Exploring Peace and Justice in the Bible
An online short course
Taught by Drew Strait, PhD, and Jackie Wyse-Rhodes, PhD


Dates: Sept. 10 – Oct. 21, 2025
Early registration deadline: Aug. 20, 2025
Final registration deadline: Sept. 3, 2025
In this six-week short course, we will study six pertinent biblical passages (three OT and three NT) and reflect individually and collectively on what these texts contribute to a robust and biblically based practice of peace and justice today. These texts will also help us focus on several key issues such as the relationship between peace and justice, how God acts for peace and justice, and the question of how should we act. Do we claim nonviolence, nonresistance, active resistance or something else?
Active student participation in the text studies and active reading of the short commentary provided will contribute to lively discussions of these vital issues. Short course students are expected to read assigned materials and complete short assignments, writing in an online discussion forum. Students manage their own time to meet weekly assignment deadlines.
This course includes an optional video conference meeting with the instructors each week of the course. These meetings will be recorded for participants who aren’t able to attend.
Cost
- Early registration: $300 US per course
- Regular registration: $350 US per course
- Anabaptist Short Course Bundle: $995 US total for four courses!*
- Global South Scholarships are available. .
- Participants should expect to pay for one or two textbooks.
* ‘Challenging Christian Nationalism’ and ‘Biblical Interpretation Across the Two Testaments‘ are not included in the Anabaptist Short Course Bundle.
Anabaptist Short Course Bundle discount!
Only $995 US total for four Anabaptist short courses. Register online and select the bundle price.
Short course details
How short courses work
Courses are offered online and last six weeks each. Short course students are expected to complete coursework on their own and post to an online forum weekly. Short courses also include optional, weekly, live video conversations with instructors. These conversations are recorded for class members who cannot attend.
Short courses explore topics like Anabaptist history, biblical study, spiritual and ethical issues, and more. These non-credit courses involve readings from textbooks and online articles and include written forum discussion. You won’t receive a grade, but readings and discussion are comparable to seminary-level work, and professors assume you have critical thinking skills and some previous academic study.
Online course requirements
You will need:
- High speed internet access
- Access to a computer with a web browser, a word processing program, and a PDF file reader (such as Adobe Reader)
- An email account
- Basic computer skills
- One or two textbooks selected by the professor, available from a web source
Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available. Upon the completion of course requirements, you can earn 2.4 CEUs. However, no academic credit is awarded and these courses do not meet any requirements in the bgÕæÈË Master of Divinity or Master of Arts programs of study.
Before you register
Online learning is not for everyone. To help evaluate your skills and abilities to benefit from an online course, please follow provided by Washington Online. Question 5 asks about available time to devote to the course. Short courses require, on average, 5-10 hours per week rather than the 10-15 hours mentioned in the quiz. With this in mind, we encourage you to take the quiz and find out whether you are a good candidate for online learning.
Refunds
Before the early registration deadline, cancellations will be refunded, less US$50. After this date, cancellations will be granted credit, less US$50, toward a future short course within one year. Refund credits must be requested within one week of the beginning of the event.
Questions? Contact us!
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