Master of Arts in Spiritual Formation

The Master of Arts in Spiritual Formation (MSF) brings together the study of Christian "spirituality" with engagement in its practice and reflection upon the theology that permeates it.  This innovative curriculum provides an introduction to the major movements and concepts in the history of Christian spirituality with actual practice of these concepts.  Thus, in conjunction with their coursework, students adopt a series of spiritual practices through which they have the opportunity to integrate learning about Christian spirituality with the actual experience of it.  Possibilities for spiritual practices are wide-ranging, from daily prayer and meditation on Scripture to implementing a "green" lifestyle to volunteering in an agency for peace and justice.  The word "Formation" in the name of this degree signals the underlying premise of the program: the unity of doctrine and spirituality-alternately put, the mutually informing relationship between learning and living—which effects personal change in the lives of people of faith.

Intended as a part-time program, this 42-hour masters degree can be completed in three years by taking two courses per semester (fall and spring).  The curriculum is flexible, however, such that a student who wishes to take one course, rather than two, in a given semester is free to do so, with the understanding that she will need to continue in the program longer than three years to complete the degree.  MSF courses are taught by full-time, as well as adjunct faculty. A member of the faculty, assigned as the student's advisor, provides guidance and encouragement for students as they undertake spiritual practice of their own choosing.  During their final year students choose from a range of elective courses and work on a project or thesis in an area of special interest.  Required and elective coursework for the MSF totals 36 credit hours, and the thesis or project carries 6 credit hours for a total of 42 hours to complete the degree.  The first two years of the MSF curriculum, which comprises 8 courses totaling 24 credit hours—may be taken independently for the Diploma in Spiritual Formation

Through formal coursework, adopting a series of spiritual practices, and the completion of a thesis or project, students:

  • discover major figures, movements, and teachings from Christian spirituality, past and present;
  • explore spiritual practices that bring together theology, prayer, and ministry;
  • discern their own growth in Christian faith, understanding their place in the church, and bringing the responsibilities of daily life into the light of faith and the practice of prayer;
  • connect Christian faith and practice to the complex and difficult world of contemporary culture;
  • find guidance for their vocation as disciples of Christ in the Church and world.

    Required Core Courses (12 credit hours)

    (Core 1) Divine Vision, Practical Holiness

    (Core 2) Strategies of Formation: Spiritual Practices

    (Core 3) Stories of Christians, Stories of Christ

    (Core 4) The Vocation of the Church

    Extending & Deepening (E&D) (12 credit hours)

    Courses in this category extend and deepen concepts presented in the core courses above. Students must take four E&D courses of their own choosing. Course topics include:

    (Core 1) God's Calling: Vocational Pathways through Scripture & Desert Fathers & Mothers

    (Core 2) Soul Friends-Spiritual Direction  & Painting the Word: Christ, Icons, and Prayer

    (Core 3) Faith and Human Development & Mystical Theology and the Imitation of Christ

    (Core 4) Political Life and the Body of Christ & The Community of the Triune God

    Electives (12 credit hours)

    Students must take four electives, choosing from the remaining E&D courses or the designated electives from the MDiv or other CCMV programs.

    Project (6 credit hours) Students will design and implement a project that engages and extends their learning in spiritual formation (e.g., conducting a retreat for their church or designing a series of icons for personal devotion) and write a 15- to 25-page paper about the project.

    Course Descriptions

    F5317  Divine Vision, Practical Holiness            Fall 2009

    Christian spirituality is the lived response to the holiness of God.  This course considers God's trinitarian holiness, revealed in the life of Christ, as the source and goal of the sanctification of human beings and, indeed, of all creation.  We explore these themes through biblical, classical, and contemporary texts.  Students prepare an account of Christian practices that embody and express specifically the "holiness" of a godly life.

