Kevin Stilley

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Syllabus – Church & Empires

Course Syllabus – Spring 2014
Church and Empires

The College at Southwestern
HIS 1203-A   T/Th    1:00 – 2:15 p.m.  Room S22
Instructor: Kevin Stilley
Office Hours:  By Appointment

I keep office hours a few blocks from the college at Stadium Drive Baptist Church: 4717 Stadium Drive, Fort Worth, TX 76133, or can meet you by appointment in the Student Center.

Email:  [email protected]
Website:  http://kevinstilley.com
Twitter:  http://www.twitter.com/kevinstilley
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/kevin.stilley

Catalog Description

A study of the history and philosophy of western civilization from late antiquity to the late medieval period.

Course Objectives

  • Appreciation of God’s providence in the overall pattern of history.
  • To gain knowledge of the main events, ideas and persons that have shaped western civilization from the early Christian church to the dawn of the Reformation.
  • To understand how Christianity and western civilization are related and be able to outline the relationship between church and state across time.
  • Development of the skill of applying history to contemporary ideas and issues

Required Texts

  • History of the Medieval World, by Susan Wise Bauer
  • Ecclesiastical History of the English People, by Bede
  • The Middle Ages, by Morris Bishop
  • Christian History Made Easy, Timothy Paul Jones

 (Please bring a Bible to class with you.)

 Assignments

Grades will be determined based upon completion of three exams, a writing assignment, and class participation.

  • First Examination  (25%) – This exam will be conducted via Blackboard so please be sure to have a good internet connection available on the day of the exam.
  • Second Examination  (25%) – This exam will be conducted via Blackboard so please be sure to have a good internet connection available on the day of the exam.
  • Final Examination: (25%) – The date and time for the final exam may not coincide with normal class days and times. You must make yourself available to take the final exam at the scheduled time during finals week.   No alternative times or venues for the exam will be offered.
  • Essay/Response (15%):  Each student will write a response to the op-ed piece “Does Christian Fundamentalism Endanger Our Republic?” by Carol V. Hamilton  (http://hnn.us/articles/52479.html).  The response should incorporate themes discussed in class regarding the interaction of Christianity, civilization, and Western culture.  Essays should be approximately 1000 words long and will be graded in terms of grammar, composition, creativity, research, analysis, and relevance.  Late papers will be subject to a five yard point per day penalty for delay of game.
  • Participation (10%): All students are expected to attend class, be punctual, and participate appropriately in classroom discussion.  To engage in classroom discussion of the assigned reading it is imperative that all reading assignments be conducted in a timely fashion.
    • Attendance will be recorded at the beginning of all class sessions. Absences or tardiness will adversely affect your grade.  Absences in excess of six will result in an automatic failure of the class.
    • Students are free to record the class.
    • Guests are welcome, but please notify the instructor in advance.
    • Laptops, iPhones, and similar devices may NOT be used during class as their usefulness is far outweighed by their ability to create a distraction and contribute to the cultural habit of inattentiveness.
    • If you become drowsy you may stand at the back or the side of the room until you can resume your seat without falling asleep.

Grades

Grades will be determined by the following scale: 100-98 (A+); 97-93 = A; 92-90 (A-); 89-88(B+); 87-83 (B); 82-80 (B-); 79-78 (C+); 77-73 (C); 72-70 (C-); 69-68 (D+); 67-63 (D); 62-60 (D-); Below 60 = F.

Blackboard

Blackboard and SWBTS student email will be used for class communications.  Students should check both Blackboard and student email daily for possible communications from the instructor.

