Fall 2016/Pasadena

HT500

Oden

HT500: THE CHURCH’S UNDERSTANDING OF GOD AND CHRIST IN ITS HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT (4 Units: 161 hours). Patrick Oden.

DESCRIPTION: HT500 is a survey of patristic theology and early church history that focuses especially on the doctrine of God, including the Christian church’s development of trinitarian and christological theology and creeds in its dialogue with its opponents and with its multiple cultural contexts, including the empires, languages, religions, and philosophies of the ancient Asian, African and European regions. Related topics and themes to be addressed may include the role of the apostolic fathers and apologists, the controversy with Gnosticism, tensions between Eastern and Western forms of Christianity, and selected doctrinal developments that extend through the Protestant Reformation to today.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students who complete HT500 will demonstrate: (1) a basic historical and theological knowledge 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 this history and theology and an ability to evaluate these theological issues and their historical development; and (3) a critical and sympathetic appreciation for the breadth, unity, and diversity of the Christian church.

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 six 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 AND VIEWING: 1180-1200 total number of pages required.

González, Justo. The Story of Christianity, vol. 1. HarperOne, 2010. ISBN: 978-0061855887, Pub. Price $27.99 [220 pp. assigned].

McGrath, Alistair. A Christian Theology Reader, 4th edition. Wiley, 2011. ISBN: 978-0470654842, Pub. Price $54.95 [130 pages assigned].

Plantinga, Richard J., Thomas R. Thompson, and Matthew D. Lundberg. An Introduction to Christian Theology. Cambridge University Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0521690379, Pub. Price $34.99 [260 pp. assigned].

Oden, Amy. In Her Words. Abingdon, 1994. ISBN: 978-0687459728, Pub. Price $32.99 [60 pages assigned].

Choose One:

Eusebius. The Church History, revised edition. Translated by Paul L. Maier. Kregel Academic, 2007. ISBN: 978-0825433078, Pub Price $16.99 [330 pages assigned].

Holmes, Michael, ed. The Apostolic Fathers in English, third edition. Baker Academic, 2006. ISBN: 978-0801031083, Pub. Price $28.00 [310 pages assigned]. Note: Holmes also has an edition that has both the English and Greek texts. I highly recommend this if you are interested in NT Studies, Early Church History, or honing your Greek.

Additional readings provided via Moodle/Internet. These will include sections from Patrick Oden, The Transformative Church, Fortress Press, 2015 and articles related to contemporary perspectives in theology [200 pp. assigned]

RECOMMENDED READING:

Cross, F. L. The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Oxford, 2005. ISBN: 978-0192802903,
Pub. Price $215.00.

Feldmeth, Nathan P. Pocket Dictionary of Church History. InterVarsity Press, 2008. ISBN: 978-0830827039, Pub. Price $9.00.

Ferguson, Everett. Encyclopedia of Early Christianity, 2^nd edition. Routledge, 1990. ISBN: 978-0815333197, Pub. Price $103.95.

Jeune, Norman, III. Theologian Trading Cards. Zondervan, 2012. ISBN: 978-0310328582, Pub. Price $26.99.

Muller, Richard A. Dictionary of Latin and Greek Theological Terms. Baker Book House, 2006. ISBN: 978-0801020643, Pub. Price $32.00.

Sunquist, Scott, and Irvin, Dale. History of the World Christian Movement: Earliest Christianity to 1453. Orbis Books, 2001. ISBN: 978-1570753961, Pub. Price $34.00.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

1. Read 1180 pages of assigned reading. [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2, #3] [78 hours]

2. Class attendance and class participation (10%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2] [20 hours].

3. Weekly Moodle (online) forum discussions (read, post, reply) on primary source readings. (20%) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2, #3] [20 hours].

4. 5-page Critical Reflection on the topic of the Trinity. (10%) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2] [5 hours].

5. 5-page Critical Reflection on either Eusebius or the Apostolic Fathers. (10%) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2, #3] [5 hours].

6. 10-page research paper on a specific early church theologian (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2, #3] [25 hours].

7. Final examination (20%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2, #3]. [8 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 CHA requirement in the 144 MDiv Program.

FINAL EXAMINATION: Yes.