Postgraduate Course: Creeds, Councils and Controversies (ECHS11022)
Course Outline
| School | School of Divinity |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The aim of the course is to enable students to understand and reflect critically upon the historical contexts in which theology has been developed and assailed, from the patristic period to modern times. It looks at the origins and theological and historical significance of early Christian creeds and councils, focussing on debates about Christology. It examines medieval disputes over Church, Scripture, and authority. It considers the divisions over the theology of salvation that divided Western Christendom at the Reformation, and catalysed new movements in Protestant and Catholic spirituality. It explores some of the major challenges to faith that have shaped theology since c1650: the development of biblical criticism; the growth of urban-industrial society and secularism; the rise of modern science; the rise of modern totalitarian regimes, including Nazism. It considers Catholic engagement with modernity, as expressed at Vatican II. At every stage the course takes account of the role of particular individuals and particular contexts in the unfolding and resolution of controversy. |
| Course description |
Academic Description
The aim of the course is to enable students to understand and reflect critically upon the historical contexts in which theology has been developed and assailed, from the patristic period to modern times. It looks at the origins and theological and historical significance of early Christian creeds and councils, focussing on debates about Christology. It examines medieval disputes over Church, Scripture, and authority. It considers the divisions over the theology of salvation that divided Western Christendom at the Reformation, and catalysed new movements in Protestant and Catholic spirituality. It explores some of the major challenges to faith that have shaped theology since c1650: the development of biblical criticism; the growth of urban-industrial society and secularism; the rise of modern science; the rise of modern totalitarian regimes, including Nazism. It considers Catholic engagement with modernity, as expressed at Vatican II. At every stage the course takes account of the role of particular individuals and particular contexts in the unfolding and resolution of controversy.
Outline
The course applies historical approaches to religious beliefs and theological thought, with a strong emphasis on skills for assessing historical and theological evidence. The specific topics to be explored are: the Creed before Nicaea; the Creed from Nicaea to Constantinople; the making of Chalcedonian Christology; medieval disputes over Church, Scripture and Authority; the theological debates that catalysed the Protestant Reformation; the characteristics of the Catholic Reformation and Catholic mysticism; the Biblical Challenge - the development and impact of biblical criticism, c.1650-1900; the Social Challenge - religion and industrialisation; the Darwin controversies; the Confessing Church movement in Nazi Germany; Vatican II and Catholic engagement with modernity.
Student Learning Experience
The emphasis of the course is both on the development of the major doctrines of Christianity and on the mechanisms for agreeing and disputing them. Students from other programmes with an emphasis on theology or history who are interested in these topics are very welcome to take this course with the consent of their programme directors. Assuming the necessary support from the University IT infrastructure, the aim is to make the class accessible to students on- and off-campus, using hybrid learning. The class will meet weekly for a two-hour seminar. The first part will usually be led by the course lecturer and then a student (or students) will introduce key seminar readings to start an in-depth discussion. An essential element of the course will be student interaction via a blog in advance of each seminar. In a week when a student introduces the seminar text(s), they are required to post a 500-word blog of their findings in advance; all students should then add a comment of up to 100 words from their own reading. One of the longer blog-posts will be assessed for 10% of the final mark. Students write a 3000-word essay on a topic relevant to the course as agreed with the course lecturer: this counts for 90% of the final mark. It is important that students keep up not only with reading the specified text(s) for each seminar, but also with background reading, if they are to attain the depth of knowledge proper to Masters study. Through participation in the seminars (with associated blogs), and through the essay project, students will demonstrate their achievement of the intended learning outcomes.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of how theology developed within a specific historical context and often in response to definite social, political, cultural and economic events or movements.
- Construct theological and historical explanations and arguments with reference to the theological and historical context, and making appropriate use of key primary texts in English.
- Address at least two disputed scholarly questions regarding a particular aspect of the history of Christian doctrine, showing extensive knowledge of scholarly readings of the relevant evidence.
- Demonstrate an ability to identify and formulate a significant research question on an aspect of the course, and to construct a suitable bibliography by using appropriate search tools.
- Engage in constructive and critical debate with peers.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Ability to analyse and assess evidence from a variety of sources.
Ability to present complex ideas with both nuance and clarity.
Ability to construct well-reasoned arguments and advance them clearly, in discussion and in writing.
Ability to pursue independent work in a structured and supportive environment.
Ability to discuss ideas constructively and critically with peers
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| Keywords | theology,history,creeds,councils,controversies |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof Susan Hardman Moore
Tel: (0131 6)50 8900
Email: |
Course secretary | Miss Rachel Dutton
Tel: (0131 6)50 7227
Email: |
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