Winter 2016/Pasadena

PR500

Lamb

PR500: HOMILETICS (4 Units: 165 hours). Lisa Washington Lamb.

DESCRIPTION: This course is designed to give a general introduction to the theology of preaching and to the art and craft of sermon design and delivery. The person of the preacher, the nature of preaching, and principles of sermon construction will be discussed.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: The course seeks the following goals for each student: (1) Cognitive: theoretical knowledge relating to theology of preaching, sermon design, and delivery; (2) Affective: deepened appreciation for the dialogical quality of preaching and the needs of the listener in the preaching process; (3) Skills: capacity to craft a sermon that engages the biblical text, the context of the audience, theological issues, and the hearts and minds of listeners; and to deliver it meaningfully; and (4) Worship and Context: will explore the relationship between the reading and the preaching of God’s word in worship in its various contexts.

COURSE FORMAT: This is a hybrid+ course, meaning that it is a ten-week course with nine weeks of online instruction and one week of classroom instruction during week three (1/25-29) of the quarter. The week of classroom instruction will include four hours daily of lecture and discussion, as well as additional lunch meetings and evening sessions (required in hybrid+ courses). Classroom and online instruction will include lecture and discussion for a total of 40 instructional hours.

REQUIRED READING: 1,000 pp. of required reading plus two required hours of video.

Long, Thomas G. The Witness of Preaching. Westminster/John Knox, 1989; 2nd ed., 2007. ISBN: 978-0664229436, Pub. Price $24.95 [240 pp.].

Lowry, Eugene. The Homiletical Plot: The Sermon as Narrative Art Form (Expanded Edition). Westminster John Knox, 2000. ISBN: 978-0664222642, Pub. Price $22.00 [138 pp.].

Troeger, Thomas and Leonora Tubbs Tisdale, A Sermon Workbook: Exercises in the Art and Craft of Preaching. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2013. ISBN 978-1-4267-5778-5. Publisher List Price: $24.99

[100 pp. assigned]

Video clips on various preaching topics will be posted to our Moodle page, as required ‘watching.’

Taylor, Barbara Brown. The Preaching Life. Cowley Publications, 1993. ISBN: 987-1561010745, Pub. Price $17.95. [174 pp.].

Course Reader. Available on Moodle through eReserves. [150 pp.]. Students will also be directed to websites where they will find Early Church and Reformed sermons to read and evaluate.

Select Required Reading: Students will choose ONE of the five texts below:

Childers, Jana, ed. Birthing the Sermon: Women Preachers on the Creative Process. Chalice, 2001. ISBN: 978-0827202306, Pub. Price $26.99 [220 pp.].

Gilbert, Kenyatta. The Journey and Promise of African American Preaching. Fortress Press, 2011. ISBN: 978-0800696276, Pub. Price $20.00 [160 pp.].

Gonzalez, J. L., and P. A. Jimenez. Pulpito: An Introduction to Hispanic Preaching. Abingdon, 2005. ISBN: 978-0687088508, Pub. Price $20.00 [152 pp.].

Kim, Eunjoo Mary. Preaching the Presence of God: A Homiletic from an Asian American Perspective. Judson Press, 1999. ISBN: 978-0817013035, Pub. Price $12.00 [160 pp.].

LaRue, Cleophas J., ed. Power in the Pulpit: How America’s Most Effective Black Preachers Prepare Their Sermons. Westminster/John Knox, 2003. ISBN: 978-0664224813, Pub. Price $20.00 [191 pp.].

RECOMMENDED READING: The syllabus will include a list of recommended readings.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

1. Full participation during the 3^rd week on campus--attendance is mandatory. [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1,2,3,4, & 5]. [25 hours]. (Penalties assessed for missed class; missing more than __ hours will result in failure of the course)

2. Participation in online learning activities: forum conversations facilitated on Moodle, including short responses to the each required reading/required video (aside from Long’s book, which requires an entire paper). (10%). [This assignment is related to student learning outcome #1, 2, and 4]. [17 hours of DLAs].

3. 1,000 pages of required reading/watching. [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1, 3, and 4]. [55 hours].

4. Student will write a three-page reflection paper on Thomas Long’s Witness of Preaching (5%). [This assignment is related to outcomes #1, 3]. [6 hours].

5. Submission of a four-page long exegetical journal for each sermon (20%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1]. [16 hours total].

6. Preparation and preaching of two sermons. One must be recorded in a church or para-church context, and one may be recorded from a gathering of at least 5 friends. Sermons will be graded for content and presentation. Sermon preparation includes the writing of a manuscript, plus 5 hours of practicing and other prep per sermon. (40% total). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, 2, 3]. [22 hours].

7. Preparation and delivery of two 7-minute sermon segments during our week together: a word of witness and good news, and a creative retelling of a story from Scripture. [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, 2, 3]. [4 hours total]. (5%).

8. Students will write a five-page paper of their theology and philosophy of preaching, in conversation with those demonstrated in Course Reader articles on theology and with their denominational tradition’s teaching about preaching. (10%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1]. [12 hours].

9. Students will write a one-page self-evaluation of each sermon they deliver, considering content and delivery. (5% total). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #2 and #3]. [3 hours].

10. Students will write one-page reviews of one ancient sermon and one from the Reformation. (5%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1]. [5 hours].

PREREQUISITES: BI500 or NE502.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Meets Homiletics requirement in the 120 MDiv Program. Meets the core requirement in Preaching and Communication (MIN2) in the 144 MDiv Program and the Communication (COMM) requirement in MA Programs.

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.