Course descriptions and scheduling are subject to change by administrative decision. See course offerings booklet for current offerings. Some courses will be offered on a two- or three-year rotation.\
Congregational Life and Work (SMCL)
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SMCL 521 Teaching for Christian Community (3 SH)
What role does pedagogical practice play in cultivating community? Utilizing an experiential learning model, this course combines theory, practice and reflection to explore the possibilities and challenges of teaching for Christian community. A basic foundation in educational theory will be established. Anabaptist theology and practices will guide the consideration of key issues such as learning, authority, mutuality and harm in community. John’s presentation of Jesus’ theology of friendship and pedagogical formation of community will serve as a biblical guide for reflection.
SMCL
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564 Theological Reflection on Trauma (
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3 SH)
Traumatic life experiences come in many forms, touch multiple networks of relationships and systems, and call for a complex set of responses. The church must be equipped to respond. This course examines the physiological, psychological, spiritual and social impact of trauma. It explores how the Christian narrative/community with its transforming practices of truth-telling, forgiveness, reconciliation, restorative justice and peacebuilding can lead to the shalom of God’s present and coming kingdom, both within the church, and through the church, to the larger world. Pastors, church leaders, missionaries, counselors and others who seek to become agents of trauma healing will examine a healing path that integrates theology, spiritual practices and counseling skillsThis asynchronous online course integrates theological reflection with an awareness of trauma and resilience. The complexities of sufferings, evil, healing, forgiveness and reconciliation are explored in conversation with theological sources including the Hebrew Bible; New Testament; and black, womanist and mujerista theologies. Recognizing the embodied and relational impact of trauma, this course imagines how the life-affirming resources of community, spirituality and practices can weave a net of care and empowerment. This course must be taken in the same academic year as and after completing the synchronous session of, the first module of Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience at EMU's Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (PAX 540, 2 SH)s.
SMCL 581 Pastoral Counseling (3 SH)
This course forms persons in the art of pastoral care in the ministries of the church. Integrating a systems approach with theological reflection, students will learn how to identify, form and partner with communities of care in order to support individuals in their well-being across all dimensions of personhood. Students will be equipped to discern pastoral care responses that are authentic to their pastoral identity and ethically serve diverse persons and communities. Pivotal pastoral care moments in the life of the congregation will be explored, including birth, marriage, death and forms of loss.
SMCL 602 Foundations for Christian Preaching (3 SH)
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SMCL 640 Topics (1-3 SH)
This course provides theoretical and practical preparation in one or more of the ever more diverse skills called for in contemporary ministry settings.
SMCL 642 Congregational Worship (3 SH)
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