and context, engaging the character of conversion and formation, and finally, grasping an overall shape to the history of Christian witness. The course pursues the historical examination of key catechetical texts from the New Testament to the contemporary period, analyzes their content and purpose, locates them historically, and seeks to engage students' own comprehensive vision of the Gospel, its communication, and pastoral practice. Lectures and weekly tutorials on the primary-source reading. Extensive reading, discussion, and mastering of content. Weekly content quizzes; 3 papers (6-10 pages each); final exam.

Intro to some main ideas that are theologically and ethically relevant in Kierkegaard's thought: person, indirect communication, irony, edification, confession, sermon, scripture. Christ as model and as redeemer. Attention to biblical figures shaping Kierkegaard's understanding of faith. Selected readings from Either/Or, Purity of Heart, Gospel of Suffering, Christian Discourses, and Works of Love. Class presentations and contribution to discussions 10%; Short critique (400-600 words) on reading designated by instructor 15%; Term paper (discussed with outline in advance) 50%; Class test (one hour) 25%.

Study of the principal theologians, themes and writings of modern Orthodox theology,from the end of the Byzantine Empire to the present,with a focus on the Orthodox theological and spiritual revival in the 19^th and 20^th centuries, especially the Russian religious renaissance and neopatristic theology. Emphasis on readings and discussion of major primary texts. Recommended preparation TRT2401H.

This course uses the book of Amos as a means of introducing the covenantal values that lay beneath Israel's approach to social justice. Through a site visit and classroom activities, students will reflect on the Church's call to social justice and the way in which this can be realised in the lives of individuals and congregations. Additional emphasis will be placed on the content and shape of the book of Amos and the task of interpreting it as Scripture of the Church. Lecture. Written assignments, site visit, and final paper. Intro to OT (KNB1006) or equivalent, plus any 2000 level Bible course.

Students should have read the following books (available at Crux bookstore at Wycliffe College) prior to the start of the course:

Paton, Alan. Cry, the Beloved Country. New York, NY: Scribner, 2003

Paul, Greg. God in the Alley:  Being and Seeing Jesus in a Broken World. Colorado Springs, CO: WaterBrook, 2004

Classes held at Wycliffe College

This course explores the way theological ideas become operationalized in a social movement, using El Salvador as a case study.  Students will visit El Salvador under the guidance of Chance Alas, who used the tenets of liberation theology to establish the first Christian base communities in El Salvador and continues to work on El Salvadoran religious peacebuilding.  Subjects covered include the implication of theology in the colonization of Latin America, the emergence of liberation theology and Christian base communities , and current activities in peacebuilding involving theology, economics, ecology, and Mayan and settler spirituality.  Students must attend a day of preparation, seven days of travel in El Salvador, and a day of post-travel debriefing.

It is often the case that people in the church do not know what to do with difficult biblical tests.  This applies especially to the letters of Paul.  This course will give students an opportunity to clarify their own hermeneutical approach to biblical texts by looking at three passages from Paul’s letters that are often seen as particularly controversial, difficult or troublesome. It will also give them an opportunity to explore how contemporary biblical scholarship can be assistance in reading texts like these.

Through the experience of reading and reflecting on the entire text of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament as well as key select passages, participants will have an opportunity to learn more about the sources, history, and development of the canonical books in critical relation to their place in ancient Near Eastern culture and history. Attention will be given to issues such as call, covenant, law, ritual, kingship, prophetic movements, reform movements, exile/deportation and return, wisdom and apocalyptic as shaping forces in biblical identity. Lectures and exegetical sessions will seek to assist participants with methodologies that will build their confidence and competence in engaging the texts in the context of the pastoral life of the church and in relation to contemporary culture and discourse.

At the core of every community developer is a commitment to transformational teaching which unleashes with in people the competencies to change their local community. Individual and group learning is possible when community members are treated with respect, fell sage to explore new ideas and can readily apply new learning to their present context. Base on both the theory and practice of adult learning and the biblical principle of discipleship, participants will step closer to peace and well-being.
This course is also valuable for lay and ordained leaders in the church who may be called to lead adult Christian education courses, focus groups or other organizational meetings.

An intensive five day course that explores a key treatise or text of Thomas Aquinas. Students attend the sessions of the Aquinas Studium, which gathers Aquinas experts for a week of reading, critical exegesis and conversation, and a daily seminar with the course instructor. Attendance at all sessions is required, and no exceptions are possible. Permission of the instructor required for registration.

This course will focus on theological reflection and social and cultural analysis of the student’s respective contexts of ministry and research.  It introduces and explores theological reflection, and the foundational principles of theological context.

