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MC 601K—Reformed Ecclesiology and Polity Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Instructor: Preston Graham Jr

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MC 601K—Reformed Ecclesiology and Polity Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Instructor: Preston Graham Jr MC 601K—Reformed Ecclesiology and Polity Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Instructor: Preston Graham Jr. Fall Semester 2007 (Fridays: 1:15-4:15) Course Description: No extent of space interferes with the boundless energy of the Spirit, which transfuses life into us from the flesh of Christ. John Calvin, Corpus Reformatorum A lofty conception of the sacramental nature of the church indeed! And yet it formed the basis for John Calvin’s conception of the church as the New Covenant temple of God, so much so that He would later declare, Beyond the pale of the Church, no forgiveness of sins, no salvation, can be hoped for... and hence the abandonment of the Church is always fatal? John Calvin, Institutes (4.1.4) This course will seek to construct an ecclesial and pastoral theology in conversation with the historic Reformed tradition together with its practical relevance to contemporary ministry. Divided into two parts, ecclesial and pastoral theology respectively, both topics will be explored beginning with a redemptive-historical analysis moving to a confessional analysis and then finally to a contemporary analysis. The theological premise reflected throughout the course concerns the sacramental nature of the gospel, or the mediated presence of God unto salvation, as this then is reflected in a “temple” theology of the church and a “priestly” theology of the pastorate, albeit reflected in the classic reformed tradition. Our theological construction will result in both a “High gospel” (gospel centered and missional) and a “High Church” (confessional, sacramental and communal) spirituality relevant to today’s emergent ministry. Course Structure and Requirements: Structure: The course will be set up as a readings course coupled with classroom discussions and presentations. Each week the first half of the class will be devoted to discussing the topic and corresponding reading assignments that week. The second half of class will be devoted to introducing the topic to be covered in the readings for discussion the following week. Guest ecclesial practitioners will be invited to participate in this second half of the discussion as determined by instructor and availability. Requirements: For Pass/Fail: 1) Each Student will be required to turn in an annotated bibliography of all the assigned readings by the end of the semester 2) Each student will be required to write and present a two page review on a text of choice from the reading list. For Grade: 3) In addition to the above pass/fail requirements, the student will prepare a 15 page paper on a relevant topic in ecclesiology or pastoral theology as approved by the instructor. Reading Assignments::* The assigned readings for this course are divided into two categories generally: core readings and weekly readings. The core assignments can be read at any time throughout the course, perhaps the focus of reading weeks (we will have three “reading” weeks in this class). The weekly selections should be read by the assigned 1 week and will be discussed during class. It is very important that the student come to each class prepared to discuss these assignments on the assigned weeks, as this forms the basis of our classroom experience. (Some Readings will be “skim reads” and other are subject to change-TBA) Core Readings: ! Core Readings in Ecclesiology: o John Calvin, Institutes (Selections on Ecclesiology) " Book 4, Chapters 1-4, 12:1-11, 14:1-19, 15, 16-17 o George Gillespie, 111 Propositions (skim) ! Core Readings in Pastoral Theology: o Andrew Purves, Pastoral Theology in the Classical Tradition ! Core Reading in Reformed Worship o Hughes Oliphant Old, Worship ! A Reading in Ecclesial Polity (skim) o The Polity Book of Personal Affiliation Weekly Schedule and Reading Assignments: Week 1 (9/7): Introduction: Post-Christendom—Present Trends and Practices in Ecclesial and Pastoral Theology Discuss o An Anonymous Ecclesial Survey (To be completed in class) o Post-Christian or Post-Ecclesiasticum? Our Present Context for doing Ecclesiology Introduce: o A Primer in Christian Spirituality: Five Dynamics Of Salvation By Divine Presence o Ecclesial-Historical Bibliography Week 2 (9/14): A Biblical Theology in Ecclesiology Discuss o Preston Graham Jr, A Sacramental Theology of the Gospel, Rediscovering the Saving Presence of God in the Church (especially part 1) (on reserve and available at http://www.christpresnewhaven.org/documents/A%20sacramental%20gospel.pdf o T. F. Torrance, Royal Priesthood, Chapter 2, The Function of the Body of Christ” (On reserve in GCTS library) o Lesslie Newbigin, The Reunion of the Church, Chapter 2: “The Israel of God” (On Reserve) o James Bannerman, The Church of Christ, Introduction, Chapter 1-5 (On Reserve) Introduce: A Primer on the Confessing Church o The Dogma is the Drama o The Idea of Creedalism o A Reformed Pedigree Week 3 (9/21): The Confessing Church (PG Gone, RL) Discuss o Dorothy Sayers, Creed or Chaos? Chapter 3, “The Dogma is the Drama” o Samuel Miller, Doctrinal Integrity... Chapter 1, “Arguments in Favor of Creeds,” Chapter 2 Answers for “Objections to Creeds”, “Concluding Remarks” o Michael Horton, Apostle Creed, Introduction o Contemporary Issues in Subscription (Good Faith...?) 2 Introduce: The Communal Church: Church Power and Ecclesial Relation to Society Week 4 (9/28): The Communal Church: Church Power and Ecclesial Relation to Society Discuss o James Bannerman, The Church of Christ, Vol. 1, Part 2: Chapter 1, 3,4,5 (On Reserve) o Preston Graham Jr. The Centrality of the Church as a Social Strategy, (On Reserve) o Stuart Robinson, “The Relation of the Temporal and Spiritual Powers Historically Considered,” “Letters to Theological Students” located in Preston Graham Jr, A Kingdom Not of This World, (2001) (On Reserve) o (supplemental) " The Barmen Declaration " Richard Hayes Introduce: A Primer on the Sacramental Church Week 5(10/5): The Sacramental Church Discuss o E. Brooks Holifield “Mercersberg, Princeton, and the South: The Sacramental Controversy in the Nineteenth Century", Journal of the Presbyterian Historical Society, 54 (1976), p. 245ff, (On reserve) o John Williamson Nevin, The Mystical Presence...Chapter 1,Section 1: “Statement of Doctrine” (read), Section 2, “Historical Evidence” (Very Quick Skim), Chapter 3, Section 2, “The Mystical Union” and Section 3: “The Lord’s Supper” (Read carefully) (On Reserve) o John Calvin, Treatise on Lord’s Supper (On Reserve) o [Supplemental] Preston Graham Jr, A Baptism that Saves (1999) (On Reserve) Introduce: A Primer on Pastoral Theology Week 6(10/12): GCTS Reading Week Week 7 (10/19): Pastoral Theology and Issues in Ordination Discuss o T. F. Torrance, The Eldership in the Reformed Church, http://eldership.org/resources/elders_sjt.html o Preston Graham Jr. A Priest With No Name (Reserve) o R. L. Dabney, “What is a Call to Ministry” Vol 2, Discussions: Evangelical and Theological (On Reserve) (also if possible, “The Standard of Ordination, Vol 3) o Martin Bucer, Concerning the Care of the Souls and Genuine Pastoral Ministry (Read as much as you can, you won’t regret it!) o Denominational Books of Church Order Introduce: Topics of Controversy and Pastoral Ministry Week 8 (10/26 (PG in DC) Discuss? TBD o Women in Ministry: Inter Insigniores, Declaration on the Admission of Women to the Ministerial Priesthood (Reserve) o Sabbath: Lee Iron’s Eschatological Sabbath (Reserve) o Auburn and New Perspective? Introduce: Missional Theology and Ecumenism 3 Week 9 (11/2) The Missional Church and Ecumenism Discus o Michael W. Goheen , “As The Father Has Sent Me, I Am Sending You’: Lesslie Newbigin’s Missionary Ecclesiology, International Review of Mission 91, 362 (2002): 345-369. o Lesslie Newbigin Readings: Religious Pluralism—A Missiological Approach, The Gospel in Today’s Global City, Can the West Be Converted, Ecumenical Amnesia (On Reserve, Online at: http://calm.bham.ac.uk/DServeA) o Preston Graham Jr. Lesslie Newbigin’s Missional Ecclesiology Explored: A Christo-Centric proposal for Ecumenism in today’s Global Context (On Reserve) o Supplemental: --Darrel Guder The Church as Missional Community (On Reserve) --Serene Jones, Calvin and the Rhetoric of Piety, Chapter five, “Divinitatis Sensus and “Boundaries of Otherness (On Reserve)( --Tim Keller’s, Missional Church, Evangelistic Worship (On Reserve) -- Issues in Coming to Faith (c.f. www.christpresnewhaven.org/home.html, Q &A) Introduce: Primer on Pastor’s Function in Worship Week 10 (11/9)GCTS Reading Week Week 11 (11/16) Pastor’s Function in Worship o R.L. Dabney, Sacred Rhetoric (selections) o Samuel Miller, Public Prayer (selections) o Old, Worship Introduce: Pastoral Leadership and Participation in Church Courts Week 12 (11/23) (last class) Discuss " McElrath, The Ascent of A Leader, (Selections) " Ronald Heifetz, Marty Linsky, Leadership on the Line, (selections) " David Gordon, Argument Fallacies (skim) " Samuel Miller (Conduct in Church Courts) Selections Q & A: See Bibliography: 4 5 Bibliography and Resources (In addition to the Topical Bibliographies as provided during class) Suggested Online Resources and Recommended Readings Related to Christian Discipleship and Pastoral Ministry www.christpresnewhaven.org/StudyCenterLinks.htm Reformed Ecclesiology by T. David Gordon, P. Graham Jr. All annotations are by T. David Gordon (1991) Presbyterian History in America Baird, Samuel J. A Collection of the Acts, Deliverances and Testimonies of the Supreme Judicatory of Presbyterian Church, From Its Origin in America to the Present Time, with Notes and Documents, Explanatory and Historical. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1856. Gillet, E. H. History of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publications, 1864. Minutes of the Presbyterian Church in America, 1706-88. Minutes of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of the United States of America. Moore, William E. The Presbyterian Digest of 1886. A Compend of the Acts and Deliverances of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America.
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