Christian History
Class Schedule | 6:30–8:30 pm
January 30, 2022
February 13, 2022
February 27, 2022
March 13, 2022
March 27, 2022
April 10, 2022
April 24, 2022
May 15, 2022
Course Description
The course will cover the history of Christianity from the ministry of Jesus to the Second Great Awakening of the nineteenth century and the birth of the modern missionary movement. We will survey the major movements, doctrines, persons, and institutions that arose within the church and affected its development during this time. The objective is to equip you with a providential perspective of God’s work in growing and maturing his church over the past two millennia. Our emphasis will be the historical development of doctrine and theology in the church as well as careful study of selected key individuals so that we may defend the faith and have our affections drawn to Christ.
Textbook
The required textbook for the class is Tim Dowley’s Introduction to Christianity. You will need either the 2nd or 3rd edition. If you are purchasing the book for the class I would recommend the 2nd edition. It will contain all the necessary reading requirements and it will be a fraction of the price of the 3rd Edition.
Dowley, Tim. Introduction to the History of Christianity, 2nd ed. Fortress Press, 2013.
ISBN-10: 0800699696 | ISBN-13: 978-0800699697
The 2nd Edition can be purchased new or used at the following links:
Amazon | AbeBooks
Course Requirements
Class Attendance and Participation. Due to the brevity of our class and the amount of material that we must cover please make all possible arrangements to attend every class and fully participate in the discussions.
It is expected that you will have read all of the material with reasonable care and completed the homework, if assigned, before class.
A final 3–5 page paper will be completed before the end of the semester. An MLA Report template for download or use in Google Docs can be found here: https://www.scribbr.com/mla/formatting/
Christian History Paper
The final paper may largely be drawn from material that is covered in the Dowley readings, but supplemental material would also be beneficial.
The topic of the paper will be up to you. It could be focused upon a particular person, theological development, or even a geographical area.
Possible topics could include:
The development of the Trinity
Social order in the early church
The influence of Constantine upon the church
Athanasius and the nature of Christ
The necessity and effect of the Nicene Creed
The life of Augustine
The roots of the Reformation
Luther’s understanding of divine providence
The impact of theology upon the city of Geneva
The Crusades
Reading Schedule
Below are the assigned chapters from the textbook that should be read for the corresponding class date. There will be various source materials sent out via email for additional readings. Please have all reading done before the beginning of class so that you are able to fully participate in the discussions.
1–5 Beginnings: AD I–325 (Part 1)
6–7 Beginnings: AD I–325 (Part 2)
8–15 Acceptance and Conquest: AD 325–600
16–21 A Christian Society: AD 600–1500
22–27 Reform and Removal: AD 1500–1650
28–31 Reason, Revival, and Revolution: AD 1650–1789
32–36 Cities and Empires: AD 1789–1914
Papers
01/30/2022
02/13/2022
02/27/2022
03/13/2022
03/27/2022
04/10/2022
04/24/2022
05/15/2022