Summer Spirituality Institute

Nourishment for the Soul

The Department of Religious and Pastoral Studies at the College of Mount St. Joseph is pleased to present our 12th annual Summer Spirituality Institute. Join us for a week of guest speakers, academic courses, and renewing reflection that will deepen your understanding of spirituality in today’s world.

Our theme this year addresses how we speak about God and how those words can transform the way each of us connects with our faith and ministers to others. Courses are offered for undergraduate, graduate or CEU credit; courses may also be audited for no credit. On-campus housing is available.

Guest Lectures

These presentations, free and open to the public, are held at EarthConnection, a beautifully innovative building created from recycled materials, on the grounds adjacent to campus.

Carolyn Bohler, Ph.D. - Kenote Speaker
Daring God-Talk in Pastoral Care and Lay Ministry
Monday, June 25, 2012, 12-1 p.m., EarthConnection

Carolyn Bohler is lead pastor of Redlands First United Methodist Church in California, a position she attained in 2008. That same year brought the publishing of her latest book, “God the What? What Our Metaphors for God Reveal about Our Beliefs in God." Previously she served as senior pastor at Aldersgate UMC in Tustin, Calif., after a 20-year career as professor of pastoral theology and counseling at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. An accomplished writer of books and articles on a wide range of theological topics, Dr. Bohler also has produced and/or appeared in a number of TV and video productions on issues of faith. She holds an undergraduate degree in mathematics from UCLA and both a seminary degree and doctorate from Claremont.

Marge Kloos, SC, D.Min.
Women's Spiritual Longing in a Transforming World
Tuesday, June 26, 2012, 12-1 p.m., EarthConnection

Marge Kloos, SC, D.Min., is the dean of the Division of Arts and Humanities at the College of Mount St. Joseph, and an associate professor in the Department of Religious and Pastoral Studies. She has taught courses in ministry, pastoral care, eco-spirituality, and systematic theology in degree programs as well as lay ministry development programs. She holds a doctorate of ministry with a concentration in pastoral care and a master’s degree in theological studies, and has done research in cross-cultural spiritual care. In 2008, she served as a scholar at Tantur Ecumenical Center in Jerusalem, studying the implications of intergenerational trauma for women’s spirituality.

Ken Czillinger, M.Div.
Pastoral Care in the Hospice Setting
Wednesday, June 29, 2012, 12-1 p.m., EarthConnection

Ken Czillinger, M.Div., is an instructor in the Department of Religious and Pastoral Studies at the College of Mount St. Joseph. He brings to the classroom decades of experience in pastoral care, including 12 years as a bereavement manager for VITAS Innovative Hospice Care in Cincinnati. He has written extensively on bereavement and has formed more than 20 support groups for the bereaved including groups for widowed persons, children and teenagers, as well as those who have experienced miscarriages and stillbirths. In his honor, the Father Ken Czillinger Award is presented at the National Conference of Parents of Murdered Children (POMC) to a professional who is supportive of POMC and its mission.

Who Should Attend

Institute courses and lectures will benefit both professionals working in pastoral and spiritual care, as well as individuals who want to renew and grow their spiritual connections. The Institute over the years has attracted people from all over the country, including: