Two courses wrapped up: Religious Systems, Vocal course

My primary course that has kept me extremely busy, Religious Systems, finished a week ago and I spent a good part of the past week grading papers and exams. I definitely encountered a sharp learning curve in the course regarding the educational system here, where students are coming from, how to assess students well without overwhelming myself with too much grading, and considering how to better contextualize courses for the Colombian context in the future. In spite of all the ways I can see to improve (something I'm sure will never go away), I've heard a lot of positive feedback from students as well as others on staff at the seminary who have spoken with students and said they have learned a lot. Below are a few pictures from the last day of the course, when we wrapped up looking at other belief systems with a discussion on how the church can help strengthen the faith of people facing doubts due to the existence of so much religious diversity and differences of opinion.

With the 23 students in my Religious Systems course.

Four of my students during a group discussion activity.

Brainstorming ideas as a class, drawing on the insights of the different groups.

This past Saturday we also wrapped up the Foundations of Vocal Technique course by having a small certification ceremony. Students prepared a song (the Spanish version of "Lord Most High"), the teacher (Claudia) sang, and I gave a 15-minute homily based on Psalm 95. The message sought to summarize the key themes we studied regarding theology of worship, namely, why we worship (because God is worthy of worship for who he is) and how we ought to worship (with a humble attitude and a heart willing to listen to God and obey him in all aspects of our lives).

Though the course ended with substantially fewer students than we had in the initial five-week module, we still had a decent group of around 15 students who stayed through the whole twelve weeks. I saw substantial improvement in the last few weeks and many students are hoping to be able to continue. I played a role in evaluating the course for the seminary, and they are going to offer the course again beginning in October, separated into two levels this time. I will likely continue to help out with the theology of worship portions, but not attend the rest of the classes from here on out.

Here are a couple of reflections on the theological part of the course from an interview I conducted after the last class:

• Diana, a student involved with youth ministry and music at her church, said: “I have enjoyed the theological part of the class a lot because there are things that one understands erroneously in terms of worship and praise, ideas like thinking that worship is only a matter of singing or raising one’s hands. But worship is much more than just that.” 
• Luz Marina, a lawyer who works with victims of the armed conflict in Colombia and who also serves in worship ministry at her church, said the following, "It has been very special to be part of this course because I haven't just learned vocal techniques to help me sing better, but I have also learned the role that worship and praise plays within a worship service and the congregation's gatherings".

Singing at the certification ceremony for the Foundations of Vocal Technique course (in the seminary chapel).