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Course Descriptions
— Theological and Religious Interpretation
Courses
are for 3 credits unless otherwise noted.
Constructive Theology
Christian Ethics
Theology and the Arts
Religious Studies
Church and Society
Constructive Theology
TR103 Reimagining
the Human: Theological
Anthropology
Eleazar Fernandez
This constructive theology course focuses on our common quest to be
human, especially in response to pervasive and interlocking systemic evils that
have plagued our world, such as classism, sexism, racism, and the destruction
of the ecosystem. Classical and contemporary views on theological anthropology
will be explored to shed light on our struggle to be human in a globalized world
and interdependent cosmos. In this course students will have the opportunity
to construct their theological views on topics that relate to the subject of
theological anthropology.
No prerequisites
TR105 Constructive
Theology
Eleazar Fernandez
Introduces students to the nature and task of Christian theological construction,
the basic issues related to theological method, and the classical and contemporary
interpretations on major doctrines, with the expectation that students will
acquire the necessary hermeneutical tools for constructing their theological
views.
Prerequisites: IS151
TR224 Paul Tillich and Contemporary Challenges
Eleazar Fernandez
This
course explores the main themes and thrusts of Paul Tillich's
theology, examines his theological system, and critiques his
ideas in relation to the challenges that the church and society
are facing in our contemporary times. This course fulfills
the systems of thought requirement of the curriculum.
No prerequisites
TR342 Reading
the World as Sacred Text: Some Questions in Science and Theology
Faculty
This course will explore selected aspects of the contemporary dialogue
between science and theology. Beginning with Barbour’s classification of four
ways in which science and theology can relate to each other, the course will
argue that the best way to conceive our universe is as a “nested hierarchy” of
levels of organization, with new characteristics and new behaviors emerging
at each new level. Science and theology are both model-making activities that
seek to give accounts of characteristics and behaviors at different levels
of organization in the universe. Within this framework, the course will then
explore some specific topics in science and theology, such as God’s action
in the physical world, evolution in matter and spirit, biology and being human,
and the effect of contemporary cosmology on Christian teaching about the Beginning
and the End. We will conclude with reflections on the universe as itself a
sacramental sign of communion in God.
No prerequisites
TR401 Foundations
for Women's Studies
Christine Smith
Women's voices and perspectives are changing the way Christian people understand
religion, theology, and ministry. The breadth of literature arising from women’s
lives in the past three decades is great, and the issues that literature generates
for women’s and men’s critical and constructive theological work
is challenging and exciting. We will look at aspects of the historical development
of the
women’s movement in the United States; gender as a socially constructed
reality; various disciplines in religion, theology, and ministry from the perspective
of women’s lives; and selected issues related to race, class, sexual
orientation/sexual preference, ability, and age as dimensions of women’s
analysis.
No prerequisites
TR415 Gay/Lesbian/Bi-sexual/Transgender
Cultural and Theological Voices
Christine Smith
The primary focus of this class will be a critical examination of lesbian/gay/bi-sexual/transgendered
religious and theological voices. The course will invite and require constructive
reflection and theologizing. Selected cultural literature will deepen an understanding
of how G/L/B/T philosophy, social analysis, and community life influence our
social and ecclesiastical lives. Particular attention will be given to the
intersection of ethnicity, class, and gender and the transformational vision
and reality of G/L/B/T lives. Even though this course may have particular relevance
for G/L/B/T people, the cultural and theological insights explored in this
course are critical and important for the spiritual and vocational lives of
all religious leaders.
No prerequisites
TR608
Christology
Faculty
Christology is arguably the most critical topic of theological
discourse for Christian faith since it treats of the decisive
significance attributed to Jesus by the church. Historically,
however, the shape of the christological question has undergone
development from ancient to modern times. Whereas the classical
formulation of the christological question concerned the relation
between divinity and humanity in Jesus, the modern formulation
of the question has revolved around the relation between the
so-called "Jesus of history" and the "Christ
of faith." In this seminar we will examine this historical
shift in the formulation of the christological question and
study certain influential constructive proposals for understanding
how Christians today should understand their central christological
confession that ”Jesus is the Christ.”
