Winter 2008/Pasadena
ST588
Dyrness/Peacore

ST588: THEOLOGY OF AFRICA, ASIA, AND LATIN AMERICA. William Dyrness and Linda Peacore.


DESCRIPTION: This course is designed to introduce students to theological reflection going on outside of North America as this develops against the backdrop of the indigenous religious context. The focus will be on major philosophical and religious traditions and the interaction of Christianity with these traditions. The emphasis will be on a comparative study which makes use of social science methods and develops a biblical and critical perspective.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Student will learn the variety of theological responses of churches outside the west, understand in depth the contextual and cultural issues of specific areas they will choose, and experience the struggle of these areas through contextual examples of art and literature.

RELEVANCE FOR MINISTRY: Ministry is now carried out in a world perspective in which cross-cultural issues are unavoidable. Since the church outside of North America is now larger than that in the West, and since much creative thinking emanates from these churches, responsible ministry today requires the development of critical listening skills.

COURSE FORMAT: Class will meet twice weekly for two-hour sessions. This course will survey theological reflection in three major areas of the world: Asia, Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa. For each area lectures will first focus on the major religious traditions of the region and then study the rise of local theologies in those contexts. Lectures and readings will cover selected topics being discussed by theologians (both formal and informal) from these regions. Finally an attempt will be made to interact with these materials from the perspective of western theology.

REQUIRED READING:

Dyrness, William A. Learning about Theology from the Third World. Zondervan, 1990.

Jenkins, Philip. The New Faces of Christianity. Oxford University Press, 2006.

Thiong'o, Ngugi wa. The River Between. Heinemann, 1990 [1965].

Course Reader.

One text representing student's chosen area of focus and approved by professor (see extended Recommended Reading list in course syllabus).

RECOMMENDED READING:
Barr, William R. ed. Constructive Theology in the Worldwide Church. Eerdmans, 1997.

Bediako, Kwame. Christianity in Africa: The Renewal of a Non-Western Religion. Orbis, 1995.

Gifford, Paul. Ghana's New Christianity: Pentecostalism in a Globalizing African Economy. Indiana University Press, 2004.

Jenkins, Philip. The Next Christendom. Oxford University Press, 2000.

Karkkainen, Veli-Matti. The Trinity in Global Perspective. Westminster, 2007.

Peterson, Douglas. Not by Might Nor by Power: A Pentecostal Theology of Social Concern in Latin America. Regnum, 1996.

Ramachandra, Vinoth. The Recovery of Mission: Beyond the Pluralist Paradigm. Eerdmans, 1996.

Yung, Hwa. Mangoes or Bananas? The Quest for an Authentic Asian Christian Theology. Regnum/Oxford, 1997.

ASSIGNMENTS: Grading will be based on three short (4-6 pp.) reviews comparing articles from two continents (15% each [= 45%]) and a longer (15-20 pp.) paper focusing on one of the three areas discussed in class of the student's choice (50%). The reviews can focus on a particular issue raised in the books, but should cover the relation of Christian theology to indigenous religious traditions and reflect a knowledge of the larger argument of the book. The longer project will be a comparative study of a Christian belief or practice from the area chosen by the student and a corresponding belief of the indigenous religious tradition. This project should draw on the required reading (and other sources available). Class attendance and participation will also be factors in evaluation (5%).

PREREQUISITES: None.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Meets requirement in Globalization (GLBL) for MA degrees.

FINAL EXAMINATION: No.

This ECD is a reliable guide to the course design but is subject to modification. (11/07)