MASTER OF DIVINITY
Goals and Outcomes. The Master of Divinity degree program (MDiv) is designed to prepare students academically, pastorally and spiritually for lay or ordained ministry in the Roman Catholic Church. The program helps students integrate four key areas of formation: human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral. The goals and outcomes of the program reflect the various emphases of that unified formation.
Upon completion of the MDiv degree, students will demonstrate:
Academic Outcomes:
- The capacity to recognize and respect the unity and diversity of the Church in light of its
- history,
- tradition,
- and teaching charism (Magisterium);
- The capacity to analyze theological issues appropriately through their
- historical contexts,
- contemporary contexts;
- The ability to use a variety of contemporary scholarly methods for Scriptural interpretation;
- The ability to analyze contemporary theological issues from the perspective of the tradition of St. Thomas Aquinas;
- The ability to apply analytical skills and knowledge of theology to contemporary ministerial settings;
- The ability to use library research tools effectively;
- The ability to express theological concepts clearly in writing.
Pastoral Outcomes:
- The ability to integrate personal faith and theological study in the context of pastoral ministry;
- A practical competence in preaching which integrates theological insight, awareness of contemporary issues, and pastoral sensitivity;
- The ability to plan and lead celebrations of prayer and liturgy;
- The ability to work collaboratively with clergy and lay women and men in ministry;
- An understanding of the principles of effective pastoral counseling;
- A thorough understanding of professional and ministerial boundaries;
- Cross-cultural competency, i.e. the capacity to work effectively with people of various religious, cultural, gender, and ethnic groups;
- The ability to apply the principles of the moral theology of St. Thomas Aquinas, particularly those concerned with virtue and law, to pastoral situations.
A Program for Both Lay and Ordained Ministry
Lay Ministry students are given the knowledge and skills to pursue ecclesial ministry, or related ministerial work. Academic courses foster the intellectual growth and ability to address the complex questions that may arise in contemporary ministry. Pastoral courses help develop interpersonal skills and the ability to discern the ways the Spirit may be working in the lives of those people served in ministry. Lay ministry students are encouraged to meet regularly for discussions amongst themselves on their own ministerial experiences, as well as to consult with lay persons who have had broad ministerial experience. They are also encouraged to meet regularly with a spiritual director.
Ordained Ministry students are prepared for service as priests or deacons in the Church. In collaboration with the faculty of the School, they integrate their academic and spiritual formation through participation in the formation programs of their religious community or diocese. These students are particularly advised and encouraged to augment the three-year MDiv program with the “complementary curriculum” (described below) in order to fulfill the four years of theological study canonically required for ordination to priesthood in the Roman Catholic Church and to meet the course requirements outlined in the Program of Priestly Formation (PPF) of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Degree Requirements. The MDiv degree is a three-year program which requires a total of 85.5 semester units: 76.5 units of core courses, and 9 units of electives, involving both academic and pastoral work. The maximum time permitted for the completion of the MDiv program is six years, computed from the date of initial registration in the program. Students are required to maintain a 2.3 grade point average.
Prerequisite Coursework – The MDiv program presupposes a basic foundation in philosophy as well as an introduction to Scripture such as that provided in the DSPT undergraduate philosophy program. Consequently, all applicants to the MDiv program must have completed 18 semester units of philosophy and 6 units of Scripture as indicated in the Admissions Requirements section. Applicants lacking these prerequisites may be admitted into the MDiv program and allowed to enroll in these courses concurrently with MDiv courses.
Coursework – All MDiv students must take at least one-third of the total required coursework from DSPT, and are encouraged to take one-third from outside DSPT. In addition to required courses, electives are also taken according to particular needs and interests, and are normally related to theology. Up to 6 units of any combination of the following languages may be used as electives in the MDiv program: Hebrew, Greek, intermediate or advanced Latin, and intermediate or advanced Spanish.
In order to meet the course distribution requirements of the PPF, clerical ministry students are encouraged to take their elective courses in the areas of Holy Orders, the Letter to the Hebrews, spirituality, Mariology, and missiology.
Capstone Seminar – The culmination of the MDiv program for both lay and ordained ministry students is a 1.5 unit “Capstone Seminar,” comprising two three-hour seminar sessions and a written theological autobiography (see course description below). Participation in both seminar sessions, as well as a “passing” assessment of the autobiography, is required for graduation.
