Courses

Leadership is a hot topic today, mainly because it is so needed. The problem is not that we do not have models and methods for leadership for ministry; it’s that most of the models and methods we are using are no longer working. The world is changing, and leadership for ministry needs to change as well to address new contexts. This class will begin by exploring the various contemporary contexts in which participants are engaged in ministry today. Working together we will form a collective understanding of leadership for ministry in global contexts. We will then turn to the Bible to look at several key models of leadership for ministry drawn from its pages. In the third part of the class we will return to the various contexts throughout the world in which participants are engaged in ministry and look at how the biblical models shed insight on our acts of leadership today.

This course entails an introductory study of the Old Testament with special emphasis on the OT foundations for navigating faith and culture within the context of the nations, cultures, and people surrounding ancient Israel during the Old Testament period. Special focus will concentrate on the messages of the writing prophets and the Wisdom Literature in navigating faith and culture.

This course provides an introduction to the field of New Testament studies with a focus on the issues of faith and culture. Students will be introduced to some of the diverse cultural background of the New Testament world, and the process that eventually led to the selection of the 27 books that now form what is called the “canon.” In line with the concerns that are central to the MA degree at NSBT, we will focus specifically on the manner in which the Good News of Jesus Christ was expressed as public theology and engaged the diverse cultural world among those who were part of the apostolic movement. While key words and concepts in the field of biblical studies such as “exegesis” and “hermeneutics” will be identified, the main focus of the course will be on the texts of the New Testament themselves.

This course provides an introduction to the field of Biblical Hermeneutics. The course will explore how one should approach the biblical text in an effort to reach a legitimate interpretation based on the language, history, culture of the times in which the texts were written, and the implications of these insights for interpreting the text today.

This course entails the study of spirituality and ethics for ministry with attention to spiritual discernment, spiritual practices, moral character, self-care, and discipleship. It integrates conceptual analysis with personal reflection and corporate practices. Special attention is paid to participants being able to engage in vocational discernment for themselves and with others.

This course provides a general overview of the history of the world Christian movement over the past two thousand years. It lifts up several key theological concepts that were debated within the movement, explores some of the dynamics of the relationship between faith and culture that emerged in diverse contexts, and examines the manner in which churches engaged in public life with an eye toward what these mean for churches and ministry in today’s global context.

This class will provide a general introduction to Christian theology that informs ministry and leadership in the contemporary global context. The class is grounded in two commitments that make up what we call dynamic orthodoxy. First, we are committed to the main doctrinal affirmations of the Christian faith as it has been handed down to us over the centuries through the four streams of global Christian theology that Douglas Jacobsen identifies in his book from the previous class (Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Pentecostal). This tradition is grounded in the first 1,500 years of the Christian movement in Africa and Asia, and not just Europe. Second, we are committed to dynamically engaging contemporary cultures, not just in the US, but the cultures of the world, for ministry and leadership today. Affirming the historic Christian faith, the course is built around the text of the Nicene Creed, which is also the official statement of faith of Christian Cultural Center (found on the church webpage). Engaging the culture in dynamic ways, the course will also highlight various forms of theology, such as biblical, systematic, and contextual, as they have emerged in what many now call the “Majority World” today (Asia, Africa, and Latin America).

Religious pluralism is not new for Christians. We encounter it throughout the pages of the Old Testament where Israel worshiped who they knew to be the one true God, but also lived alongside and interacted with those who worshiped other gods. Jesus and his earliest followers, including Paul, likewise lived among and engaged with a diversity of religious traditions. As the Christian movement spread throughout the world through mission and migration over the centuries, the manner in which disciples of Jesus encountered and engaged other faith traditions ranged from condemnation to acceptance and even collaboration. The theological options that emerged are generally classified today as exclusivist, inclusivist or pluralist. The actual engagement with people of other religions has fallen along a continuum from evangelism (or proselytism) to dialogue (or mutuality). This class will examine these basic theological understandings of Christian mission in light of the fact that most Christians today live with neighbors of other faiths, and that ministry takes place in inter-religious contexts.

Public theology refers to Christians and churches reflectively engaging both with themselves and with those outside their immediate faith community to address issues of common interest for the common good. The purpose of such efforts to engage the wider social and cultural contexts is transformational, seeking to move them to reflect more fully what the Bible refers to as the kingdom, or reign of God on earth. This course explores the basic contours of public theology and cultural engagement in multiple global contexts, bringing together themes of pursuing the common good and transformational cultural engagement.

Non-profit, faith-based, and non-governmental organizations (NPOs, FBOs, and NGOs) play a vital role globally in building civic life, reaching those who are on the margins of society, and contributing to the overall common good for human flourishing. These organizations, which include churches and other religious communities, are part of the “social sector” of society, operating in the public square, and interacting with the government and the business community. Leadership in the social sector presents a distinct set of challenges and is the most critical factor in their success.

This class will provide a brief introduction to the social sector, looking specifically at developments over the past several decades. The class will focus on the US experience, as a large number of these organizations are incorporated under US law, but it will also look at the global picture since even US-based organizations often have a global reach. It will look at the underlying theological conceptions that inform these organizations, even when they claim to be “secular,” doing so through the concept of the economy of grace that is alongside the economy of exchange that guides the marketplace and business community, and the economy of power that governments exercise. Basic legal issues in the US context (leaving open the possibility of looking at the legal basis of NGOs in other national locations) will be examined. Issues of strategic planning, governance and administration; communication and branding; fundraising; and public accountability will be covered. The class intends to provide a basic introduction upon which one can build one’s own leadership skills, either as part of a start-up of a new non-profit, or to assume leadership in an existing organization.

The “Practicum: Field Education” for the Master of Arts in Christian Ministry entails a minimum of 200 hours of work experience spread across 24 weeks (3 academic sessions in the MA). Students may enroll during the first session of their second year in the degree program, understanding that in doing so they will be required to do Field Education while they are taking other courses. Those who are unable to devote the additional time needed for completing both sets of courses are welcomed to register for Field Education after completing other courses, knowing that this will extend their time in the program beyond two years.

There are two parts to the Field Education experience. The first is that you are to engage in ministerial service in a site or setting that is approved by the Director of Field Education for ministry experience. The second is the academic portion of Field Ed and entails the completion of three Reflection papers, a final evaluative paper and the supervisor’s evaluation. You will discuss the three Reflection papers with your supervisor and the final paper with the Director of Field Education. This is a Pass/Fail course. Your Field Ed site can be in a church, a community center, a faith-based non-profit, or some kind of chaplaincy setting. One important option to consider for Field Ed placement is Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) (more information is available from the Field Ed Director). The Field Ed office can help you with finding the right placement for you. Your faculty advisor is also a good person to talk with about where you might serve. Wherever you decide to go, there must be adequate supervisory support available, provided by someone who is qualified to serve as a supervisor for your field learning. This normally means the person has had some experience and/or training as a supervisor, and agrees to work with you in this capacity.

Candidates for the Master of Arts in Global Christian Leadership are typically persons who are working outside traditional roles identified as those held by persons recognized as religious “ministers.” They might indeed hold a ministerial title or form of ordination, but their work entails engaging in areas of government, civic affairs, the business world, or the public sector (made up of non-profit, non-governmental, and faith-based organizations). In these contexts, the more traditional form of ministerial supervision entailed in theological education is not always appropriate. While supervisors by definition exercise oversight of another, a mentor is one who walks alongside another, offering insight in a more collegial manner. To this end mentoring entails a relationship of honesty and trust that fosters the formation of leadership skills and their application to service in the wider world for the common good.

Candidates for the MAGL are still required to complete a minimum of 200 hours of field education experience spread across 24 weeks (3 academic sessions in the MA). Their experience, however, does not entail a supervisory relationship, but rather a mentoring relationship. The mentoring relationship can be either that of serving as a mentor to another, or that of being mentored by another. Many who are in the business, professional, civic, governmental, or non-profit world have had experience with being mentored or with serving as a mentor. The key element in this practicum for the MAGL is adapting and applying those mentoring experiences, and the skills they have gained, to theological experience of leadership in global contexts.

To this end there are two parts to the Practicum for the MAGL. The first entails the actual field experience involved in learning. Candidates in the program are to identify a particular context or location in which they will seek to work, and the actual content of the work that they will be carrying out as part of their learning. This can be the professional context in which they are already working in a particular field. It can also be in a voluntary context that they wish to seek to learn from experientially. Once they have identified their specific location, the candidate should then identify whether this context will provide them with an opportunity to mentor someone else, assuming that the particular candidate has already had training and experience in mentoring; or if they will seek to work with someone else as their own mentor in this experience, which would entail identifying and securing the agreement of another person to serve as mentor. It should be noted that some who serve as mentors seek or require payment for such services. NSBT does not encourage persons involved in the Practicum for the MAGL to either accept or provide payment of any kind for such mentoring experiences.

Both the identified location or context and the identified mentoring partner are to be approved by the Director of Field Education for NSBT.

Once the specific location and mentoring relationship have been designated, the candidate and the mentor/mentee are to set up a schedule for their work that they mutually agree upon. A typical mentoring agreement identifies the number of specific times and places that the mentor and mentee are to meet (weekly meetings at various locations both at the local site and off site are most common), the length of time each session will entail, and an initial set of goals that both persons agree to work upon. It should be noted that goals for this learning experience are expected to be related specifically to leadership skills and development. Candidates are expected to document these sessions without revealing anything that is discussed in confidence, and to be ready to demonstrate more broadly how their experience resulted in learning regarding theological leadership in the broader world. The details of this mentoring experience are to be documented and turned in for approval by the Director of Field Education at NSBT at the end of the Practicum.

The second is the academic portion of this Practicum. Time spent in this aspect is counted toward the general goal of 200 hours of total learning. Candidates are to prepare an integration paper that consists of three parts. The first part is a research component regarding mentorship for leadership in theological perspective. This should be done in the early part of the Practicum, should include biblical, historical, and theological references, and should demonstrate an awareness of the manner in which mentorship takes place in different social and cultural contexts or locations. A reading list will be made available for candidates, who may also identify and develop their own additional resources.

The second part of this integration paper should detail the mentoring experience as it unfolds for the candidate, either serving as a mentor for another, or being mentored by another. The most useful way to document this process is through journaling, or keeping a reflection diary. This process addresses the goals that were initially identified and how through the actual mentoring experience these were addressed, or modified, or even abandoned for new ones.

The third part of this paper is the reflection at the end of the experience upon what was learned that is applicable to theological leadership in the wider world. Are there unique elements to theological leadership or to Christian cultural engagement in leadership in the broader world? What difference, if any, does theologically-informed leadership entail in specific contexts that entail cross-cultural or interreligious engagement? This final paper will be read and graded by the Director of Field Education at NSBT.

Field Education Continuity

Field education spans multiple sessions, with tuition due for each session in which a student is registered. Each field education session follows the same registration, withdrawal, refund, and account-balance rules as any other course. A student who does not register for the next field education session and does not hold an approved Leave of Absence enters the non-registration notice sequence described under Continuous Enrollment, and an interrupted field education segment is refunded under the Refund Information schedule based on the student’s last date of academic activity. Students who anticipate an interruption in their field education should consult the Director of Field Education and their Academic Advisor before the registration period closes.

The Capstone is the final completion paper that is required for graduation with the Master of Arts in Christian Ministry degree at New School of Biblical Theology (NSBT). The paper is expected to be approximately fifty (50) pages in length (not counting the bibliography), and must demonstrate an ability to integrate biblical, historical, contextual, and practical aspects of theological understanding as these relate to the practices of leadership and ministry. The paper is also expected to reflect the commitments of NSBT to public theology and cultural engagement.

The Capstone should demonstrate a mastery of accumulated knowledge and experience gained from the MA program. That means it should integrate classroom learning, theoretical materials that have been read, and learning gained from the field education during the course of the degree. It is expected to be written at a graduate academic level, demonstrating the ability to engage in research and analysis and to write well. Footnotes must be used for all references, following the Chicago Manual of Style (18th edition).

The Capstone is the final completion paper that is required for graduation with the Master of Arts in Global Christian Leadership degree. The paper is expected to be approximately fifty (50) pages in length (not counting the bibliography), and must demonstrate an ability to integrate biblical, historical, contextual, and practical aspects of theological understanding as these relate to the practices of leadership, with attention paid to the role of mentoring. The paper is also expected to reflect the commitments of NSBT to public theology and cultural engagement.

The Capstone should demonstrate a mastery of accumulated knowledge and experience gained from the MAGL program. That means it should integrate classroom learning, theoretical materials that have been read, and learning gained from field education during the course of the degree. It is expected to be written at a graduate academic level, demonstrating the ability to engage in research and analysis, and to write well. Footnotes must be used for all references, following the Chicago Manual of Style (18th edition).