Fall 2015/Fuller Live!

Houston, Pasadena

TC540

Taylor

TC540: WORSHIP AND THE ARTS IN THEOLOGICAL & CONTEXTUAL PERSPECTIVE (4 Units: 160 hours). W. David O. Taylor.

DESCRIPTION: This course is an introduction to Christian reflection on and the practice of the arts in worship. By lectures, discussions, and conversations with artists, students will discover ways in which the different media of art open up and close down liturgical, communal, theological, formative and missional possibilities for a given congregation in corporate worship.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon completion of this course, students will (1) have a greater understanding of the biblical, historical, theological and contextual perspectives of art in worship; (2) gain a careful appreciation for the logic and formative power of the different media of art in corporate worship; (3) be exposed to various experiences of the arts in worship; and (4) be given an opportunity to deepen their own practices of liturgical art.

COURSE FORMAT: This class meets once per week for three-hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion plus 10 hours of directed learning activities for a total of 40 instructional hours. 10 hours of DLAs will be accomplished through the experience of the arts in context. It will have some lectures by the professor, discussions of course material, and interaction and reflection on the experience of various art forms.

REQUIRED READING: 1250 total number of pages required.

Brown, Frank B. Inclusive Yet Discerning: Navigating Worship Artfully. Eerdmans, 2009. ISBN: 978-0802862563, Pub. Price $22.00 [75 pp.]

Cherry, Constance M. The Worship Architect: A Blueprint for Designing Culturally Relevant and Biblically Faithful Services. Baker Academic, 2010. ISBN: 978-0801038747, Pub. Price $24.99 [90 pp.]

Crowley, Eileen D. Liturgical Art for a Media Culture. Liturgical Press, 2007. ISBN: 978-0814629680, Pub. Price $8.95 [90 pp]

Dyrness, William. Visual Faith: Art, Theology and Worship in Dialogue. Baker, 2001. ISBN: 978-0801022975, Pub. Price $22.00 [145 pp.].

Gagne, Ronald, Thomas Kane and Robert VerEecke. Introducing Dance in Christian Worship. The Pastoral Press, 1984. ISBN: 9781569290309. [100 pp.]

Taylor, W. David O., ed., For the Beauty of the Church: Casting a Vision for the Arts. Baker, 2010. ISBN: 978-0801071911, Pub. Price $15.99 [125 pp.]

Torgerson, Mark. An Architecture of Immanence: Architecture For Worship and Ministry Today. Eerdmans, 2007. ISBN: 978-0802832092, Pub. Price $26.00 [75 pp.]

Torrance, James B. Worship, Community and the Triune God of Grace. IVP Academic: 1996. ISBN: 978-0830818952, Pub. Price $16.00 [50 pp.]

Additional readings: 500 pages.

RECOMMENDED READING: See course syllabus for recommended texts.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT: The course grade will depend on four elements.

  1. 1,250 pages of reading. [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1-4] [62 hours]
  2. A 1,250-word participant-observation report of an experience of liturgical art (15%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #2-4] [10 hours of DLAs]
  3. A 1,000-word report of a conversation with a liturgical artist (25%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #2-3] [10 hours]
  4. Four 500-750-word online responses to readings (20%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1-2] [16 hours]
  5. Signature assignment: write a 2,500-3,000-word research paper in which you choose a particular activity of worship (e.g., gathering, praying, confessing, singing, reading, preaching, communing, sending, etc.) and suggest ways in which a specific use of art might open up and close down liturgical, communal, theological, formative and missional possibilities for a given congregational context in their practice of that activity of worship (40%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #2-4] [32 hours]

PREREQUISITES: None.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Option to meet the TH5 or C2 requirement in the 120 MDiv Program. Option to meet the C2 requirement in the 80 MATM Programs (Fall 2015). Option to meet a requirement in the Theology and the Arts Emphasis, Worship and Music Ministry Emphasis, or Worship, Theology, and the Arts Emphasis.

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.


NOTE: This ECD is a reliable guide to the course design but is subject to modification. Textbook prices are set by publishers and are subject to change.

For your convenience, order these texts online through the Archives Bookshop.