Trauma-Informed Theology

The church is a place where folks find love, grace and community. Churches are also filled with people who have experienced different traumatic experiences and they have suffer from the lasting affects of trauma.

Pastors must be able to create safe spaces for worship participations. Pastors must also be able to provide safe pastoral care to individuals.

Trauma-informed theology is a theology that looks at a whole person: body, mind, and soul. This theology requires pastors to consider how they conduct worship and provide care to their congregations.

This is an 8-week course that will provide an understanding of trauma, trauma-informed theology and care, and help pastors prepare a trauma-informed worship. This class is a must have tool in your toolbox!

Required Texts

Baldwin, Jennifer. Trauma-Sensitive Theology: Thinking Theologically in the Era of Trauma. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, an imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2018.

Day, Jackson H., Elizabeth Vermilyea, Jennifer Wilkerson, and Esther Giller. Risking Connection in Faith Communities: A Training Curriculum for Faith Leaders Supporting Trauma Survivors. Baltimore, MD: Sidran Institute Press, 2006.

Van Der Kolk, Bessel. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 2015.

Books for Final Paper (choose one)

Choose one of the following books for your final paper.

Cahalan, Susannah. Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2013.

Eiesland, Nancy L. The Disabled God: Toward a Liberatory Theology of Disability. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994.

Graham, Larry Kent. Moral Injury: Restoring Wounded Souls. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2017.

Hopkins, Dwight N. Being Human: Race, Culture, and Religion. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2005.

Leslie, Kristen Jane. When Violence Is No Stranger: Pastoral Counseling with Survivors of Acquaintance Rape. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2003.

Smarsh, Sarah. Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth. New York: Scribner, 2019.

Tatum, Beverly. Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? Revised Edition. Basic Books, 2017.

Vance, J. D. Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis. Harper Collins, 2016.

Suggested Texts

Coleman, Monica A. The Dinah Project: A Handbook for Congregational Response to Sexual Violence. Eugene, Ore: Wipf & Stock, 2010.

McClintock, Karen A. When Trauma Wounds: Pathways to Healing and Hope. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, an imprint of 1517 Media, 2019.

Dates and Details

This course is online. See Minimum Requirements for Online Learning.
The course includes online meetings. A webcam and microphone or headset are required. A high speed internet connection is recommended. Participants work online asynchronously between meetings.

When

-

Registration deadline

Fee

$25

Contact

Rev. Dr. Carl K. Ellis

Facilitator(s)

Rev. Dr. Marcee Binder

Marcee Binder

Rev. Dr. Marcee Binder
Board Member
Nebraska

The Rev. Dr. Marcee Binder is the lead pastor of Rockbrook United Methodist Church in Omaha Nebraska.

Learn more

Registration

Indicates required field
Course Information
Trauma-Informed Theology
-
Participant Information
Please include complete phone number with area code in this format: 000-000-0000.
Please include complete phone number with area code in this format: 000-000-0000.
Please include complete phone number with area code in this format: 000-000-0000.
Reasons for registration
Please check all that apply.
Other Information
Payment
Payment Options
Mailing address displays on next page.
PayPal button displays on next page. PayPal account is not required; credit cards are accepted.