CALL Courses: Winter 2025
All Winter 2025 courses run January 20 – March 10. Courses are online and fully asynchronous, each week a separate interactive lesson featuring discussion with your classmates and instructor.
The new public course cost is $150. Registration for Winter opens on Nov. 18.
- Pastoral Care with Marginalized Communities
- The Pentateuch Canceled
- What We Believe: Theology in the Anglican Tradition
- Exegeting the Old Testament
- Introduction to the New Testament
- The Episcopal Church Registration for this class is closed
- Images of Diakonia
- Liturgical Leadership
- Spiritual Friendship
- Contemporary Hospital Chaplaincy Registration for this class is closed
Pastoral Care with Marginalized Communities
This course focuses on practical and theological foundations for engaging authentically and meaningfully with communities where life experiences, identities, and/or demographic characteristics reveal a social divide that can preclude others (and ourselves) from recognizing their full humanity. Readings and other course content integrate literature from social science, practical theology, and personal narratives of experience.
The course begins with personal and theoretical reflections on privilege, power and difference and then considers approaches to authentic community engagement. Pastoral care in this framework honors the full humanity and unique experiences of individuals while simultaneously recognizing the social challenges of stigma, oppression, privilege and unconscious bias which can affect the quality and effectiveness of the helping relationship.
Participants will engage with readings, mini-lectures, case studies and ethnographic narratives and discuss methods and approaches for collaborative, partnered ministry when engaging with marginalized communities. Individual reflections and participation in a group book project are essential components of this course.
Instructor: The Rev. Dr. Sarah Kye Price is a blended vocational priest and professor living and serving in Richmond, Virginia. She is a 2018 graduate of the low residency MDiv program at CDSP and a career social worker (BSW 1992, SUNY College at Buffalo; MSW 1993, Syracuse University; PhD 2005, Washington University in St. Louis). Sarah currently serves as the Vocations Minister for the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia where she oversees discernment and formation for those preparing to serve as lay leaders, deacons and priests. In addition to teaching courses with CALL and CDSP, she holds the academic title of Distinguished Career Professor with the School of Social Work at VCU, where she served full time on faculty from 2006 – 2023. She loves music, iconography, making prayer beads, and pastoring at the margins of the world where God is always present.
The Pentateuch
This class has been canceled
The Pentateuch is a survey course in which students examine the first five books of the canon of the Hebrew Bible. Students will attend to the patriarchs and matriarchs, the earliest covenants, the exodus traditions, laws, codes, and rituals of the agrarian society represented in the biblical world of the Pentateuch. Students will explore a) the socio-historical context out of which the biblical text most probably emerged, b) select methods and tools of biblical scholarship, and c) the engagement of modern users with the biblical text.
Instructor: Dr. Mónica I. Rey (she/her/ella) is adjunct professor of Gender Studies at Babson College and WGS at Wheaton College (MA). Her teaching specialty is in courses that tackle religion, gender, sexuality and violence. Among courses Rey has taught include: WGS101, LGBT101, Transnational Feminisms, Women & The World Religions, and Gender and Violence in the Bible. Rey is especially interested in teaching contextual interpretations of the Bible (especially from feminist and LGBT+ perspectives). As a Latina of Peruvian descent, Rey has an immense appreciation for different points of view, perspectives, and epistemologies. Her research focus navigates multiple worlds at these intersections. This is also reflected in her pedagogy which at its heart is intersectional, experiential, and embraces multiple diverse canons.
A feminist biblical scholar with a PhD in Religious Studies from Boston University (2024), her research is primarily concerned with gender, genocide, and the Hebrew Bible (and its afterlives). Rey also completed a graduate certificate from BU in Women’s and Gender Studies and took part in the MIT GCWS Workshop for Dissertation Writers in Women’s and Gender Studies which is an outstanding resource for research and collaboration in areas related to WGS. She has published on the law of the foreign female captive (Deut 21:10–14) as a case of genocidal rape in the Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion. Rey has a peer-reviewed journal article forthcoming on the use of just war theory in interpretations of Deuteronomy, as well as a chapter in the edited volume The Bible and Violence (Bloomsbury T&T Clark) titled, “Genocidal Language in the Hebrew Bible: A Reappraisal,” and a chapter in the Oxford Handbook of the Hebrew Bible, Gender and Sexuality, “Yefat To’ar in Deuteronomy 21:10–14 and the Role of Beauty in Warfare.” Her first book, Gendering Genocide in the Hebrew Bible is forthcoming with Routledge in the book series Rape Culture, Religion and the Bible. Rey is a 2023-2024 Charles E. Scheidt Institute for Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention Faculty Fellow and currently co-chair of the Feminist Studies in Religion CoLaboratory.
