Winter 2019/Pasadena

ET521

Dufault-Hunter

ET521: SEXUALITY AND ETHICS (4 Units: 160 Units). Erin Dufault-Hunter.

DESCRIPTION: Popular Western culture is highly sexualized; our identities have become hitched to our sexuality, including our sexual practices or “preferences.” Contemporary Western Christian culture is generally muddled about how our sexuality matters for our discipleship; we often unknowingly adopt the assumptions of our broader culture and fail to reflect on the implications of doing so for our life and witness. This course explores our sexuality from a theological perspective and encourages development of an alternative vision for how our sexuality matters for our personal discipleship and communal witness.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: (1) Students will gain tools for analyzing how our culture shapes our perceptions of sexuality; (2) students will reflect on how despite Scripture’s temporal and cultural distance from us, theological interpretation can guide us in our sexual beliefs and practice; (3) students will develop a culturally-relevant sexual ethic informed by social science, Scripture, and church tradition; and (4) students will practice convicted civility when discussing sex and sexuality.

COURSE FORMAT: This class meets twice weekly for two hour sessions for a total of 40 instructional hours in the classroom for lecture and discussion.

REQUIRED READING: 1,500 pp. of required reading.

Douglas, Kelly Brown. “Black and Blues: God-Talk/Body-Talk for the Black Church,” in Sexuality and the Sacred: Sources for Theological Reflection. Chapter available in e-book Fuller Library.

Loader, William. The New Testament on Sexuality. Eerdmans, 2012. ISBN: 978-0802867247, Pub. Price $65.00 [Reading sections totaling approx. 300 pp.].

Regnerus, Mark, and Jeremy Uecker. Premarital Sex in America: How Young Americans Meet, Mate, and Think about Marrying. Oxford, 2011. ISBN: 978-0199743285, Pub. Price $28.95. Available as an e-book from Fuller Library [excluding regression models and notes, we read 200 pp. of this text].

Zheng, Robin. “Why Yellow Fever Isn’t Flattering,” in Journal of the American Philosophical Association, 2016: 400-419. Open access, available here.

ONE of the following:

Grant, Jonathan. Divine Sex: A Compelling Vision for Christian Relationships in a Hypersexualized Age. Brazos Press, 2015. ISBN: 978-1587433696, Pub. Price $17.99. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [220 pp.].

Simon, Carol. Bringing Sex into Focus: The Quest for Sexual Integrity. IVP Academic, 2012. ISBN: 978-0830836376, Pub. Price: $17.00.

Other articles and shorter readings are required from Renita Weems, Eugene Rogers, Sarah Coakley, Ellen Davis, Kyle Harper, Dufault-Hunter, and others. Students must also read several blog postings from spiritualfriendship.org. These will be available via eReserves and the web. [approx. 700 pp.].

RECOMMENDED READING: A list of recommended reading will be provided in the syllabus.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. 1,500 pp. of reading [75 hours].
  2. Short, precisely-composed 120-150 word postings on Canvas that critically engage with the readings (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes 1 & 2]. [5 hours].
  3. Three 1,000-word critical book/article reviews [approx. 4 double-spaced pages; note that papers can be/may need to be re-written for higher grade or to meet course expectations]. (40%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes 1 & 2]. [25 hours].
  4. Final project: 1,500-2,000-word articulation of how your theology of the erotic/sexual life shapes your prayers, practices, and ministry OR alternative artistic response that includes a two-page written reflection (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome 3]. [15 hours].


Note: Course evaluation primarily emphasizes writing. If critical analysis and writing is not your strong suit, consider taking the course pass/fail.

PREREQUISITES: None.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Option to meet the C5 or TH5 requirement in the 120 MDiv Program. Option to meet the C5 requirement in the 80 MATM Program (Fall 2015).

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.