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Course Syllabus

WINTER 2019 GOSPEL, CHURCH AND CULTURE

INTD M505

APRIL 1, 8, 15, 29, MAY 6 MONDAYS, 6:00 – 10:00PM

(No class on April 22 Easter Monday)

INSTRUCTOR: DR. BRETT POTTER Email: bpotter@tyndale.ca

Email is the best way to contact me; I will do my best to get back to you promptly through the week.

Access course material at http://classes.tyndale.ca/ Course-related emails ONLY will be sent to your @MyTyndale.ca e-mail account.

Learn how to access and forward emails to your personal account.

The mission of Tyndale Seminary is to provide Christ-centred graduate theological education for leaders in the church and society whose lives are marked by intellectual maturity, spiritual vigour and moral integrity, and whose witness will faithfully engage culture with the Gospel.

I. COURSE DESCRIPTION Preparing missional leaders requires careful examination of the ideologies and cultural milieu of contemporary society. Examines the main features of postmodern culture, the meaning of faithfulness to the gospel, the good news of salvation in Christ, and the nature and mission of the church. The church’s witness and service to the world is studied, not just as one of the functions of the church, but as its essential nature. Missional leadership takes seriously the calling of all God’s people to minister in every sphere of life as faithful witnesses to the gospel of salvation. The student will gain a deeper understanding of the Gospel, develop a capacity for appreciating, evaluating and critiquing major currents of our culture, and be able to integrate these insights into ministry.

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II. LEARNING OUTCOMES At the end of the course, students will be able to:

identify positive and negative models of the gospel, the church, and the kingdom of God that inform mission and ministry in a post-Christendom context;

examine the uniqueness of Canadian culture as a context for mission;

challenge the construct of our own culture(s) and reflect on how they affect our ideas of ministry and mission;

demonstrate a holistic biblical theology of the Gospel; articulate the relationship between theology and culture; identify major dynamics of contemporary Canadian culture, including the meaning and

implications of postmodernity for the Church’s witness and service III. COURSE REQUIREMENTS A. REQUIRED TEXTS Jennings, Willie. The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2011. Newbigin, Lesslie. Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1986. Both of these textbooks are available at a reasonable price via the Tyndale bookstore. Other readings will be made available through the course website. In addition to this, there is an abundance of resources available through the Missional Church Reading Room on Tyndale’s website: http://www.tyndale.ca/seminary/mtsmodular/reading-rooms/missional B. SUPPLEMENTARY / RECOMMENDED READING AND TOOLS The following books do not need to be purchased but are directly relevant to what we are doing in the course. They are a great place to start for writing your essay or exploring themes relevant to gospel, church, and culture: Beach, Lee. The Church in Exile: Living in Hope After Christendom. Downers Grove, IL:

InterVarsity, 2015. (eBook available for free through the Tyndale library)

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Bosch, David J. Transforming Mission: Paradigm shifts in theology of Mission. Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1991.

Fitch, David. Faithful Presence: Seven Disciplines that Shape the Church for Mission. Downers

Grove, IL: IVP, 2016. Guder, Darrell, ed. Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America.

Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998. ISBN 978-0802843500 Rah, Soong-Chan. The Next Evangelicalism: Freeing the Church from Western Cultural

Captivity. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2009. Tyndale recommends www.stepbible.org – a free and reputable online resource developed by Tyndale House (Cambridge, England) – for word searches of original-language texts, as well as for topical searches, interlinear texts, dictionaries, etc. Refer to the library for other online resources for Biblical Studies. C. ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING 1. Reflection Paper #1: Due Date: April 15 [Week 3] – (15% of final mark.)

For this first assignment, you have three options:

OPTION A: Van Sloten, John. Every Job a Parable: What Walmart Greeters, Nurses, and Astronauts Tell us

About God. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress/Tyndale House, 2017. Write a 2-3 page personal reflection paper which outlines Van Sloten’s theology of work and vocation. What is new about his approach to this topic? How might this book and its ideas be received in your church, or workplace?

OPTION B: Crouch, Andy. Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2013.

Write a 2-3 page personal reflection paper which engages Crouch’s theology of culture. What stood out to you in this book? What would you add to the discussion? How does this connect to your own work and/or ministry experience?

OPTION C: Rah, Soong-Chan. The Next Evangelicalism: Freeing the Church from Western Cultural

Captivity. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2009. Write a 2-3 page personal reflection paper which discusses the impact and relevance of this book for the congregation/ministry in which you are currently involved. How can we relate the stories and ideas he raises here within our Canadian cultural context?