    F5318  Strategies of Formation: Spiritual Practices    Spring 2010

    Through a study of classical asceticism, supported by readings from medieval, reformation, and post-reformation sources, students examine the theological underpinnings of ascetical theology, together with the role of asceticism in shaping Christian doctrine itself.  Students undertake a critical comparison between at least one modern work on spiritual practices and the classical tradition.  There is extensive discussion of ascetical practice and ways of integrating it into a contemporary rule of life.

    F5319  Stories of Christians, Stories of Christ        Fall 2010

    In this course, students reflect upon the complex relationship between their own histories and the embracing narrative of Israel, Christ and the Church, using models of theological reflection suggested by recent work in the role of narrative in individual and community identity.  This course also examines the theology of Incarnation in connection with narrative, exploring pertinent themes in film, fiction and popular culture as well as personal stories.  Students will work toward an understanding of vocation that is Christologically focused and existentially and socially nuanced.

    F5321  God's Calling: Vocational Pathways through Scripture Fall 09

    From Abraham, Moses, and Deborah to Mary, Peter, and the apostles, God called men and women to service of the people of God.  This course lays the biblical foundations for a theology of vocation.  Students will be encouraged to find their own callings modeled in the narratives of scripture.

    F5320  The Vocation of the Church                Spring 2011

    The focus of this course is on the church as the medium of God's grace: a common life that embodies and mediates the work of God in redemption and sanctification.  Students study and reflect upon the dialogical relationship between the Christian tradition and the particularity of contemporary contexts.  The themes of sanctification and vocation are addressed by considering theologies of the Church as a community that "sends-forth" and "receives."

    F5322  Desert Mothers and Fathers        Fall 2011

    The fourth and fifth century Ammas and Abbas of the Egyptian Syrian desert were influential in the formation of both the solitary and community forms of Christian spirituality.  This course examines the context of these strenuous lives and the stories and sayings that the tradition has preserved.  Students explore the enduring force of these spiritualities within a post-modern Christianity.

    F5323  Soul Friends: the Theology and Practice of Spiritual Direction   Fall 2011

    This course is for those who feel called by God to accompany others on their spiritual journey, as well as for those who want to better understand the workings of God's spirit in the lives of people.   Students read the works of authors, ancient and modern, who use different styles in working with directees.  A practicum component offers students hands-on experience that serves as material for shared class discussion.

    F5324  Painting the Word:  Christ, Icons, and Prayer   Spring 2010

    This course introduces students to various roles played by painting in some two thousand years of Christian spirituality.  Special attention is given to the Eastern theology of icons and the meditative use of Scriptural themes in Western art.  Students investigate the possibilities of these artistic traditions for their own prayer and theological reflection.

    F5325  Faith and Human Development        Fall 2010

    The course describes stages of cognitive, physical, moral, and faith development of a person.  Introducing theorists of human development (Piaget, Kohlberg, Fowler, Loder, etc.), the course helps students to articulate a theological paradigm for conceiving human development.

    F5326  Mystical Theology and the Imitation of Christ        P5326

    The aim of a Christian is not simply to manifest a catalog of praise-worthy traits.  Paul says our lives are hid with God in Christ, and so the ultimate goal is an imitation of the union with God that Christ himself enjoys.  This course explores the metaphors and images of mystical union with God as expressed in the prayers, meditations, and reflections of the traditions of Christian spirituality.

    F5327  The Community of the Triune God    F5327

    This course explores the idea of the church as the embodied context for vocation.  Students learn the practices that embody their sense of vocation grounded in four particular contexts: sacramental, with focus on worship; narrative, with focus on scripture; historical, with focus on tradition; and participatory, with focus on creation.

    F5328  Political Life and the Body of Christ: the Cross as the Critique of Power    Spring 2011

    Faithful Christian spirituality takes seriously the lives of men and women in particular times and contexts, and as richly interconnected with one another and as embedded in creation.  This course introduces students to critical issues in the relationship of faith and society, and explores practices of Christian spirituality in their political and societal dimensions.