Toward a Commons of religious experience: Theological education and the practice of theology
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Richard Shields
Abstract
In North America denominational and church-sponsored universities continue to thrive. Yet many struggle to maintain their Christian identity and fulfill their mission amid an increasingly diverse student body. As recognizable expressions of how their religious sponsors carry out a sense of who they are and what they are called to be, Christian universities must be seen as Church practices. This is particularly so in how theology and religious studies are presented. How do university professors, academically oriented and committed to advancing scholarship in their discipline, respond to the requirements of good teaching and create the conditions for authentic learning in their students? A new educational context challenges us to experiment with pedagogies that engage students in the study of religion and theology in a way that makes room for the plurality of backgrounds and experiences they bring to the classroom, while honouring the integrity of the subject matter. Seeing the practice of theology as a dynamic dialogue with contemporary culture and the construction of new insights and innovative appreciation of ancient truths and realities allows the teacher to create a “commons of religious experience” where students encounter living traditions of faith and make sense of their own lives and the worlds they inhabit.
Zusammenfassung
Obwohl nordamerikanische konfessionelle und von Kirchen getragene Universitäten weiterhin gut gedeihen, kämpfen viele damit, angesichts einer zunehmend pluralen Studierendenschaft ihre christliche Identität zu bewahren und ihren Auftrag auch im Sinne der Mission zu erfüllen. Besonders in ihren Angeboten der Theologie und Religionswissenschaft müssen christliche Universitäten als erkennbarer Ausdruck ihrer religiösen Träger erscheinen, vor allem in Bezug auf deren Identitätsanspruch und Auftrag. Ein neuer Bildungskontext fordert dabei dazu heraus mit einer derartigen Pädagogik zu experimentieren, die der Vielfalt in Herkunft und Erfahrungen der Studierenden Raum gibt und zugleich die Integrität des Lehrstoffs aufrechterhält. Die Praxis von Theologie, verstanden als dynamischer Dialog mit zeitgenössischer Kultur, Erarbeitung von neuen Einsichten und erneuernde Wertschätzung klassischer Wahrheiten, erlaubt es dem Lehrenden eine „Allmende religiöser Erfahrung“ zu schaffen, in der Studierende lebende Glaubenstraditionen erfahren und den Sinn im eigenen Leben und in der eigenen Lebenswelt ergründen.
About the author
© 2013 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Masthead
- Editorial
- Promising approaches to catechesis in church communities: towards a research framework
- Ethische Predigt
- Spirituality, Administration, and Normativity in Current Church Organization
- Practical theology for the privileged: a starting point for pedagogies of conversion
- The diverse and contested diaconate: Why understanding this ministry is crucial to the future of the Church
- Prayer and Practical Theology
- Toward a Commons of religious experience: Theological education and the practice of theology
- Church, State and Secularism in Asia: The Public Nature of the Church in Timor-Leste
- Religion – Alter – Demenz
- Reviews
Articles in the same Issue
- Masthead
- Editorial
- Promising approaches to catechesis in church communities: towards a research framework
- Ethische Predigt
- Spirituality, Administration, and Normativity in Current Church Organization
- Practical theology for the privileged: a starting point for pedagogies of conversion
- The diverse and contested diaconate: Why understanding this ministry is crucial to the future of the Church
- Prayer and Practical Theology
- Toward a Commons of religious experience: Theological education and the practice of theology
- Church, State and Secularism in Asia: The Public Nature of the Church in Timor-Leste
- Religion – Alter – Demenz
- Reviews
