UDTS | Christian Leadership Program Registration Info
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Christian Leadership Program:
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CLP Curricular Goals
SPRING AND SUMMER 2024 REGISTRATION IS OPEN! Deadline for registration is 1 week prior to the date of the first class. Below are our current course descriptions. Spring 2024 courses will begin online on January 16, 2024. Summer classes will begin online on May 6, 2024. Contact Becky Shellabarger at DERegistration@dbq.edu with any questions. Important information: We are in the process of transitioning our courses to be taught in 8 week semesters instead of the current 12 weeks. In the Spring 2024 semester, Foundations of Christian Education and Christian Caregiving for Pastors and Leaders will be taught in 8 weeks. The other courses will remain 12 weeks for the Spring and Summer 2024 semesters. It is anticipated that the remaining courses will transition to the new 8 week format over the 2024-2025 academic year. Please contact Becky Shellabarger, Director of the Christian Leadership Program with any questions (DERegistration@dbq.edu) Spring 2024: All 8 core courses will be offered. Please read the Important Information above. All Spring courses begin online on January 16, 2024. In addition to the core courses the following 8-week elective course will be offered:
Summer 2024: The following courses will be offered during Summer 2024. Dates for the summer courses are May 6, 2024 - July 26, 2024.
August 2024: We invite you to join us in Dubuque for in-person CLP courses during our August seminary intensive. Classes will take place August 5-9, 2024. This is an opportunity to not only take core courses in person on campus at UDTS, but an opportunity to be a part of the greater seminary activities during the August intensive including: Sunday welcome dinner, daily chapel and lunch, participation in the Warren Lecture series, CLP group mid-week dinner and the chance to meet some of your professors and classmates in person. Registration will open in Spring 2024, syllabi will be posted at a later date. Contact Becky Shellabarger at DERegistration@dbq.edu with any questions.
Please review the registration procedures below:
Here is the list of our core course options:
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Core CLP Course Descriptions A complete syllabus with weekly assignments is provided at the start of each class. For coursework technology requirements, please click on "Program Info" in the green box to the right above. Please direct any issues or problems of a technical nature to our university technology help desk at helpdesk@dbq.edu Please do not contact professors with technical issues.
ONLINE LEARNING COURSE There are no prerequisites or required textbooks for this course. The Online Learning Course is designed to prepare students for all online courses with the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary. Newly Accepted Students
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course provides an overview of Presbyterian Church (USA) polity, both in principle and practice. Particular emphasis will be given to the use of the constitution in the local congregation and governing bodies. The class will include lectures, discussion posts, case studies, and outside assignments. COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES
The primary objectives of the course are to:
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
REQUIRED TEXTS (Buy printed copies)
RECOMMENDED FOR FURTHER STUDY
INTRODUCTION TO REFORMED THEOLOGYInstructor: Dr. David W. Congdon COURSE DESCRIPTION This course will introduce the theology of the Reformed tradition. It is designed to familiarize you with the broad contours of the tradition that flows from the Protestant Reformation and was heavily influenced by the writings of John Calvin, and it will meet the particular needs of those training to be Commissioned Ruling Elders in the Presbyterian Church (USA). Our journey through the Reformed tradition will be historical in nature, meaning we will trace the development of this tradition from its origins to the present day by looking at key Reformed confessions and catechisms. Taking this approach will illuminate what Reformed theologians mean when they say their tradition is “Reformed and always reforming.” We will follow a “seminar” format in this class, which means our exploration will combine readings, discussion, and occasional lectures or notes from the professor. Each week I encourage you to raise questions and make observations about the readings. As we go along I will clarify complicated concepts and provide historical context for the document in question. You are not expected to memorize these texts but rather to become familiar with the main themes and ideas, so that you can draw upon them in your personal faith and in discussions with others. Whether you are a member of the PCUSA—and possibly in training to become a Commissioned Ruling Elder—or a member of another church, hopefully you will find these documents enlightening. I will post video lectures each week along with questions for discussion. In addition, I would like to offer you all the chance to have an optional video chat Q&A time with me, where you can ask questions both to me and to each other. Please let me know if you are interested in this. COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES
COURSE ASSESSMENTS In order to receive a passing grade, students must demonstrate:
In a 1942 essay, “Two Creeds for Every Church,” the philosopher William Pepperell Montague addresses the fact that modern Christians exist in a very different world from the ancient creeds (he was thinking of the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds).
Some people no longer accept the traditional ideas of virgin birth or the second coming, for example, while others see those creeds as missing key items like talk of Jesus’ ministry and social justice. But Montague disagreed both with
those who thought we should interpret the ancient creeds symbolically and with those who wanted to replace those creeds with a modern creed that matched the faith of people today. His solution was to propose that churches adopt two
creeds: a classic creed representing the traditional faith of the church and a modern creed representing the views of Christians today. The latter would be a creed open to constant revision as our knowledge of science, philosophy,
religion, and other subjects continues to advance. Do you agree with Montague’s proposal? Why or why
not? How does the Reformed tradition help inform your position? What doctrines
or ideas would you include in the second, modern creed? REQUIRED TEXTS
RECOMMENDED TEXTS (Not Required)
Instructor: The Rev. Dr. Kevin Goodrich, O.P. An introduction to the basic principles of preaching, this course will give attention to sermon design and development, proper handling of the biblical text to derive the message of the sermon, illustrating and applying the message, types of sermons, and sermon delivery. Course Objectives:
Required Texts: Long, Thomas. The Witness of Preaching. 3rd edition. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2005. Larson, Craig and Haddon Robinson, eds. The Art and Craft of Biblical Preaching: A Comprehensive Resource for Today’s Communicators. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. A modern English translation of the Bible, with study notes. Such as the NRSV Study Bible.
