COURSE OUTLINE
UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO
DEPARTMENT OF THEOLOGY & RELIGION
CHTH 212/312—SPIRIT, CHURCH, AND SACRAMENTS
Semester 2 2015
Class time: Mondays & Wednesdays 9:00-9:50am
Course Co-ordinator: Revd Dr Chris Holmes
Office Phone: 479-5394
Email: [email protected]
Office Hour (Burns 4S6): Mondays 10:50am-11:50am. Should you want to meet with me
outside of this time, please email me or phone in order to arrange an alternate time.
I. COURSE AIMS
s
This course will extend the work completed at the 100-level in Theology by a more in
depth study of two core areas in Christian Doctrine, namely the doctrine of the Holy
Spirit and the Christian Church (including the sacraments). It aims to help you to
comprehend more fully the inner theological relationship between the Holy Spirit and
the Church, and appreciate the difference that an account of Spirit and Church makes
for Christian life and the challenges of human history.
II. LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of the course the student will:
s
Become acquainted with basic Christian teaching concerning nature and person of the
Holy Spirit, and the identity and mission of the church;
s Have understood the key theological features of the sacraments of baptism and
eucharist (Lord’s Supper), and the historic differences of understanding regarding
each in the Christian Church;
s Become more adept at the art of reading theological texts and more skilled at
expressing theological concepts both orally and in writing;
s Sharpen their ability to relate theological claims to life and practice.
III. ESSENTIAL READING
E (Essential) Coursebook for CHTH 212/312
Access to the Coursebook is essential for the course. You are strongly encouraged to
PURCHASE it at Uniprint for a very reasonable sum. All readings are taken from the
Coursebook. It is the key resource for the writing of assignments and for study for the
exam. Without access to the Coursebook, it will be extremely difficult to pass the class.
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Note: a copy of the Coursebook (study guide and readings) is on Blackboard and
available on Close Reserve at the Central Library.
The Coursebook is divided into two main sections:
•
The first is the main study guide material, which has been organized into six
modules, each of them linked to essential reading. It provides introductory
material on each topic, questions and points to ponder, and some suggestions for
further study of each topic.
•
The second is the section that contains readings for the course. In the modules the
readings are numbered according to their order in the readings section. They were
selected from a range of authors whose theological contributions and styles of
communication are accessible and complementary to the direction adopted in the
course.
•
You will notice from the Table of Contents that the list of readings in Section 2
also begins its page numbering at 1, and that the author’s name and the year of
publication are used as the page header.
It is also E (Essential) that you have access to the following text(s). They are available on
Close and E-Reserve at the Central Library:
CHTH 212:
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Life Together. San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1954.
CHTH 212/312:
Barth, Karl. The Holy Spirit and the Christian Life. Louisville: Westminster John Knox,
1993.
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Life Together. San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1954.
IV.COURSE ADMINISTRATION
For important details and information about assessment procedures and other matters, see
the Theology Student Information and Resources webpage:
http://www.otago.ac.nz/theology/study/studentresources/
Click on the first link on that page: ‘Information about Assessment, Support and
Resources’. This pages includes important information on plagiarism and assignment
deadlines—both subject bring penalties for any breaches. You can find there our new
Plagiarism Declaration Form that you must attach to your written assignment. There is
also a whole lot of other helpful information. I will assume that you have read it and
understood it.
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V. ASSESSMENT:
The course will be assessed through two pieces of written work worth 50% of your
grade and a final exam worth 50% of your grade.
Assignments for CHTH 212
Assignment 1:
Length: 1500 words
Value: 20% of final mark
Due Date: 4:00pm (Departmental Office, 95 Albany St.)
How would St. Basil in his treatise On the Holy Spirit (chapters 16-20) respond to the
following: “The Holy Spirit is not as divine as the Father and the Son, and the Spirit’s full
divinity makes no difference for salvation anyways.”
Assignment 2:
Length: 2000 words
Value: 30% of final mark
Due Date: 4:00pm (Departmental Office, 95 Albany St.)
Read Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together and do the following. (1) Summarize in your
own words (approximately 500 word) what makes, for Bonhoeffer, Christian community
Christian. (2) Defend (approximately 500 words), what is, in your view, the most
important paragraph in the book and explain what you have learned from it. (3) Assess, in
(approximately 500 words), the author’s programme: To what extent does Bonhoeffer
help (or not help) you to better understand the nature of Christian community, and what
key theological questions do you think his work raises? (4) Account (approximately 500
words) the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Christian community.
Please include footnotes as appropriate and a bibliography for all assignments.
Assignments for CHTH 312
Assignment 1:
Length: 2000 words
Value: 20% of final mark
Due Date: 4:00pm (Departmental Office, 95 Albany St.)
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Read Karl Barth’s The Holy Spirit and the Christian Life and Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life
Together. Drawing from both, answer the following questions: (1) What is the
relationship between the Holy Spirit and the church? (2) The Holy Spirit and the
Christian life?
Assignment 2:
Length: 2500 words.
Value: 30% of final mark
Due Date: Friday May 24th 4:00pm (Departmental Office, 95 Albany St.)
The church is confessed to be “one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.” (1) Unfold in 800 or so
words the implications of this description for the life and character of the church. (2)
Answer in 800 or so words the question: What is the relationship of the Holy Spirit to the
classical creedal identity markers and activities of the Christian church? (3) Offer in 800
or so words, in conversation with either Luther or Calvin, an account of what activities
make the church a truly Christian and why.
