M.Div. Concentration in Justice and Peace Studies

Requirements of the Concentration

The following requirements enable Master of Divinity students to reach the learning goals of the concentration:

• TR536 Ethics of Reconciliation;
• TR537 Justice: Social, Legal, Economic or CH130 The Liberating Word;
• One elective course chosen from the following:

  - CH233 Interpreting the Bible after the Holocaust
  - CH430 History and Experience of Women in the Christian Tradition
  - TR331 Antiracism Dialogue: Theory and Practice
  - TR360 Film as Theological Text: Race, Class, Gender, and Sexualities
  - TR408 Introduction to Feminist Theologies
  - TR415 Gay/Lesbian/Bi-sexual/Transgender Cultural and Theological Voices
  - TR418 Global Re-presentations of Women through Film
  - TR427 Womanist Art, Literature, Media, Music, and Musings
  - TR501 Environmental Ethics
  - TR725 Theological Voices of Minorities in the United States
  - a second global justice course;

• CS253 Ministry Practicum with a placement with an organization engaged in justice- and peace-making work (pre-requisite of CS251 is waived for M.A. students); and
• One of the following:

  - CL541 Empowering Lay Leadership
  - CL571 The Public Witness of Congregations
  - CL891 Conflict and the Congregation: Restoration and Resilience.

Educational Goals of the Concentration

The excellent graduate of the Justice and Peace Studies concentration of the United M.A. degree program:

• will be able to articulate a basic understanding of the way patterns of oppression intersect and interlock in human lives;
• will be able to articulate a basic understanding of issues of war, violence, conflict, and various approaches to peace-making (e.g., pacifism, nonviolent resistance, forgiveness, reconciliation);
• will be familiar with several approaches to social analysis and, when faced with a concrete, critical societal and religious issue, will be able to carry out an effective analysis using at least one of them;
• will have experiential understanding of people’s struggles within a particular context that exposes current unjust and/or violent social and economic structures;
• will be able to articulate an in-depth understanding of the dynamics and issues in one particular area of justice and peace work;
• will have direct experience in organized justice- and peace-making work focused in a particular context or issue;
• will be able to articulate a theology of and ethic of justice and peace grounded in Scripture, the deep Christian tradition, the resources of their particular faith tradition, social analysis, and the experience of those struggling globally for justice and peace;
• will be familiar with several approaches for mobilizing groups for outreach and action on justice and peace issues and, when faced with a concrete situation calling for group action, will be able to draw on theological perspectives, knowledge of the issues, social analysis, and at least one approach for mobilizing a group to develop a practical action plan for mobilization in that situation.