No prerequisites
TR610 Theology
of Religions
Eleazar Fernandez
Brings to the students’ attention the ever more pressing reality
that we are living in a religiously plural world — a world
whose very survival demands that
communities must learn to live with each other — and invites them to
take a critical account of the basic theological premises of the Christian
faith vis-à-vis
the claims of other religions. It is the hope of this course that students
will be able to articulate a theology of religions that is adequate to our
pluralistic context while remaining faithful to their respective religious
heritage.
No prerequisites
TR612 Theology
and Postmodern Thought
Eleazar Fernandez
Major intellectual currents always pose a challenge to theology that cannot
be taken for granted. This is certainly the case with postmodern thought. This
elective theology course introduces students to the main strands of postmodern
ideas, critically examines them, and explores their bearings on our interpretations
of major theological doctrines and on how we do theology for our so-called
postmodern world.
No prerequisites
TR613 Ecofeminist
Theologies: Water, Women and Wisdom in an Ecological Cosmos
Faculty
Environmental crises in our world today bring new challenges for constructive
theology — to take our longing for Earth’s flourishing as seriously
as we take our longing for God. Thus, the sustainable liberation and transformation
of
God’s “beloved community” incorporates not only social justice,
but the larger horizon of ecojustice, in which humans are embedded. This means
seeing anew our place with Earth, as well as restoring our relation to place.
Constructive theology (and thealogy) is enriched by engaging with ecofeminism,
as well as practices, movements, and analyses that explore the connections
between the exploitation of women and the exploitation of nature. Ecofeminist
theologians extend the critical work of reimagining relations of gender, sexuality,
race, and class to include the embodied relations of human beings within a
complex, diverse, and sacred ecology of life.
No prerequisites.
TR622 Seminar
on Liberal Theologies
Eleazar Fernandez
This is a course that engages the writings of some prominent liberal theologians,
both of the Unitarian Universalist and Christian traditions, and examines the
significance of their ideas for theology, ethics, and ministry. Through the
seminary approach, students will both have the opportunity to gain knowledge
of a wide body of theological writings as well as to focus on a particular
theological figure of their choice.
No prerequisites
TR625 Liberal
and Evangelical Conversation
with Bethel Seminary Faculty
Throughout our lives, especially in leadership roles in congregations, we will
deal with Christians who consider themselves Evangelical. Readings from each
theological perspective provide the basis for dialogue with students from Bethel
Seminary.
No prerequisites
TR626 Process
and Liberation Theologies in Dialogue
Eleazar Fernandez
A course that introduces students to the basic tenets of two
major contemporary theological movements: process and liberation theologies.
It also explores theological areas where fruitful conversation is possible.
To accomplish these concerns, representative works on process and liberation
theologies will be explored and engaged critically.
No prerequisites
TR661 Introduction
to Black Theology and Ethics
Faculty
Exploring some classical statements from African American Christianity
and several more recent statements and analyses, this is a study
of the literature
that generally has become identified as Black Theology. The
purpose of the course is to introduce students to the breadth of documents
and analyses
of African American Christianity and of normative moral perspectives presented
in these texts.
No prerequisites
TR719 Native American Theologies
Faculty
This course draws on readings, guest presentations, and occasions for participation in the ceremonial life of native faith communities to introduce students to American Indian theologies, spirituality, and religious traditions.
No prerequisites
TR722 Theological
Voices from a Global Perspective
Eleazar Fernandez
Our era has witnessed the emergence of various theological voices, especially
theological voices long muted and buried, that need to be taken seriously by
the church and the theological community. Students in this course will be exposed
to various theological voices around the world as to their context, method,
and content and encouraged to engage critically with them, with the hope that
these various theological voices will enrich and widen their theological views.
No prerequisites
TR725 Theological
Voices of Minorities in the United States
Eleazar Fernandez
The time for silence is over; the long time “absents” in
the history of the United States are now raising their voices. A
challenge is before us
to respond to these voices and to take account of how we do theology and ministry.
This course accepts the challenge by exposing students to the history, struggles,
hopes, and theological voices of racial minorities in the United States.
No prerequisites
TR820 Reimagining
the Church: Ecclesiology, Mission, and Ministry for our Contemporary Time
Eleazar Fernandez
This is a course that introduces students to the classical as well as
the various contemporary models of the church or ecclesiologies. Then these
ecclesiologies will be critiqued in light of the tradition and contemporary
challenges that the church is facing. Furthermore, students will engage in
reconstructing or re-imagining an ecclesiology that is not only faithful
to
the Christian heritage but also responsive to the current context, both globally
and locally.
No prerequisites
TR990 Directed
and Independent Studies in Theological and Religious Interpretation
TR Faculty
Designed for the student who wishes to pursue more intensively a special topic
in Theological and Religious Interpretation. Approval of the topic for research
must precede registration.
No prerequisites
Christian Ethics
TR107 Christian
Ethics
Sharon Tan
This is an introduction to
ethical theory and ethical reflection that includes a critical study of various
approaches to Christian ethics as they are expressed in biblical, classical,
and contemporary sources. It includes systematic
analysis of moral reasoning and Christian responsibility and explores some
contemporary
ethical
issues.
Prerequisites: IS151, CH161, CH261, CH461, CH462
TR501 Environmental Ethics
Faculty
This course will focus on two fundamental questions: What is the theological
significance of the natural world? How can Christian ethics address the question
of our role in and responsibility for the natural environment? These questions
will be considered in the context of scientific and practical knowledge of the
natural world.
No prerequisites
TR509 Comparative Religious Ethics
Sharon Tan
This course introduces students to ethical systems in the major, non-Christian
world religions and includes some additional in-depth reading on one or more
of those systems. There will be discussion of case studies and specific
ethical
issues, comparing the different ethical approaches in the different religions.
No prerequisites
TR520 Christian
Ethical Discourse on Politics
Eleazar Fernandez
Introduces students to the discourse of ethics as it relates to our
political life. In this course students will be exposed to the classical
and contemporary
themes of political ethics as well as to some of the methods of making adequate
ethical discernment vis-à-vis political issues. Moreover, students will have
the opportunity to explore alternative constructs of being, dwelling, and doing
that have emerged from the experience and struggle of counter-hegemonic movements.
No prerequisites
TR521 War,
Peace, and Ethics
Faculty
Is it always, sometimes,
or never right to make war? Do ethical standards change? How did the major ethical
positions arise, and what do they recommend to us? Reading and discussion will
focus on holy war, just war, “realism,” pacifism, and nonviolent
resistance. The main emphasis will be on Western traditions (including feminism),
but we will also look at views from the Jain, Buddhist, Taoist, and Islamic traditions.
In addition, we will have a chance to converse with guest presenters. There will
be brief written responses to the readings and a final paper titled, “A
Statement of My Ethics with Regard to War and Peace.”
No prerequisites
TR533/CH533 Theological
Ethics of H. Richard Niebuhr
Paul Capetz and Faculty
H. Richard Niebuhr (1894-1962) is one of the most important figures in American
theology in the twentieth century. Through reading and discussion of primary
texts, the seminar examines Niebuhr’s theological and ethical thought
as well as his
use of historical and sociological categories for the interpretation of human
life in its religious and moral dimensions.
No prerequisites
TR536 Ethics
of Reconciliation
Sharon Tan
We will explore the theological and social ethics of reconciliation,
specifically the notions of forgiveness, repentance, justice, and community.
In the first two-thirds or so of the course we will focus on theory
in readings, writing, lecture, and discussion. In the last portion of
the
course we will apply this to specific issues in reconciliation, e.g.,
domestic violence, racial justice, political conflict.
No prerequisites
TR537 Justice:
Social, Legal, Economic
Sharon Tan
In
this seminar, we will explore different conceptions of social justice and
how law and economics — dominant expressions of justice in
today’s
society — might reflect these different conceptions. We will
read and discuss liberal theories
of justice, and their critiques, and discuss how positive and natural law theories
and economic systems relate to concepts of justice and morality.
