(632) 8928-6717,
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The Ph.D. in Contextual Theology is a degree that interfaces Biblical Studies and Theology and the understanding of the socio-cultural context with the aid of the Social Sciences. In this interface, the importance of transformational, pastoral, educational, and missional tasks are emphasized. This degree will enable graduates to exercise theological and educational leadership in church, NGOs, educational institutions, and research centers so that they can engage their economic, political, and social worlds. There are two tracks: 1) Theology and Culture; 2) Biblical Studies and Culture.
The Theology and Culture track focuses on cultural and theological traditions and/or systems, including their hermeneutical and historical underpinnings, and their dynamic interface with the biblical material in its socio-cultural context, and with the use of the social sciences in identifying and analyzing contemporary challenges.
The Biblical Studies and Culture track is focused on research whose starting point is the biblical text in the original languages as it is situated in its various socio-cultural and historical contexts. Theological engagement acts as a bridge between the ancient context and the contemporary one, as these are understood from the lenses of the social sciences.
This program is recognized by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
The goal of the PhD Program in Contextual Theology is to form scholar-practitioners who can exercise theological/educational/research leadership because they have developed certain perspectives and dispositions, acquired independent research skills, and are able to produce theological work that is rooted and has practical significance in the local context, but with global resonance.
Contextual theology is not to be understood as some unusual or “new breed” of theology. All theology, no matter how philosophical or scholarly it claims to be, is contextual. What contextual theology seeks to do is to make its hermeneutical orientation as up-front and evident as possible. Contextual theology seeks to overcome the dominant theological paradigms in past and current discourse that have gained the status of the classis and therefore continue to “rule” much of contemporary theologizing. By de-powering the classic paradigms and building local theologies from below, contextual theology seeks to build theologies that reflect the Christian community in its various particular settings but keeping in mind the wider world in which it finds itself. Thus, contextual theology is particularly focused on empowering the faith community by giving it a language and praxis in its formation, growth, and service in the setting/s in which it finds itself.
Moreover, contextual theology is not understood as a two-step process in which one understands first and then the practical application follows later. Rather, the practical is already presupposed and integral from the beginning of the interpretation and theological process. Contextualization occurs in the very act of understanding. The result is a theology that is at once systematic, biblical, and practical. It is expected then that the research work of both faculty and students in the PhD program would have an academic as well as a practical orientation.
Contextual theology does not mean elevating the local to the detriment of the global. It simply challenges other local theologies that have been elevated to classical status. Thus, contextual theology, while oriented towards a articular society or culture or cultural sub-group, is still in conversation with other theologies in a global discourse since it recognizes that the church is both local and universal. This implies that issues tackled in research will be rooted in the local context but will have global resonance or implications.
In order to keep the global focus, ongoing interaction with scholarship in the West, as well as with other parts of Asia, Latin America, and Africa will be encouraged. This would entail participation in regional and international conferences for both faculty and students. Partner institutions will be explored and funding sourced so that students can spend part of their dissertation research in educational institutions or research centers with good library resources in other Asian countries or in the West.
The program addresses the fragmentation of theological knowledge—the by-product of the Enlightenment model of education—by ensuring the cross-fertilization of disciplines. While specialized and focused studies are important, these must be seen in a larger framework and related to other theological disciplines. Efforts will be made for integration to happen at various levels: the student’s particular research interest with the courses in the curriculum and the research interests of other students and scholars in the community; among the various course content and methodologies; between the student’s life, academics, and ministry; between local issues and broader national and global issues; between public life and personal life; between life in the seminary and life in the outside world.
Integration happens as faculty in the program are involved in an on-going conversation on how their own particular disciplines and courses relate to others and as various integrative activities are built into the formal and non-formal curriculum. In order to encourage integration, team teaching (among faculty of the same or different disciplines, between residential and visiting/adjunct faculty, between a theologian and a practitioner) would be encouraged as much as possible.