What We Believe: Theology in the Anglican Tradition
It has become rather commonplace to suppose that Anglican Christians care mostly about liturgy and not very much about theology. That’s not true! Anglican traditions exhibit a rich and diverse history of theological reflection. Anglicans have always insisted that that how Christians think and talk about God makes a critical difference in what Christians believe.
As the product of a living tradition, Anglican theology is in constant and evolving dialogue with the diverse contexts in which it takes shape. In this course we will explore our theological roots in the Anglican tradition and will engage the tradition from the perspectives we bring to the conversation as we explore some of the major figures in Anglican theology like Richard Hooker, F. D.Maurice and William Temple.
We will wrestle together with how we approach creation, incarnation, the Church’s sacraments and some of the contemporary issues that have concerned Anglicans, both in our own setting and around the world. And we will explore together how and why theology matters.
Instructor: A native of Virginia, John Kater served as assistant minister and later as rector at Christ Episcopal Church, Poughkeepsie, NY and also taught for ten years as a visiting professor at Vassar College. From 1984 to 1990 he served as education officer for the Episcopal Diocese of Panama and priest-in-charge of Iglesia San Francisco de Asís in Panama City. He is Professor Emeritus of Ministry Development at CDSP and since 2007 has been teaching one semester yearly at Ming Hua Theological College in Hong Kong, In 2022 he was appointed Rector Emeritus at Christ Church in Poughkeepsie, where he now lives.
Exegeting the Old Testament
This course focuses on the Old Testament and is intended for those seeking to bring out (exegete) the message of ancient scripture for contemporary communities of faith. Rather than beginning with a description of exegetical methods, this course provides an overview of Old Testament literature (stories, laws, histories, novellas, prayers, et al.), exploring how to identify its primary literary and theological message and meaning.
This course is inductive, moving from reading to seeing to asking questions to articulating. Through this process we identify, engage and use pertinent methods of biblical exegesis. We enter into dialogue with scripture because it is the Word of God, containing a normative message. Our goal is to be able and ready to read a sometimes user-unfriendly biblical text, discerning and exegeting that message for today.
Instructor: Donn Morgan is Professor of Old Testament Emeritus at Church Divinity School of the Pacific. Always a student and teacher of the Bible, he also held administrative positions at CDSP (academic dean, president). He has been deeply involved in theological education in The Episcopal Church and the Graduate Theological Union, as well as teaching in Asia and England. His books include Fighting with the Bible, Manifesto for Learning, Talking with the Bible and The Oxford Handbook of the Writings of the Hebrew Bible (editor).
Introduction to the New Testament
The course introduces the New Testament (NT) from a historical, literary, and theological perspective. It focuses on the Canonical Gospels’ distinct nature: the authorship, the key themes, issues the authors addressed, the theological teachings, and their relevance for ministry today.
Instructor: My name is Laurent Okitakatshi, the instructor for the course on The Pauline Epistles. I am a Roman Catholic Priest and I hold a doctorate in Biblical Studies from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. The New Testament is my primary area of concentration with a particular interest in the letters of St. Paul. My doctoral dissertation is entitled: “Not a slave, But a Beloved Brother in the Flesh and in the Lord: the Construction of a Koinonia-Space in the Letter to Philemon.”
Ordained for the diocese of Tshumbe, I am originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo (Central Africa). English is my second academic language and my fourth spoken language after Otetela, Lingala, and French. I’ve been an instructor for the CALL Program since 2020 and I teach courses on Introduction to the New Testament, The New Testament Parables, and The Pauline Epistles. I am also the professor of New Testament Studies at St. John Paul II Theological Seminary in Lodja (Democratic Republic of Congo).
The Episcopal Church
Registration for this class is closed
How can understanding the history of The Episcopal Church help you understand your own faith and your ministry more deeply? How does the history of an individual diocese or parish relate to the larger history of who is Episcopalian and what it means? In this course, students will develop a new understanding of The Episcopal Church as a living institution with a complex history, where the church often struggled with what it means to be Christian in a context of empire, political expansion, enslavement, and inequality – a struggle which produced the theological commitments, missional understandings, and continued work of the church today. The course covers from the first English-language settlements in North America through early Native American, colonial, and African American history, the American Revolution, the nineteenth century of expansion and international relationships, and the debates over human rights, gender, and sexuality in the late 20th century to today.
Instructor: Jennifer Snow received her PhD in religion from Columbia University in 2003, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Religion and Civic Culture at the University of Southern California. Her first book, published in 2007, addresses the connections between Protestant missionaries and activism in support of early Asian immigrants to the United States. Studying faith-based activists inspired her to a commitment to ministries of justice, inclusion, and advocacy as the deputy director of Progressive Christians Uniting in Los Angeles, followed by a move to Chicago and then to San Francisco, where she served the Diocese of California as the associate for discipleship ministries, focused on youth and young adult communities. Committed to the congregation as a place of spiritual and justice formation, she developed curricula on environmental justice and worked with the ELCA, writing materials on mission education and immigration policy. Her work as Director of Extended Learning arises directly from her belief in the power of Christian community for spiritual and social transformation.
