Fall 2014/Pasadena

ET559

Lee

ET559: METHODS IN CHRISTIAN ETHICS (4 Units: 160 hours). Hak Joon Lee.


DESCRIPTION: This seminar studies representative methods in Christian ethics in a systematic and comparative way. This employs an analysis of their underlying theological and philosophical assumptions and the essential ingredients that shape each method in a particular way in grappling with specific social issues or concerns. The goal is to help students to sharpen their analytical and synthesizing skills in Christian ethical reasoning through a comparative study of key variables, and to explore their own method in Christian ethics in critical conversations with other methods.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:  Students who pass this seminar will be able (1) to detect and analyze the key theological and philosophical assumptions behind each method; (2) to develop skill in analyzing and synthesizing the key ethical variables that shape leading methods in Christian ethics; (3) to critically assess the strengths and weaknesses of each method in comparison with other methods; and (4) to articulate their own ethical method in comparison to these methods, developing the skill to write a critical essay that addresses various methodological concerns in conversations with other scholars.

COURSE FORMAT: This class meets once per week for three-hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion plus 10 hours of directed learning activities for a total of 40 instructional hours.

REQUIRED READING: 1,600 pp. of required reading.

Barth, Karl. Church Dogmatics: The Doctrine of God. T&T Clark, 2004. ISBN: 978-0567050595, Pub. Price $75.00 [200 pp. assigned].

Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Ethics. Fortress Press, 2008. ISBN: 978-0800683269, Pub. Price $39.99 [200 pp. assigned].

Cahill, Lisa Sowle. Sex, Gender, and Christian Ethics. Cambridge University Press, 1996. ISBN: 978-0521578486, Pub. Price $42.00 [150 pp. assigned].

Hauerwas, Stanley. The Peaceable Kingdom: A Primer in Christian Ethics. University of Notre Dame Press, 1991. ISBN: 978-0268015541, Pub. Price $22.00 [150 pp. assigned].

Hollenbach, David. Global Face of Public Faith: Politics, Human Rights, and Christian Ethics. Georgetown University Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0878401390, Pub. Price $29.95 [150 pp. assigned].

Lee, Hak Joon Lee. “Trinity, Covenant, and Ethics: A Constructive Christian Ethics in a Pluralistic Society [draft; class handout] [approx. 150 pp.].

Niebuhr, H. R. The Responsible Self. Westminster/John Knox, 1963. ISBN: 978-0664221522. Pub. Price $30.00 [120 pp. assigned].

Stackhouse, Max. Shaping Public Theology: Selections from the Writings of Max L. Stackhouse. Edited byScott R. Paeth, E. Harold Breitenberg Jr. and Hak Joon Lee. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014. ISBN: 978-0802868817, Pub. Price $40.00 [approx. 150 pp.].

Stassen, Glen H. A Thicker Jesus: Incarnational Discipleship in a Secular Age. Westminster John Knox Press, 2012. ISBN: 978-0664238179, Pub. Price $25.00 [150 pp. assigned].

West, Traci. Disruptive Christian Ethics: When Racism and Women's Lives Matter. Westminster John Knox Press, 2006. ISBN: 978-0664229597, Pub. Price $30.00 [100 pp. assigned].

 Course Packet (accessible electronically) [80 pp. assigned].

RECOMMENDED READING:

Allen, Joseph L. Love and Conflict: A Covenantal Model of Christian Ethics. University Press of America, 1995. ISBN: 978-0687228065, Pub. Price $54.00.

Clark, David K., and Robert V. Rakestraw. Readings in Christian Ethics. Vols. 1-2. Baker Academic, 1996. ISBN: 978-0801020568, Pub. Price $36.00. 

Cone, James. God of the Oppressed. Orbis Books, 1997. ISBN: 978-1570751585, Pub. Price $20.00.

De La Torre, Miguel A. Christian Ethics from the Margins. Orbis, 2004. ISBN: 978-1570755514, Pub. Price $24.00.

Hays, Richard. The Moral Vision of the New Testament: A Contemporary Introduction to New Testament Ethics. HarperOne, 1996. ISBN: 978-0060637965, Pub. Price $26.99.

Herdt, Jennifer. Putting on Virtue: The Legacy of the Splendid Vices. University Of Chicago Press, 2012. ISBN: 978-0226327198, Pub. Price $35.00.

Jennings, Willie. Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race. Yale University Press, 2011. ISBN: 978-0300171365, Pub. Price $37.99.

Lee, Hak Joon. The Great World House: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Global Ethics. Pilgrim Press, 2011. ISBN: 978-0829818215, Pub. Price $22.50.

Moltmann, Jürgen. Ethics of Hope. Fortress Press, 2012. ISBN: 978-0800698584. Pub. Price $29.00.

Niebuhr, Reinhold. An Interpretation of Christian Ethics. Westminster John Knox Press, 2013.
ISBN: 978-0664236939, Pub. Price $27.00.

________. The Nature and Destiny of Man, vol. 1 & 2. Westminster John Knox Press, 1996. ISBN: 978-0664257095, Pub. Price $50.00.

Smedes, Lewis. Mere Morality: What God Expects from Ordinary People. Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1989. ISBN: 978-0802802576, Pub. Price $20.00.

Stassen, Glen, and David Gushee. Kingdom Ethics: Following Jesus in Contemporary Context. InterVarsity Press, 2003. ISBN: 978-0830826681, Pub. Price $35.00.

Verhey, Allen. Remembering Jesus: Christian Community, Scripture, and the Moral Life. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2005. ISBN: 978-0802831316, Pub. Price $27.00.

Yoder, John Howard. The Politics of Jesus. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1994. ISBN: 978-0802807342, Pub. Price $24.00.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. Attend all seminar sessions, prepared to analyze the readings of the day [Related to LO 1-3]. 1,600 pages (80 hrs + 10 hrs of DLAs=90 hrs).
  2. 3 brief reflection papers [related to LO 1-4]. (4 pages, double spaced) [16 hours].

  3. Final Paper (3,000 words) that critically compares different methods of Christian ethics [related to LO 1-4] [24 hours].

PREREQUISITES: Master’s level students: permission of the instructor.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Option to meet the TH5 requirement in the 120 MDiv program. Option to count in the Christian Ethics emphasis.

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.

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