Clapp, Rodney. Border Crossings. Hauerwas, Stanley and Will Willimon. Resident Aliens Donovan, Vincent. Christianity Rediscovered Wright, Tom. The Challenge of Jesus Yoder, John Howard. The Politics of Jesus Brueggemann, Walter. The Prophetic Imaginationhttps://place.asburyseminary.edu/syllabi/2923/thumbnail.jp

Pasquarello, Michael

Rynkiewich, Michael A.

English

Asbury Theological Seminary

Asbury Theological SeminaryePLACE: preserving, learning, and creative exchangeSyllabi eCommons1-1-2003IS 501 Christian Formation: Kingdom, Church,and WorldMichael A. RynkiewichMichael PasquarelloFollow this and additional works at: http://place.asburyseminary.edu/syllabiThis Document is brought to you for free and open access by the eCommons at ePLACE: preserving, learning, and creative exchange. It has beenaccepted for inclusion in Syllabi by an authorized administrator of ePLACE: preserving, learning, and creative exchange. For more information, pleasecontact thad.horner@asburyseminary.edu.Recommended CitationRynkiewich, Michael A. and Pasquarello, Michael, "IS 501 Christian Formation: Kingdom, Church, and World" (2003). Syllabi. Book1819.http://place.asburyseminary.edu/syllabi/1819Kingdom, Church, and World IS 501 Fall, 2003 Michael Pasquarello, PhD Michael A. Rynkiewich, PhD Ph. 859-858-2239 office Ph. 859-858-2218 office   Introduction and Course Description: Welcome to the spring session of Kingdom, Church, and World.  We are Associate Professor of Practical Theology (Pasquarello-School of Theology) and Professor of Anthropology (Rynkiewich-ESJ School) at Asbury Theological Seminary, and this course is one about which we are very passionate!  There are few courses that give one an opportunity to critically examine one’s presuppositions and commitments regarding the nature of the Kingdom of God and its relatedness to the concepts of Church and World.  These are three distinct, but intimately related aspects of the reality in which we all engage in ministry--whether we be laypersons or clergy, yet, how can one successfully engage that ministry without thoroughly examining these aspects of that reality?  In this course, we will have opportunity to consider a number of questions and issues including:   1. What is the Kingdom of God?  2. What is the Church?  3. How is the Kingdom present in the World through the Church?  4. What does it mean to be a part of the Church that is in the World?  5. What does it mean to be the Church?  6. What does it mean to engage in Churchly activities?  By the end of the semester, we will have examined these matters and we shall have given first-order attempts at theologically sound and praxis-oriented answers to these questions.  Let the fun begin!   Course Rationale: It is altogether reasonable to ask, with regard to a given course, why a particular course is required, and so it is here.  There is a sense in which this entire syllabus is intended to answer that question, but we would characterize this course as having at least two over-arching intentions.  First, an essential skill for all engaged in Christian ministry is the ability to “think theologically.”  To think theologically is not merely to be able to appropriate certain proof texts in order to give “biblical” answers to given questions.  Rather, it involves the ability to begin to “get our arms around” the biblical message as a canonical whole, to be able to inquire of the biblical narratives in an integrative way, and to be able to develop our answers in a more holistic fashion.  Already, we have referenced our ability to properly appropriate the biblical texts, and this brings us to the second over-arching intention: to begin to see the Scriptures as organized around certain integrative motifs.  In this regard, this course integrates theological reflection and biblically informed practice and demonstrates its significance for the faithful performance of scripture by God’s people.   Issues of importance include:  1. What constitutes a biblical “meta-narrative”?  Is there only one or are there multiple ones? 2. What role do these meta-narratives play? 3. How is one to understand the relation of “part” and “whole” when interpreting the biblical narratives?  4. What does it mean to refer to the biblical materials as “narrative”?  5. How does the biblical narrative subvert our familiar ways of being, thinking and acting in the world?  By engaging these questions, we will be undertaking a critical examination of some of our fundamental assumptions about who we are and what God calls us to be, not simply as individuals, but as members of his Church.  This may be dis-orienting from time to time, but keep in mind our end goal:  to understand more fully what we understand ourselves to be as people of God and to understand what it means to be in His service in the World as representatives of his Kingdom.   