MTh

MEGST started the Master of Theology (Theology and Missiology) in the 2010-2011 academic year.  It is a 36-unit upper-level degree program: 24 units for class work and 12 units for thesis work.

Students who conclude their MTh studies after their first year with satisfactory grades (that is, without completing the final two courses [6 units] and the thesis [12 units]) are awarded a Post-Graduate Diploma (PGDip) in either Theology or Missiology.

Courses may be taught either in modular form or in semester-length classes. Further information is included in the Post-Graduate Studies Student Handbook available from MEGST.

Click here to download the MTh form

Theology Major

This major is designed to help students acquire rich theological knowledge so that national theologians will be produced to lead seminaries in Myanmar.  Students will learn to think, apply and write from a contextual perspective.  The aim is to develop humble, reliable, trustworthy, transparent and visionary leaders.

Missiology Major

This major is designed to help students learn about great missionaries and their strategies in launching missions, to produce enthusiastic leaders for church planting, to produce ministers with great zeal and passion to spread the Gospel and to win souls to bring into Christ’s kingdom, to produce scholars who can think and write contextually for the advancement of the Gospel, to orientate ministers to love and care for their members at any cost, and to produce humble, reliable, trustworthy, transparent and visionary leaders.

Structure

Course Descriptions

Shared Courses

Research and Writing Methodology
This course is a higher level of study that focuses on academic writing and theological research. It relates particularly to thesis writing and includes the nature of research, data collection and finding information, types of note taking, reference notes and bibliographical entries based on Kate L Turabian (6th and 7th editions), how to avoid plagiarism, and organizing and writing a thesis.

Introduction to Buddhism
This course introduces Buddhism and examines contemporary forms of Buddhism in their specific contexts. Special attention is focused on Theravada Buddhism in Myanmar, its relation to life, worldview, socio-economic, and the culture of the Myanmar Buddhists, and to respond from a theological perspective to determine how the gospel would be appropriately communicated to the Buddhists in their specific contexts.

Contextualizing Theology
This course focuses on the concepts, historical developments, and models of contextualized theology. It includes a study of selected contextual theologians and methods of contextualizing theology with specific reference to Myanmar.

Theology and Mission
This course of study provides an overview of the biblical teachings on mission by engaging with select themes and drawing applications for doing mission in Myanmar and beyond.

Ecclesiology
This course studies the theology of the nature, purpose, function, and structure of the Church and it will enable students to understand the biblical perspective of the Church and its responsibilities in continuing the mission of God.

Hermeneutics
This course focuses on the authority, nature, and interpretation of the Scriptures. It is designed to help students work through issues that concern the trust they place in the Bible and its interpretation.

Leadership
Students who graduate in Theology are likely to be involved in the leadership of non-profit and/or Christian organizations. From a Christian perspective, people and relationships matter to God. Managing, leading, and serving people are integral to Christian ministry which must be done well to the glory of God. This module endeavors to theoretically and practically equip students to this end by drawing on biblical and secular sources.

Theology Courses

Historical Theology
This course is designed for master’s level of study to give an overall view of the history of the development of Christian theology. It will examine the development of major Christian theologies throughout the history of the church: Patristic, Medieval, Reformed and Post-Reformed, and Contemporary periods. Students will encounter outstanding theologians who made a great contribution to the church of Christ together with their theological or philosophical ideas to preserve/protect/defend the teaching of the Bible. At the same time, students will discover the so-called heresies during these periods and their challenges to the orthodox teaching of the church.

Christology and Pneumatology
This course concentrates on the current Christological and Pneumatological issues that challenge the churches and Christianity. This course will enable students to defend orthodox Christian teaching in the light of genuine biblical teachings.

Theology in Asian Context
The purpose of this course is to recognize themes and insights that are developed uniquely by Asian Theologians so that students will understand to develop a theology based on their Asian heritage and experiences. Consequently, this course will help students to overcome Western parochialism and contribute to a development of Christian Theology in Asian/Myanmar context.

Missiology Courses

Early Church History of Theology & Mission
This course seeks to introduce students to the history of the Christian church from its early days to about 500 A.D. and to develop skills in the discipline of church history.

Cultural Anthropology
This course focuses on an introduction to cultural anthropology and its application to Christian missions. It includes ethnological research the methods, and deals with the challenges and skills of cross-cultural communication. It also investigates the processes of encounter, adaptation, identification and communication and the enculturation of the Church.

Issues in Missiology
This study introduces the essential issues which are to be taken into consideration and will apply in developing missiology with special reference to Myanmar.

Cross-cultural Communication
This course focuses on cultural patterns of thought, communication and behavior. It will study the relationships between the culture, behavior and communication of individuals and groups, both internationally and nationally. The course will give students insights into how intercultural communication factors affect the ways business, services and communication are handled in various cultural contexts.

Thesis

The thesis is designed to demonstrate the student’s competence in his or her area of specialization. It should deal with the topic in a way comparable with a paper published in an academic journal. It should fulfil all the requirements and procedures outlined in MEGST’s thesis manual, such as format, style, footnotes, bibliography and length of the thesis. The thesis is to be of 100-125 pages, including footnotes, of 1.5 spaced computers printing out. The thesis must be submitted by the end of November during the second year. The student’s mentor as well as two external readers competent in the field will examine the thesis. The final grade of a thesis will be the average of the mentor’s and the external reader’s grades.