Please include footnotes as appropriate and a bibliography for all assignments
VI. GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THE SUBMISSION OF
WRITTEN WORK
Students have full responsibility for the prompt submissions of assignments. All
assignments shall be submitted to the departmental office in all cases by 4:00pm on the
due date as notified in the course outline. Assignments should not be submitted directly
to the staff member who is teaching the course.
VII. LECTURE SCHEDULE, CONTENT, AND READINGS
UNIT 1: THE HOLY SPIRIT
1. Monday July 6
Topic: Course Introduction
2. Wednesday July 8
Topic: The Holy Spirit: An Introduction, Part I
Reading:
3. Monday July 27
Topic: The Holy Spirit: An Introduction, Part II
Reading:
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4. Wednesday July 29
Topic: The Holy Spirit: An Introduction, Part III
5. Monday August 3
Topic: St. Basil on The Spirit, Part I
6. Wednesday August 5
Topic: St. Basil on the Spirit, Part II
7. Monday August 10
Topic: St. Thomas Aquinas on the Spirit, Part I
8. Wednesday August 12
Topic: St. Thomas Aquinas on the Spirit, Part II
9. Monday August 17
Topic: Calvin on the Spirit, Part I
10. Wednesday August 19
Topic: Calvin on the Spirit, Part II
Scriptural Study: The Holy Spirit in St. John
Required reading: John Calvin, Institutes, BOOK ONE, Ch. XIII: Sections 14-20; BOOK
THREE, Ch. I.
11. Monday August 31
Topic: Barth on the Spirit, Part I
12. Wednesday September 2
Topic: Barth on the Spirit, Part II
UNIT 2: THE CHURCH
13. Monday September 7
Topic: Biblical Images of the Church, Part I
14. Wednesday September 9
Topic: Biblical Images of the Church, Part II
15. Monday September 14
Topic: The Essential Properties of the Church
16. Wednesday May 16
Topic: The Marks of the Church
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17. Monday September 21
Topic: Calvin on the Marks of the Church, Part I
18. Wednesday September 23
Topic: Luther on the Marks of the Church, Part II
UNIT 3: THE SACRAMENTS: BAPTISM & EUCHARIST
19. Monday September 28
Topic: A Primer on the Sacraments
20. Wednesday September 30
Topic: Calvin on the Sacraments
21. Monday October 5
Topic: Baptism
22. Wednesday October 7
Topic: Lord’s Supper
VII: BIBLIOGRAPHY (For Further Reading)
Badcock, Gary D. The House Where God Lives: Renewing the Doctrine of the Church for
Today. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009.
Barth, Marcus. Rediscovering the Lord’s Supper. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1988.
Benedict, Pope XVI. Unity of the Church. Vol. 1 of Communio. Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 2010.
Braaten, Carl. E. That All May Believe: A Theology of the Gospel and the Mission of the
Church. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008.
Di Berardino, Angelo. Ancient Christian Doctrine: We Believe in One Holy Catholic and
Apostolic Church. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2009.
Dulles, Avery. Models of the Church. New York: Doubleday Image Books, 1974.
Elowsky, Joel C. Ancient Christian Doctrine Set: We Believe in the Holy Spirit. Downers
Grove: IVP Academic, 2009.
Fackre, Gabriel. The Christian Story: A Pastoral Systematics, Vol. 5. The Church: Signs
of the Spirit and Signs of the Times. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008.
Fee, Gordon D. God’s Empowering Presence: The Holy Spirit in the Letters of Paul.
Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1994.
Garcia, Alberto L. and Susan K. Wood, eds. Critical Issues in Ecclesiology: Essays in
Honor of Carl E. Braaten. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011.
Gunton, Colin E. and Daniel W. Hardy, eds. On Being the Church: Essays on the
Christian Community. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1990.
Harper, Brad and Paul Louis Metzger. Exploring Ecclesiology: An Evangelical and
Ecumenical Introduction. Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2009.
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Hauerwas, Stanley. A Cross-Shattered Church: Reclaiming the Theological Heart of
Preaching. Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2009.
Heron, Alasdair I.C. The Holy Spirit. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1983.
Jenson Matt and David Whilte. The Church: A Guide for the Perplexed. London and
New York: T & T Clark, 2010.
Levison, John R. Filled with the Spirit. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2010.
Kärkkäinen, Veli-Matti. Pneumatology: The Holy Spirit in Ecumenical, International,
and Contextual Perspective. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002.
Minear, Paul. S. Images of the Church in the New Testament. Philadelphia: Westminster
Press, 1960.
Moltmann, Jürgen. The Church in the Power of the Spirit. London: SCM Press, 1977.
Ramsey, Michael. The Holy Spirit: A Biblical Study. London: SPCK, 1977.
Rogers, Eugene. After the Spirit: A Constructive Pneumatology from Resources Outside
the Modern West. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005.
Satyavrata, Ivan. The Holy Spirit: Lord and Life-Giver. Downers Grove: IVP Academic,
2009.
Schults, LeRon F and Andrea Hollingsworth. The Holy Spirit. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
2008.
Siecienski, Edward A. The Filioque: History of a Doctrinal Controversy. New York:
Oxford, 2010.
Kärkkäinen, Velli-Matt, Holy Spirit and Salvation: The Sources of Christian Theology.
Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2010.
Volf, Miroslav. After Our Likeness: The Church as the Image of the Trinity. Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998.
Wells, Samuel. Speaking the Truth: Preaching in a Pluralistic Culture. Nashville:
Abingdon, 2008.
Willimon, William. A Guide to Preaching and Leading Worship. Louisville and London:
Westminster John Knox, 2008.
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