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BTI Consortium | Last Updated November 14 - 9:00AM
INTERRELIGIOUS LEADERSHIP
CERTIFICATE (PRE-APPROVED COURSES)
School
Boston College School of Theology & Ministry
TMPS8088-01
Calling out from the Depths: Jewish and Christian Interpretations of the Psalms
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
For centuries, Jews and Christians have turned to the Book of Psalms in times of joy and thanksgiving, and in times of sadness and lament. However, there have been far fewer opportunities for members of these two communities and others to explore these ancient poetic texts together as fellow spiritual seekers. What do we share in common? Where do we differ? How might reading these sources with people with different religious or ideological commitments impact our relationship with the text?
Professor
Class Day & Time
Davis, Andrew R
W
04:30PM-06:30PM
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
1
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
Y
Notes
(At least one course in Biblical Studies and one course in Theology. Pre-requisites can be taken at the undergraduate or graduate level.)
School
Boston College School of Theology & Ministry
TMST8573-01
Dialogue With Indigenous Cultures & Spiritualities
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
The insecurity suffered by the Indigenous Peoples/Nations (IPNs) are occasioined by the lethality of past settler colonialism. Lethal coloniality has succeeded, albeit unevenly, to erase IPNs� identity, inferiorized their beliefs and practices through deterritorializing them from their ancestral homeland. The dialogue with IPNs calls for an �epistemic shift� to a postcolonial theological framework drawing inspiration from Church documents and decolonial indigenous theologies which enriched our Christian faith that advocates the IPNs� values for greater sustainable of the IPNs� cultures and spiritualities that promotes buen vivir with a more flourishing life for otherkinds and humankinds, and the livability of our oikos. The course is more doctoral seminars whence the learning is andragogical (adult learning), and every session is a facilitated (by the instructor) co-learning session so as to to learn from reflecting on each other contextual/context-specific experiences in the light of our weekly assignments.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Fung, Jojo
M
02:00PM-04:50PM
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Boston University Graduate Program in Religion
GRS RN638
Philosophy and Mysticism: Jewish and Islamic
Perspectives
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
A thematic introduction to mysticism and philosophy, with a focus on the dynamics of religious experience. Readings will be drawn from medieval Jewish and Islamic philosophy; Sufi mysticism and philosophy; Kabbalah, Sufi poetry, Hebrew poetry from the Golden Age of Muslim Spain.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Diana Lobel
TR
12:30PM-1:45PM
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
4
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Boston University School of Theology
STHTA 815
World Religions in Boston
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
In an increasingly pluralistic society it is essential to have some understanding of the beliefs and worship patterns of other religions and to be able to engage in dialogue with them. This course utilizes the Pluralism Project at Harvard to explore new forms of interfaith engagement. Seven weekly lectures introduce the issues surrounding interfaith work and a basic understanding of the tenets and practices of five major religions. Site visits (to Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist and Jewish worship services) offer first- hand experiences and the opportunity for discussion and interaction with religious leaders and lay people.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Shenton, Andrew
see notes
See notes
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
8/21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27 (NB NOT Sunday 8/24); 2-9PM
School
Boston University School of Theology
STHTY 842
Pastoral Psychology of Healing
BTI Category
Semester
Practical/Pastoral Theology
FA25
Every person, in her or his personal relationships and professional activities, is guided by a complex, often tacit, theory of healing, comprised of judgments about illness/suffering (what's wrong?); health/well-being (what's possible? what's ideal?); the trajectory from one to the other (how do we get there?); and factors that enhance as well as inhibit movement along that trajectory (what should we do?). Examining and comparing a range of theories of healing--in psychology, medicine, Christian traditions, world religions, and non-Western cultures--equips us critically to reflect upon, amend, if not reconstruct our respective theories of healing.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Schlauch, Chris
M
2:30pm-5:15pm
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary-Hamilton
MC/SE602
Church & Community: Intro to Public Ministry Church
BTI Category
Semester
Practical/Pastoral Theology
FA25
This course introduces��students to important strategies for social ministry, such as, congregation based community organizing,�community development, and others, designed to facilitate a holistic social ministry and prophetic role in�the community and exploring as avenues towards gospel faith_fulness and shalom in the city. The�biblical/theological bases for social responsibility are explored. � � ��� � � � � �
Professor
Class Day & Time
Wright, Annette
Sat
8:30am-4:30pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
3
Online?
