DESCRIPTION: This survey course is an overview of the history of Christianity from Gregory the Great through the Reformation. The course will focus on the principal events, movements, people, and theological issues of the period, with a particular focus on the Western church.

SIGNIFICANCE FOR LIFE AND MINISTRY: The course introduces students to historical and theological materials so that they can develop a broader perspective of their own Christian faith. Students need to understand and appreciate their own confessional traditions within the larger scope of their development in the medieval and Reformation periods.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Having successfully completed this course, students will have demonstrated (1) knowledge of the most important events by developing a historical outline of the principal events of Christian history from the medieval period through the Reformation; (2) familiarity with the leading figures and movements of the period and their influence; (3) understanding of the development of the major theological themes of the period and their implications for Christian theology today; (4) ability to read church history critically, and awareness of the impact of church history on their understanding of the church today.

COURSE FORMAT: This course will be conducted online on a ten-week schedule aligned with Fuller's academic calendar. 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. The content will be based on the in-class course with the focus divided between historical overview and theological issues. Activities will include lectures, student presentations to their assigned discussion group, journaling, and video and PowerPoint presentations. In addition, students will be required to write reflection papers on primary sources and a major research paper on a selected topic from this section of church history.

REQUIRED READING:

Driver, Juan. La fe en la periferia de la historia. SEMILLA, 1997. ISBN: 84-89389-08-X. 117 pp.

González, Justo. Historia del Cristianismo. Vols. 1-2. Unilit, 1994. ISBN: 1-56063-476-6 & 1-56063-477-4. [Also available in 1 volume: ISBN: 0-7899-1786-6.] 416 pp.

González, Justo. Historia del pensamiento cristiano. CLIE, 2010. ISBN: 978-84-8267-571-8. 221 pp.

Course reader of primary source documents.

Calvino, Juan. Institución de la religión cristiana. Fundación editorial de literatura reformada, 1967.

Deiros, Pablo. Historia del cristianismo. Vol. 2. Ediciones del Centro, 2005.

González, Justo, ed. Diccionario ilustrado de intérpretes de la fe. CLIE, 2004.

Irvin, Dale, and Scott Sunquist. History of the World Christian Movement. Orbis, 2003.

Nelson, Wilton, ed. Diccionario de la historia de la iglesia. Caribe, 1989.

Vila, Samuel. Historia de la inquisición y la reforma en España. CLIE, 1977.

Williams, George. La reforma radical. Fondo de cultura económica, 1983.

1. Assigned readings and weekly quizzes (20%).

2. Presentations and participation in threaded discussion (10%).

3. Five reflection papers (1-2 pages each) on primary sources, including one on the role of both Catholic and Protestant women in this time period (25%).

4. One essay (5-8 pages) on a topic addressed in class (30%).

5. Final examination (15%).