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Core Requirements

CM101 Introduction to Preaching
Rienstra
First-year students explore and grasp a biblical and Reformed vision of preaching. Includes a sermon preparation workshop and a "lab" in which written and preached sermons are carefully analyzed by faculty and peers. Significant homiletical concerns are presented, discussed, clarified, and applied to the task of preaching.
CM102 Seminar in Spiritual Formation
Our vocation to love God "with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" is a challenge for people of faith today as it has been throughout the centuries. The seminar will survey diverse traditions of Christian faith to see how believers throughout history have responded to and struggled with being formed in faith and love. Using a variety of spiritual practices and through critical reflection, students will explore formation in loving God with heart and soul and mind. 1.5 credits.
CM103 Seminar in Congregational Studies
This seminar cultivates the art of knowing a congregation (or other ministry site), its social and historical contextx, its culture and identity, its process and institutional logic. Students will practice various methods for studying and critically reflecting on congregational life in light of their vocation as practicing theologians. 1.5 credits.
CM104 Formation of Pastoral Identity
This course is a journey of the development of pastoral identity that is spread out over the five years of the Distance Learning program.  Twice each year, in connection with the on-campus intensive, the student will write a 3-5 page reflection paper that reflects personal, spiritual and vocational growth in ministry. 1 credit.
CM112 Seminar on Communicating the Gospel
This seminar cultivates the ability to communicate the gospel in articulate, relevant, and true ways among people for whom faith in Jesus Christ is not yet formed. The seminar nurtures personal practices and patterns of communication that correspond to the calling of the whole people of God to give witness to Christ in life, word, and deed. 2 credits.
CM113 Seminar on the Pastor as Person
Hamman
This seminar explores the ways in which a minister's life history, spiritual growth, and vocation intersect and shape his/her personal and professional identity.  Students will reflect on their own psychological and spiritual development and their opportunities for personal growth. They will develop their own particular plans for self-care. Students must either have completed or be concurrently registered for CM115. 2 credits.
CM115 An Introduction to Counsel and Care
Hamman
In this introductory course, students explore giving counsel and offering care as ministers of Word and sacrament. They develop an understanding of the fundamental principles of pastoral care and acquire basic skills required for giving counsel and offering care. Numerous pastoral themes are addressed in lectures, learning labs, and small group interaction. Students will be encouraged to develop their own pastoral presence in offering counsel and care. 
CM120 Leading Christian Communities
An introduction to the theory and practice of Christian leadership from a missional and theological perspective. A course for seniors. 
CM121 Church Governance and Denominational Standards (J-Term)
G. Brown. Billings
Within the context of an overall theology of church governance, explores the candidate's specific ecclesiastical tradition (including polity and standards) as a framework for mission. 2 credits.
CM122 Empowering Christian Education
G. Brown
This course is designed to introduce learners to the field of Christian religious education and to equip them for the church's teaching ministry. In addition to developing an understanding of fundamental principles of teaching and learning, learners will be exposed to five basic models of teaching and locate themselves within one of four distinctive approaches to Christian religious education.
CM123 Seminar on Teaching and Learning
G. Brown
This seminar integrates experiential learning in teaching churches under the supervision of mentors with critical reflection in peer group settings on the practice of Christian religious education. The focus is on developing competence as a teacher and learner through the practice of ministry and critical reflection. Students must either have completed or be concurrently registered for CM122. 1.5 credits.
CM124 Worship
Rienstra
An exploration of the ways in which the church's worship declares God's worth, expresses the church's faith, mediates divine grace, and empowers God's people for mission. 1.5 credits.

 

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Required Courses, Dual Track Master of Divinity - Master of Social Work

CM331 Dual Track Cohort Group
Swier
Cohort group meets bi-weekly during the first year of the Dual Track degree program. 1 credit

CM332 Dual Track Cohort Group
Cohort group meets weekly during the second year of the Dual Track degree program. 2 credits

CM333 Dual Track Cohort Group 
Swier
Cohort group meets online during the third year of the Dual Track degree program. 1.5 credits

CM334 Dual Track Cohort Group 
Swier
Cohort group meets online during the fourth year of the Dual Track degree program. 1.5 credits

 

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Vocational Courses, Pastoral Care and Counseling

CM498 Care and Counsel across Cultures
Hamman
How do different cultures view self, God, family, identity, gender, time ,crisis, control, vulnerability, healing, and mental health?  Learn how to become a significant and facilitative presence to a person or persons from another culture and reflect upon how the Body of Christ engages different cultures.  Students will learn perceptive attentiveness, openness, acceptance, trust, curiosity, culturally informed teaching and preaching, and theological reflection on counsel across cultures.

CM499 Family of Origin Group
Hamman
Teaches the theory of family relationships and assesses the impact of those relationships on a pastor's person and call to the ministry. Seeking both cognitive and emotional knowledge, the Family of Origin Group gives students the opportunity to look carefully at the relationships that formed them and the ways of being in relationship they bring to their ministry. 1.5 credits.

