Theological Studies

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS510 or TS610
Level 5/6

This course offers an orientation to Christian ethics. It will explore the moral implications of the Christian commitment, the formulation and development of the principles of Christian ethics for persons and within communities, and their application to areas of contemporary life. Because Christian ethics is a praxis which arises in response to contextual issues of moral ambiguity, the course utilizes specific moral problems as a way of exploring these themes, to transform the Church into a community of moral discernment and action.

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS510 or TS610
Level 5/6

This course provides the students an opportunity to understand the history and doctrine of the Methodist movement. The course will further explore the life, teachings and witness of John Wesley, and the Wesleyan roots of the Methodist movement. The course will also study and evaluate the contextual reformulation of the Methodist doctrines in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS610
Level 6

This course engages critically with the shifts in hermeneutics and theological discourses, and reassess the significant move towards contextual and cross-cultural theology. Various modes of contextual theology will be scrutinised in class, with particular reference to theologies from Oceania and Aotearoa. Students also trace the emergence of a range of contextual approaches that are current within contemporary theology leading to the undertaking of a major contextual project.

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS510 or TS610
Level 5/6

This course will run in two semesters (A & B).

TS620A retells the story of Christianity from the first century CE to the Reformation era, and pays close attention the development of the Christian tradition, key theological debates, schisms, and issues that shattered the unity of the movement.
TS620B retells the story of Christianity from the Reformation period to the present, and pays close attention the story of Christianity in Oceania and Aotearoa. Contemporary challenges that confront Christian churches, and the emergence of new groups will be given due examination and critical scrutiny. This story of Christianity will be shared alongside its historical counterpart, colonisation.

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS510 or TS610
Level 5/6

This course will run in two semesters (A & B).

TS620A retells the story of Christianity from the first century CE to the Reformation era, and pays close attention the development of the Christian tradition, key theological debates, schisms, and issues that shattered the unity of the movement.
TS620B retells the story of Christianity from the Reformation period to the present, and pays close attention the story of Christianity in Oceania and Aotearoa. Contemporary challenges that confront Christian churches, and the emergence of new groups will be given due examination and critical scrutiny. This story of Christianity will be shared alongside its historical counterpart, colonisation.

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS510 or TS610
Level 5/6

This course reconsiders the basic theological tenets of Christianity, especially the Christian doctrine of Trinity, from a 21st century, multi-faith and multi-cultural perspective. It gives students an opportunity to re-think, from their own standpoints, the idea of God, and to re-examine the development of the theology of God, the Christ, and the Spirit. What does it mean to believe in a God? Who really is this person called the Christ? What exactly is the Holy Spirit? What has God got to do with humans and earth? Questions such as these and more will be discussed and debated.

What does it mean to be human? This course takes as its focus the key theological question of what can be said about the nature of being human. The course will examine a variety of theological responses from traditional Christian understandings, which understand humanity as created in God's image, to more contemporary perceptions of what it means to be human. Theological anthropology can be the driver of other doctrines in a systematic theology; it also underpins work not necessarily seen as theological, such as ethics, development, and human rights. A rich understanding of this anthropology will be helpful in assisting students in addressing key spiritual, ethical, and material challenges facing humanity in our current contexts.

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS510 or TS610
Level 5/6

This course briefly traces the origin and development of eco-theology, the current trend in eco-theological debates, and the relevance of those debates to the current ecological climate and realities in the context of Oceania, and Aotearoa in particular. The purpose of the course is to raise awareness amongst those who are training for ministry to the reality of climate change, and to set a platform for appropriate church and/or faith community responses.

Pre-requisite: Completion of TS610
Level 6

What does it mean to be a church in the 21st century? Does the church need to reinvent itself to be relevant? What challenges does it face? How much does it need to change? Is its traditional mission viable? If not, what is the new mission and vision? These, and many other, questions will be the focus of this course.  Participants will be encouraged to engage critically with the theologies and practices of the church past and present in order to find what is best for the church going forward.  Is there a place for the church in the future?

This course aims at understanding and comparing fundamentalist movements in Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Hinduism. Participants will examine the term "fundamentalism" as it has evolved from describing an American Protestant form of religiosity to signifying a global phenomenon spanning different religions and cultures. The goal is to understand religious fundamentalism and its impact on public life.

This option is for those who have completed the core and required courses for a Theological Studies strand with an average B grade or above. The duration for the project is one full semester. A research proposal has to be approved by the Lecturer in Theological Studies prior to conducting the research. The research project is equal to two 15-credit courses.

Pre-requisite: Completion of BTS611

Level 7

This course is meant to offer a historical review of Christian Social Ethics in Aotearoa New Zealand. The course will study and reflect upon how the church in Aotearoa responded to different ethical challenges in the past. The course will encourage the students to discern and practice Christian social ethics in the contemporary Aotearoa context.

Pre-requisite: Completion of BTS510

Level 7

his course aims to wrestle with the question “who do you say that I am” in the contemporary Oceanic context. The course will study the history of the development of the doctrine of Christ and contextual articulations of Christology from different parts of the world. However, the focus of the course is to understand the Christological reimaginations from the Oceania to discern the Moana faces of Christ .

Pre-requisite: None

Level 7

This course focuses on a critical study of theological and ethical interpretations of human sexuality within the Christian tradition, challenging the distorted and abusive interpretations that legitimize patriarchy, homophobia, sexual repression and abuse, and negative attitudes towards pleasure and sensuality. The course provides the students the opportunity to grapple with issues of sexual ethics from the Aotearoa context and to search for ethical discernment and praxis. The course is envisioned to transform faith communities into inclusive communities enabling the sexual well-being of all without prejudice and discrimination.

Pre-requisite: None

Level 7

This course explores the connection between economy and ecology in the context of Empire. An in-depth study of Empire and its diverse manifestations in the contemporary context is a major concern of the course. The other major concern of the course is economy of life where the ecological crisis will be addressed at the interface of economic injustice and social inequality. The course will also explore the public witness of the church in Aotearoa in the context of Empire and ecological crisis.

Pre-requisite: None

Level 7

This course enables the students to understand migration intersectionally and equips them to minister relevantly among the displaced communities in the diaspora context. The course will examine the causes for forced migration with special reference to climate refugees. The course will also explore the theological and biblical reflections emerging from the hybrid experiences of the diaspora communities to help the students to engage in relevant forms of ministry among the diaspora communities.

Course codes with number 730 are special topics papers. They are included

(i) to create a space for in-depth discussion of a particular issue or subject that is deemed significant for training of students for Christian ministry and leadership, and

(ii) to accommodate the teaching interests of scholars who visit, or are invited by, the college.

Such special topics will be delivered incrementally from time to time.

This inter-strand course is designed to equip students for research. The focus will be on research methodologies (both quantitative & qualitative), and that includes Pacific and Maori approaches to research. Research  theorists and practitioners will be invited to share their research with special emphasis on methods employed. This course is open to any students but is required for those intending to do a research project. Designing a research proposal is a key requirement for the course.

Pre-requisite: BRM740

Level 7

Students who have completed the core and required courses for Religious Studies, and who hold an average grade of B or above, may undertake a thorough study of a topic approved by the Research Committee. The research project is equal to three 20-credit courses, and to be completed within one semester.