Pastoral and Social Studies
Head of Pastoral and Social Studies: Dr James Sweeney
Email: j.sweeney@heythrop.ac.uk
Telephone: 020 7795 4230
Why take Pastoral Theology at Heythrop?
Aims
- To foster an understanding of and critical reflection on Christian life and ministry, both individual and corporate, recognising differences between Christian traditions.
- To promote reflection on the relationships between faith, person, experience, church, culture and theology.
- To enable students to develop a personal synthesis of theological reflection and lived experience.
- To develop further reflective and practical skills used in ministry.
Objectives
Successful students in the Pastoral Theology programme will:
- Have developed skills in theology and other disciplines relevant to the critical study of Christian practice.
- Have reflected on different accounts of how pastoral studies draws on insights from both theological and non-theological disciplines.
- Be aware of and able to discuss critically issues regarding selected areas of Christian practice.
- Have developed an ability to reflect critically on their own experience of Christian life and ministry and to evolve theological insights on that basis.
- Broadened and deepened their pastoral and theological understanding of life and ministry in the Christian church in a variety of traditions.
- Have enhanced their capacity to integrate pastoral experience with theological understanding.
- Have developed personal and inter-personal skills appropriate to particular areas of contemporary Christian life and ministry.