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2. Required Reading and Class Participation: (10% of final mark)

Attendance in class, enthusiastic and regular participation in class/small group discussions, and completion of assigned readings is expected. Because this is an intensive course over five weeks, class attendance is required. As per the expectations of the modular program, missing more than one class without a medical/emergency reason will result in failing this course.

Student participation will be graded on a scale of 1 to 4: 1 (or D): present, not disruptive; responds when called on but does not offer much; infrequent involvement; 2 (or C): adequate preparation, but no evidence of interpretation of analysis; offers straightforward information; contributes moderately when called upon; 3 (or B): good preparation, offers interpretation and analysis, contributes well to discussion in on-going fashion; 4 (or A): excellent preparation, offers analysis, synthesis and evaluation of material; contributes significantly to ongoing discussion.

3. Questions and Study Guide Assignment (30% of final mark: questions/discussion 10%,

group study guide 20%)

In groups of 2-3 you will be assigned an article on missiology or the theology of culture. This could include a chapter from Willie Jennings, Lesslie Newbigin, Soong-Chan Rah, or another PDF that I assign you. We will pick out groups and topics together on the first day! 1. As a group, you will together read the chapter and come to class prepared with a short summary of the chapter (no more than 5 minutes!) and two “burning questions” you have which we will use to shape our discussion. This is not a formal presentation, just a chance for you to lead our conversation. 2. Then, working together, you will create a “study guide” for the chapter which could be used to effectively and creatively summarize and teach this material (for example, in a church or ministry setting). You can write this as a kind of book review, but it could also take the form of an aesthetically pleasing handout, visually organized website, well-crafted PowerPoint/Prezi presentation, or other creative format. If you have any questions about this assignment, or are not sure how to get started (especially in terms of using web design software) please ask me.

Questions Due: in weeks 3, 4, 5 (schedule TBA) Creative “Study Guide” Due Date: April 29 [Week 4]

4. Final Paper (45% of final mark)

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For the final paper, you will write a reflection paper linking ecclesiology [what the church is, and how it approaches its mission!] with a theology of culture. However, you will best be able to do this by focusing this broad topic down to a particular area. For example, in thinking through the questions “what is the gospel?” “what is the church?” and “how ought we to approach culture(s)?”, essay subtopics might include the church’s approach to issues of social justice; engaging the arts; the church as a political body; creation care as mission; engaging modern technology; theologically addressing issues of race and systemic inequality; ministry in the workplace; children and youth; human flourishing and health; making a place for the voices and leadership of women; or the way the church engages other religions and philosophies (10-12 pages). This is by no means an exhaustive list! I would encourage you to run your essay topic by me before you get started.

Due Date: May 13 [one week after our final class]

D. EQUITY OF ACCESS Students with permanent or temporary disabilities who need academic accommodations must contact the Accessibility Services at the Centre for Academic Excellence to register and discuss their specific needs. New students must self-identify and register with the Accessibility Office at the beginning of the semester or as early as possible to access appropriate services. Current students must renew their plans as early as possible to have active accommodations in place. E. SUMMARY OF ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING Evaluation is based upon the completion of the following assignments:

Reflection Paper #1 15%

Participation/Involvement 10%

Ministry Project Proposal and Group Presentation 30%

Final Paper 45%

Total Grade 100%

F. GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THE SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN WORK

Work should be submitted electronically by email before class on the day it is due.

Strict adherence to the page limits and due dates is required.

All work must be typed, using standard margins, double-spaced, in 12 point type.

In keeping with Tyndale’s ethos, please use gender-inclusive language in your papers. For example, use “We are made in the image of God” rather than “Men are made in the image of God.”

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Your work should demonstrate the following characteristics:

1. Proper Reference and Citation Style

For proper citation style, consult the Chicago-Style Quick Guide (Tyndale e-resource) or the full edition of the Chicago Manual of Style Online, especially ch. 14. For citing scripture texts, refer to sections 10.44 to 10.48 and 14.238 to 14.241.

