Theology, Ministry and Mission Modules List

These are modules offered as part of the Theology, Ministry and Mission postgraduate study programme. Under the bold module title there is a description followed by the teaching team.

The ++ line at the end is a takeaway soundbite on who would benefit and why.

Research and Reflection: Resources and Methods (20 credits)

This module does several jobs. It provides an introduction to ways of approaching the study of theology, ministry and mission, with a focus on reading and interpreting texts, the methods and methodologies of practical theology, and theological reflection. For those moving on to a dissertation it walks you through the process of developing a proposal: from topic to title to methodology to research ethics. Finally, it helps students think through how research can address important and sensitive issues in the church today, giving you the opportunity to explore the 5^th mark of mission in relation to issues of racial justice.

with the staff team and guest lecturers

++ ideal for essential research skills and an introduction to the field of theology, ministry and mission, combined with discussion and debate around an important and challenging topic

Advanced Biblical Studies (20 credits)

This module sets you up with the tools for a continuing lifetime of biblical study. It dives into the Hebrew Bible and New Testament, examining key texts in context, considering how the biblical text represents and reinterprets various debates, and exploring different approaches to reading the Bible. We will look particularly at the role of experience in reading scripture, including our own. We will see how celebrating the text in prayer, reflection and worship, and studying it academically, are not separate but complementary exercises. There is also opportunity in this module to deepen and enhance your practice of preaching and teaching in relation to scripture.

with Dr Jayme Reaves and the Revd Paul Burden

++ this is for you if you’re looking for tools to read the Bible better, and want to apply readings to teaching and preaching

Methods in Modern Theology (20 credits)

This module asks the question, is theology of any earthly (or heavenly?!) use for church and culture today? It explores key questions in thinking about how Christian theology has engaged with, responded to, or reacted against the “‘modern’ world” and the various “modernities” that we now live in. This provides as a way into reflecting more widely about the relationship between Christianity and culture, and the role of theology in church and world. It introduces you to seminal figures in 20^th century Christian theology, from Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer to James Cone and Emilie Townes, covering a range of systematic, contextual and ideological approaches to theology. We go into depth in changing understandings of Christ and salvation through a close reading of key texts. We reflect on the pastoral and practical implications of our image of Christ, asking with Bonhoeffer, “who is Jesus Christ, for us, today?”

with Dr Beth Dodd

++ A deep dive into some great modern theologians, combined with critical reflection on how the church engages with culture today

Mission and Ecclesiology in Contemporary Context

This module explores fresh expressions of church, the mixed ecology, developments in mission and ecclesiology, and pioneering. It includes an opportunity to observe and research a fresh expression of church, a missional community or a church plant. At the end of the module we want you to be able to reflect critically and theologically on these initiatives that are part of the churches’ intentional approach to mission and evangelism.

with Ian Macdonald

++this module is for you if you want to understand where the church is now and where it is heading, and reflect critically on what mission might look like today

Reflective Practice: Christian Worship (20 credits)

This module encourages reflection in depth on aspects of Christian worship that we encounter week by week. Whether or not you lead such worship, we all engage in it, and yet often we don’t think deeply about why we do these things. This module asks questions around consumerism and partisanship in relation to debates around Christian worship. It encourages us to stand aside from our personal assumptions and to ask some deeper questions. Why do we do this service like we do? Why do we use the forms of service and songs that we do, and what is their history? How do such services communicate to both Christians and non-Christians in our current culture? How do they enable us, as individuals and communities, to worship the living God? How do they shape the beliefs and attitudes of church members? What is the effect, positive and negative, of new forms of worship? You will be asked to study the academic writing on the subject and to reflect on it with particular reference to your own denominational and local context. You are asked to think critically and creatively about opportunities to articulate sacraments and the role of hymnody in new, different and fresh ways.

with the Revd Paul Burden and the Revd Dr Tom Clammer

++this is practical and reflective engagement with current questions about how and why we worship

Reflective Practice: Placement (20 credits)

The placement module offers you an extended experience in an unfamiliar context, where the church is engaged with wider society. Alternatively, it could provide an opportunity to reflect in depth on your own context of ministry and mission, perhaps because it is new to you, or because you feel the need to understand it better. The module gives you a structure and resources for learning from that context, through the skills of participant observation and theological reflection. It will give you the tools to articulate and critique your own developing ministerial or professional practice, within the context of the wider mission of God, and to hone your skills in critical theological analysis of contexts and practice, integrating theological, social-scientific and missional insights. You will develop critical self-awareness, bringing fresh insights and questions to Christian tradition and ministerial practice, open to the work of the Holy Spirit in your life and the lives of others. Ultimately, you will be equipped to better ask and respond to the question: how is God at work in this place?

++ ideal for anyone looking for new experiences, and seeking to develop their reflective practice

with the Revd Paul Burden

Leadership and Theology for Ministry and Mission (level 6 – 20 credits)

This module gives you the freedom you to explore leadership from the angles that you recognise will help and challenge you. As a practical application of the module material, it asks you to take some leadership of your own learning agenda, and to engage with others creatively and encouragingly through regular forum posts. It explores areas such as the words we use for leadership, biblical themes, the model of servant leadership, working with teams and groups, collaborating, leading change and conflict resolution.

++ great for someone in a leadership role, looking to deepen and develop their practice

 

Independent Learning Project (Long) (20 credits)

In consultation with the programme leader you will choose a topic to explore independently, with tutorial support and guided reading.

with selected tutor, depending on topic

++great for anyone with a passion for a topic they want to explore

Dissertation in Theology, Ministry and Mission (60 credits)

This is your opportunity to pursue an area of interest in theology, ministry and mission, under the guidance of a supervisor with expert knowledge of the field. You will develop a systematic understanding and depth of knowledge in an area of study, engaging with critically advanced scholarship in the field, and developing the skills to undertake a research project in your chosen area.

Students may also take the following optional modules from the MA in Christian Spirituality:

Foundations and Forms of Christian Spirituality and Texts and the Christian Tradition