No prerequisites
TR515
Making Peace, Transforming Conflict
David Bard
The vision of shalom permeates the Christian scriptures,
but what does it mean to make peace? In this course we will
weave together the theology, theory and practice of peacemaking
and conflict transformation as we consider how people of faith
can work to create peace in their lives, their congregations,
their communities, and in the world.
TR551/CH435
A History of Theological Ethics
Paul Capetz
Through reading and discussion of primary texts, this seminar
investigates the ethical method of influential representatives
of various approaches in Christian theological ethics. Differing
figures are examined each time the seminar is offered. Upcoming
offerings will focus on Thomas Aquinas, Karl Barth, and Ernst
Troeltsch.
No prerequisites
TR552 Major
20th Century Moral Thinkers
Faculty
Major figures who influence the substance and shape of contemporary Christian
moral thought are examined. This seminar is a close reading of selected works
by specific writers. Figures studied may include Karl Barth, Reinhold Niebuhr,
Paul Ramsey, James Gustafson, John H. Yoder, Karl Rahner, Stanley Hauerwas,
Cornel West, Margaret Farley, Beverly Harrison, Katie Cannon, and others.
No prerequisites
TR572 Good
Work
Sharon Tan
This course brings together themes in moral agency, institutionalism,
virtue, and vocation in examining the role and identity of a “professional” in
today’s workplace. We will explore the generally common constraints and
freedoms that individuals in different professions experience in the workplace
in their pursuit of their ideals and goals. In addition, we will examine the
work place as an arena in which to develop virtue and live our vocation and
citizenships.
No prerequisites
TR990 Directed
and Independent Studies in Theological and Religious Interpretation
TR Faculty
Designed for the student who wishes to pursue more intensively a special topic
in Theological and Religious Interpretation. Approval of the topic for research
must precede registration.
No prerequisites
Theology and the Arts
TR223 Poetry
in Search of the Holy
Religion and poetry shape the soul. In this class students will enter the world
of poetry within the context of faith with attention to intersections of sacred
and secular poetry. We will consider how poets use their work to articulate
an understanding of God, and why the language of poetry is particularly appropriate
for this purpose. In addition, we will examine diverse poetic voices, aesthetics
in poetry, and the techniques of established poets. This class is appropriate
for the student of any writing level and is open to first-time students.
No prerequisites
TR235 The
Church, Spirituality, and the Arts
Wilson Yates
Thursday, 6:00-9:15 PM
Focusing on the visual arts including painting, sculpture,
the liturgical arts, architecture, and other selected art
forms,
this course will examine their role in the life of the church
and Christian spirituality. Historical considerations begin
with the early church and move down through major historical
periods. The three major Christian traditions of Orthodoxy,
Roman Catholicism, and Protestantism will be examined with
a consideration of current forms of “spiritual art”
that are present outside of or on the margins of the church
including outsider folk art from both the Black and Hispanic
worlds. The final focus will be on where we are today and
the primary rationales for engaging the arts as a contemporary
religious community.
No prerequisites
Click
here to register
TR242 Theater
and Social Change
Faculty
This course uses biblical, theoretical, and theological
studies to examine drama as a means of prophetic judgment.
It will include readings from the classical prophets (Jeremiah,
Amos, Isaiah); theorists such as Augusto Boal and Peter Brook;
and theologians such as Nelle Morton, James Cone, and Leonardo
Boff. The course will study dramatists and theatre groups such
as Luis Valdez, Vaclav Havel, Anna Deavere Smith, Bread and
Puppet Theater, San Francisco Mime Troupe, and Tony Kushner.
The majority
of the class would be devoted to careful reading and analysis
of the texts. It will also involve some practical exercises
and games from the “Theater of the Oppressed” as
a model for community conflict resolution. The class will address
practical ways drama can be utilized in the church for study
groups, as a resource for preaching, for teaching, and for
producing
significant drama in the church.
