Course Catalogue 2025-2026

The course will introduce students to the theological interpretation of John's Gospel and explore its significance for Christian theology. Students will read a range of theologically engaged exegetes of John from across the centuries, seeking to understand their contributions both contextually and as part of a continuing dialogue about the interpretation of the Gospel. Particular attention will be paid to John's Christology, soteriology, ecclesiology, and perspectives on Judaism. Students will also be introduced to methodological discussions about the nature of both theological interpretation and reception history as approaches to interpreting Scripture. The course also aims to equip students to assess the relevance of historic interpretations of John for understanding the Fourth Gospel and its theological significance today.

Students who have applied for and been selected as student worship coordinators on the Emmanuel College Spiritual Life Team may register for this course as an associated reflexive practicum in planning and leading the communal spiritual practices, prayer, meditation, and worship life of the College. They will work with the professor of the course to engage in collaborative oversight – planning, leading and evaluating weekly spiritual, ritual and liturgical practices, and other occasional events and services, using ecumenical, intercultural and interfaith resources. Students will learn ways to support, resource and animate the Emmanuel College community of faculty, staff, students, and guests in the spiritual practices of the College. Students will take primary leadership responsibility for several occasions each academic year, including the work of facilitating collaborating planning, communications, ritual and liturgical creation and design, textual and/or projection production, celebration of festivals and sacraments, preparation of ritual and liturgical spaces, leadership, evaluation, and feedback.

Students who have applied for and been selected as student worship coordinators on the Emmanuel College Spiritual Life Team may register for this course as an associated reflexive practicum in planning and leading the communal spiritual practices, prayer, meditation, and worship life of the College. They will work with the professor of the course to engage in collaborative oversight – planning, leading and evaluating weekly spiritual, ritual and liturgical practices, and other occasional events and services, using ecumenical, intercultural and interfaith resources. Students will learn ways to support, resource and animate the Emmanuel College community of faculty, staff, students, and guests in the spiritual practices of the College. Students will take primary leadership responsibility for several occasions each academic year, including the work of facilitating collaborating planning, communications, ritual and liturgical creation and design, textual and/or projection production, celebration of festivals and sacraments, preparation of ritual and liturgical spaces, leadership, evaluation, and feedback.

After the Bible, the Book of Common Prayer (BCP), in its various revisions, is the most important foundational text of Anglican Christianity; Often praised for its literary beauty and influence, it has nevertheless become unfamiliar or even offensive to Anglicans who worship mainly with new liturgies produced in recent decades; This course will explore the sources and historical development of the Prayer Book tradition from the sixteenth to the twentieth century, the BCP's importance in the history of doctrinal controversy and Anglican identity, and how the BCP's liturgies have been variously received and interpreted over time, including critiques by modern liturgical scholarship; Major themes: the Bible and worship; liturgical language; the sacraments; sin and repentance; individual and community; ecclesiology and ecumenism; the BDP and churchmanship

The task of integrating one’s theological education and ministry practice does not always run smoothly. In this course we partner with those who have already made this transition to help shepherd the way through a series of community-leader led workshops. It’s impossible to learn everything you need to know for the immensity of a ministry vocation in a short three-year program. That’s why lists abound detailing, “things they didn’t teach me in seminary.” This course won’t close the loop on that learning. You’ll still have your (ever expanding) list! This course will, however, help you acquire the integrative skills to facilitate your lifelong learning on-the-job. Students create a learning plan for the course in relation to a number of prompts: (1) For what kind(s) of ministry have I been preparing over the past few years? (2) What spiritual practice(s) do I need to engage so that my ministry contributes to my faith’s flourishing rather than its withering? (3) What do I still need – that this course can provide – in order to pursue ministry in a healthy and vital way? (4) How will I bring the resources of my theological education to bear on the new and challenging situations I will face in my ministry?

This course is intended to prepare candidates for ordination to preside at the liturgical celebrations of the Roman Rite.

This course is intended to prepare candidates for ordination to preside at the liturgical celebrations of the Roman Rite.

This course is intended to prepare candidates for ordination to preside at the liturgical celebrations of the Roman Rite.

Close textual study of the Scriptural sources and doctrinal development of the Roman Catholic tradition of reflection on the identity of the God who is revealed in Jesus Christ Students develop a systematic understanding that addresses contemporary questions raised about traditional doctrine, leading to a personal and critical appropriation of traditional faith affirmations in light of preparation for pastoral ministry and theological leadership in the Church.

This course introduces the participant to the theological, spiritual and pastoral principles that inform and impact parish ministry. Models of an integrated life of holiness from Scripture and Tradition as well as practical strategies for effective pastoral and personal integration will be presented and reflected upon.

We will read the books of Ruth and Esther together with a cloud of witnesses from the past and present who found them not only life giving but also, especially in the case of Esther, deeply troubling. We will examine techniques and strategies used for reading these and other Old Testament narratives through history. We will explore the contexts of Ruth and Esther within both the ancient world and Scripture. We will examine their contents making use of a variety of traditional and innovative interpretive techniques and strategies (including reading within the context of the Ancient Near East, theological exegesis, disaster and trauma studies, and narrative criticism). We will consider how these books speak to us as individuals and as the church in the twenty-first century.

The prophet Jeremiah ministered to disobedient Israel, urging them to return to God, and warning of judgment. The people refused his message and experienced the dislocation and disruption of exile. The book is raw and at times graphic and shocking, and reflects the pain, pathos, and anguish of the prophet, the people, and even God. Yet amidst the darkness of Jeremiah’s ministry, the faithfulness of God sustained the prophet and held out to the people the promise of hope. Working closely with the text in its historical, literary, and canonical contexts, and utilizing the insights of trauma studies and readings from the church around the globe and across time, this course attends to the book’s message for Jeremiah’s contemporaries and its exilic compilers, and finds its resonance in our own uncertain times. For any who wrestle with God or seek to find him in difficult times, for any who minister to God’s people in the midst of such challenges, and for any who desire a fuller understanding of God’s faithful work amidst his people, this course will enliven and challenge.