Theological Issues of the Early Church

UFT Code: 
CH/CT189
Unit Credit Points: 
15
Timetabling
Semester: 
Second Semester
Day: 
Tuesday
Time: 
2:15 - 5:15
Lecturer Profile: 
Andrew Hamilton
Lecturer Profile: 
David Gormley O’Brien
Location: 
CTM
Years Offered: 
2010

This unit explores the development of theology within the early church that have been seminal for later generations. The theological themes investigated include the unity and diversity in the faith of the early Christian communities, the tension between charismatic and institutional forms of ministry and authority, the Trinitarian and Christological debates within the church, and the Donatist and Pelagian disputes. It aims to help students appreciate the distinctive flavour of early Christian texts, and to understand both the questions which led to the classic formulations of Christian doctrine and the shape and limitations of those answers.  

Description
Learning Outcomes: 

Upon successful completion of this unit, it is expected that students will be able to:

  1. demonstrate a basic understanding of the historical environment in which Christian thought developed in the first 500 years
  2. demonstrate an awareness of the key personalities in the various controversies of this period
  3. appraise the corresponding theological positions of these personalities
  4. comprehend selected original sources of the controversies of this period in English translation 
Teaching Methods: 

Semester 

Contact Hours: 

36 hours

Assessment: 
  • 1 x 2000 word essay (50%)
  • 1 x take home written examination (50%)
Mode of Teaching: 
Semester
Bibliography: 
Recommended reading:
* = set texts recommended for purchase
Please format reading lists according to Turabian
  • Augustine. The Confessions, trans. H. Chadwick. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.
  • Behr, J. The Way to Nicaea, Crestwood: St Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2004.
  • *Brown, P. Augustine of Hippo – A Biography. Berkeley: University of California, 2000.
  • Chadwick, H. Heresy and Orthodoxy in the Early Church. London: Variorum, 1991.
  • *Gonzalez, J. A History of Christian Thought. Vol. 1. Rev. Ed. Nashville: Abingdon, 1987. 
  • Hall, S. Doctrine and Practice in the Early Church. London: SPCK, 1991.
  • Norris, R. A. (ed.). The Christological Controversy. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1980.
  • Studer, B. Trinity and Incarnation. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1993
  • Williams, R. Arius: Heresy and Tradition. London: Darton, Longman & Todd, 2001.
  • Williams, R. (ed.). The Making of Orthodoxy. London: SCM, 1983.
  • Young, F. From Nicaea to Chalcedon. London: SCM, 1983.
  • Young, F. The Making of the Creeds. London: SCM, 1991.
Unit Fields
Course: 
Bachelor of Theology
BTheol Field: 
Field C Christian Thought and History
BTheol Discipline: 
Church History
RTI: 
United Faculty of Theology
Department Name: 
Department of Church History
Unit Level
Undergraduate Level: 
1
MTS: 
No
Postgraduate: 
No

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