2. Academic Integrity

Integrity in academic work is required of all our students. Academic dishonesty is any breach of this integrity, and includes such practices as cheating (the use of unauthorized material on tests and examinations), submitting the same work for different classes without permission of the instructors; using false information (including false references to secondary sources) in an assignment; improper or unacknowledged collaboration with other students, and plagiarism. Tyndale University College & Seminary takes seriously its responsibility to uphold academic integrity, and to penalize academic dishonesty. Students are encouraged to consult writing resources. Students should also consult the current Academic Calendar for academic polices on Academic Honesty, Gender Inclusive Language in Written Assignments, Late Papers and Extensions, Return of Assignments, and Grading System. Research Ethics All course-based assignments involving human participants requires ethical review and approval by the Tyndale Research Ethics Board (REB). Check with the Seminary Office (Room B302; aau@tyndale.ca) before proceeding.

G. COURSE EVALUATION Tyndale Seminary values quality in the courses it offers its students. End-of-course evaluations provide valuable student feedback and are one of the ways that Tyndale Seminary works towards maintaining and improving the quality of courses and the student’s learning experience. Student involvement in this process is critical to enhance the general quality of teaching and learning. Before the end of the course, students will receive a MyTyndale email with a link to the online course evaluation. The link can also be found in the left column on the course page. The evaluation period is 2 weeks; after the evaluation period has ended, it cannot be reopened.

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Course Evaluation results will not be disclosed to the instructor before final grades in the course have been submitted and processed. Student names will be kept confidential and the instructor will only see the aggregated results of the class. IV. COURSE SCHEDULE, CONTENT, AND REQUIRED READINGS Week 1 – April 1 What is Culture? Readings (to be completed in advance of class if possible): Willie Jennings, The Christian Imagination, Part I: Displacement Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks, ch. 1

Culture as poesis – “culture-making” (Andy Crouch)

Attention to lived environments

Modernity and postmodernity

Postcolonial perspectives

Prophetic imagination

Optional Reading: Stanley Grenz and John Franke, Beyond Foundationalism: Shaping Theology in a Postmodern Context

Week 2 – April 8 Missio in Theological and Biblical Perspective Willie Jennings, The Christian Imagination, Part II: Translation Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks, ch. 2-3 Walter Brueggeman, Prophetic Imagination, ch. 1, 7 (on course page) Michael Goheen, The Missional Church and the Biblical Story, ch. 9 Brian Walsh and Sylvia Keesmaat. Colossians Remixed: Subverting the Empire, ch. 5

The Kingdom of God

A “Big” Gospel

Theological underpinnings of the missio Dei

God as a missionary God (OT/NT models) – Barth, Wright, Moltmann

Missional hermeneutics and the pilgrim church

Eschatology Optional Readings Miroslav Volf, “The Trinity is our Social Program”

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Week 3 – April 15 Evangelical Futures Readings: Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks, ch. 4-end Soong-Chan Rah, The Next Evangelicalism (excerpt on course page) Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch, The Shaping of Things to Come: Innovation and Mission for the 21st Century Church, ch. 2, 3 Craig Van Gelder, The Essence of the Church, ch. 2 (excerpt) Darrell Guder, Missional Church (excerpt)

Christ and Culture (Niebuhr)

Developing a “posture” towards culture

What does “missional” mean?

Incarnational ministry; evangelism and justice

What is the shape of “evangelical” witness?

Theologies of liberation and transformation Discussion 1 NO CLASS APRIL 22! Week 4 – April 29 Mission as Translation Willie Jennings, The Christian Imagination, Part III: Intimacy Lamin Sanneh (TBD) Grace Ji-Sun Kim, “In Search of a Pneumatology: Chi and Spirit” (article on course page) Stephen Bevans, “Models of Contextual Theology” (article on course page) Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks, ch. 1, 3

Theology of culture

Inculturation/contextualization

Lesslie Newbigin and David Bosch

Religious pluralism and postmodern religiosity

Imagination and apologetics

Postmodern mission and global cultures Discussion 2

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Optional Reading Nicholas M. Healy, Church, World, and the Christian Life: Practical-Prophetic Ecclesiology Walls, Andrew F. “The Gospel as Prisoner and Liberator of Culture” (article on course page)

Week 5 – May 6 New Horizons for Mission Howard Snyder, “Creation Care and the Mission of God” (online) Ruth A. Meyers, Missional Worship, Worshipful Mission (excerpt on course page) Raimon Panikkar, “The Dawn of Christianness” (article on course page) Catherine Keller, “A Democracy of Fellow Creatures” (article on course page)

Mission and creation care

Worship and mission

Eschatology and ecclesiology revisited

Religious pluralism Discussion 3 V. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY (Tyndale Library supports this course with e-journals and e-books. See the Library FAQ page.) Brueggeman, Walter. Cadences of Home: Preaching Among Exiles. Westminster: John Knox