CM513 Basic Clinical Pastoral Education -
A pastoral ministry practicum that integrates the theory and practice of ministry in a clinical setting with special attention given to the person in ministry. A basic practicum accredited by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education. 6 credits

CM513N Basic Clinical Pastoral Education - non-accredited
A pastoral ministry practicum that integrates the theory and practice of ministry in a clinical setting with special attention given to the person in ministry. Ministry is not completed in an accredited CPE setting. 6 credits

CM527 Ministry at the End of Life
Floding
Provides a broad introduction to the privilege of ministry at the end of life. The class will consider practical issues such as the dying experience, pastoral care of the dying, partners in ministry, the funeral sermon and worship service, and bereavement ministry. Students will examine the theology and ethics surrounding the end-of-life and look at the social history of death in America. This course equips Christian caregivers with knowledge and skills for effective ministry to the dying and their loved ones. 1.5 credits

CM528 Ministry as Grief Work
Hamman
Identifies the life-giving work of mourning and grieving as essential to any pastoral ministry. Embracing interdisciplinary, this course draws on biblical, theological, psychological, and sociological insights. It has three distinct foci: 1) Students will be empowered to grieve personal losses in their lives and disappointments experienced in ministry; 2) Students will be equipped to facilitate the work of mourning in the lives of individuals and families; 3) Students will be prepared to guide the grief process for a large group of people (such as a congregation).

CM578 Becoming a Pastor
Hamman
Addresses the relationship between a pastor's personality (which includes the desire for healing, wholeness, and holiness) on the one hand, and a pastor's conviction of being called by God to enter the ministry on the other. To highlight the dynamic relationship between the deeply personal and the grace-filled mystery, the class will look at the psychobiographies of pastors and prominent theologians (Luther, Bonhoeffer, and others).

CM584 Compassionate Resistance
Hamman
Explores the pastor and the church in their roles as priest, prophet, and monarch in a world of suffering injustice, economic and social inequality, and violence.  Special emphasis given to experiences of women, children, the elderly, the poor, persons who experience mental illness, persons who are not heterosexual, victims of violence, and those who find themselves marginalized by society and the church.  Together we will seek ways to promote compassion, distributive justice, restoration, reconcilliation, forgiveness, and unity in Christ.  Prereq: CM115 & FM111

CM593 Embodiment 
Hamman
Addresses the ambivalence the Christian faith portrays towards the human body.  How can the Christian faith help individuals embrace their embodied existence?  Themes include neuroscience, spirituality, the body and food, body image, cutting/self-mutilation, the abused/violated body, the body with disability, the body and aging, expressions and theological implications of human sexuality, and dying bodies.

 

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Vocational Courses, Religious Education

CM532 Equipping for Teaching and Leadership
G. Brown
Skills taught in this course include discerning spiritual gifts, calling people to service, and equipping teachers and leaders for their ministries and affirming their contributions. A variety of methods and media will be used.

CM534 Educating for Transformation
G. Brown
Church education frequently limits its focus to information and formation. Romans 12:1-3 reminds pastors and religious educators that education in the church also needs to attend to transformation. This seminar-style course is designed to introduce participants to the thought of James E. Loder and other educators. Participants will explore practical implications of the theoretical perspectives of Loder and others. 1.5 credits

CM541 Equipping for Social Justice
G. Brown 
The focus of this half-semester course is equipping congregations for witness in a world deeply marked by injustice and violence.  The emphasis will be on identifying pressing social issues, understanding the dynamics of transformative learning, and equipping congregations to develop relevant responses to human need.  Learners will be given opportunity to focus on a specific issue. 1.5 credits

 

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Vocational Courses, Worship and Preaching

CM451 RCA Worship
Drawing from Scripture and Reformed confessions and liturgies, and in sympathetic discussion with a wide range of other worshiping traditions, this course will present, discuss, clarify, and apply a Reformed vision of worship to congregational settings in the RCA in the United States and Canada. 2.5 credits

CM547 Preaching in the Urban Context
Participants will explore authentic strategies for preaching and effectively communicating the gospel of Jesus Christ to urban, contemporary hearers. In dialogue with peers and the professor, participants will reflect on the person of the preacher, examine the urban context, explore the homiletical demands in diverse city congregations, and incorporate experiential context and theological content in sermons. Participants will explore new strategies for preaching, reflective of their commitment to the biblical text, the urban community, and their personal voice.

CM548 Keeping and Talking the Word
T. Brown
A course designed to both consider and practice the centuries long spiritual discipline of scripture memorization. With specific consideration to the nature and history of the oral transmission of the scriptures and building on specific training in contemplative exegesis, each participant will prepare and perform selected portions of the biblical witness and participate in a larger group performance of the same.

