Content

This topic focusses on the attitudes, worldview, and dispositions needed for ministry practitioners to effectively offer ministry in liminal spaces within their community. Starting with deep listening and the capacity to ‘read’ the dominant value and cultural systems at hand, this topic looks at radical discipleship, intercultural relational skills, and humility and friendship to offer ministry ‘with’ others. Themes of liberation, struggle, solidarity, and dialogue will be explored to deepen the students understanding of missional engagement. Theological reflection skills will be developed through practises evidenced in case studies and field visits with current community ministers. Students will learn to develop local theologies, rituals and liturgies for liminal spaces outside the gathered Christian community.

Unit code: DM9747Z

Unit status: Approved (Major revision)

Points: 18.0

Unit level: Postgraduate Elective

Unit discipline: Missiology

Proposing College: Uniting College for Leadership and Theology

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Learning outcomes

1.

Critically reflect on the attributes, worldview and ministry dispositions needed for ministry in liminal spaces

2.

Critically analyse dominant values and cultural systems of named contexts

3.

Apply skills and themes learned and critically discussed to offer appropriate ministry ‘with’ others

4.

Innovate a local theology and liturgy for a key moment in the life of a community

Unit sequence

A unit available for postgraduate elective study

Pedagogy

Lectures, readings, online exercises, case studies, discussions, creative interaction and/or field trips.

Indicative Bibliography

  • Baab, Lynne M. The Power of Listening: Building Skills for Mission and Ministry. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2014.
  • Dewerse, Rosemary. *Living True: An Auto/bio/graphical Adventure. Adelaide: MediaCom, 2018.
  • -----. Breaking Calabashes: Becoming an Intercultural Community. Adelaide: Media Com, 2013.
  • Graham, Elaine L, Heather Walton, Frances Ward, and Katja Stuerzenhofecker. Theological Reflection: Methods. Second ed. London: SCM Press, 2019.
  • Hardy, Andrew R, and Dan Yarnell. Missional Discipleship After Christendom. After Christendom. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books, 2018.
  • McBride, Jennifer M. Radical Discipleship: A Liturgical Politics of the Gospel. Minneapolis Minnesota: Fortress Press, 2017.
  • Meitzner Yoder, Laura Suzanne, and John R. W Stott. Living Radical Discipleship : Inspired by John Stott. Carlisle, UK: Langham Global Library, an imprint of Langham Publishing, 2021.
  • Schreiter, Robert J. Constructing Local Theologies. Maryknoll: Orbis, 2006.
  • Sedmak, Clemens. Doing Local Theology: A Guide for Artisans of a New Humanity. Faith and Cultures Series. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 2002.
  • Ungunmerr, Miriam-Rose. "Inner Deep Listening and Quiet Still Awareness." https://www.miriamrosefoundation.org.au/dadirri/
  • Wells, Samuel. Incarnational Ministry: Being With the Church. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2017.

Assessment

Type Description Word count Weight (%)
Portfolio 6000 100.0
Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Prof Albert Haddad on 15 Apr, 2026

Unit record last updated: 2026-04-15 09:50:33 +1000