The Distinctiveness of  Earliest Christianity

Instructor: Joshua Coutts, PhD

What is Christianity and what distinguishes it from anything else? This course considers this question through a close look at the earliest Christian communities, which united around the explosive historical event of Jesus and left the world forever changed. As we consider earliest Christ-devotion, Christian identity, community practices, models of cultural engagement, morality, and theology, we learn from our fore-bearers how to think and live Christianly in our own world.

This course is also available for graduate credit through Providence Seminary. Please register with Providence Seminary to take this course for graduate credit.

Ministry to At-risk youth

Ministry to At Risk Youth is a course designed for youth workers, Pastors, or Educators to look into the Biblical call to care and to go deeply into all the social, spiritual, and historical causes that lead to the despair found in many communities. We will then look at addictions, family systems, and the systems that contribute to Manitoba being the youth crime capital of Canada. Students will walk away with a deep understanding of root causes and with tools to help youth that they are in contact with to find healing and live healthy lives.

Instructor: Kent Dueck, Founder and Director of ICYA

January - April: Thursday Afternoons

Theology of God, Prayer and Community 

Think about this mind-bending truth: because God is eternally great he can be unfathomably good and delightfully close to our deepest thoughts. His magnificent exaltation is precisely why He can be closer than a brother. In shriveled theology we are forced to choose—will we glorify God’s power or His tender friendship with His children? Will we glorify his sovereignty or the powerful freedom He shares with creatures? We don’t have to choose! And thus we can pray!

Instructor: Professor Layton Friesen, PhD

January - April: Thursday Evenings 

In the Image of God:  A Biblical Theology of Human Nature

In this course, we will explore the question of human identity by examining the notion of the image of God as presented in the Genesis creation account (Gen 1-3). The course is divided into three parts. First, we will examine the meaning of the image of God as described in Genesis 1:26-27 and 2:15-17, as well as the consequences of the primordial act of disobedience on its expression in a fallen world (Gen 3). Second, we will explore the key concepts related to the image of God as they pertain to the major challenges we face today. Thirdly, we will examine how the image of God finds its ultimate fulfillment in the person of Jesus Christ and the resurrection. 

Instructor: Pierre Gilbert

January 30 - 31, 2026