Fall 2020/Fuller Online
TC500
Callaway/Tyler
TC500: THEOLOGY AND CULTURE METHODS (4 Units: 160 hours). Kutter Callaway and Tamisha Tyler.
DESCRIPTION: This course is designed not only to introduce students in all of Fuller’s degree programs (SOT, SIS, and SOP) to the depth and richness of what it means to engage “culture” at Fuller Seminary, but also to equip them with the necessary resources for doing so. It thus encourages students to develop a critical theological methodology for interpreting, understanding, and engaging both their local cultural context and “culture” writ large, which includes but is not limited to: (1) concrete cultural products (e.g., literary texts, films, music, visual art, etc.); (2) cultural practices (religious, aesthetic, political); (3) cultural phenomena (e.g., broader societal trends, movements, and sensibilities); (4) cultural theories (philosophy, psychology, critical theory); (5) cultural systems/structures (socio-economic, ideological, technological); and (6) cultural identities (ethnic, linguistic, tribal, national). The approach will be, first of all, to focus on cultural “traces” as embodiments and expressions of a “glocally” situated cultural imaginary, and then to develop strategies of interpretation and missional engagement that are informed by biblical and theological categories. In the broadest sense, the aim of this course is to develop a constellation of cultural competencies for Christians who live, move, and have their being in increasingly globalized, hybrid, porous, and pluralistic cultural contexts.
LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon successful completion of this course, students will have demonstrated the capacity to: (1) Formulate a working definition of “culture” from a theological perspective; (2) Articulate the relationship between theories and practices for sympathetic engagement and critical understanding of the various dimensions of culture; (3) Identify the prevailing critical methodologies for engaging culture theologically and, by situating themselves within this landscape, outline the core elements of their own methodological framework for interpreting and engaging culture; (4) Offer a coherent description of what methodology is and why it matters for research, Christian mission, and life as a person of faith in the late-modern world; and (5) Formulate a compelling research question, rooted in a particular methodology, as a means for investigating theologically a concrete artifact, phenomenon, or structure.
RELATIONSHIP TO PROGRAM LEARNING OUTCOMES: TC courses introduce students to an aspect of culture along with one or more interpretive method(s) for both understanding it and engaging with it theologically; they seek to implement the SOT PLO, "Students will have demonstrated academic capacities appropriate to an area of focus in a theological discipline or to interdisciplinary theological study."
COURSE FORMAT: This course will be conducted online on a ten-week schedule aligned with Fuller’s academic calendar for a total of 40 instructional hours. Students are required to interact with the material, with each other, and with the instructor regularly through online discussions, reading, and other assignments that promote active learning.
*PLEASE NOTE: As a graduate level course that seeks a dialogue between theology and contemporary culture, this class may include visual, written, aural, and/or thematic content that might prove disturbing or offensive to some.
REQUIRED READING: 1,700 total pages required.
Barker, Chris & Jane, Emma. Cultural Studies: Theory and Practice, Fifth Edition. Sage, 2016. ISBN: 978-1473919457, Pub. Price $60.00. [350 pp. assigned].
Butler, Octavia E. Parable of the Sower. Grand Central Publishing, 1993. ISBN: 978-1538732182, Pub. Price $16.99. [368 pp.].
Clough, Peter & Nutbrown, Cathy. A Student’s Guide to Methodology, Third Edition. Sage, 2012. ISBN: 978-1446208625, Pub. Price $51.00. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [100 pp. assigned].
Kim, Kirsteen. Joining in with the Spirit: Connecting World Church and Local Mission. Hymns Ancient & Modern, 2012. ISBN: 978-0334046080, Pub. Price $40.00. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [338 pp.].
Markus, Hazel Rose, & Conner, Alana. Clash!: How to Thrive in a Multicultural World. Penguin, 2014. ISBN: 978-0142180938, Pub. Price $17.00. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [320 pp].
Sandoval, Chela & Davis, Angela Y. Methodology of the Oppressed. University of Minnesota Press, 2000. ISBN: 978-0816627363, Pub. Price $22.50. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [150 pp. assigned].
Veeneman, Mary M. Introducing Theological Method: A Survey of Contemporary Theologians and Approaches. Baker Academic, 2017. ISBN: 978-0801049491, Pub. Price $25.00. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [171 pp].
REQUIRED VIEWING: Open Wounds (d. Lee, 2020)
RECOMMENDED READING: Recommended reading will be listed in the syllabus.
ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:
PREREQUISITES: None
RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: A required course for the Cohort portion of the MA in Global Leadership. Option to meet the C2 or TH5 requirement in the 120 MDiv Program. Option to meet the C2 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. Copyright 2019 Fuller Theological Seminary.