May 2024 Course Descriptions

Anglican Spirituality
This course focuses on the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church as a prime source for personal and congregational growth in God's love.
Required Texts
  • The Book of Common Prayer (BCP)
  • Olsen, Derek. Inwardly Digest: The Prayer Book as Guide to a Spiritual Life. Forward Movement, 2016.
Recommended Text
  • Hatchett, Marion. Commentary on the American Prayer Book . HarperOne.
Your Instructor
  • The Very Rev. Dr. Don H. Compier (Ph.D. in theology, Emory University) is Dean of the Bishop Kemper School for Ministry. Previously, Compier taught Master’s and Ph.D. courses in theology, philosophy, and modern church history at the Church Divinity School of the Pacific and the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA. He has also offered classes at Saint Paul School of Theology and Eden Theological Seminary. He led the graduate program in religion at Graceland University from 2002 until 2014, developing an innovative online curriculum. He is currently conducting research on the history of Eucharistic thought in the Anglican tradition. He is completing his internship to be a guide to persons doing the Ignatian Exercises.

Diversity, Justice and the Church's Mission
This course provides an introductory survey of systemic racism in America—its European and colonial  foundations, as well as its costs. We will also look at the position of the Episcopal Church in that history, and explore how systemic oppression plays a role in perpetuating barriers to true diversity and racial reconciliation.  Students will explore how  we can help congregations move along the continuum from “exclusive” to “transformed” spaces. In their final assignment students will be expected to demonstrate knowledge of the resource materials, gain comprehension of key concepts, and to develop a personal plan for engaging in the work of transforming racist systems. (This workshop satisfies the canonical anti-racism requirements for clergy and lay leaders.)

Required Texts
  • Thurman, Howard. Jesus and the Disinherited. Beacon Press, 1996.
  • "Seeing White", Episodes 1-14 (from Scene on Radio podcast with John Biewen).
  • Jones, Robert P. White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremecy in American Christianity.  Simon & Schuster, 2021. 
  • Spellars, Stephanie. The Church Cracked Open: Disruption, Decline and New Hope.  Church Publishing, 2021.
Your Instructor
  • Ms. Cheryl Cementina  holds a B.A. in Religious Studies from the University of California (Santa Barbara), a Master of Arts in Counseling from the University of Missouri (Kansas City) and a Master of Science in Clinical Psychology from the University of Central Missouri. Before a move to the East Coast in 2021, Ms. Cementina served as the Adult Christian Formation Coordinator at St. Andrews, Kansas City, Missouri and on the Diversity and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission on Christian Formation for the Diocese of West Missouri.

New Testament
The  course is a study of the Gospels, Epistles, and other writings of the New Testament that gives consideration to their historical, literary, and theological dimensions. After taking this course, students will have gained a general understanding of the major stories and theological ideas of the New Testament, a basic familiarity with the variety of methods scholars use to interpret the New Testament, a basic sense of the origins and historical development of the New Testament, and an appreciation for variation and similarity within interpretations of the New Testament.
Required Texts
  • Conway, Colleen. The New Testament: A Contemporary Introduction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2022. ISBN: 978-1119685920
Your Instructor
  • Dr. Arminta Fox is Associate Professor of Religion and Director of Peer Ministry at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas. She earned her PhD in Biblical Studies from Drew University Theological School in Madison, New Jersey in 2015. A New Testament scholar, Dr. Fox’s primary areas of research include the complex development of identity in biblical texts and early Christian history, feminist biblical scholarship, contextual hermeneutics, and material culture. Her first book, Paul Decentered: Reading 2 Corinthians with the Corinthian Women, was published by Lexington/Fortress Academic in December 2019. This work analyzes how Paul’s letters, particularly 2 Corinthians, witness to complex debates between Paul and the communities in which he worked. It argues that women played an important role in the development of the Christian community in Corinth.
BKSM welcomes you to take courses with us for personal enrichment or continuing education. Classes are richer with occasional students around the table.  We encourage you to experience this remarkable, uplifting community of learning, worship and fellowship for yourself!

May Overview
  • Classes begin on Monday, April 15.  You will receive an email and syllabus directly from your instructor. If you have  not received anything from your instructor by Tuesday, please contact us.
  • The in-person Focus Weekend meets  May 11-12, on Saturday from 7:30 am-9:00 pm and on Sunday from 7:30am-12:15pm.
  • The detailed weekend schedule is here.
  • Classes end on Friday, June 7.
  • Grades due June 30.

Tuition & Scholarships
  • Tuition is $100 to audit a class in person or online, $240 to take a class for credit in person, which includes  overnight accommodations at Upton Hall &  meals, $165 to take a class for credit on Zoom.
  • Apply for the $100 Jim Upton lay scholarship. Scholarships also available for students on an ordination track.
  • Many hotels are available throughout Topeka. Most are 15 minutes away or less.
Register for May Courses