Course Objectives: Having successfully completed this course, students will be able to:  1. Articulate an understanding of the biblical meta-narrative that comes to focus for us best in Jesus’ proclamation of the kingdom of God; 2. Identify the particular contribution of the Wesleyan tradition to our understanding of this meta-narrative; 3. Draw out major theological, moral, and philosophical implications of this meta-narrative, especially as these are related to the nature and mission of the people of God; 4. Evaluate cultural products (e.g., literature, television, movies, advertisements, print media, music) in light of major theological, moral, and philosophical implications of this meta-narratives; 5. Exercise criticism with respect to one’s own cultural context and discernment with respect to the context of others vis-a-vis major theological, moral, and philosophical implications of this meta-narrative; 6. Articulate the ecclesial and missional implications of this meta-narrative--specifically for one’s own context and generally for our shared global context; and 7. Exhibit a heightened sense of commitment to serving the kingdom of God in mission in the world (the missio dei).   Required Texts:   Clapp, Rodney.  Border Crossings.    Hauerwas, Stanley and Will Willimon.  Resident Aliens  Donovan, Vincent.  Christianity Rediscovered  Wright, Tom.  The Challenge of Jesus Yoder, John Howard.  The Politics of Jesus  Brueggemann, Walter. The Prophetic Imagination  Course pack of Wesley Readings available at Cokesbury   Collateral Reading: (purely optional, but related material)    Brimlow and Budde, Christianity Incorporated  Hauerwas, Stanley.  The Peaceable Kingdom  McLaren, A New Kind of Christian  Ramachandra, Vinoth.  Gods that Fail, The Recovery of Mission  Snyder, Howard.  God’s Kingdom Now  Willimon, William. Shaped by the Bible   Course Assessment: Determination of grade for this course will utilize a variety of assessments.  First, students will be evaluated with regard to their active and substantive participation in class discussions--primarily within your small groups, but also within the larger group.  We will be looking for thoughtful, succinct questions and commentary upon the questions of others.  Please note that this includes providing comment upon each small group’s “kingdom project.”  This will constitute 10% of the course grade.  Second, students will be evaluated with regard to their active and substantive participation in small Groups.  Each group will use specific materials, and specific assignments will be included in the weekly module assignments.  The purpose of these groups is to provide an opportunity for students to “meet together” and to share insights from the weekly disciplines, to hold each other accountable, and to encourage each other to live faithfully as children of God’s kingdom.  Each student will be assigned to a small group with at least three other students.  During the course of the week, each member of each small group is to read through the material and engage in dialogue with all other members of his/her small group.  Prayer and other forms of mutual support is strongly recommended.  This will constitute 15% of the course grade.  Third, students are expected to participate in a “kingdom project.”  These projects are aimed at involving each student with active participation in some form of outreach ministries.  We will provide a list of examples of the type of projects that would be acceptable, and each student will indicate his/her selection by the end of the third week of class.  Each kingdom project will include the student’s posting a brief presentation upon the nature and theological significance of his/her project, including a two page reflection paper.  The goal of this brief paper is to integrate practice and theological reflection with regard to the kingdom project.  The presentation and reflection will constitute 20% of the course grade.  Fourth and fifth, respectively, there will be both a mid-term and a final exam.  Each will count 25%; thus, both exams together will constitute 60% of the course grade.    These are examples of Mid-term questions (please note they are not the actual questions):  1. Select one from the following, possible integrative motifs for the Scriptures, and then:  a. demonstrate its validity from a biblical standpoint,  b. explicate its theological significance.  Possible integrative motifs:  +God is creating a world of creatures for fellowship with himself.  +God is reconciling a world of fallen creatures to himself and to each other.  +Our God is an awesome God who reigns from heaven on high.   2.  Stan Hauerwas has said that the main task of the church is to be the church in the world.  