Certificate in Muslim-Christian Dialogue

The Purposes of the Certificate are (a) to give students a deeper knowledge of Islam/Christianity; (b) to give students greater knowledge of dialogue and of reconciliation; (c) to enable students to assume positions of interfaith leadership in their local communities; (d) to provide a foundation for future study of relations between Christianity and Islam; and (e) to provide students with a certificate that can lead toward a Master’s degree.

The executive director of the Consortium and the Dean of the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences will direct the program. They will be assisted by an Advisory Board. The Director and the Dean will propose names of members for the Board to the Council of Academic Deans for their approval. The Advisory Board will include at least one dean, one Christian faculty member and one Muslim faculty member.

The certificate may be earned by any Consortium student eligible for cross registration. That is, “any matriculated Master’s level or higher degree or certificate student.” [Council of Academic Deans, Consortium Practices Booklet, 2005]. A person may enroll in one of the member schools to pursue the Certificate on a full-time or part-time basis. These ‘Muslim-Christian Dialogue Certificate Students’ will follow the normal admissions policies of the Consortium member school.

Muslim students will usually come through the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences. Students at the Graduate School can earn the certificate alone or as a segment of the Master’s degree sequence. On other campuses, the member of the Ecumenism Committee will certify any interested student matriculated at his/her institution. The Committee member will recommend the student to the executive director for the Certificate Program. The student will complete an application for the program at least three weeks before the courses commence.

To receive a Certificate in Muslim-Christian Dialogue and Collaboration from the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences and the Consortium, the student must complete a total of twelve credits in courses concerned with Muslim-Christian dialogue that are offered by faculty in the Consortium member schools.

The Director and the Dean will seek to have a balance of Muslim and Christian faculty members teaching courses in the program.

The course program will normally follow the following pattern:

The Director/Dean will meet with the student to determine his/her course program. Depending on his/her background the student will normally take at least one of the following courses:

Introduction to Islam—origins and history
Introduction to Christianity—origins and history
The Qu’ran—content and understanding
The Bible—content and understanding

All students must take the following two courses. These students will always include both Christians and Muslims

Interreligious dialogue—including how Christians and Muslims understand each other, the nature of religious conflict, processes of mediation, and conflict resolution

Practical issues in collaboration—care for the poor, democracy, world peace, etc.

The Director/Dean will see that electives are offered on a regular basis. These may include:

Selected Themes/Thinkers in Christian-Muslim Dialogue [e.g. Science and Religion, Key thinkers in Islamic or Christian History]

Courses in specific topics such as Racism, Poverty, Comparative Ethical systems

A pastoral placement in a Christian/Muslim institution--with appropriate theological reflection-- or an immersion experience.

The executive director of the Consortium and the Dean of GSISS will serve as coordinators of the program:

The executive director will serve as advisor to all Christian students in the certificate program. The director will approve the course selection by the students. The director will work in consultation with the Deans of GSISS and of the student’s home institution.

The Consortium will list all courses that can fulfill the requirements of the Certificate on its website.

The Dean of the GSISS Executive Director will encourage the students to use the rich resources of the whole Consortium. The student’s course selections must lead to a broad familiarity with the varied Christian/Muslim faith communities.

The Dean of GSISS and the Executive Director, in collaboration with the Deans of the individual institutions, will see that no individual course is oversubscribed. Courses will be added as necessary. The Dean and the Director will seek to make the courses accessible to all Consortium students. [Thus they will try to vary locations and times].

The Dean of GSISS and the Executive Director will report regularly to the Consortium Council of Academic Deans on the progress of the Certificate program.

The Certificate will normally be awarded at the graduation ceremonies of the individual institution or in another appropriate way. The student must complete all requirements in a timely fashion in accord with the policies of her/his home institution.

Students currently matriculated in one of the schools of the Consortium may apply courses already taken to the certificate program with the approval of the executive director. [This privilege will not extend to students who have already graduated.]

Approved by Consortium Board of Trustees March 26, 2007