No
prerequisites
TR243 Theology,
Spirituality, and the Visual Arts
Faculty
This course will engage students in theological reflection
and spiritual encounter with pivotal works from major artists.
It
is interdisciplinary in nature drawing on theoretical and methodological
insights from art history, aesthetics, church history, spirituality,
and theology. And it is existentially focused, asking that
you enter into a deep and personal conversation with the artists,
their works, and your own spiritual sensibilities. The course
is concerned, therefore, with how art can inform both your
theology and spirituality. Works we will treat will include
the Eastern
Orthodox icon, early church art forms, Duccio and Giotto, Fra
Angelico, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Francis Bacon, Kathae Kollwitz,
Marc Chagall, and Barbara Hepworth, along with selected works
from The Minneapolis Institute of Arts.
No prerequisites
TR271 Theological
Interpretation of the Arts
Jann Cather Weaver
This course introduces students to the history of religion, theology, and the
arts as used in theological study, theological education, and the life and
worship of the church. Students will study the major theoretical approaches
to theology and the arts. Stemming from this study, students will begin an
initial development of their own theoretical approach to the arts, using ideas
from theology, arts criticism, and experiential learning.
No prerequisites
TR272 Arts
Practicum
Jann Cather Weaver
In this experientially-based course, students focus on their
art forms and/or a particular art concern and its interpretation. Students
will demonstrate ability through performing, exhibiting, and/or interpreting
the arts through a project. Through class discussions and comments, students
will develop and put into practice project plans. Examples might include
the creation of an art exhibit, a recital performance of music or dance,
a poetry reading, a presentation integrating the arts in worship, or
a series of lectures for a selected audience on the arts in the life
of faith and worship. The practicum assumes class participation, reading,
critical reflection, project design, practice, and a performance/presentation
as appropriate before a group at the seminary or other designated settings.
Prerequisites: Equivalent of one full-time year of study (27 credits)
TR360 Film
as Theological Text: Race, Gender, and Sexualities
Jann Cather Weaver
This course examines the cultural medium of film as theological text. Theological
inquiries are made into the meanings of sin, redemption, repentance, truth,
and the vocation of ministry by critically focusing on the re-presentation
and re-production of race, class, sexuality, and gender in film. A critical
method rooted in theological, biblical, and visual fundamentals, expanded by
literary, cultural, and theological social analysis, guides this study of film
as theological text. Tentative films are Birth of a Nation, D.W. Griffith; Malcolm
X, Spike Lee; Daughters of the Dust, Julie Dash; Raise
the Red Lantern, Z. Yimou; When Night is Falling, P. Rozema; Paris
is Burning, Jennie Livingston; Snow Falling on Cedars, Scott
Hicks. Students will see each film outside of class.
Prerequisites: IS151
TR418 Global
Re-Presentations of Women through Film
Jann Cather Weaver
Using film as theological text, this course focuses on diverse, global re-production,
and re-presentation of women and gender. Films and documentaries from Asia,
Europe, and Latino cultures, as well as from sub-cultures of North America,
will be seen out of class. Students will learn to engage film through a theological,
visual method rooted in global liberation theologies, a hermeneutics of suspicion,
literary, and film theory. Does not meet the global justice requirement.
No prerequisites
TR427 Womanist
Art, Literature, Media, Music, and Musings
Alika Galloway – Adjunct
Faculty Member
This course will explore womanist biblical, theological, and ethical
interpretations of womanist artistic expressions, including art, literature,
media, music, and musings (folklore). We will be examining works by Renita
Weems, Delores Williams, Caroline McCray, and Howard Thurman.
No prerequisites
TR573 Theological
Themes in Literature
Sharon
Tan
It
is in stories that most of a society’s morality and understanding
of ethics is conveyed, described, and understood. This course will explore
how literature conveys morality and thus is a way of doing ethics. We will
also
explore and analyze ethical themes in narrative fiction.