Develop a theological vision of what it means to be the church without too quickly falling back merely into the question of what the church should be doing.  Each question is to be not less than 2 and not more than 3 pages, double spaced.   Examples of Final Exam question (please note they are not the actual questions for the final exam):  1. In The Politics of Jesus, John Howard Yoder argues that, in the realm of personal and social ethics, we do not really take the example of Jesus seriously.  In fact, he gives six commonly accepted reasons for sitting aside the example of Jesus for some other moral exemplar.  Your assignment is as follows:  a. Review in detail the six reasons Yoder gives on pages 4-8, b. Provide two pages of your best argument (don’t forget to incorporate the biblical witness, but do not fall into the proof-texting trap) as to why Yoder is wrong in his thesis that Jesus and his life should always be the moral example for our personal and social ethics, c. Provide two pages of your best argument (same cautionary note) as to why Yoder is right in the thesis stated in b, d. Provide four pages wherein you synthesize what you’ve discovered and work out its implications for life in the kingdom in the world.  Again, please double space your paper.    Course Schedule: (Please note that the presentations on the assigned videos are not merely lectures that deal with the assigned readings.  Rather, they come at the same set of issues from differing perspectives.  In the description of the module, I will comment briefly upon both any assigned videos and the assigned readings.)  Instructions for two page reflection papers on assigned books. a. Give a one sentence statement of what the book is about. b. Outline the argument in terms of: 1. Why the need? 2. What is the case being made? 3. What other positions are engaged? 4. What conclusions can we draw?      c.  Give three implications or consequences for ministry.  Module 1, week 1: Reading: The Challenge of Jesus, Chapters 1, 2, and 3, and Prophetic Imagination.  One of the primary foci of this class is to begin to develop an appreciation of the significance of a more holistic approach to appropriation of the biblical narratives.  As an introduction to this topic, the video deals with the nature of narrative and begins to suggest the significance of a narratival approach to the Scriptures.  As Christians, our appropriation of the biblical narratives begins with God’s unsurpassable revelation in Jesus Christ.  N.T. Wright and Brueggemann help us see the shape of the biblical narrative as viewed through the lens of the revelation in Israel and Christ.  Module 2, week 2: Reading: The Challenge of Jesus, chapters 4 and 5. Review due on either Wright or Brueggemann.   Module 3, week 3: Reading: The Challenge of Jesus, chapters 6, 7, and 8.   Module 4, week 4: Reading: Border Crossings, parts 1 and 2.  Review due on “Border Crossings”  Dr. Clapp begins to examine the extent to which we, as Christians, bifurcate the world in which we live--observing one set of “rules” when we are in the “spiritual realm” and another when we are “in the world.”  Dr. Clapp rightly highlights the extent to which this is a conceptual failure to understand the all-embracing nature of God’s call to the world.  Module 5, week 5: Reading: Border Crossings, parts 3 and 4.   Module 6, week 6: Reading: Resident Aliens, chapters 1, 2, and 3. Review due on “Resident Aliens”  Drs. Willimon and Hauerwas examine the “resident alien” status of Christians in the world, and they consider the implications of the recognition of such a status upon the nature of ministry, mission, and the being of the church.  They challenge must of what many of us take utterly for granted about our being in the world--listen carefully and pray hard!   Module 7, week 7: Reading: Resident Aliens, chapters 4-7.   Module 8, week 8: Reading: Christianity Resdiscovered, first half.  Review due.   Module 9, week 9: Reading: Christianity Rediscovered, second half.    Module 10, week 10: Reading: The Politics of Jesus, chapters 1, 2, and 3.  Review due.  The reading focuses upon the theology of John Howard Yoder, who is one of the most significant theologians from the Mennonite tradition.  He challenges us to consider our understanding of the implications of the revelation of God in Christ.  Module 11, week 11: Reading: The Politics of Jesus, chapters 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8.   Module 12, week 12: Reading: The Politics of Jesus, chapters 9, 10, 11, and 12.  Week 13: Kingdom Project reports and papers due. 

IS 501 Christian Formation: Kingdom, Church, and World

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2923&amp;context=syllabi

IS 501 Christian Formation: Kingdom, Church, and World

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Asbury Theological Seminary