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Academy Library

The Academy Library is a collection of archived tracks from live lectures hosted by the Whitworth Office of Church Engagement. All tracks are paired with supplementary material including handouts, spiritual exercises, cohort questions and projects, all of which are purposed for not just information but transformation. Below are tracks currently housed in our Academy Library:

Access to each track in the Academy of Christian Discipleship costs $50 per person.

Register as a Church Register as an Individual

  • Church Registration is designed for large groups and entire congregations that plan to study this track together. Registrants will sign up through their church, and a single payment will be made to OCE. Churches should compile their participant list in this template: Participant List Template
  • Individual Registration is designed for small groups where individual members can complete their own registration and pay separately.

A New Catechumenate

We believe that Christianity in America is imperiled, at least in part because so many Christians are Christians in name only. Believers need a stronger foundation on which to build their spiritual lives and practice of discipleship. In response to these challenges, we have developed a new track in the Academy of Christian Discipleship called "A New Catechumenate."

Modeled after the catechumenate of the early church, this new catechumenate serves as an on-ramp to the Christian faith. Our challenge now is not complete unfamiliarity with Christian faith, but distortion and confusion. We invite churches to partner with us to better equip disciples for lives of faithful service to Jesus Christ through deep study and practice.

Find more information, sample study guides and video previews here.

The Gospel in the Four Gospels

  • The Gospel of Mark - featuring Jim Edwards, Ph.D. (7 hours, trailer)
  • The Gospel of Luke - featuring Jim Edwards, Ph.D. (7 hours, trailer)
  • The Gospel of John - featuring Terry McGonigal, Ph.D. (7 hours, trailer)

Four books, four authors, four styles, four perspectives, but one story about one man, the human Jesus who turned out to be the Lord Jesus. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all bear witness to this Christ. They differ in details but not in message. They proclaim Jesus as Messiah, Son of God, Savior and Lord. This track features three of the four Gospels, each including nine half-hour presentations and an accompanying study guide. 

Gospel of Mark Sample Handout

Gospel of Luke Sample Handout

Gospel of John Sample Handout

The Third Way

  • Featuring Josh Leim, Jerry Sittser, Terry McGonigal and Julie Canlis (22 hours, trailer)

Ancient Romans did not know what to make of the early Christian movement because both its message about Jesus and its lifestyle was so unique, a “third way” after traditional Roman religion and Judaism. Romans had never seen anything like it. Christendom compromised it. Our post-Christendom environment demands that we rediscover it. This track explores how the uniqueness of the Christian movement, as we see in the books of Acts and in early Christianity, can shape the church today.

The Third Way Sample Handout

Deepening the Root System

  • Featuring Jerry Sittser, Ph.D (22 hours, trailer)

We are called to be apprentices to Jesus, our master, who not only makes us new but also invites us to live in a new way. This track focuses on what it means to go deep with Jesus: how Jesus shapes identity, forms community, renews and re-orders human life, and shapes how we live in the world.

Deepening the Root System Sample Handout

Introduction to the Bible

  • Featuring various Whitworth faculty/staff (22 hours, trailer)

We as Christians consider the Bible as our book because we believe that the written word of God bears witness to the incarnate Word of God. Yet, it remains a mysterious book to many of us. We claim it as our own, but we don’t necessarily know much about it—for example, how it came to be a book and what it teaches about God. This track explores the book of Christians: its composition, big story, unique features and major sections (Pentateuch, Writers, Prophets, Gospels, Acts, and Letters).

Introduction to the Bible Sample Handout

On Mission

  • Collaboration with Partners International (22 hours)

The church in the West appears to be in decline, not only in Europe, but also in America. Yet, the church in other parts of the world is growing, even under pressure and persecution. Why? What can we learn from the worldwide church as we adjust to our post-Christendom context? This track features the testimonies and teachings of indigenous church leaders from around the world as they share with the western church what they are doing in their kingdom work. We are members of a global church. It is on the move. We are called to join it as partners in mission.

Christian Leadership

  • Featuring various Whitworth faculty/staff (22 hours, trailer)

Take a handful of Christians, give them a task, and you create an organization. Organizations of whatever size and scope need leaders who are committed both to principle and to people, and who see leadership as an expression and extension of discipleship. This track focuses on the art and practice of Christian leadership in organizations small and large.

Christian Leadership Sample Handout