Winter 2018/Online

HT501

Peacore

HT501: THE CHURCH’S UNDERSTANDING OF GOD AND CHRIST IN ITS THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION (4 Units: 160 hours). Linda D. Peacore

DESCRIPTION: HT501 is a survey of systematic and philosophical theology that focuses especially on the doctrine of God, The Trinity, Christology (comprising the person and work of Christ), and the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit. The course reflects the historic Christian church's development of trinitarian and Christological theology and creeds in its dialogue with its opponents and with its cultural context. Related topics and themes to be addressed may include the development and articulation of the Christian doctrine of God including the divine perfections and nature, as well as the doctrine of the Trinity; the development and articulation of the person and work of Christ; and Pneumatology, the person and work of the Holy Spirit.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students who complete HT501 will demonstrate: (1) a basic critical theological knowledge of the conceptual and normative dimensions of the doctrines of God and Christ as those and other selected doctrines emerged in the early church and developed to this day; (2) a basic competence in interpreting historic and contemporary perorations of these doctrines and an ability to evaluate these theological issues and their historical and contemporary development; and (3) a critical and sympathetic appreciation for the breadth, unity, and diversity of the Christian church.

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.

REQUIRED READING: [approximately 1100 pages required]

Plantinga, Richard J., Thomas R. Thompson, Matthew D. Lundberg. An Introduction to Christian Theology. Cambridge University Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0521690379, Pub. Price $34.99 [pp. 1-46; 77-146; 227-312 = 200 pp.].

Tanner, Kathryn Christ the Key. Cambridge University Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0521732772. Pub. Price: $35.99. [pp. 140-302 assigned = 162 pp.].

Several chapters/articles/essays provided in an eReader to be accessed electronically through Moodle that will include authors not represented in Required Reading: Stanley Grenz, John Goldingay, Brian Daley, Alan Torrance, Teresa Okure, Aladair Heron, Janet Martin Soskice, Mercy Amba Oduyoye, K.K. Yeo, Gavin D’Costa, Diane L. Hayes, Michele Schumacher, and Stephen R. Holmes, [245 pp.].

CHOOSE TWO books from the following:

Boff, L. Trinity and Society. Wipf & Stock, 2005. ISBN: 978-1597521383, Pub. Price: $32.00 [288 pp.].

Bonino, J. M., and R. R. Barr. Faces of Jesus: Latin American Christologies. Wipf & Stock, 2002. ISBN: 978-1592440979, Pub. Price: $22.00 [192 pp.].

Comblin, J. The Holy Spirit and Liberation. Wipf & Stock, 2004. ISBN: 978-1592445622, Pub. Price: $26.00 [232 pp.].

Cone, J.H. God of the Oppressed. Orbis, 1997. ISBN: 978-1570751585, Pub. Price: $20.00 [257 pp.].

Evans, J. We Have Been Believers: An African American Systematic Theology. 2nd ed. Augsburg Fortress, 2012. ISBN: 978-0800698782, Pub. Price: $29.00 [256 pp.].

Gonzáles, J. Mañana: Christian Theology from a Hispanic Perspective. Abingdon, 1990. ISBN: 978-0687230679, Pub. Price: $21.99 [186 pp.].

Johnson, E. She Who Is: The Mystery of God in Feminist Theological Discourse. 10th Anniversary ed. Crossroad Pub. Co., 2002. ISBN: 978-0824519254, Pub. Price: $32.95 [344 pp].

Lee, Sang Hyun. From a Liminal Place: An Asian American Theology. Fortress Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0800696689, Pub. Price: $29.00 [216 pp.].

Peacore, L. The Role of Women’s Experience in Feminist Theologies of Atonement. Pickwick Publications, 2010. ISBN: 978-1556358036, Pub. Price: $30.00 [254 pp.].

Stinton, D. Jesus of Africa: Voices of Contemporary African Christology. Orbis, 2004. ISBN: 978-1570755378, Pub. Price: $25.00 [303 pp.].

Sugirtharajah, R.S. Asian Faces of Jesus. Orbis, 1993. ISBN: 9780883448335, Pub. Price: $30.00 [250 pp.].

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

1. This course will be conducted via the Internet with course content offered in weekly video lectures, PowerPoint presentations, or other media. [20 hours].
2. Approximately 1,100 pages of required reading [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1] [74 hours].
3. 250-word weekly forum posts (15%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-3] [10 hours].
4. 250-word weekly replies (15%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-3] [10 hours].
5. Two book reviews [1,000-1,250 words each] (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-3]. [16-20 hours].
6. A research essay on an assigned topic [2,000-2,500 words] (40%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-3]. [24–30 hours].

PREREQUISITES: None.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Option to meet the TH1 or TH4 requirement in the 120 MDiv and 80 MAT Programs (Fall 2015). Option to meet the TH1 requirement in the 80 MATM and 80 MAICS Programs (Fall 2015). Meets the STA requirement in the 144 MDiv Program.

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.