M.A. in Intercultural Studies Course Descriptions
Our blend of philosophical, theological, and practical course offerings, taught by scholar-practitioners, prepare you holistically for the field.
INTR 514. Spiritual and Professional Formation. Introduction to personal and corporate formation through various dimensions such as the intellectual, physical, spiritual, social, and emotional with an emphasis on the integration of biblical perspectives. Transformational practice is encouraged through literature survey and contemporary case studies.
INTR 521. Historical Foundations. Explores key persons and movements in the expansion of the Christian church from early monasticism and the Celtic Church to Moravianism and Methodism. The missiological reinterpretation of church history focuses on the dynamics of the expansion and the implications for contemporary strategies of mission. Attention is given to the means of Holy Spirit renewal, structure of mission, the role of leadership, and the relationship among the three. (2)
INTR 531. Theological Foundations. Using the principles of biblical exegesis and hermeneutics, the course explores God's mission from the Philistines of Abraham's and David's time, to the marginalized in New Testament society. Through this process, an appreciation is developed for theological reflection in Christian community that will impact the student's missionary vocation. (2)
INTR 532. Contextualization in Global Settings. Analysis of the encounter of the gospel with culture within the framework of the behavioral sciences. Organized around six dimensions of religious experience and contextualization within those dimensions, with special focus on the theological dimension.
INTR 561. Intercultural Communication. Foundational principles of intercultural communication from the fields of social psychology, cultural anthropology, and communication theory integrated with selected areas of personal encounter in cross-cultural settings.
INTR 566. Religious Life in Global Settings. Introduction to religious live through the lenses of phenomenology, folk religious studies, and the social sciences with an emphasis on how average adherents live out their lives integrated with biblical perspectives.
INTR 572. Cross-Cultural Research. The rationale and methodology of qualitative research in cross-cultural contexts. Special focus on the application of qualitative methods to a specific context through research projects.
INTR 621. Transformational Development. The purpose of the course is to explore the biblical, theological, and theoretical foundations for transformational community development and the Christian's involvement in development on the personal and systemic levels. Foundational thinking for practice is developed through a survey of the literature and engagement with current issues and case studies.
INTR 693. Intercultural Studies Capstone. In-depth exploration of current issues in intercultural studies. Seminar integrates core content from the INTR program into student’s area of interest culminating in an integrative comprehensive paper. Prerequisite: completion of INTR 514, 521, 531, 532, 561 and 621.
BITH 565. Christian Theology. An introduction to the methods of systematic theology and the major topics within the biblical revelation. Special attention is given to the rationale for these Christian doctrines, their systematic interconnections as well as their development within the history of Christian thought, and their contemporary challenges.
