Cuddesdon School of Theology and Ministry (CSTM)

Transcription

1 Cuddesdon School of Theology and Ministry (CSTM) Looking to deepen your discipleship? Beginning to grapple with theology? Exploring your vocation? Longing to understand how Christianity can flourish in contemporary culture? This course will enable you to become more confident in your faith, discipleship and Christian understanding. Your time at Cuddesdon will help you grow in knowledge, and enable you to draw effectively on a solid understanding of the Bible and the Christian tradition. You will be able to explore and be open to a variety of pathways in response to God s call to discipleship and ministry, growing in awareness of yourself and others.

2 CUDDESDON SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY & MINISTRY This is a three-year part-time course introducing key areas of study in theology and ministry. The course is divided into eleven modules taught over nine terms. Each term consists of five evening sessions and one Saturday study day. Students are also invited to attend the optional Biblical Studies Summer School. The course may be used as a way to deepen your faith and understanding, to explore your own vocation, and to hear more clearly what God is calling you to do and be. Additionally, it can lead to the completion of a Cuddesdon Certificate in Theology and Ministry, offering a strong basis for further study. Students attend fortnightly lectures at Ripon College Cuddesdon on Thursday evenings between 5.45pm and 9.00pm. Evenings begin with worship, usually Evening Prayer with the College, at 5.45pm, followed by supper at 6.15pm. The teaching sessions take place from 7.00pm until 9.00pm. Students benefit from the wide range of theological resources, open seminars and excellent teaching at Cuddesdon, as well as having the opportunity to meet and chat with residential ordinands and staff.

3 COURSE CONTENT An Introductory Session will provide information on the practical aspects of the course and assessment together with an introduction to the study of theology and the relationship between theology and personal faith. New and prospective students will have the opportunity to reflect on their own current understanding and expectations and to talk with returning students about their experience of the course. The course is run as a 3-year rolling programme, and students can join at the beginning of any term. Each term s modules will have a thematic core. Study days are also thematic, either further developing the subject studied in the Thursday modules or, as in the case of Theological Reflection and Anglican Ecclesiology, exploring a stand-alone subject. The optional Summer School in Biblical Studies invites participants to reflect on the many roles that the Bible plays throughout the world, so as to encourage creative engagement with its texts in ways which innovate and create good practice in our ministries and lives. THE CUDDESDON CERTIFICATE The academic level of the Cuddesdon Certificate is benchmarked to the typical requirements of Higher Education level 4. Students completing individual modules or the whole programme will therefore be well placed to continue further study through a university based Diploma or Foundation Degree course. A Certificate in Theology and Ministry will be awarded to students on successful completion of eight modules. The Cuddesdon Certificate aims to integrate theoretical understanding with practical experience in Christian discipleship and ministry. A typical assessment would comprise one 2,000 word essay supported by a practice-based assignment of about 1,000 words.

4 YEAR ONE TERM 1: The New Testament Church - the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles. Study Day: The Bible and the church today. TERM 2: Understanding the Trinity and Christology - the development of doctrine in the early church and its application today. Study Day: Christian ethics. Optional study skills workshop. TERM 3: Christian Spiritualities - experiences of prayer and God s calling in the Bible, and how Christians express their relationship with God. Study Day: The practice of prayer. YEAR TWO TERM 4: Old Testament - the texts and theology of the Old Testament. Study Day: Visions of God in the Old Testament. TERM 5: Mission in contemporary society - approaches to mission in scripture and history, and the mission of today s church. Study Day: The church in the community. TERM 6: Practical skills for ministry - different areas of ministry within the life of the church. Study Day: Theological Reflection. YEAR THREE TERM 7: Jesus and the Gospels - the ministry of Jesus in the Gospel narratives, how we understand the Gospels and how they inform the life of the church today. Study Day: Johannine literature. TERM 8: The Church through history - some key stages in the history of the Church. Study Day: Anglican Ecclesiology. TERM 9: Introduction to Christian worship - the history of Christian worship and the different modes of worship used in churches today. Study Day: The Psychology of faith and worship.

5 COURSE DATES INTRODUCTORY SESSION: Saturday, 3 October 2015 TERM 1 8 October October October November November 2015 TERM 2 28 January February February March March 2016 TERM 3 28 April May May June June 2016 STUDY DAYS Cuddesdon also offers three optional Study Days held on Saturdays throughout each year which are open to everyone and are included in the CSTM fee. Saturday, 7 November 2015 Essay writing workshop: Saturday, 30 January 2016 Saturday, 27 February 2016 Saturday, 14 May 2016 BIBLICAL STUDIES SUMMER SCHOOL Sunday, 10 July to Saturday, 16 July 2016 On the theme of migration COURSE DATES INTRODUCTORY SESSION: Saturday, 8 October 2016 TERM 1 13 October October November November December 2016 TERM 2 19 January February February March March 2017 TERM 3 27 April May May June June 2017 STUDY DAYS: Saturday, 5 November 2016 Essay writing workshop: Saturday, 28 January 2017 Saturday, 25 February 2017 Saturday, 10 June 2017

6 REGISTRATION AND FEES One time registration fee: 25 Course fees : 250 per term Course fees : 250 per term Study days are included in course fees and CSTM students are entitled to a reduced fee for the Biblical Studies Summer School - please ask for details. Further information and a registration form are available on our website at Cuddesdon School of Theology and Ministry Ripon College Cuddesdon Oxford OX44 9EX tel: +44 (0) cstm@rcc.ac.uk Registered Charity No