Tentative Schedule

HIS 3203 Topic Assignment Due Today
January 23 Introduction to Course -Discussion of Syllabus Please print out and bring your syllabus to this class session.
January 28 The First 1,000 Years of ChristianityReview for Final Exam  Read: Bishop, chapter 1 Bring Christian History Made Easy to class with you.
January 30 External Pressures on the Church — Persecution: Apologetic and Martyrdom literature Read: Jones, Introduction and chapter 1
February 4 Internal Pressures on the Church: Heresy, Creeds, & Councils Read: Jones, chapters 2 & 3
February 6 The Age of Invasions Read: Bauer, chapters 1, 4, 5, 6 & 8
February 11 Fall of the Roman Empire & Augustine Read: Bauer, chapters 9, 10, 11 & 12
February 13 Boethius, Monasticism, Asceticism & Mysticism Read: Bauer, chapters 13, 16, 17, 18
February 18 BritainThe Papacy Read: Bede, book 1
February 20 Rise of the Franks / Charlemagne Read: Bauer, chapters 19, 20, 21, 22, 25
February 25 Church and State: A historical perspective Read: Bauer, chapters 27, 28, 29
February 27 Christ and Culture: Richard Niebuhr and D.A. Carson Read: Bauer, chapters 33, 34, 35, & 36
March 4 Does Christian Fundamentalism Endanger Our Republic?” Due: Submit your essay via Turnitin no later than the beginning of class time, and bring a paper copy to class for the instructor.
March 6 Mid-Term Examination Mid-Term Examination
March 11 Spring Break Spring Break
March 13 Spring Break Spring Break
March 18 Mohammad Read: Bauer, chapters 37, 39, 41
March 20 Expansion of Islam / Do Christians and Muslim’s Worship the Same God? Read: Bauer, chapters 42, 45, 47, & 48
March 25 The Crusades Read: Bauer, chapter 71Read: Bishop, chapter 3
March 27 The Crusades, War, Dr. Seuss & Christian Ethics Read Bishop, chapter 4
April 1 The VikingsRussia Read: Bauer, chapters 56, 69, 69, & 71
April 3 The Norman Conquest of England / The Hundred Years War / Henry V / Joan of Arc / Europe in the High Middle Ages – Feudalism/ The Black Death / Magna Carta, & Shakespeare’s Kings Read: Bishop, chapter 2
April 8 The Scholastics (Anselm, Abelard, Aquinas, and other guys whose name does not start with an  “A”  like Ockam) Read: Bishop, chapter 5
April 10 The University (Averroes, Maimonides, Siger of Brabant and other smart guys) Read: Bishop, chapter 8
April 15 Literary, Political and Cultural Contributions of the Late Medieval Period Read: Bishop, chapter 9
April 17 Examination #2 Examination #2
April 22 The Church in the 14th Century Review Christian History Made Easy
April 24 Medieval Reformers Review Christian History Made Easy
April 29 The End of Byzantium Review Christian History Made Easy
Final Examination Final Examination In Class

 

“When a man is busy at study, the Evil Impulse whispers to him: Why tarryest thou here.  Go and join the men who flirt with pretty women.”  – Talmud, Zohar, ii, 265b

 

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Augustine of Hippo – select quotes

Book Cover

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Accordingly, whatever in secular histories runs counter to it [Scripture] we do not hesitate to brand as wholly false, while with respect to nonparallel matters we remain indifferent.
~ in The City of God, trans. Gerald G. Walsh, Demetrius B. Zema, Grace Monahan and Daniel Honan (NY: Image, 1958), page. 408.

For, if He visited every sin here below with manifest penalty, it might be thought that no score remained to be settled at the Last Judgment. On the other hand, if God did not plainly enough punish sin on earth, people might conclude that there is no such thing as Divine Providence. So, too, in regard to the good things of life. If God did not bestow them with patent liberality on some who ask Him, we could possibly argue that such things did not depend on His power. On the other hand, if He lavished them on all who asked, we might have the impression that God is to be served only for the gifts He bestows. In that case, the service of God would not make us religious, but rather covetous and greedy. (Bk 1, Ch 8)

He that is good is free, though he is a slave; he that is evil is a slave, though, he be a king.

So, too, the tide of trouble will test, purify, and improve the good, but beat, crush, and wash away the wicked. So it is that, under the weight of the same affliction, the wicked deny and blaspheme god, and the good pray to Him and praise Him. The difference is not in what people suffer but in the way they suffer. (bk 1, ch 8)

The law detects, grace alone conquers sin.

Total abstinence is easier than perfect moderation.

O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart. Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling and scatter there Thy cheerful beams.

Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that thou mayest believe, but believe that thou mayest understand.

When facts are reported, they deny the value of evidence; when the evidence is produced, they declare it inconclusive.
~ in The City of God

Thou has made us for Thyself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless till they rest in Thee.
~ in Confessions

God is not what you imagine or what you think you understand. If you understand you have failed.

__________

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Teresa of Avila – select quotes

Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ’s compassion for the world is to look out; yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good; and yours are the hands with which He is to bless us now.
~ Teresa of Avila

Do you think the above quote is good theology, or not? Please explain in the comment section below.

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Thomas Aquinas

Thomas Aquinas has a tremendous influence on the theology of both Catholics and Protestants. How much do you know of him? In A Students Guided to Liberal Learning James V. Schall recommends the following five books on Thomas Aquinas;

1) St. Thomas Aquinas, by Ralph McInerny

2) Guide to St. Thomas Aquinas, by Josef Pieper

3) Friar Thomas D’Aquino, by James Weisheipl

4) St. Thomas Aquinas: The Dumb Ox, by G.K. Chesterton

5) The Thought of Thomas Aquinas, by Brian Davies

What do you think of his recommendations?

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Textbooks

(A note for my SWBTS students:)  You have been asking what textbooks I will be using next semester. Hopefully, this advance notice will allow you to shop for the best prices. You will find below a list of the textbooks for the three sections I am teaching.

CHURCH AND EMPIRES (sections 1203a and 1203b)

EARLY WESTERN CIVILIZATION (section 1103A)

I am making some adjustments to the syllabus, but it should be available via Blackboard sometime during the next few weeks. If you want to do so pre-reading, I suggest starting with what interests you as you are more likely to stick with it that way. However, the texts will be tackled pretty much in the order you find them listed above. Enjoy!

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