Goals and Outcomes
The primary goals of this course are:
- to broaden and deepen our understanding of ministry within our faith tradition/s
from both an historical and a contemporary perspective
- to explore practical applications of a more integrated understanding of ministry, with an emphasis on the spirituality of ministry
- to chronicle one’s own ministerial path by reflecting on one’s experience
and to identify future options
The primary outcomes of this course are:
- a clear sense of multiple ministries in a multicultural world
- an understanding of the importance and value of a wide variety of ministries
and their relationship to spirituality
- a more informed understanding of the many ways one might respond to
a call to ministry
Course Reading List
Blythe, Teresa A. 50 Ways to Pray. Practices from Many Traditions and Times. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2006.
Didion, Joan. The Year of Magical Thinking. Vintage Books, 2007.
Ford, Marcia. The Sacred Art of Forgiveness. Woodstock, VT: Skylight Paths Press, 2006.
Gillespie, Thomas W. “The Laity in Biblical Perspective.” In The New Laity. Ed. by
Ralph D. Bucy. Waco, Texas: 1978 – pp. 113-33.
Hahn, Thich Nhat. Peace is Every Step. The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life. New York: Bantam Books, 1991.
Heider, John. The Tao of Leadership. Atlanta: Humanics New Age, 1985.
Lindahl, Kay. The Sacred Art of Listening. Woodstock, VT: Skylight Paths Press, 2002.
Rimm, Ruth. The Lost Spiritual World. New York: The Global Renaissance Society, 2007.
Sokoloff, Arthur. Life Without Stress. The Far Eastern Antidote to Tension and Anxiety. New York: Broadway Books, 1997.
Winter, Miriam Therese. eucharist with a small “e.” Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2005.
Session 1 January 25 Ministry in a Multicultural World
Read: “The Laity in Biblical Perspective”
Copies of The Lost Spiritual World will be distributed
Session 2 February 1 Leadership in a Multicultural World
Read: The Tao of Leadership
Session 3 February 8 Ministry in Daily Life
Read: Life Without Stress
Session 4 February 15 The Sacred Art of Forgiveness
Read: The Sacred Art of Forgiveness
Session 5 February 22 The Sacred Art of Listening
Read: The Sacred Art of Listening
Session 6 March 1 Wrestling with Grief and Loss
Read: The Year of Magical Thinking
Session 7 March 8 Mindfulness and the Path to Peace
Read: Peace is Every Step
Session 8 March 15 The Art and Practice of Prayer
Read: 50 Ways to Pray
Session 9 March 22 eucharist with a small “e”
Read: eucharist with a small “e”
Session 10 March 29 Celebrating Multiple Ministries
Read: The Lost Spiritual World
Class meets Monday evenings from 6:00-9:00 pm