No prerequisites
TR650 Theology
in Contemporary Film
Jann Cather Weaver
Discerning theological dimensions in contemporary film requires learning to
read a film theologically, not imposing one’s theological views upon
a film. This course will introduce students to seeing the theology/theologies
of contemporary
films and enable students to grapple with different theological perspectives.
We will examine the films as the films will, in turn, examine our lives of
faith and ministry. Tentative films include Billy Elliot, Chocolat, Waking
Ned Devine, Tender Mercies, The Apostle, Manny and
Lo, Finding Graceland, Smoke, Antonia’s
Line, Fire,
and Eat, Drink, Man, Woman. Students will see each film outside of
class.
No prerequisites
TR709 Jewish-Christian
Art and Iconography in Cultural Contexts
Jann Cather Weaver
Religious art serves as a medium in which people connect current, cultural
realities with the grand narrative events of tradition. This course looks at
a cross-cultural, Jewish-Christian body of religious art, examining how culturally
distinct religious symbols and realities express theological meaning. Juxtaposition
of culturally linked images will enhance the theological understanding of Jewish-Christian
faith. The purpose of this course is to widen each student’s spiritual
and theological imagination through the rich cultural interplay of Jewish-Christian
artistic expressions. Students with prior experience in theological reflection
and biblical study will benefit the most. This course does not fulfill the
global justice requirement.
No prerequisites
TR721Buddhism
and the Arts
Faculty
The core teachings of Buddhism are illuminated by its arts. Trace
the evolution of the “Dharma” from the sculpture and empty
cushions of early Buddhism, through the spacious poetry and painting of
China and Japan,
to the practical arts of tea ceremony, flower arranging, and jazz. As the
images of the Buddha migrate across the generations, why did he open his
eyes and smile?
No prerequisites
TR741 World
Religions: Dance and Music
Faculty
This course is based on an understanding that culture often expresses religious
values, with the arts encoding myth, belief, and values. Dance in particular
may embody a people’s spirituality, serving as a crossing point between
ritual behavior and how we act in the everyday world. Classes in this course
will
explore how and why movement is vital to understanding religious life, with
world dance and music serving as a means of examining constructs of ordering
the world. Lectures, readings, videos, field trips, and in-class movement sessions
will serve as material for discussion. No dance or music background is required.
Traditions explored will include Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and West
African practices.
No prerequisites
TR771 Approaches
to the Study of Religion and Religious Communities
This course introduces students to major approaches to the study of religion
as a human phenomenon and to research methods for studying actual religious
communities.
Prerequisite: IS151
TR811 Body,
Movement, and Spirituality: Experiencing the Luminous Body
Faculty
Between the moments of birth and death we are embodied beings.
What does it mean to be a body? What does it mean to live
in the world as physical beings? How does embodiment and experience
relate to spirituality? What are ways to express and share
spiritual experiences through our bodies and movement? This
course will begin to address these questions and to challenge
cultural assumptions about the separation between body and
spirit. We will begin by exploring personal, cultural, and
social views of physicality. Then, we will use the lived experience
of our bodies as a starting point for altering our understanding
of the experience of embodiment. Finally, we will also explore
ways to integrate physical experience and spiritual expression
to create embodied experiences for others. This course will
include experiential exercises and discussion as a means to
develop new understandings of what it means to be embodied
souls.
No
prerequisites
Click
here to register
TR843 Writing:
The Sacred Journey
Faculty
The practice of writing creatively (be it memoir, fiction, poetry,
drama, or any contemporary, genre-bending form) is both a personal exploration
and an art. In this course, we will explore the intersection between literary
craft and spiritual growth. Using contemporary authors as our guides, we will
focus on the creation of our own work, from inspiration, prewriting, and the
formation of a writing practice through revision toward engagement with an
audience. Together we will explore the spiritual and theological implications
of what Margaret Atwood calls “reverse incarnation” – the
flesh becoming word. Pass/no credit.
No prerequisites
TR990 Directed
and Independent Studies in Theological and Religious Interpretation
TR Faculty
Designed for the student who wishes to pursue more intensively a special topic
in Theological and Religious Interpretation. Approval of the topic for research
must precede registration.
No prerequisites
Religious Studies
TR316/CH416 Topics
in Black Christianity: Traditions of Worship, Culture, and Theology
Faculty
In many ways, the African-American Sunday morning experience is
still the “invisible
church” that existed in the slave era. Many of these traditions, rituals,
and spiritual disciplines are unknown to mainstream White religious traditions
in America. We will address this history of the Black Christian church and
discuss its present status through the study of church organization, worship,
Christian Education, and the use of Scripture. We will also examine the roles
of women, African spirituality, the emergence of Black Theology, and the distinctiveness
of their view of social justice. Finally we will be in discussion on the prevailing
African American view of Jesus Christ.
No prerequisites
TR370 Politics
and Religion in the World
Sharon Tan
Religion, and religious worldviews, both form and inform the context and content
of a nation’s domestic and foreign politics. This course explores the
relationships between religion and the structure, institutions, and content
of a nation’s political processes. We will look at these processes with
theological, sociological, and ethical lenses. Specifically, we will look at
the influence of Christianity, Islam, and Marxism on geo-political areas such
as North America, the Middle East, and Africa and/or communist countries.
No prerequisites
TR509 Comparative Religious Ethics
Sharon Tan
This course introduces students to ethical systems in the major, non-Christian
world religions and includes some additional in-depth reading on one or more
of those systems. There will be discussion of case studies and specific
ethical
issues, comparing the different ethical approaches in the different religions.
No prerequisites
TR714 World
Religions
Faculty
Understanding that other faiths may offer insight into our own, this course
will provide an overview of major world religions. Judaism, Islam, West African
practices, Hinduism, and Buddhism will receive specific focus, with students
examining the relationship between culture and religion in these traditions.
Special attention will be given to how people live out their beliefs through
ritual, artistic expression, and social conduct. Field research in the growing
local multifaith community will be included.
No prerequisites
TR718 Hinduism
Faculty
Hinduism is now a growing religion in America. With its understanding
of the multiple faces of God, connections to yoga, and rich art traditions,
the oldest
major world religion has much to teach us about dynamic theology, spirituality,
and sensuality as part of religion. This class will explore Hindu history,
practices, scripture, and beliefs through readings, discussion, and experiential
learning. Visiting a temple, meditation, yoga, and music and dance concerts
will be a part of class learning. Comparison to your own religious tradition
will be an active part of our conversation.
No prerequisites
To register for this course, contact Michelle Rodriguez at
mrodriguez@unitedseminary.edu or call 651.255.6119.
TR720 Zen
Buddhism
Faculty
A special transmission outside scriptures — no dependence
on words and letters, direct pointing to the human heart and mind, seeing
into
one’s true
nature, and the attainment of Buddha hood. With these brave words attributed
to Bodhidharma, Buddhism entered China. We will follow the course of this
lively stream of Buddhism as it flows through China, Japan, and North America.
We
will give careful, sustained attention to selected primary texts as well
as landmark
secondary interpretations. Complementing our textual study will be an engagement
with some of the spiritual practices of Zen Buddhism: concentration and mindfulness,
koan study and ink painting, tea ceremony, and poetry.
No prerequisites
To register for this course, contact Michelle Rodriguez at
mrodriguez@unitedseminary.edu or call 651.255.6119.
TR721Buddhism
and the Arts
Faculty
The core teachings of Buddhism are illuminated by its arts. Trace
the evolution of the “Dharma” from the sculpture and empty
cushions of early Buddhism, through the spacious poetry and painting of
China and Japan,
to the practical arts of tea ceremony, flower arranging, and jazz. As the
images of the Buddha migrate across the generations, why did he open his
eyes and smile?
No prerequisites
TR741 World
Religions: Dance and Music
Faculty
This course is based on an understanding that culture often expresses religious
values, with the arts encoding myth, belief, and values. Dance in particular
may embody a people’s spirituality, serving as a crossing point between
ritual behavior and how we act in the everyday world. Classes in this course
will
explore how and why movement is vital to understanding religious life, with
world dance and music serving as a means of examining constructs of ordering
the world. Lectures, readings, videos, field trips, and in-class movement sessions
will serve as material for discussion. No dance or music background is required.
