Winter 2015/Fuller Online

EV532

Russell

 

EV532: RECOVERY MINISTRY IN THE LOCAL CHURCH (4 units: 160 hours). Matthew Russell.

 

DESCRIPTION: This course will examine the theological foundations of recovery ministry as well as the personal dynamics of recovery and practical considerations for developing recovery ministries in the local church.

 

LEARNING OUTCOMES: There are three objectives for this course. (1) That students will be well-informed about the ways in which the dynamics of addiction, abuse, and trauma are likely to influence local church ministry; (2) that students will understand the biblical, historical, and theological resources that might assist them to develop effective ministry to people struggling with these issues; and (3) that students will be better able to envision and develop effective recovery ministries in a variety of settings.

 

COURSE FORMAT: This course will be conducted online on a ten-week schedule aligned with Fuller’s academic calendar for a total of 40 instructional hours, which is outlined below in the assignment and assessment section. Each week, students and the instructor will interact with the material and each other through threaded discussions. Lectures for each lesson will be available online in both audio and video formats. Students will need regular access to a computer that is connected to the internet and a modern browser that has JavaScript and cookies enabled.

 

REQUIRED READING: 1,200 total number of pages required.

Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. AA World Services. Available free at http://www.aa.org/bigbookonline/ or order ISBN: 978-1893007161, Pub. Price $17.95 [first 164 pp.].

Boyle, Gregory. Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion, Free Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-1439153154, Pub. Price $10.25 [240pp.].

May, Gerald. Addiction and Grace. Harper & Row, 1988. ISBN: 978-0061122439, Pub. Price $14.99 [208 pp.].

Choose ONE of the following memoirs:

Bullitt-Jones, Margaret. Holy Hunger: A Woman's Journey from Food Addiction to Spiritual Fulfillment. Vintage Books, 2000. ISBN: 978-0375700873, Pub. Price $16.00 [272 pp.].

Jarecki, Eugee. The House I Live In. Documentary Film, 2012. http://www.thehouseilivein.org.

Kopp, Heather. Sober Mercies: How Love Caught Up with a Christian Drunk. Jericho Books, 2013. ISBN: 978-1455527748, Pub. Price $19.99 [224 pp.]

Lamott, Anne. Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith. Anchor Books, 2000. ISBN: 978- 0385496094, Pub. Price $15.95 [275 pp.].

Sheff, David. Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2007. ISBN: 978-0547203881, Pub. Price $14.95 [336 pp.].

 

RECOMMENDED READING: Recommended reading will be listed in the course syllabus.

 

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. Watch online video/audio presentations (10% of grade) [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1, 2, & 3]. [22 hours].

  2. Introduction Assignment of video or 200 words. (5% of grade) [This assignment is related to learning outcome 3]. [2 hours].

  3. Forum Participation Assignment -250-word weekly forum posts, 250-word weekly replies (35% of grade) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes 1,2 and 3]. [28 hours].

  4. Interview Assignment. Write a 1,000 word (roughly 4 page) summary of an interview with a person in recovery about their spiritual journey (10% of grade) [This assignment is related to learning outcome 3]. [3 hours].

  5. Reading Assignment. Read all required for a total 1,200 pages. Submit a 250-word critique of each book read (10% of grade) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes 1,2 and 3]. [80 hours].

  6. Research/Ministry Design Project. Submit a 2,500 word paper which either (a) develops a proposal for a new church start-up optimized to be responsive to the needs of the person you interviewed in assignment #4 or (b) explores a theological issue related to recovery—preferably not one we have covered in class (30% of grade). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1, 2, & 3] [25 hours].

 

PREREQUISITES: None.

 

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Option to meet the C3 requirement in the 120 MDiv Program. Required course in the Recovery Ministry emphasis. Required course in the US Military Chaplaincy emphasis (Winter 2015).

 

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.