SYNC
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Sept. 27, Oct. 25, Nov. 22
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3160
Religious Dimensions in Human Experience:��Apocalypse, Sports, Music, Home, Sacrifice, Medicine
BTI Category
Semester
Sociology/Ethnography/Research Methods
FA25
What is Religion? Why does it show up everywhere? Using archaeology, religious studies and social thought, this course will study the major themes in the history of religions including encountering the holy, sports, and ritual;, crossing borders, sacrifice as creation, pilgrimage and sacred place, suffering and quest for wisdom, music and social change, violence and cosmic law. Readings from Native American, African American, Latinx, Jewish, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu traditions. Focus on the tension between individual encounters with the holy and the social construction of religion. Readings from Gloria Anzaldua, Toni Morrison, Judith Sherman, Arthur Kleinman, Popul Vuj, Mircea Eliade, Michael D. Jackson. Jointly offered in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences as Anthropology 1475 and Religion 16.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Carrasco
TR
10:30am-11:45am
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
4
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Jointly offered in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences as Anthropology 1475 and Religion 16.
School
Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology
INDS 6150 Z1
Eastern & Oriental OrthodoxChurches
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
Professors: This course is team-taught, organized by Christine Chaillot and facilitated by Rev. Dr. Gary Alexander. Ms. Chaillot has written several books and articles on relations between the Eastern Orthodox and the Oriental Orthodox Churches in the past and present. Fr. Gary Alexander has studied theology and law; he also holds a doctorate in education. Course Description: The course will introduce students to the Armenian, Syrian, Coptic, and Ethiopian Churches. Guest lecturers will include leading representatives, ecumenical and theological specialists, both Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox, from various countries in North America and Europe, to address Christological issues at the time of the Council of Chalcedon (451) as well as subsequent developments up to the recent exchanges and dialogues. A number of texts from the unofficial and official theological dialogue will also be analyzed and discussed. Students will be exposed to the history, literature, liturgy, and spirituality of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, while studying the doctrinal
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rev. Dn. Gary David Alexander
SYNC
1:00pm-3:20pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
3
Online?
SYNC
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Boston College School of Theology & Ministry
TMCE7323-01
Comparative Religious Ethics
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
FA25
This course aims to introduce students to the growing field of comparative theology as it applies to ethics. We begin with an overview to the method of comparative religious ethics by addressing foundational themes e.g. good and evil, freedom and bondage, authority and norms. We next explore specific texts in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam, to discern how these traditions offer similar, complementary, or divergent ways of addressing these themes in comparison to Christianity. Finally, we conclude by applying these approaches to a range of topics, e.g. war and peace, inequalities in wealth and income, virtue, and ecology.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Scheid, Daniel
R
03:30PM-06:20PM
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Boston College School of Theology & Ministry
TMPS7278-01
Socio-spiritual Care
BTI Category
Semester
Practical/Pastoral Theology
FA25
The dynamics of human living, including experiences of God, are multidimensional: intrapersonal, interpersonal, group, structural, cultural, and global. Given these interrelated interior and exterior dynamics, what are the sources, mediums, aims, and risks of care? This course responds to this question using the literatures of spirituality studies, peace studies, practical theology, and pastoral care.