MDiv students may also enroll concurrently in a theology degree, completing both programs in a total of four years. For details, see the program description under Concurrent MDiv/MA (Theology).
Complementary Curriculum
Both lay and ordained ministry students may pursue the complementary curriculum in addition to the three-year MDiv program. It provides an additional 15 units of coursework (12 units of required courses and 3 units of electives) integrated with the MDiv program and distributed over a four-year period. It allows lay ministry students to gain a greater breadth of knowledge in theology and allows clerical ministry students to complete the four years of theological study canonically required for ordination in the Roman Catholic Church and substantially to fulfill the course requirements of the PPF which are not entirely met by the three-year MDiv program.
| MASTER OF DIVINITY COURSE DISTRIBUTION |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Scripture (6 units each of OT and NT) |
|
12 units |
| |
Course # |
Title |
Cycle1 |
|
| |
OT 2100 |
Pentateuch |
S’08 |
|
| |
OT 2149 |
Prophets |
S’09 |
|
| |
OT 2608 |
Wisdom/Writings |
F’08 |
|
| |
NT 2235 |
Synoptic Gospels |
|
|
| |
NT 2277 |
Johannine Corpus |
|
|
| |
NT 2520 |
Pauline Corpus |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Systematic/Moral Theology |
|
30 units |
| |
Course # |
Title |
Cycle |
|
| |
ST 1090 |
Revelation & Theology |
|
|
| |
ST 2300 |
Trinity |
S’08 |
|
| |
ST 2232 |
Hist. Dev. of Christology |
|
|
| |
ST 2528 |
Sacraments of Initiation |
|
|
| |
ST 3056 |
Sacs. of Healing & Vocation |
|
|
| |
ST 3128 |
Theological Anthropology |
F’08 |
|
| |
CE 2045 |
Fund. Moral Theology |
|
|
| |
CE 2003 |
RC Sexual Ethics |
|
|
| |
CE 3050 |
Catholic Social Teaching |
|
|
| |
CE 2518 |
RC Biomedical Ethics |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Pastoral Theology |
|
|
|
| |
Course # |
Title |
|
24 units |
| |
STLS 2105 |
Liturgy |
|
|
| |
HM 1073 |
Foundations of Preaching |
|
|
| |
HM 2230 |
Liturgical Preaching |
|
|
| |
FTST 2336 |
Canon Law |
|
|
| |
PS 1248 |
Issues in Pastoral Counseling |
|
|
| |
PS 2064 |
Adv. Issues in Pastoral Counseling |
|
| |
FE 1040 |
Intro to Ministry I (1.5 units) |
|
|
| |
FE 1041 |
Intro to Ministry II (1.5 units) |
|
|
| |
FE 2140 |
Adv Field Ministry I (1.5 units) |
|
|
| |
FE 2141 |
Adv Field Ministry II (1.5 units) |
|
| |
CE 2000 |
Confessional Ministry(1.5 units) |
|
| |
LSFT 2404 |
Celebration of the Sacraments (1.5 units) |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Historical Theology |
|
|
6 units |
| |
Course # |
Title |
|
|
| |
HS 2195 |
History of Christianity (Early) |
|
|
| |
HS 1105 |
Hist. of Christianity (Modern/Contemporary) |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Electives |
|
|
9 units |
| |
Capstone Seminar |
|
|
1.5 units |
|
|
|
|
|
| TOTAL 3-YEAR MDIV PROGRAM |
|
85.5 units |
|
|
|
|
|
| Complementary Curriculum |
|
15 units |
| |
Course # |
Title |
Cycle |
|
| |
NT |
Any course in New Testament |
|
| |
ST 3115 |
Contemporary Christology |
|
|
| |
STPH3095 |
The One Creator God |
F’07/F’09 |
|
| |
ST 3035 |
Fundamentals in Ecclesiology |
S’08 |
|
|
|
Elective |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| TOTAL MDIV/COMPLEMENTARY CURRICULUM |
|
100.5 units |
The DSPT also provides the opportunity for the Master of Divinity students to combine their MDiv program with a M.A. (Theology) degree. For a description of the Concurrent MDiv / M.A. (Theology) Program, go to the Concurrent Degree Programs Section of the Theology Department.
Theology
Department Degree Programs
about us | news & events | admissions
faculty | academics | student services