CM555 Seeker-Sensitive Preaching
T. Brown
Investigates, evaluates, and implements strategies for preaching in a "post-Christian" culture. The course will evaluate the phenomenon of "seeker-sensitive worship" and offer a vision for preaching that is both responsive to the Reformed heritage and sensitive to contemporary culture.

CM567 Spirituality for Preaching
T. Brown
Participants explore and exercise the classic disciplines of the Christian life that for centuries have sustained those whom God has called to preach. The course focuses on a "contemplative exegetical" reading of St. Paul's letter to the Colossians. In alternating rhythms of lectio continua and lectio divina, prayer, silence, meditation, and mutual encouragement, participants ready themselves for "a long obedience in the same direction."

CM585 Issues in "Contemporary" and "Emerging" Worship 
Rienstra
How does the church worship authentically and faithfully in a postmodern world?  In this course, students learn to make informed judgments, both theologically and pastorally, regarding the design of worship in the present era.  Explores the historical influence of the church growth, charismatic, and liturgical renewal movements; the changing use of music, the arts, and technology to express and shape the church's devotion; and the shifting post-modern paradigms of knowing, praying and being-in- community. Prereq: TF104

CM592 Worship Words: Discipling Language for Faithful Ministry
Rienstra
Carefully examines the role and use of language in worship, looking at Contemporary Worship Music, hymns, prayers, responsive readings, sermons, etc.  Students renew appreciation for and understand the beauty and power of words in worship.  They become better equipped by inspiration and weekly exercises to employ language more intentionally in worship preparation for the greater glory of God and the greater blessing of God's people. Topics include linguistic dimensions of worship, chatter/patter, repetition, puzzle of authenticity, metaphor & figurative language, naming God, song assessment, and the embedded Word. 1.5 credits

 

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Vocational Courses, Leadership

CM450 RCA Polity
G. Brown
A survey of the Book of Church Order and the organizational theory, structure, and function of the Reformed Church in America. 1.5 credits.

CM526 Leadership for a Revitalized Church in Mission
This course will help students understand the leadership issues necessary for shaping a healthy and missional congregational culture. Nurturing congregational health and vitality, leading change, shaping congregational culture, and organizing for mission are the key components of this course. A wide range of church and community leaders will be invited to help introduce students to central concepts and contextual applications for what is being learned.

CM540 Sociology of the Urban Church
This course will explore the character of the urban church in a contemporary context.  What is the unique character of the urban church community?  What are the demographic trends that urban ministers need to consider?  What are the challenges of leadership?  How can technology assist ministry? These and other questions that arise from a sociological context will be considered in this course.

CM546 Ministry in the Urban Context
Leadership training for ministry in the urban context is the goal of this class.  Areas of exploration will include administration, spirituality, self-care, youth ministry, evangelism, and the integration of theology and practice of ministry for the urban context.

CM575 New Church Development
This course will provide an overview of strategies for church planting and church multiplication, with particular attention to the skills, gifts, and aptitudes needed to serve as the founding pastor of a new church.

CM586 Scripture in Congregational Life
The Bible is the foundational text for Christian identity and congregational ministry, but that does not mean it is always used, or used thoughtfully or consistently in our leadership initiatives.  We will read significant passages together, along with a number of books and articles, and reflect on how scripture can shape congregational vision, be used to form cultural critique, provide the vocabulary for worship and liturgy, nurture expressions of visible social grace, and outline the spiritual disciplines that mold disciples of Jesus.

CM589 Reformed Church in America Studies
An intensive study of the history and life of the Reformed Church in America (RCA).  Different instructors teach a four module sequence including RCA Polity, RCA Standards, RCA History & Mission and RCA Worship.  Completing the modules prepares candidates for ministry in the RCA, for sucessful completion of classis examinations, and for full participation in the life of the denomination.  9 credits

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Other Vocational Courses

CM524 Introduction to Campus Ministry
Floding
Examines the issues confronting the chaplain or church-based campus ministry position including worship, faith development of 18-24 year olds, pastoral care challenges, engaging faculty, working with the administration, international student ministry, self-care, and proven models. 1.5 credits.

CM525 Ministry in a Postmodern World
MacLeod
Many of today's congregational practices find their roots in mid-20th century culture and are now colliding with aspects of the emerging 21st century culture. This course will examine dominant social aspects of the emerging culture often called "postmodern." Values, beliefs, and assumptions of modernity and postmodernity will be theologically and socially critiqued and examined with regard to their implications for congregational and ministry practices.

CM577 Rural Church Ministries
Floding
Students sensing a call to serve in a rural ministry setting will explore the opportunity and challenge from a social systems perspective. 60% of RCA congregations are in town and country settings with populations of 50,000 or less. Students will consider rural church leadership in light of its spiritual, geographic, social, economic, demographic, and political contexts. This learning experience includes significant interaction with a rural RCA pastor, the Rural Church Network, and a field trip. Seven weeks; 1.5 credits.

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