In addition to articles and book chapters on race, religion, and immigration policy in the United States, she is currently completing a project on church discipline and the sexual education to African converts provided by missionaries to Africa in the mid-twentieth century. This is part of a larger project examining the role of missionary teachings on the Christian home, including sexual discipline, in the creation of global ecumenical structures and the transformation of ecumenical missiology.
Jennifer lives with her spouse, the Rev. Tita Valeriano, and their son. When academy and family permit, she writes science fiction and fantasy.
Images of Diakonia
Diaconal ministry has at its heart connecting Christian scripture and tradition with the needs, hopes and concerns of the world. Using a framework of five key images, students will strengthen awareness of the sacred in the Church and the wider community, invigorate their practice of diakonia, and gain confidence in engaging others to do the same.
Instructor: Deacon Phina Borgeson brings to her work with CALL more than forty years experience teaching, facilitating, and mentoring in ministry education and formation. She thrives on encouraging deacons, those preparing to be deacons, and other members of the baptized to make connections among their daily lives, cultural and civic contexts, and faith traditions. She lives in Sonoma County, California, where her community ministry focus is on policy and practices for just and resilient food systems.
Liturgical Leadership
This course will examine the liturgical principles underlying the planning process for Episcopal Church worship, with specific emphasis on the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. This course will offer students a foundation for planning and leading worship services in the Episcopal Church. We will look at issues which influence the planning of any given service, such as the Church calendar and the liturgical space. We will look specifically at what to consider when planning and presiding at a baptism, at the Eucharist, at a marriage, and at a burial. We will also plan for special liturgies, such as those of Holy Week. This course would be beneficial to those who are wanting to know more about the liturgy of the Episcopal Church and will also offer a practical component for those who may be preparing for holy orders in both the priesthood and vocational diaconate.
Instructor: The Rev. Dr. Melissa Hartley is Priest Associate at the Episcopal Church of the Nativity in Huntsville, Alabama, where she oversees liturgy and adult Christian formation. She also teaches at The University of the South, in Sewanee, Tennessee, in the Master of Divinity and ACTS (Alternative Clergy Training in Sewanee) programs at the School of Theology. Melissa is an Episcopal priest originally from Atlanta and has served parishes in Georgia, New York, New Jersey, and Tennessee. Most recently, she was the Senior Associate University Chaplain at Sewanee. She holds the following degrees: B.A., University of the South; M.Div., S.T.M., General Theological Seminary; Ph.D. (Liturgical Studies), Drew University.
Spiritual Friendship
In Spiritual Friendship, students will explore the theme of friendship in the Gospel of John, Celtic Christianity (anam cara), Anglo-Saxon spirituality, Cicero, St. Augustine, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Thomas Merton, and most of all, in the life, work, and teachings of the English Cistercian abbot St. Aelred of Rievaulx, author of the Christian medieval classic On Spiritual Friendship. Students will engage in spiritual practices that deepen and enhance one’s experience of friendship, such as Loving-Kindness (Metta) meditation, activating the “heart sense,” Forest Therapy, and writing Goodwill Prayers. Students who successfully complete the course will gain a robust understanding of friendship within the Christian spiritual tradition that will inform, inspire, and potentially transform their relationships with God, others, themselves, and the planet.
Instructor: The Rev. Daniel London, PhD, serves as the rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA. He earned his doctorate in Christian Spirituality at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. He is a certified Forest Therapy Guide and the author of several books. He has also published articles and presented papers at academic conferences around the world. He serves as the Ecumenical Officer for the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California and lives in the Transfiguration House in Eureka CA with his wife Dr. Ashley London Bacchi and their two Yorkies, Seabury and Gubbio.
Contemporary Hospital Chaplaincy
Registration for this class is closed
This course introduces the nuanced and multi-faceted world of providing pastoral and spiritual care in the setting of a hospital. The course will include introductions to various aspects of hospital chaplaincy, including hospice and palliative care, working within Interdisciplinary teams, trauma, ministry of presence, spiritual assessments, and more. Even more, we will look at skills of cultural analysis, trauma informed communication, and crisis intervention in order to build skills for chaplains, ministers, and other members of congregations who might need to provide spiritual or pastoral care in a hospital.
Instructor: Dr. Stephan Quarles holds a PhD in Systematic and Philosophical theology from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, Ca. He specializes in the intersections of 20th century philosophy with systematic theology, particularly the cross and apophatic theology. He lives in Central Illinois with his wife and child. He works as a Board-Certified Chaplain at OSF St. Francis in Peoria, Il in the areas of Trauma and Palliative Care.
