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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
TMPS8151
Resisting Anti-Judaism: Practices for the Church
BTI Category
Semester
Practical/Pastoral Theology
FA24
The purpose of this class is to develop practices by which the anti-Judaism endemic to Christian traditions can be recognized, resisted, and replaced. As part of a commitment to anti-oppression work, this course will begin with an examination of the development and workings of Christian anti-Judaism with connections drawn to relationships between racism and antisemitism. Attention will then turn to how church teachings require examining preaching, worship, catechesis, and pastoral ministry for manifestations of anti-Judaism and antisemitism in North American and global contexts. The course will conclude with workshopping approaches to resisting anti-Judaism in Christian contexts and public spaces.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Daniel Joslyn-Siemiatkoski
Grading Option
Letter
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
Y
Notes
Fundamental Theology or Theological Foundations in Practical Perspective, or similar course.
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5449-01
Jewish Liturgy: History and Theology
BTI Category
Semester
Judaic Studies
FA24
Embedded in rabbinic prayer is a concise statement of Jewish theology. After an examination of the precursors of rabbinic prayer and of the development of the synagogue as an institution, this course will examine the structures and ideas of the prayers themselves as they have been received from the medieval world. This will create a context for a deeper discussion of some key Jewish theological concepts as well as a comparison of Jewish and Christian liturgical traditions.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Langer
T
3-5:25p
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
UNDERGRAD/GRAD SPLIT
School
Boston University Graduate Program in Religion
CAS RN638
Philosophy and Mysticism: Jewish and Islamic Perspectives
BTI Category
Semester
Judaic Studies
FA24
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
2:00pm-3:00PM
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
MA/PHD Split
School
Boston University School of Theology
STHTY 834
Empathy and pluralism: Understanding, developmentally, varieties of faith among and within us
BTI Category
Semester
Practical/Pastoral Theology
FA24
Not Yet Available
Professor
Class Day & Time
Chris Schlauch
W
2:30-5:15pm
Grading Option
Letter
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 2161
Spiritual Formation in Community
BTI Category
Semester
Practical/Pastoral Theology
FA24
This course explores how Christian communities have taught and formed their members in faith both historically and in the recent past, and charts new directions for spiritual formation in the 21st century. It is especially geared towards those who anticipate having responsibility for a community�s spiritual formation. Students will think critically about the efficacy and appropriateness of inherited educational models, and will be equipped to design and cultivate informed and innovative opportunities for spiritual formation in their own ministry context. Students should leave the course with their own holistic theology of spiritual formation across the lifespan. Readings include classic texts (Augustine, George Herbert, Bonhoeffer) alongside pastoral theologians (John Westerhoff, Maria Harris, Eugene Peterson) and studies by sociologists, developmental psychologists, and educational theorists from religious and secular contexts. May be used to meet MDiv Denominational Polity distribution requirement for Episcopal/Anglican.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Walton
T
03:00pm-04:59pm
Grading Option
Letter
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 2362
Blacks, Jews, and Palestinians
BTI Category
Semester
Sociology/Ethnography/Research Methods
FA24
The late mystic and theologian Howard Thurman once characterized human engagement as a long and winding journey leading to the human heart, where the Augustinian interiority opens itself to the divine and the stranger. �Ultimately there is only one place of refuge on this planet for any [human] �that is in another [human�s] heart. To love is to make of one�s heart a swinging door.� Establishing a place of refuge for another is an ethical imperative, what Thurman called humankind�s �responsibility� to God and humanity. But what happens when the other, neighbor, or stranger has ancestral (or immediate) connections to the destruction, displacement, and death of your familial, cultural, or religious community? Is love possible or justifiable within this context? The course will explore both the ethics and theological grammar of prayer, piety, and �sacred songs� in post-Enlightenment Quakerism and the Abrahamic religions to imagine the possible epistemic grounds for contemplative and deliberative human interaction among groups holding competing and colliding conceptions of memory, truth, moral responsibility, and exile/freedom/ fugitivity. With an emphasis on theory and practice, the course will investigate the tension between what John Rawls called comprehensive beliefs and public reason as well as interrogate the ethics of responsibility and love.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Johnson, Terrence
M
03:00pm-04:59pm
Grading Option
Letter
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
Y
Notes
Students must have prior coursework in one of the following areas: African American Studies, Jewish Studies, or Middle East Studies.