Understanding the social context cannot be done through books alone. Field knowledge helps to correct unquestioned assumptions, give a broader picture to personal/immersion experiences leading to a more in-depth social analysis, provide a means of testing intuitions, and raise questions for further research. It is thus indispensable to contextual theology. Moreover, the data from field research is important for shaping a pastoral and missional response that is more reflective of and appropriate to the context. Hence, field research is an indispensable component of this PhD program, utilizing research tools drawn from the social sciences.
The focus of the program is to prepare people for the various ministries of the church—whether as faculty of theological schools that prepare pastors for the local church, denominational heads and church leaders, research directors and staff, consultants and resource persons to Christian NGOs, parachurch organizations, and corporate organizations wanting to strengthen their Christian witness, and writers of theological books and commentaries. Hence, it is important that the work of students and faculty are rooted in the life of the church and serves the church.
The PhD is not set-off as separate from the ATS Master’s programs. PhD students participate in the life of the ATS community. PhD students also help in the Masters programs by giving a public presentation of their research in a colloquium, assisting in assessment, course instruction, and leading seminars in order to prepare them for teaching roles. To further enhance community life in an academic community, students will be structured as a cohort in a two-year cycle. Community activities will be scheduled with faculty participation to maximize academic and personal interaction.
Being skilled in methodology alone is not sufficient to develop theologies that are appropriate to a certain context. Engaging one’s societal context calls for a spirituality that can undergird a discerning re-reading of Scripture and the emergence of new theological constructions. Hence, the program will emphasize the spiritual disciplines in order to cultivate the quality of discernment, aid faculty and students in the holistic integration of theory and practice, and provide resources for the multiple challenges of study, ministry, and personal/family/public life.
In order for students to grow into independent researchers an adequate mentoring process needs to be put in place. Even though courses give the necessary foundation for one’s research to take off, it is in only in the nitty-gritty of one-on-one mentoring that ideas are explored, arguments are tested, further resources are provided, and the research begins to take shape. Thus, the program will seek to put in place a good mentoring system from the time a student is admitted until the time of submission and defense of the dissertation. This means a realistic faculty-student ratio (in consideration of the total load of a faculty) to ensure adequate supervision. Training seminars for PhD mentors, readers and examiners will also be conducted and a system put in place to ensure that both faculty and students are supported in the mentor-mentee roles.
The Ph.D. Bridge Program is our way of helping interested applicants for the Ph.D. in Contextual Theology program. In the Bridge Program, interested applicants will be advised to take the masteral courses that they lack as prerequisites. For those with non-thesis masteral degrees, they will be guided so they can fulfill the research paper prerequisite. Also, they can be guided as to the research topic they want to pursue in their Ph.D. program. The curriculum for this bridge program is catered individually.
We accept students for the Ph.D. Bridge program every semester.
CURRICULUM
Foreign Language Requirements: Two Foreign Languages (3 masteral level units each)
Total units of Course Work = 54 units
C. Dissertation (12 units)
Total Number of Units = 66 units
CURRICULUM
Foreign Language Requirements: Two Foreign Languages (3 masteral level units each)
A. Core Courses (5 courses, 30 units)
B. Concentration Courses (4 courses, 24 units)
Total units of Course Work = 54 units
C. Dissertation (12 units)
Total Number of Units = 66 units
Email the Application Form and requirements to:
Mr. Jireh Priolo, PhD Program Coordinator
bs_theo_phd@ats.ph (632) 8928-6717 loc. 117
Date of Start of Next Cohort = August 2024
Deadline of Application for Next Cohort = December 31, 2023
The following prerequisites should be taken at the Master’s level:
Application Fee | US $ 35.00 |
Tuition Fee | US $100.00 per unit |
Library Fee | US $ 30.00 per sem |
Technology Fee | US $ 20.00 per sem |
Spiritual Retreat | US $ 75.00 per year |
Dissertation Proposal Workshop | US $ 75.00 |
Writing Workshop | US $ 75.00 |
Teaching/Leading Workshop | US $ 75.00 |
Comprehensive Exam | US $200.00 |
Thesis/Dissertation Defense Fee | US $200.00 |
Graduation Fee | US $ 50.00 |
For details, contact:
Mr. Jireh Priolo, PhD Program Coordinator
bs_theo_phd@ats.ph (632) 8928-6717 loc. 117