Press, 1997. Bosch, David J. Transforming Mission: Paradigm shifts in theology of Mission. Maryknoll: Orbis

Books, 1991. Bosch, David. Believing in the Future: Toward a Missiology of Western Culture. Valley Forge:

Trinity Press International, 1995. Bevans, Stephen. Models of Contextual Theology: Faith and Cultures. Maryknoll: Orbis, 1992. Bibby, Reginald. Unknown Gods: The Ongoing Story of Religion in Canada. Toronto: Stoddart,

1993. _______. There’s Got to be More! Connecting Churches & Canadians. Winfield: Wood Lake

Books, 1995.

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_______. The Bibby Report: Social Trends Canadian Style. Toronto: Stoddart, 1995. Clapp, Rodney. A Peculiar People: the Church as culture in a post-Christian society. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1996. Clemens, Semak. Doing Local Theology. Orbis Press, 2002 Frost, Michael and Alan Hirsch. The Shape of Things to Come: Innovation and Mission for the

21st Century Church. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2003. Grenz, Stanley. A Primer on Postmodernism. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995. Guder, Darrell, ed. Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America.

Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 1998. Hunsberger, George. Church Between Gospel and Culture: The Emerging Mission in North

America. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1996. Keller, Tim. Center Church: Doing Balanced, Gospel-Centered Ministry in Your City. Grand

Rapids: Zondervan, 2012. Long, Jimmy. Emerging Hope: A Strategy for Reaching Postmodern Generations. Downers

Grove: IVPress, 2004. Meyers, Ruth A. Missional Worship, Worshipful Mission. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2014. Minatrea, Milfred. Shaped By God’s Heart: The Passion and Practices of Missional Churches.

San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2004. Newbigin, Lesslie. Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture. Grand Rapids:

Eerdmans, 1986. _______. The Gospel in a Pluralist Society. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1989. _______. Truth to Tell: The Gospel as Public Truth. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1991. _______. The Open Secret: An Introduction to the Theology of Mission. Grand Rapids:

Eerdmans, 1995. Posterski, Don. True to You: Living Our Faith in Our Multi-Minded World. Winfield: Woodlake

Books, 1995. Schreiter, Robert. Constructing Local Theologies. Orbis Press: Maryknoll, 1985.

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Van Engen, Charles. God’s Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church.

Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1991. Van Gelder, Craig. Confident Witness - Changing World: Rediscovering the Gospel in North

America. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1999. Van Gelder, Craig. The Essence of the Church. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2000. Wilson, Jonathan. Living Faithfully in a Fragmented World. Trinity Press International, 1997. Woodward, J. R. Creating a Missional Culture: Equipping the Church for the Sake of the World.

Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2012. Missional Ecclesiology Clapp, Rodney. A Peculiar People; The Church as Culture in a Post-Christian Society. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity, 1996. Dawn, Marva. Truly the Community: Romans 12 and How to Be the Church. Grand Rapids:

William B. Eerdmans. 1998. Dulles Avery. Models of the Church. Garden City: Doubleday and co. Inc., 1974. Frost, Michael. The Shape of Things to Come: Innovation and Mission for the 21st Century

Church. Peabody Mass. Hendrickson Publishers, 2000. Grenz, Stanley. Created for Community. Wheaton: BridgePoint/Victor Books, 1996. ____________. Theology for the Community of Faith. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1994. Guder, Darrell. Continuing Conversion of the Church. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, 2002. Hall, Douglas John. The Future of the Church. Toronto: UCPH, 1989. Hauerwas, Stanley & William Willimon. Resident Aliens. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1989. Leddy, Mary Jo. Reweaving Religious Life. Mystic: Twenty Third Publications, 1990. Murray, Stuart. Post-Christendom: Church and Mission in a Strange New World. Paternoster:

Carlisle, 2004

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Posterski, Don and Gary Nelson. Future Faith Churches: Reconnecting with the Power of the Gospel for the 21st Century. Winfield: Wood Lake Books, 1997.

Sweet, Leonard. The Church in Emerging Culture- Five Perspectives. Grand Rapids: Zondervan,

2003. Van Gelder, Craig. The Essence of the Church. Baker, 2000. Watson, David. I Believe in the Church. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1979. Webster, Douglas. Selling Jesus: What’s Wrong with Marketing the Church. Downers Grove:

InterVarsity Press, 1992. