The Master of Arts (Theological Studies)

Sample Courses

Dialogue, Diversity, and Transformation in the Old Testament

In a time of polarizing division in American culture, the possibility of mutual dialogue and understanding might seem like an impossible dream. Contrary to popular opinion, however, the Bible is itself a braided tapestry of differing perspectives preserved for critical dialogue and praxis. Participants will explore the rich theological diversity of the Hebrew Scriptures dialogically from Genesis to the Psalms and the Wisdom literature. In so doing, participants may discover ways to host genuine dialogue within their own communities in such a time as this.

The Aesthetic Word: Discovering Creativity and Beauty in the Old Testament

Participants will explore the ever-shifting contours of “beauty” and “creativity” in the Old Testament by bringing various biblical texts into conversation with various artistic media, from ancient iconography to modern visual arts, music, poetry, etc. In so doing, participants will develop their own critical creativity in interpreting texts.

Postcolonial Reading of the Gospels

Participants read selected Gospel texts in their first-century colonial contexts and examines how they have been used to justify oppressive agendas such as the colonial enterprise of the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries as well as neocolonial structures in various contemporary domains. Students explore interpretive strategies for reclaiming Gospel texts for liberative purposes.

Roman Slavery, the NT, and Contemporary Slave Narratives

The historical-political context in which Jesus lived and the biblical writers wrote was the Roman Empire, and Rome was an ancient slave society in which slavery was a pervasive reality. The course will explore slavery under the Roman Empire as a significant context for critically reading certain New Testament texts. How can Roman slavery help us understand certain NT texts? And what might the NT reveal about slavery and its authors?  Focused attention will be on Philemon, 1 Corinthians, Galatians and the Gospels. The course will compare ancient Roman slavery with slavery in the antebellum South, observing the similarities and differences. The continuities allow students to place NT texts in conversation with antebellum texts and to imaginatively fill gaps in the former. Spiritual slave narratives and other historical documents demonstrate how slave masters used the NT to support slavery and how enslaved and freed Africans interpreted NT scripture based on their own experiences.

Various Hebrew and Greek-based exegesis courses

E.g., Prophetic Literature, Genesis, John, and the Parables of Jesus

Core Faculty

• Dr. Raj Nadella, Samuel A. Cartledge Associate Professor of New Testament

• Dr. Mitzi J. Smith, J. Davison Philips Professor of New Testament

• Dr. Christine Roy Yoder, Senior Vice President, Dean of Faculty and Academic Affairs, J. McDowell Richards Professor of Biblical Interpretation

History of Race, Racism, and Reconciliation in American Christianity

This course focuses on the ways in which a diverse array of Christian individuals, congregations, and institutions across U.S. history understood race and privilege, perpetuated or opposed racial discrimination, and pursued reconciliation through careful study of primary sources, scholarly interpretations of American religion, and the work of critical race theorists. 

Jesus Christ in Global Perspective

Investigates the unity and diversity of perspectives on Jesus Christ from a variety of social, political, and cultural contexts around the world. The challenges and opportunities of cross-cultural theological conversations are explored in light of the mixed legacy of colonial missions. Connections between Christological models and contextual religious practices are highlighted.  Fulfills the MDiv World Christianities distribution requirement.

Theology, Ethics, and Human Sexuality

This course explores the theologies that underlie Christian notions of embodiment, desire, and sexual activity and attempts to connect those theological notions to contemporary issues of sexuality that confront the Church.

Moral Theology of Toni Morrison’s Novels

Katie Cannon states that the Black women’s literary tradition is a source of moral wisdom in the Black community. By engaging this tradition, we learn how Black women create value patterns and ethical procedures in/on their terms through creative agency. To this end, this class explores the literature and essays of Toni Morrison to reveal the moral wisdom that forms the moral theological worlds of Black women and people.

Providence, Theodicy, and Ethics

Does God act in the world? And why is there so much suffering? No two sets of questions seem more impervious to human thought or more important to life and ministry. They are also the guiding questions of the class. 

Core Faculty

• Dr. Jackson Nii Sabaah Adamah, Assistant Professor of World Christianities

• Dr. Mark Douglas, J. Erskine Love Professor of Christian Ethics

• Dr. Tim Hartman, Associate Professor of Theology

• Dr. Martha L. Moore-Keish, J.B. Green Professor of Theology

• Dr. Nicole Symmonds, Assistant Professor of Christian Ethics

• Dr. William Yoo, Associate Professor of American Religious and Cultural History

Requirements (15 credit hours)

• MA(TS) Seminar

• Old Testament and New Testament

• Christian History

• Christian Theology

Concentration Courses (15 credits)

Biblical Studies:

• Hebrew or Greek

• Hebrew or Greek-based Exegesis

• Concentration Courses (6 credits)

• Independent Research Paper (in OT or NT)
  

History, Theology, and Ethics:

• Ethics Distribution Requirement

• World Christianties Distribution Requirement

• Concentration Courses (6 credits)

• Independent Research Paper (in a History, Theology, Ethics, World Christianities, or American Religious History)

Electives (18 credits)