Christianity has been intertwined with American history, culture, and politics since the first arrival of European explorers. The close connection between faith and culture has been a double-edged sword, alternately supporting and inhibiting the growth of a vibrant and faithful church. Join us as we discuss the many ups and occasional downs of Christianity’s sojourn …
View course details “History of Religion in America”

Gain an introductory grasp of the central doctrines and tasks of Christian theology. Learn to think doctrinally in the context of our current moment, situating theology within the industrialized West’s post-Christian context. Reflect on Christianity’s central doctrines in relation to a contemporary society that’s constituted by deep pluralisms and where the logic of Christian thought …
View course details “Systematic Theology Overview”

Beginning with the premise that all theology is contextual, we will explore—through the lens of postcolonialism—how theology in the global south and elsewhere has been contextualized. Expect to gain a solid grounding in postcolonial theory, in particular key concepts such as Orientalism, otherness, hybridity, hegemony, subalternity, and their relevance to evangelical theology. Format Onsite/Online Credit …
View course details “Postcolonial Theology”

A comprehensive experience of conversion is essential for spiritual transformation and a vital piety. Join us as we examine the theology of religious experience, exploring the nature and character of Christian conversion, Christian initiation, and spiritual change. Learn to think critically and theologically about religious experience in general, with a particular focus on the nature …
View course details “Conversion & Transformation”

The Bible uses a number of images to represent friendship, including the beautiful picture of the knitting together of souls (1 Sam 18:1). This splendid image captures the essence of spiritual friendship: intimacy, loyalty, intentional connection, and a relationship undertaken in the presence of Christ. Spiritual friendship is an ancient practice. While theological reflection on …
View course details “Spiritual Friendship”

Through the centuries, women—nuns, mothers, mystics, preachers, teachers, suffragists, and household managers—interpreted Scripture through their writings, art, and music. Their forgotten or neglected interpretations of the Bible deserve our attention. Examine how women have read and interpreted the Bible, beginning with the period of the early church. Encounter the writings of medieval visionaries, Renaissance exegetes, …
View course details “Silent No More: Women Interpreters of the Bible”

This course offers a sweeping survey of Christian history, with special attention to the first thousand years. It explores the many and varied ways Christians both embodied and betrayed the way of Jesus Christ. While heavily informed by the relevant primary sources and historical best-practice, the unit seeks to draw out tentative lessons for contemporary …
View course details “Bullies and Saints: Lessons from Church History”

Christian salvation is a gift, but what is the nature of that gift? The doctrine of theosis suggests that God’s best gift in salvation is, quite simply, God’s self. Theosis––also called “divinization” or “deification”––teaches that God the Father sends the Son and the Spirit so that the saints may partake of the Trinity’s own divine …
View course details “Partaking of the Divine Nature: Salvation, Holiness and the Doctrine of God”

Recent census data reveals that over half of the population in BC identify as ‘no religion.’ People who have spent some or all of their life in Christianity feel less and less at home there. For 60 years, many have imagined that Christianity isn’t so much dying as going through a once in an epoch …
View course details “A Christianity to Call Home”

The Most Rev. Dr. Lynne McNaughton will lead this course.  “There is no need to look for God here or there. God is no farther away than the door of your own heart.”  Meister Eckhart Mystics are people with vivid, direct experience of God. Often dismissed by the patriarchy as ethereal, they are instead grounded in community, …
View course details “Clothed in God: Christian Mystics”