MA in Transformational Leadership

Course details

MA Modules

Church and Mission

The contemporary mission of the church is a debated topic, particularly as the paradigm referred to as “Christendom” diminishes in Western Europe. This module offers you an opportunity to critically examine some of the current thinking about mission. Part of that analysis will be how the church of the 21st century might become a missional community able to demonstrate by word and deed the relevance of the Christian message in an increasingly globalized world. The focus for the module will be the church in Ireland, but it can also function as a paradigm if you are living and working in another context.

Developing Biblical Interpretation

If you are engaged with and working at the interface between theology and ministry you need to have an in-depth, working knowledge of the issues that biblical interpretation raises. This module gives you the opportunity to master a range of aspects of the tools of interpretation. The content of this module will relate both to other areas of study on the programme and to your own ministry practice.

Developing a Theological Framework for Life and Work

Understanding theological commitments and presuppositions is an important aspect of developing an applied theology. Thinking and reflecting theologically and biblically on life and ministry as an aspect of applied theology is central to this module and gives you the opportunity to engage in critique and reflection on your own theological framework.

Developing Spirituality

In recent years there has been something of a resurgence of interest in Christian spirituality, perhaps reflecting general cultural trends. Properly understood, Christian spirituality should always critically engage with a wide range of biblical and theological resources. It should also be regarded as a “lived theology”, an example of applied theology in practice. This module offers you an opportunity to explore aspects of Christian spirituality. This is important for those who are involved in many areas of Christian ministry.

Enabling Leadership

Leadership is a critical issue for the future of any church, and this is certainly true for the church in Ireland. The leaders of the future are the people who will shape the future. The key question is what “shape” should that leadership be within the context of the church? If you are either involved in or interested in leadership this module offers the opportunity to reflect critically on not just some theories of leadership but also on your own leadership practice.

Enabling Pastoral care

It is vital that people who are involved in pastoral caring in either a local church context or in a broader sphere reflect critically and systematically on both the theory and practice of their caring. The module gives you an opportunity to do this for the context in which you are working. It will also encourage you to reflect on your practice of pastoral caring and to develop appropriate strategies to enhance this. The main focus will be on church-based caring, but the learning is applicable to any context.

Evangelicalism: Identity, History and Theology

Questions of identity are important in the contemporary world. Theological identity is an important aspect of an applied theology as it impacts theological and biblical reflection in a range of ways. This module provides an opportunity for you to engage critically with, and reflect on, aspects of evangelical identity and how that impinges on an applied theology.

Preaching/Communication Practice

The communication of the Bible is important in the life of the church and being able to preach and communicate the Bible are important aspects of an applied theology. The contemporary context, however, poses some major challenges to traditional understandings and practices of preaching/communication which need to be addressed. This module encourages you to self-critically engage with both the theoretical underpinning of, and the skills required for, preaching/communication.

Transformational Leadership in Practice

(This module is only available to students studying for the MA in Transformational Leadership award.)Transformational leaders need to develop the self-reflective skills that will enable them to be most effective in a leadership role. This module offers that opportunity and is designed to facilitate those specific skills, abilities and attitudes. The module aims to give you an experience of transformational leadership in practice.

Independent Study

This module allows you to study a specific topic that interests you, and which is not covered anywhere else on the programme. To facilitate this, the class-based teaching sessions are replaced with supervised guided reading and independent study. This module is only available to students who have demonstrated that they will be able to manage this mode of study.

Dissertation

This module allows you to demonstrate your ability to carry out a research project through independent study.