Looking to deepen your faith, grow your knowledge, or add to your ministry toolkit? CALL@CDSP has short online courses for you! 

The Center for Anglican Learning and Leadership at Church Divinity School of the Pacific offers affordable online learning opportunities throughout the year. Each class is designed so that you can participate at your own pace and at your own time. 

Each course is seven weeks, each week a separate lesson. Continuing Education Units are offered at the rate of 2 CEUs per course. Students from across The Episcopal Church and beyond join experienced online instructors in creating a classroom environment of respect and mutual learning. Courses are open to anyone, lay or ordained, of any denomination or none. 

To help continuing education and local formation students structure their programs, CDSP also offers a Continuing Education Certificate in Anglican Foundations.  These courses are offered regularly to enable the student to complete the program in a timely fashion.

Church History: Anglican Identity with Dr. Brad Peterson 

Church History: Anglican Identity introduces learners to the history and culture of churches that call themselves Anglican or Episcopal – our origins, our evolution, our contentions and our commonalities. Particularly, we will examine Anglican approaches to the church, mission, spirituality, worship, ordained ministry, human being, ecumenism and realignment. This course will equip you with a grasp of how an Anglican identity distinguishes us from and binds us to other forms of Christianity. The course will give you a head-start in other Episcopal Church-related courses. 

The Diaconate with Dr. Rod Dugliss  

The Diaconate is an online course for deacons, deacons in formation, and those wishing to be better grounded in a sound understanding of The Sacred Order of Deacons including especially, members of local discernment committees and members of Commissions on Ministry. The course will consider the history of the Order of Deacons—what is helpful and what is not; the ecclesiology of orders, the distinctive experience of the diaconate in The Episcopal Church, how and why deacons engage in ministry and leadership, and finally, a brief look at the diaconate seen ecumenically. Among other things, the course is specifically designed to meet the formation goals implicit in the Title III formation area, “Diakonia and the diaconate.” 

Navigating Conflict: Speaking the Truth in Love with the Rev. Alex Leach 

Reconciliation is the mission of the Church; and reconciliation is not the absence of conflict but rather the navigation of it. When approached with skill and grounded in Christ’s love, conflict is a healthy process through which we fully encounter our neighbor, we learn about ourselves, and ultimately leads to unity amidst difference. In this course, you will learn concrete skills and tools that help keep conflict healthy and safe. You will also explore the spiritual practices which form the bedrock of this work. Over the seven weeks, you will be asked to read, listen, reflect, and practice skills. 

Orientation to the Old Testament with Dr. Donn Morgan 

This course is offered in response to requests to provide an orientation to the Old Testament Scriptures for those with limited exposure to and knowledge of its content. Orientation to the whole Old Testament in the space of seven weeks is possible only by seeing it from many different perspectives—sometimes looking at the whole as scripture and canon, especially at the beginning and the end of the course, and sometimes by looking carefully at some of its distinctive characteristics (literary, historical, and theological). Through understanding its organization and its basic messages, students will be able to navigate through the whole Old Testament, studying particular texts more easily. This course is intended to orient, interest, and motivate students to further study, making the Old Testament a constant and valuable part of their ministry. 

The Parables with Dr. Peter Claver Ajer 

The course explores the parables of Jesus in their historical, cultural, and literary contexts. A study of specific parables will determine the theological themes, codifications for social reform, ethical lessons in them, and their significance for the Church and society today. 

Pastoral Care with Marginalized Communities with the Rev. Dr. Sarah Kye Price 

This course focuses on practical and theological foundations for engaging authentically and meaningfully with communities where life experiences, identities, and/or demographic characteristics reveal a social divide that can preclude others (and ourselves) from recognizing their full humanity. Readings and other course content integrate literature from social science, practical theology, and personal narratives of experience. The course begins with personal and theoretical reflections on privilege, power and difference and then considers approaches to authentic community engagement. Pastoral care in this framework honors the full humanity and unique experiences of individuals while simultaneously recognizing the social challenges of stigma, oppression, privilege and unconscious bias which can affect the quality and effectiveness of the helping relationship. Participants will engage with readings, mini-lectures, case studies and ethnographic narratives and discuss methods and approaches for collaborative, partnered ministry when engaging with marginalized communities. Individual reflections and participation in a group book project are essential components of this course. 

Preaching in the Digital Age with the Rev. Catherine Caimano 

This is a hands-on preaching and digital ministry course intended to introduce students to a practical method for delivering Good News in person, online, and both at the same time. Course activities will include creating video assignments and sermons, giving feedback to others, and practicing sermon sections. The goal will be growing in comfort and skill as practical preachers in the digital age. 

The Way of Jesus with the Rev. Dr. Robert K. Leopold 

This course will help students examine their own personal and corporate spiritual and liturgical practices and the ways in which they are connected to the life, ministry and teaching of Jesus. Southside Abbey a non-traditional church in the Episcopal tradition co-founded by the instructor, will be used as a case study. 

If you have questions about these courses or participating in CALL, please contact Bob Kramish at 510-204-0702 or call@cdsp.edu.

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About Church Divinity School of the Pacific 

The only Episcopal seminary on the West Coast, CDSP forms leaders called to find new ways to create Christian communities and share God’s love. Through our partnership with Trinity Church Wall Street and an ongoing dialog with bishops and grassroots leaders, we have focused our degree programs on Christian mission, discipleship, and evangelism and on core leadership skills of contextual awareness, critical reflection, and public conversation; established a popular low-residency degree option for students balancing family obligations or professional responsibilities, and established partnerships that allow us to create distance learning curricula for individual dioceses.