From the subapostolic age to the "Triumph of Orthodoxy" in the East and the Carolingian revival and Treaty of Verdun in the West. Geographical expansion of the church; the relation of Christian faith to cultural settings and other religions; the development of doctrinal and ethical positions; forms of Christian life and worship; the rise of Islam. Lectures, 2 seminars. One synthetic paper, one essay.

This course will engage the O’Donovan’s corpus as a portal to perennial and contemporary questions in theology of culture and moral theology.  We will also engage critical readings of O’Donovan’s work.  Students will be encouraged to pursue research projects that tackle a specific theme in O’Donovan’s corpus, putting him in conversation with other contemporary thinkers from a range of traditions.

This course surveys various points at which a number of New Testament authors encountered the Roman Empire – directly or indirectly.  It aims to acquaint students with the political world of the New Testament and to aid students in the development of a biblical hermeneutic conscious of its implications.  The class will involve a combination of lecture, full class discussion, and small group discussion.  Students will be assessed by a book review assignment, two summary papers, a final research paper, and classroom participation.

From the subapostolic age to the "Triumph of Orthodoxy" in the East and the Carolingian revival and Treaty of Verdun in the West. Geographical expansion of the church; the relation of Christian faith to cultural settings and other religions; the development of doctrinal and ethical positions; forms of Christian life and worship; the rise of Islam. Class participation, course portfolio, one short essay, and two other academic exercises (choice of reading notes, short papers, weekly quizzes, final exam, etc.).

This course will explore key themes in recent discussions about the relationship between theology and the arts. Though some historical perspective on the place of the arts in the Christian church will be noted, the focus of our attention will be on the wide range of current conversations on arts and theology. Themes such as spirituality and art, liturgy and art, God and beauty, the place of imagination, and art as a resource for engaging issues of justice will be among the topics we consider. Though there will be a lecture component in the course, the classes will take the form of a seminar where assigned readings will serve as the context for our discussions.

Through lecture, discussion, prayer and eco-praxis, course participants will develop a solid academic foundation in eco-theology, skills to analyze contemporary social and ethical issues in ecology, and an integration of theology, spirituality and practical applications including organic gardening to support the formation of Christian identity and mission in the world today. July 3 (7 p.m.) to July 10 (1 p.m.) with residential component.

Elements of theological reflection, with emphasis on theological method. Revelation, faith, scripture, liturgy, tradition, dogma, magisterium, the theologian, infallibility, and historicity. Lectures, discussions, short papers, final exam.

This course will trace the multi-faceted theme of justice as it unfolds throughout the biblical story. The way in which idolatry, economic justice, racial justice, justice for the land, food justice, justice for the stranger, justice for women, and peace and violence are interrelated will provide a biblical basis for reflecting on the issue of justice in our world today. Two short papers, one major research paper.

This course will examine human sexuality from a range of theological and historical perspectives: scriptural, doctrinal, sociological, and ethical. Questions of sexual differentiation, desire, procreation, family, and marriage and celibacy will be discussed. The goal of the course is to provide the student with a broad base from which to discern a consistent pattern of Christian understanding regarding sexuality, within both historical and contemporary diversities. The course will engage broad reading, lecture, and discussion, with a final paper aimed at outlining and justifying a teaching syllabus for teenagers within a church setting (15 pages). Advanced Degree students will have an expanded reading list and will be writing a longer research paper on a chosen set topic relating to Christian formation with regard to sexuality within pluralistic cultures.

Urban congregations exist within a community where all land uses are coordinated through official plans to ensure the future provision for all land uses, infrastructure and services for the community. Urban parish leadership must know how to engage both these documents and the political processes that shape the urban form and are the context for all urban ministry. This course will examine and explain the political, physical and social context of an urban parish church ministry and the processes and polity of their urban community. Extensive use will be made of examples, and the class will have the opportunity to meet and interview experienced professionals and politicians in the local political and planning scene. The course will include at least one major case study, involving field work, of an existing urban congregation with a report to be prepared outlining opportunities and challenges for the congregation. The course will use lectures, case studies, interviews, site visits and seminars. Participants will be evaluated through their class participation, a documented case study and a final examination. 

This course will describe and analyze the settings, ideas, and personalities that shaped first generation Anabaptism (1525 – 1561) within the context of late medieval and sixteenth century church and society. This includes comparisons and contrasts with Spiritualism, another stream of the Radical Reformation. The secondary thrust of this course is to study the transition of Anabaptism from a many sided revolutionary movement shaped by martyrdom into three sectarian denominations (Hutterites, Swiss Brethren, Mennonites and their sub-sets) seeking a settled existence (1561 – 1660).   There is an increasing diversity of views concerning the theological and geographical range of Anabaptism. This course focuses largely on leaders and teachings that became the foundation of Anabaptism’s three descendent denominations, Hutterites, Amish, and Mennonites; it confines itself to developments in Dutch and German speaking territories.