Summer 2017/Pasadena
PR528
Boles
PR528: PREACHING IN THE TRADITION(S) (4 Units: 164 hours). Paul Boles.
DESCRIPTION: How can we come to better understandings of ourselves as preachers and the patterns of handling the biblical texts that we have (perhaps unwittingly) fallen into? One way is by being held accountable to those historical voices that have helped shape the homiletical tradition not only through their own preaching, but also through their explicit reflection/instruction on the function and nature of the sermon and the preaching event. Both St. Augustine and Karl Barth are held dear in many circles of Western Christianity. But their approaches to preaching are radically different. This course will use these two shapers of the homiletical tradition as a sort of foil for ourselves by exploring what may be their encouragements and critiques of the student’s own preaching.
LEARNING OUTCOMES: Goals for this practica include that students would (1) grow in their understanding of their own assumptions in sermon preparation and delivery; (2) increase their skills in framing content in a coherent and deliberate way; and (3) gain acuity in evaluating both their own preaching and that of others in light of both their own experience as preacher/hearer and their understanding of historical homiletical traditions.
COURSE FORMAT: The class will meet twice weekly for four-hour sessions for five weeks. Students will prepare and deliver sermons for feedback, discussion, and self-evaluation. They will also be responsible for reading material and writing reflective of a firm grasp of the content of the readings. PLEASE NOTE: Class attendance is mandatory. If the class is over-subscribed, the first two persons on the waiting list should attend the first class session.
REQUIRED READING: 625 total pages required.
Augustine. Essential Sermons. New City Press, 2007. ISBN: 978-1565482760, Pub. Price $31.95 [250 pp. assigned].
________. On Christian Teaching. Oxford University Press, 2008. ISBN: 978-0199540631, Pub. Price $12.95 [85 pp. assigned].
Barth, Karl. Homiletics. Westminster John Knox, 1991. ISBN: 978-0664251581, Pub. Price $30.00 [110 pp. assigned].
Willimon, William, ed. The Early Preaching of Karl Barth. Westminster John Knox, 2009. ISBN: 978-0664233679, Pub. Price $25.00 [180 pp. assigned].
ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:
PREREQUISITES: PR500.
RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Meets the P1 requirement in the 120 MDiv program.
FINAL EXAMINATION: None.