Courtney has been living in Palestine for two years and is in her final year of a professional doctorate at Durham University, England. Titled Divine Encounters Amidst Occupation and Genocide, her research is an immersive theological ethnography with Musalaha, a faith-based organization that works to foster reconciliation between Palestinians and Israelis.
After the October 7, 2023, attack, Courtney made the decision to stay in Palestine/Israel. She felt it was crucial to remain in the field to build trust, and to consider the role of coloniality in her research. Being a white, English-speaking, educated person, she found it essential to maintain relationships with those with whom she worked, and to allow the process to inform her work.
Courtney graduated from Wycliffe’s MTSD program, which bridged her understanding of Christ's presence in the world and her passion for justice. Bringing these elements together was profoundly formative for her current work. The MTSD prepared her to see how theological principles take shape and find meaning in people's daily lives—her primary concern.
Courtney is committed to freeing people from oppression by following in the footsteps of Jesus. For her, it’s not just about personal confession of faith but also about the Church’s responsibility to be the hands and feet of Christ—feeding the hungry, comforting the imprisoned, and responding with faith and justice. Acting in this way is a vital expression of her theology.
Courtney’s time at Wycliffe helped her make meaningful connections between studies and real life, igniting passion, belief, and a deeper connection to the world. As she completes her PhD dissertation in Palestine, she hopes her writing will illuminate the complexity and possibility of building peace justly.