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES
This course is a survey and introduction to the content, message, interpretation, and background of the Old Testament. The course will aim to:
By the conclusion of the course, students should be able to:
REQUIRED TEXTS Schlimm, Matthew Richard. This Strange and Sacred Scripture: Wrestling with the Old Testament and Its Oddities. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic, 2015. ISBN: 978-0801039799. The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version. New York: Oxford University Press, 2018. ISBN: 978-0190276041.
Instructor: Rev. Benjamin Fitzgerald-Fye Course Description This course surveys the contents of the New Testament and serves as an introduction to its content, themes, and interpretive approaches. Of course, you will also be reading the New Testament with the goal of expanding your understanding
of historical, social, and other contexts.
Required Books
Weekly Assignments
![]() Instructor: Rev. Dr. Richard J. Shaffer Jr. Course Description Course Objectives
Course Assessment
Required Texts (Students will need to have these texts available for use throughout the course)
Suggested Texts (These texts are not required, but will provide added insight for students who want to dig deeper)
CHRISTIAN CAREGIVING: FOR PASTORS and LEADERS (NOTE: FOR THE SPRING 2024 SEMESTER, THIS COURSE WILL BE TAUGHT IN A SHORTER 8 WEEK FORMAT INSTEAD OF 12 WEEKS.) Instructor: Dr. Beth McCaw COURSE DESCRIPTION COURSE OBJECTIVES ENGAGEMENT AND EVALUATION: REQUIRED TEXTS:
FOUNDATIONS OF CHRISTIAN EDUCATION (NOTE: FOR THE SPRING 2024 SEMESTER, THIS COURSE WILL BE TAUGHT IN A SHORTER 8 WEEK FORMAT INSTEAD OF 12 WEEKS.)Instructor: Dr. Susan ForsheyEmail: sforshey@dbq.edu Course Description This course explores the role and practice of the teaching and discipling ministries of the church as graced means of cultivating the character of Christ personally and corporately. An incarnational model of teaching and learning—engaging the whole person—will be emphasized. Students will reflect on their own experiences of these ministries, both as teacher and student; engage texts on teaching and instructional design, the neuroscience of learning and habit formation; contemplative attention; spiritual formation in children and youth; and practice practical theological reflection as they build skills for teaching in various contexts. Models for learning, recent cognitive research, and instructional design models will be dialogue partners as students select and describe a context of teaching and learning; then design, teach, and evaluate a teaching/learning experience. Student Learning Objectives By participating fully in this class, students will: 1. Be able to identify and build on biblical, theological, and practical foundations for the educational tasks of the local congregation. 2. Use models for structuring the worship and ministry of congregations in ways that call and shape disciples from spiritual infancy to maturity in Christian community and public witness, as measured by the evaluations of a teaching session. CRE Curricular Goals 1. Be formed by, live in, and minister out of Scripture and the historical and theological tradition of the Church. 2. Educate and equip individuals and congregations to live and minister joyfully and faithfully as part of their own denomination and the ecumenical church. 3. Integrate theology and practice in all areas of life and ministry. Requirements 1. Demonstrate reflective understanding of the assigned reading and lectures by submitting online journals each week (20% of grade). 2. Comment on two colleague online posts each week (10%) 3. Write a context description of church or ministry that will be the setting for teaching a learning experience (35% of grade). 4. Plan a learning experience (35% of grade). Required Books: Harold Percy. Your Church Can Thrive. (Abingdon, 2005) Maria Lichtmann. The Teacher's Way: Teaching and the Contemplative Life (Paulist Press, 2005) David Sousa. How the Brain Learns. 5th Edition (Corwin, 2016) (There is a more expensive 6th edition, but we will be using the 5th edition). (THE FOLLOWING COURSE IS AN ELECTIVE AND WILL BE TAUGHT IN A SHORTER 8 WEEK FORMAT INSTEAD OF 12 WEEKS.)![]() Instructor : Rev. Dr. Loren Shellabarger III Email: Lshellabarger@dbq.edu, lshellab@gmail.com Course Description and Objectives This course in Congregational Leadership and Administration examines Biblical and theological concepts of leadership, explores current secular understandings of leadership, and connects them to church leadership, demystifies financial reports commonly used by the church, discusses administrative techniques for church leaders, and applies these concepts and understandings to missional contexts. Students will gain an appreciation of following God’s leadership as they learn to lead others. By the conclusion of this course, students should be able to: - Describe various leadership traits and connect them to Scriptural characters - Appropriately apply secular leadership techniques to church leadership - Understand various financial reports and apply them to benefit the church - Discover how to follow God while looking to lead the church Required Texts Brown, Brene. Dare to Lead. New York: Random House, 2018. ISBN 978-0399592522 Nouwen, Henri. In the Name of Jesus. New York: Crossroad Publishing, 1989. ISBN 978-0824512590 Bolsinger, Tod. Canoeing the Mountains. Downers Grove, Ill.: Intervarsity Press, 2015. ISBN 978-0830841264 Zscheile, Dwight et al. Leading Faithful Innovation. Fortress Press, Minneapolis, 2023. ISBN 978-1506488769 Jamieson, J. T. & Jamieson, P. D. (2009). Ministry and money: A practical guide for pastors. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0664231989 |