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3339
Exploring the Quran
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA24
This course explores the contents of the Quran and probes its place in the history of human civilization. Students will learn about and critically reflect on the following subjects: 1) the Quran's core ideas, stories, laws, parables, and arguments; 2) the historical context in which the Quran was first promulgated and codified; 3) the relationship between the Quran and the preceding literary traditions of the ancient world, in particular the Bible and post-biblical Jewish and Christian writings; and 4) Muslim utilization of the Quran towards religious, intellectual, social, and cultural ends. To meet these goals, we will read a substantial portion of the Quran in translation and draw extensively on modern academic scholarship on the Quran. In addition, lectures will contextualize and complement our encounter with the Quranic text and secondary scholarship. By the end of the semester, students should have the ability to utilize various resources and concordances in order to independently conduct further investigations and critically evaluate claims made about the Quran. Course will have a required discussion section and an optional Arabic section for interested students who have at least two years of Arabic. Jointly offered in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences as Religion 1803.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Goudarzi
W
04:00pm-07:00pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3956
Buddhist Stories: Narrative, Narrative Ethics, and Moral Anthropology
BTI Category
Semester
Buddhist Studies
FA24
This course is a practicum on reading Buddhist stories, learning from them, and living with them. We will engage some exemplary Buddhist stories from three orientations: how to read them well using resources of Narratology; how to use them in moral reflection and ethical understanding; and how they can illuminate who we are as moral beings and help us develop richer lives. We will also explore the connection between narrative ethics and other forms of ethical reflection as well as the relevance of recent cognitive studies about "the moral brain."The Buddhist stories will be selected from across the Buddhist world and from different time periods.No previous study of Buddhism is expected.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Hallisey
R
09:00am-10:59am
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO5007-01
Mahayana Buddhism: Thought and Practice
BTI Category
Semester
Buddhist Studies
FA24
This course explores Mahayana Buddhist thought, meditation practice, narrative, and ritual practice across Asia. We consider texts ancient and modern. After a basic introduction to Buddhism, we take up topics ranging from meditation, to compassion, nirvana, emptiness, Buddha nature, Zen, and Mahayana Buddhist ethics. Our focus is on fundamental theological questions: What are the causes of suffering? How can meditation and ethical practices illuminate sufferings causes, and put an end to them? What is the state of unconditioned awareness, freedom, and joy that lies beyond suffering? Most importantly, what does this all have to do with me? No background in Buddhism is required.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Vale
TR
9-10:15a
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
UNDERGRAD/GRAD SPLIT
School
Boston College Department of Theology
THEO7507-01
Theology of Religions / Comparative Theology
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA24
This seminar will focus on the various theological positions which have been developed with regard to the reality of religious pluralism as well as on the relationship between theology of religions and comparative theology. While we will focus mainly on the works of Christian theologians, we will also pay attention to analogous developments in other religious traditions.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Cornille
T
10a-12:25p
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Boston University School of Theology
STHTA 815
World Religions in Boston
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA24
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
Andrew Shenton
A-Term course: August 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27 (not Sunday 25)
2:00-9:00pm
Grading Option
Letter
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 1646
Jewish Religion and Politics in the 20th Century: Europe, America, and Israel
BTI Category
Semester
Judaic Studies
FA24
The history of Jewish politics and religion is a complex story. Since Jews lived most of their collective lives outside the normative politically sphere (empire, monarchy, nation-state etc.) there is a question whether Jews had a political tradition at all before modernity. The multi-volume The Jewish Political Tradition argues that indeed Jews thought deeply about politics and developed a variety of political traditions even though they were void of much political power. This course will begin with Political-Theological Treatise of the 17th century philosopher Benedict (Baruch) Spinoza and his notion of Judaism as a political religion, and then turn to Karl Marx�s famous essay �On the Jewish Question.� These seminal texts will be our frame to look at how later movements continued to engage the ideas raised in both Spinoza and Marx.We will then pick up the story a bit later � in the 20th century - when Jews became embedded in the political traditions in the U.S. and began to develop a political tradition of sovereignty in a Jewish national movement known as Zionism. Religion remained part of this political story in both overt and covert ways. This course will focus on political and religious radicalism, the figures and movements that offered radical political alternatives, both left and right, progressive and reactionary, ideological and social. The movements will cover the span of the 20th century from labor unions and Jewish communism and socialism in early 20th century America, to the Hebrew Canaanites, the new Religious Post-Zionists in the 21st century and the feminist and Queer revolutions in Judaism.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Magid, Shaul
T
01:00pm-02:59pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 2360
Alternative Spiritualities in the United States
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA24
This course surveys spiritual practices and movements that have been labeled as metaphysical, esoteric, pagan, occult, harmonial, and New Age. We will begin with a historical survey of esoteric spirituality from colonial-era astrology and alchemy to New Age and neopagan traditions, then consider some leading constructive thinkers within alternative spiritual traditions, such as Starhawk and Joanna Macy. The course will also feature field trips to a variety of spiritual organizations and communities. Jointly offered in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences as Religion 1562.
Professor
Class Day & Time
McKanan
T
03:00pm-05:30pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 2508
The Human Condition: Selected Twentieth Century Perspectives
BTI Category
Semester
Systematic Theology & Philosophy (Western)
FA24
This seminar will consider philosophical approaches and perspectives offered by five Western twentieth century thinkers on ethics, religion, politics, and our (self) understanding as human beings. Works from Du Bois, Arendt, Fanon, Levinas, and Ricoeur will taken up to interrogate phenomenological, social, political and religious interpretations of the human condition, and our corresponding possibilities and responsibilities.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Lamberth
W
03:00pm-05:45pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
Background in philosophy or theology is suggested but not required. Limited to 12. Course enrollment is by application in early April. Further instructions will be provided on the Canvas course site. Admitted students will be notified on or before the spring enrollment deadline. Seats may reopen in the Fall drop-add period. Jointly offered in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences as Religion 1596.
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3751
Who Needs God? Rethinking God in Light of Hindu and Christian Theologies
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
FA24
This course reflects on God reconsidered in light of modern and postmodern doubts about the very idea of �God,� in cultures where belief in God, and even understanding of God, is waning. What does needing God mean, for whom? The questions are raised in light of Hindu and Christian scriptures, from philosophical and theological perspectives, and with reference to spiritual paths to union with God in these great traditions. What is missing, if God is missing? Readings include: selected scriptural texts; St. Bonaventure�s Christian Journey of the Mind to God, Sri Sankara's great Goddess hymn, Ocean of Beauty; the 19th century mystics Ramakrishna and T�r�se of Lisieux; 20th century prophets of compassion and justice, Mohandas K. Gandhi and Dorothy Day. Comparing Hindu and Christian traditions on God challenge 21st century ideas of God, religion, self, but the course strongly welcomes insights from other traditions ancient and modern. Jointly offered in the Faculty of Arts and Science as Religion 1059. Jointly offered in the Faculty of Arts and Science as Religion 1059.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Clooney
MW
10:30am-11:45am
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisite?
N
Notes
N
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