Foundations of Mission and Ministry

This course introduces students to the spiritual, theological, professional and ethical foundations of Christian mission and ministry. Through a careful consideration of the sources of ministry including Scripture, the teaching of the magisterium, and religious congregational documents, the course invites students to forge and live out a theology of ministry enabling lifelong service in the current ecumenical, interreligious and postmodern context. Key aspects of ministry such as calling, discernment, formation, basic skills/competencies and ethical principles will be addressed. The relationship of ministry to other areas of theology, such as Christology, pneumatology, grace, mission, ecclesiology, and the sacraments, will also be considered.