Theology & Ministry Department

About the Department

The goal of the Theology & Ministry Department at Sterling College is to cultivate virtuous character, Christ-centered wisdom, and vocational excellence in our community of students. We offer three majors (Biblical Studies, Christian Thought, and Christian Ministries), as well as a number of minors. You can double major at Sterling, in our department and another, and we also offer several interdisciplinary degrees, such as Sports Ministry and Business Ministry. Sterling College now even offers a master’s degree in Sports Ministry. All TM degree paths include a significant number of shared classes, so that anyone graduating from Sterling with a degree from the TM department will be equipped to know the Bible well, to be formed spiritually, to understand the important beliefs and historical events of Christianity, and be ready for ministry in churches or parachurch ministries. Check out our department’s curriculum or Sterling College’s Academic Catalog for more specifics.

The TM department organizes a number of activities outside of coursework. We host a theology conference each fall, rotating between topics on theology, ministry, and the Bible. With other departments on campus, we are involved in an annual “Undergraduate Humanities Conference” that showcases the best original research by Sterling students, and we participate in a series of talks called “Theology+,” where we discuss what theology has to do with mathematics or business or the arts.

Other events are just for fun. We have regular get-togethers as a department, such as a chili cook-off at the start of the year and an ice-cream social at the end. We have monthly lunches together to discuss academic and practical issues, and faculty often have students over for meals or meet at coffee shops to discuss college, life, and life after college. We also like to stay in touch with our alumni as they go into work, ministry, and further studies.

Sterling also provides a variety of avenues for practical, hands-on ministry while in college — from missions trips to places like Nepal and Guatemala, to service projects and internships at churches, as well as ministry teams that lead worship services at local congregations and Christian high schools. While you’re at Sterling, you can also serve as a tutor for our department, helping teach fellow students who are taking general education courses from the TM department.

Faculty

Dr. Timothy A. Gabrielson
Associate Professor of Biblical Studies; 
Department Chair of Theology & Ministry

 

Shebuel Varghese
Assistant Professor of Theology & Ministry

 

Dr. Rachel Danley
Assistant Professor of Biblical Studies

 

Dr. Jennifer R. Bolton
Assistant Professor of Theology & Christian Thought