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M.A. in Pastoral Ministry*
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Overview for the Online Program for the Laity
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few” (Mt. 9:37).
St. John’s offers an online M.A. in Pastoral Ministry* Program for directors of religious education, youth ministers, campus ministers, catechists, K-12 theology teachers, and anyone else interested in receiving formation for ministry, such as permanent deacons.
This program will help students improve their knowledge of the Catholic intellectual tradition, and improve their ministerial skills for the life of the Church. Students will be prepared to work in different areas of ministry, and make professional and personal connections with others of the same mind and spirit.
*Pending WSCUC approval
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- Students will be grounded in the wisdom of the Catholic Church. The curriculum is divided into two parts. The first part exposes students to the depths of the deposit of faith. The second part exposes students to ministerial formation for practical application. A grounding in both the doctrinal and the ministerial is essential for any lay minister. Doctrine must always be in service to the People of God, and ministry must always be anchored in the Church’s teaching.
- The online M.A. in Pastoral Ministry* Program exceeds the curricular guidelines established by the USCCB’s document Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord: A Resource for Guiding the Development of Lay Ecclesial Ministry. The curriculum (12 Courses for 36 Hours) consists of:
- The Old Testament and Its Interpretation
- The New Testament and Its Interpretation
- Dogmatic Theology
- Church History
- Moral Theology
- Catholic Social Teaching
- Pastoral Ministry in Theory and Practice
- Liturgical and Sacramental Theology
- Spiritual Theology and Practice
- The Nature and Order of the Church
- Pastoral Care for Marriage and Families
- Practicum
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- Students will read and discuss the best texts that the Catholic Tradition has to offer, including St. Augustine’s Confessions, St. Francis De Sales’ Introduction to the Devout Life, documents from Vatican II, St. John Paul II’s Evangelium Vitae, Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’, and many others.
- Students will watch video lectures. A studio with professional video, audio, and lighting equipment has been built to produce visually stunning content by our world-class faculty.
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