top of page

RELIGION & CONFLICT TRANSFORMATION
CERTIFICATE (PRE-APPROVED COURSES)

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMPS7006

Grief and Loss

BTI Category

Semester

Practical/Pastoral Theology

FA23

Grief may be understood as the response to a significant loss. We will explore pastoral, theological, religious, and secular perspectives on grief and loss and seek to integrate these perspectives where appropriate. We'll consider important new research in thanatology and review traditional psychological theories of grief in light of contemporary critiques. We will explore the experience of grief in light of context and culture and consider which features may be universal. We will attend to often unrecognized dimensions of grief�disenfranchised grief and the grief born of injustice. We'll focus on how to respond pastorally to grieving individuals and communities.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Melissa Kelly

R

9:30-11:50

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

N

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMPS7090

Ministry in a Diverse Church

BTI Category

Semester

Practical/Pastoral Theology

FA23

Catholicism in the United States is presently shaped by rich cultural traditions that demand creative approaches to ministry in the midst of diversity. Nearly 45% of all Catholics in the country are Hispanic, 40% Euro-American, 4% Asian-American, 3.7% African-American, among others. Students in this course explore key questions and discuss ministerial strategies that will help them develop cultural competencies for effective ministry today. The course builds on the U.S. Latino/a Catholic experience as a case study while addressing core issues in ministry that affect everyone in the Church. Ecumenical and international perspectives are welcomed into this conversation.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Hosffman Ospino

ASYN

ASYN

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

Y

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

N

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMPS7277

Trauma Healing and Prevention

BTI Category

Semester

Practical/Pastoral Theology

FA23

Traumatization occurs at the interrelated social, psychic, and physiological boundaries of life and death. This course offers an introduction to trauma healing and prevention for contexts of pastoral and spiritual care. It surveys approaches to trauma developed in peacebuilding, public health, and psychology, as well as the emerging subfield of trauma theology. The final research paper is a vocational case study.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Heather M. DuBois

R

3:30-5:30

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

N

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMPT8138

Impasse and Spiritual Transormation

BTI Category

Semester

Practical/Pastoral Theology

FA23

This course gathers multi-disciplinary resources for spiritual responses to intractable conflicts. It develops a working social theory definition of identity and traces dynamics of transformation in The Dark Night by John of the Cross. Next, it examines Constance Fitzgerald�s concept of impasse and its implications for socio-political life. Finally, it reflects on wisdom, hope, and imagination in light of the foregoing challenges.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Heather M. DuBois

T

3:30-5:30

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

Y

Notes

One year of graduate level theology

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TBD

Race, Gender, and Ethics

BTI Category

Semester

Ethics (All Traditions)

FA23

TBD

Professor

Class Day & Time

Christina McRorie

M

12:30-2:50

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

TBD

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

TBD

Notes

N

School

Boston College Department of Theology

THEO7763

Forgiveness: Theological and Philsophical Issues

BTI Category

Semester

Ethics (All Traditions)

FA23

This graduate course will examine theological and philosophical interpretations of forgiveness and related topics such as guilt, repentance, and accountability. We will focus on various accounts of what it means to forgive a wrongdoer, what it means to be forgiven, and how forgiveness is related to reconciliation. We will also examine whether and, if so, how forgiveness might pertain not only to interpersonal but also intrapersonal and collective wrongdoing. Special attention will be placed on the relation of forgiveness to the virtues of mercy and justice. Readings will include historical figures such as Thomas Aquinas, Joseph Butler, and Fredrich Nietzsche, contemporary philosophers Nicholas Wolterstorff, Martha Nussbaum, and Charles Griswold, and contemporary theologians Miroslav Volf, Anthony Bash, and James Alison. Course requirements: class participation, one seminar presentation, final paper. This is intended for advanced MA and PhD students.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Stephen J Pope

W

10:00-12:25

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

Class Participation; seminar presentation; final paper. Intended for advanced masters or PhD students

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMPS7078

Pastoral Care of the Family

BTI Category

Semester

Practical/Pastoral Theology

FA23

This course presents specific topics that are important for effective and compassionate pastoral care of families today. We will examine challenging realities that may shape and/or disturb families and lead members to seek pastoral care, such as domestic violence, substance abuse, imprisonment of a family member, grief and loss, and family caregiver stress. We will consider the specific needs of families affected by injustices and harsh difficulties such as poverty and immigrant/refugee status. We will consider the specific roles and strategies of the pastoral caregiver and the faith community in helping families to negotiate challenges and create stability and well-being.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Melissa Kelly

T

12:30-3:00

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

N

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMPS7182

Pastoral Care in/with Communities of Faith: Creating Networks of Care

BTI Category

Semester

Practical/Pastoral Theology

FA23

Life is in inherently relational, multidimensional, interconnected, and located within larger systems and structures � i.e. communities. Thus, our practices of pastoral care and counseling must likewise attend to the multidimensional and systemic nature of relationality. This course uses an interdisciplinary approach to explore personal, pastoral, and communal processes of creating networks of care in communities of faith and para-church organizations. Both pastoral and lay leaders will learn how to engage and utilize systems theory, conflict theory, therapeutic skills and processes, and theological and spiritual resources to navigate conflict, foster dialogue, and build constructive solutions and possibilities in community as part of an overarching practice of pastoral care. Particular attention will be given to one’s self-in-relationship and the capacity to remain a non-anxious, non-reactive constructive presence.

Professor

Class Day & Time

William Roozeboom

ASYN

ASYN

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

Y

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

N

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMRE7083

Educating for Justice and Peace

BTI Category

Semester

Religious Education & Youth Ministry

FA23

In this course, students study and practice initiatives that work for understanding, justice, and peace. Recognizing that much injustice happens across some divide, the course begins with an investigation of our experiences of otherness and connection. We consider how cultural narratives undergird our sence of identity and purpose, and investigate them theologically. We look to educational theorists from the early 20th century to the present, who reflect that education itself is a work of justice. The course culminated with group projects that give students an oppurtunity for spreakking and listening across divides for the sake of understanding and justice.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Theresa A. O'Keefe

W

10:00-12:50

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

N

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TMST7247

Faith & Justice: Liberation Theologies in the US

BTI Category

Semester

Systematic Theology & Philosophy (Western)

FA23

Liberation theologies are modes of theological discourse that rethink the purpose of religious thought and practice by placing attention on distinctive experiences of injustice and inequality encountered by different individuals and social groups. Although the liberation theology movement is now a global one, the United States has been the birthplace of a good number of liberation theologies. This course examines the emergence, development, emphases, and methodologies of four of these, including African American/Black theology of liberation, feminist theology of liberation, Latino/a theology of liberation, and LGBTQ theology of liberation. Besides offering a solid introduction to liberation theology, the course analyzes basic concepts underlying theories of injustice, domination, and oppression.

Professor

Class Day & Time

Benjamin Valentin

T

3:30-6:20

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

N

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

N

School

Boston College School of Theology & Ministry

TBD

Ethics of Global Development

BTI Category

Semester

Ethics (All Traditions)

FA23

TBD

Professor

Class Day & Time

Christina McRorie

T

10:00-12:20

Grading Option

Letter

Credits

3

Professor Approval Req'd?

TBD

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

TBD

Notes

N

School

Boston University Graduate Program in Religion

GRS RN766

Tolerance

BTI Category

Semester

Ethics (All Traditions)

FA23

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

11:00-12:15

Grading Option

Audit; Letter; P/F

Credits

4

Professor Approval Req'd?

Y

Online?

N

Prerequisite?

N

Notes

DOCTORAL

bottom of page