Quick Info:
Number of weeks: 10
Price: $60
CEUs: 2.2
Required books?: No
Live video session?: No
Part of a certification or series of courses?: Yes (Wesley Lay Academy)
How do you reconcile the presence of evil in the world with belief in a loving God? How should Christians relate to other religions? Does the “Christ of Faith” bear any resemblance to the “Jesus of History”?
Ten Christian and Jewish theologians – world experts in their fields and persons of faith – each address a single perplexing issue. These ten issues are obstacles to faith for many both in and outside of the church. Each week a short scriptural study and personal reflection questions will help participants begin to think about the topic. Video presentations by the noted scholars will provide further material for discussion. This course will encourage energetic discussion and sustained reflection by both believers and seekers.
Lessons Include:
- Evil — R. Kendall Soulen, Wesley Theological Seminary
- Religion and Science — John Polkinghorne, Cambridge University
- Other Religions — Sathianathan Clarke, Wesley Theological Seminary
- Evangelism and Tolerance –Scott Jones, Bishop; formerly Perkins School of Theology
- The God of the Old Testament — Amy-Jill Levine, Vanderbilt Divinity School
- Jesus and Christianity — Richard B. Hays, Duke Divinity School
- Resurrection — N. T. Wright, Bishop; formerly Oxford University
- The Gnostic Gospels — Ben Witherington, Asbury Theological Seminary
- The Sins of the Church –Douglas M. Strong, Wesley Theological Seminary
- Forgiveness — L. Gregory Jones, Duke Divinity School
2.2 CEUs are available.
Past Students Said…
“I really liked the personal reflection questions that came before the lectures, as they encouraged me to crystalize my thinking prior to learning from the lecture.”
“The video lectures where great. They allowed me to think of the week’s content in new ways.”
“The online discussions were critical, as far as I’m concerned. Most of the lectures were great, but the questions and resulting discussions really bring out different ways to look at how I’m thinking.”
About the Instructor
Melody Cole is a first-time book author whose goal is to use her creativity wisely through writing, public speaking, and art. As a speaker on disability (specifically her own) and touch, she is open and honest about her life and is not afraid to have conversation about life’s sensitive topics. She is a deacon at First Presbyterian Church in Hutchinson, Kansas, and spends her spare time reading, writing, coloring, and keeping up with her “fur teen,” Earl of Whiskers.
About the Course Organizer
Michael Beardslee began working for the Institute for Discipleship and BeADisciple in early 2016, developing and facilitating courses for a new project called the Wesley Lay Academy. He was born and raised in South Central Kansas, where he currently resides after a period of moving across the United States for his graduate studies.
He holds a Bachelors in Religion and Philosophy (Friends University), an M.A. (Pittsburgh Theological Seminary), Th.M (Systematic Theology, Trinity International University), and is currently a Ph.D candidate at Fuller Theological Seminary (Intercultural Studies), working under the Pentecostal theologian, Amos Yong. His doctoral research concerns the way Christians from different cultural locations relate to one another in a globalized Christianity. His writing is featured most recently in Breaking the Marriage Idol: Reconstructing Our Cultural and Spiritual Norms (IVP, 2018), and in the Religion and Theology journal (Brill, 2017).
Michael splits his time up between his academic interests, his many hobbies, and spending time with his wife, Sarah, and his two young girls. In 2017, he was awarded the Visiting Scholar fellowship at Southwestern College, after which he returned to continue the work he began with BeADisciple.
