Master of Arts in Theology & Culture

An artist may be a maker, a dancer, a musician, a visual artist, and/or a person with creative energy, voice, and spirit who wants to articulate the problems of a community through artistic expression and imagination. This specialization will integrate the practices of art and the biblical pursuit of social justice so that artists may use their gifts to build communities of vision and hope. The goal of this specialization is to allow artists to weave together faith and artistic practice so that they may be people who are attuned to the workings of God’s Spirit in the world. Artists in this specialization will learn to be attentive to issues around societal justice, revealing and giving voice to that which is too often ignored or unseen. Students will find new language and artistic forms in the midst of sorrow and the experience of trauma, providing tools to nurture resilience and sustain hope. 

Shared Program Learning Outcomes

All Master of Arts in Theology & Culture share three common Program Learning Outcomes. 

Upon successful completion of the Master of Arts in Theology & Culture program, graduates will be able to: 

1. Articulate insight into one’s formative stories in the context of identities, cultures, places, and people, in order to embody a way of being and vocation as an expression of their understanding of God, self, and neighbor.

2. Develop, cultivate, and apply approaches to scripture and theology that attend to a diversity of possible perspectives and that lead to courage, imagination, and action.

3. Listen deeply, appreciatively, and with cultural responsiveness to the ecological and human communities they seek to serve, to discern the ongoing movement of God in those settings.

In addition to the shared MATC Program Learning Outcomes (listed above), graduates of the MATC: The Arts program will be able to

4. Understand and critically engage art as revelatory of God’s presence in the midst of human suffering in order to enable personal and communal responses that cultivate joy, goodness, peace, hope, love, and justice. 

5. Cultivate improvisation by embodying an adaptive capacity for several modes of integration of faith and artistic or creative practice in response to various contexts.

Degree Requirements

The M.A. in Theology & Culture degrees are conferred upon the attainment of certain academic and personal requirements. In addition to the graduate school requirements, degree candidates must:

• Give evidence of a level of personal maturity and stability that is consistent with ministry vocations.

• Complete all courses in the prescribed M.A. in Theology & Culture curriculum with a minimum grade point average of 2.7.

• Attend the two (2) required residencies, and IP Symposium/Graduation Weekend.

This specialization prepares students to engage in the practices of community development and helps them to define theological and ethical foundations for the promotion of well-being in the communities they are called to love. Through practices of deep listening, participants gain the skills and nurture character qualities necessary to work in partnership with community members to foster organic, contextualized community change. Students gain a working knowledge of community development from diverse global perspectives, and apply their new understanding to their own local contexts—assuring that their vocational development is both culturally credible and contextually relevant. While some students in this specialization focus their vocational development on goals of collaborative development work in international settings, and others focus on community engagement in North American contexts, each student will gain the skills to be a credible agent of healing and change in the places they serve.

Shared Program Learning Outcomes

All Master of Arts in Theology & Culture share three common Program Learning Outcomes. 

Upon successful completion of the Master of Arts in Theology & Culture program, graduates will be able to: 

1. Articulate insight into one’s formative stories in the context of identities, cultures, places, and people, in order to embody a way of being and vocation as an expression of their understanding of God, self, and neighbor.

2. Develop, cultivate, and apply approaches to scripture and theology that attend to a diversity of possible perspectives and that lead to courage, imagination, and action.

3. Listen deeply, appreciatively, and with cultural responsiveness to the ecological and human communities they seek to serve, to discern the ongoing movement of God in those settings.

In addition to the shared MATC Program Learning Outcomes (listed above), graduates of the MATC: Community Development program will be able to

4. Articulate the theological and ethical foundations of their particular approaches to community development.

5.  Discern the strengths, needs, aspirations, and inherent resources of a community as a foundation for contextualized approaches to development. 

6. Guide processes of collaborative innovation, social enterprise, and social change at systemic and grassroots levels in order to foster communities that exemplify beauty, justice, and shared sense of belonging.

Degree Requirements

The M.A. in Theology & Culture degrees are conferred upon the attainment of certain academic and personal requirements. In addition to the graduate school requirements, degree candidates must:

• Give evidence of a level of personal maturity and stability that is consistent with ministry vocations.

• Complete all courses in the prescribed M.A. in Theology & Culture curriculum with a minimum grade point average of 2.7.

• Attend the two (2) required residencies, the required travel course, and IP Symposium/Graduation Weekend. 

With a broad understanding of the church as the people of God, this specialization prepares students for new expressions of missional, formational, and worshiping communities. The: Ministry specialization is designed to guide students into responsive, contextual, and courageous approaches to ministry at a time when faith practices are being redefined and expressions of church are being reimagined for the future. This specialization focuses on gathering within local contexts to discover God’s liberative hope for their place and all its inhabitants. Students study, explore, and practice convening expressions of church in everyday spaces and realms. Students will learn practical tools for deep listening to the particular needs and laments of place and community and discerning the formative work of convening missional groups unto the ultimate goal of flourishing for all. This educational experience is profoundly formative, preparing and daring leaders to attend to God’s active presence in their own lives and the work of God in their local communities and contexts.

Shared Program Learning Outcomes

All Master of Arts in Theology & Culture share three common Program Learning Outcomes. 

Upon successful completion of the Master of Arts in Theology & Culture program, graduates will be able to: 

1. Articulate insight into one’s formative stories in the context of identities, cultures, places, and people, in order to embody a way of being and vocation as an expression of their understanding of God, self, and neighbor.

2. Develop, cultivate, and apply approaches to scripture and theology that attend to a diversity of possible perspectives and that lead to courage, imagination, and action.

3. Listen deeply, appreciatively, and with cultural responsiveness to the ecological and human communities they seek to serve, to discern the ongoing movement of God in those settings.

In addition to the shared MATC Program Learning Outcomes (listed above), graduates of the MATC: Ministry program will be able to

4.  Discern and assess the particularities of ministry settings in the development of contextualized initiatives for convening, forming, and sustaining faith-based communities as local expressions of Christ’s presence. 

5. Cultivate collaborative and adaptive leadership capacity for guiding their local faith community into faithful collective practice for the flourishing of their place and all its inhabitants. 

Degree Requirements

The M.A. in Theology & Culture degrees are conferred upon the attainment of certain academic and personal requirements. In addition to the graduate school requirements, degree candidates must:

• Give evidence of a level of personal maturity and stability that is consistent with ministry vocations.

• Complete all courses in the prescribed M.A. in Theology & Culture curriculum with a minimum grade point average of 2.7.

• Attend the two (2) required residencies, and IP Symposium/Graduation Weekend.

Students can choose to add six credits of electives to the MATC degree and subsequently graduate with a 45 credit degree with an Interdisciplinary Studies Emphasis. This option allows students to take elective classes for credit, have them reported on an official transcript, and graduate with this additional distinction.