Traditions explored will include Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and West
African practices.
No prerequisites
TR748 Taoism
Faculty
Among the world religions, Taoism occupies an unusual place:
it spans the gap from primordial shamanism to twenty-first
century systems theory; it fosters both scientific rigor and
mystical rapture. This investigation of the “Nature
Religion” of China will explore its many transformations.
The last two units will consider how three friends (Alan Watts,
Ken Cohen, and Al Huang) transplanted Taoism to America. Learning
methods include primary and secondary texts, small group discussion,
lectures, discussion, calligraphy, guest speakers, and field
trips. Students will learn Taoist spiritual practices including
breathing, standing meditation, T’ai Chi, and Chi Gong.
No prerequisites
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TR990 Directed
and Independent Studies in Theological and Religious Interpretation
TR Faculty
Designed for the student who wishes to pursue more intensively a special topic
in Theological and Religious Interpretation. Approval of the topic for research
must precede registration.
No prerequisites
Church and Society
TR331 Antiracism
Dialogue, Theory, and Practice
Faculty
Antiracism
theory and practice from a relational theology perspective. The course
employs a circle approach to antiracism
dialogue, study,
and community formation. Explores the interpersonal dynamics of racism,
focusing on institutional and systemic racism. Examines the notion of
racism as violation causing spiritual woundedness and material harm,
and, from the perspective of the sinned-against, raises questions about
traditional understandings of forgiveness.
No prerequisites
TR341 Land:
Ecology, Politics, Economics, and Spirituality
Joseph Bush
The land will be examined as a root metaphor informing cultural understandings
of ecological, economic, and political life for both rural and urban people.
It will also be analyzed as a perennial — though frequently neglected
— theme in theology and in Christian conceptualizations of the spiritual
life. In addition
to biblical and theological materials, the course will attend to theories of
political economy and to changing economic and ecological realities for help
in charting cultural understandings of the land in North American context.
Cross-cultural perspectives will further be examined to provide alternative
points of reference. The course will move through the tasks of describing and
analyzing the multivalent reality and symbolism of land in order to engage
in the constructive task of articulating a theological and ethical position
that is grounded in the land.
No prerequisites
TR370 Politics
and Religion in the World
Sharon Tan
Religion, and religious worldviews, both form and inform the context and content
of a nation’s domestic and foreign politics. This course explores the
relationships between religion and the structure, institutions, and content
of a nation’s political processes. We will look at these processes with
theological, sociological, and ethical lenses. Specifically, we will look at
the influence of Christianity, Islam, and Marxism on geo-political areas such
as North America, the Middle East, and Africa and/or communist countries.
No prerequisites
TR537 Justice:
Social, Legal, Economic
Sharon Tan
In
this seminar, we will explore different conceptions of social justice and
how law and economics — dominant expressions of justice in
today’s
society — might reflect these different conceptions. We will
read and discuss liberal theories
of justice, and their critiques, and discuss how positive and natural law theories
and economic systems relate to concepts of justice and morality.
No prerequisites
TR744 Theology
of Urban Ministry
Joseph Bush
(jointly offered by United, Luther Seminary, and Bethel
Seminary)
This course invites theological reflection on our diverse experiences of life
and ministry in the city. The course is contextually structured so that students
will be exposed to models of urban ministry and engaged in theological
conversation with urban ministers (clergy and lay). The “city” will
be discovered not only as a topic for theology but also as a powerful shaper
of theology. “Ministry” will be discussed as both the vocation
of religious organizations and as related to wider civic responsibility in
society.
No prerequisites
TR990 Directed
and Independent Studies in Theological and Religious Interpretation
TR Faculty
Designed for the student who wishes to pursue more intensively a special topic
in Theological and Religious Interpretation. Approval of the topic for research
must precede registration.
No prerequisites
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