Professor
Class Day & Time
DuBois, Heather
W
01:00PM-03:50PM
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Boston University Graduate Program in Religion
GRS RN466
Tolerance
BTI Category
Semester
Ethics (all traditions)
FA25
Explores the religious roots of tolerance as an alternative to secular, more liberal foundations for pluralism. Grapples with the challenge of tolerance to the revealed religions and the ways different societies have met or failed to meet this challenge. Presents multiple case-studies and contemporary connections, explores relevance to students own experiences.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Adam Seligman
TR
9:30AM-10:45AM
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
4
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Boston University School of Theology
STHTY 834
Empathy and pluralism:� Understanding, developmentally, varieties of faiths among and within us
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
We live among people who differ in many ways not only from ourselves but from one another. This situation, globally as well as locally, often gives rise to fear and anxiety, misunderstanding and conflict, harm and violence. Our response, too readily, is fight, flight, or freeze, and our shorter-term tactics and longer-term strategies are insufficient. The course addresses this situation as it examines texts, perspectives, and experiences having to do with two subject areas: pluralism and empathy. We explore pluralism, interpersonally and socially, in experiences and engagements among differences in (a) religion and theology, (b) race and ethnicity, and (c) sexuality and gender. We explore pluralism within one�s own psyche, in the interaction among coexisting developmental perspectives (that of the child, the adolescent, and the adult) and in the abiding contrast between a perspective we profess consciously and another we enact unconsciously. We explore the development of empathy from �the default position� (characterized by egocentrism, presumed objectivity, unexamined simplification, and binary thinking) toward mutually beneficial ways of being and being-with others.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Schlauch, Chris
W
2:30pm-5:15pm
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary-Boston
CH/WM653
History of Christian-Muslim Relations
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
This course explores the complex relationship between Christians and Muslims throughout the entire history of Islam, giving attention to the historical and scriptural sources that speak on or about each other and their usage by Christian and Muslim interlocutors. The focus of the course will be to introduce students to the origins of the encounter, the diversity of historical contexts of the Middle East, Central Asia, Europe and North America, and how those encounters have been interpreted. Students will engage in historical research on specific topics to develop their own critical perspectives on Christian-Muslim relations for public engagement. Utilizing film, music, maps, artwork, documents, and travel literature, this course highlights both high and low points between the world�s two largest religions. Special attention is given to the Golden Age of Islam, Medieval Spain, St. Francis, and global demographics of Christians and Muslims.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Johnson, Todd
T
9am-12pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
3
Online?
SYNC
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
NA
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 2779
Piety, Practice, and Politics: Thomas Merton and Martin Buber
BTI Category
Semester
Church History/History of Religions
FA25
The twentieth century produced numerous figures in Judaism and Christianity that developed ways of understanding religion in modernity that included the practical application of religious practice (piety) with activist engagement in the world (politics). This course will focus on two such figures; the Trappist monk Thomas Merton (d. 1969), and the Jewish theologian Martin Buber (d.1965). Merton excavated and taught the history of monasticism and Christian piety, living as a monk in the Gethsemane Monastery in Bardstown Kentucky, and became active in anti-Vietnam War politics until his untimely death from accidental electrocution in Bangkok in 1969. Buber was a leading philosopher/theologian and Zionist activist in Germany until his immigration to Mandate Palestine in the late 1930s and then became a voice of inspiration for humanistic Zionism, religious renewal, and the revival of Hasidism. This course will examine the writings and lives of both figures, paying close attention to their use of the past, theological worldviews, their understanding of a life of piety, and their commitment to political activism. They will serve as two exemplars of the ongoing attempt to reconsider, reconstruct, and revise religion in a changing world.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Magid
T
12:00pm-01:59pm
Grading Option
Letter
Professor
4
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3187
Global Religious Change: Babies, Converts, Migrants
BTI Category
Semester
Sociology/Ethnography/Research Methods
FA25
This course uses social scientific perspectives to understand religious change in the 20th and 21st centuries by investigating six dynamics: births/deaths (fertility), converts in/converts out (switching), and emigration/immigration (migration). Students will be introduced to important debates in the sociology of religion such as theories of religious change and issues related to data availability, interpretation, and communication. Relevant questions include: What data sources exist to interpret religious/non-religious global trends? Is the world becoming more or less religious? Under what conditions does an individual or community switch religions? What causes declines in fertility rates, and how do rates differ by religion? Will Islam become the world�s largest religion and, if so, by when and how? How does migration effect religious belief and practice? By investigating the six dynamics of religious change in the past, we can make reasonable assumptions for the religious and non-religious future. Four case studies detailed in the course are Christianity�s demographic shift to the global South with a focus on Nigeria, the Jewish diaspora, demography of religion in India, and religious decline in the West. Students will have the opportunity to write a final research paper or produce a demographic report.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Zurlo
M
12:00pm-02:45pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
4
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology
PAST 7360
World Religions
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA25
We will look at humanity's quest for God from the beginning of time, and how four of the world's major religious traditions�Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism�developed. Along with their history, we will study their main teachings, worldview, and practice. Part of the class will include visiting temples of the other faiths. We will also look at the phenomenon of atheism and its own religious perspective. With each of these different religions, we willdiscussOrthodox Christianity's understanding of other religions and how we are to dialogue and interact with them, trying to discover elements that could be acceptable within Orthodox Christianity, and how these bridges could be used in sharing our faith within other religions. This Course fulfills the World Religions/Ecumenism requirement.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rev. Luke A. Veronis
T
6:40pm-9:00pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Professor
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
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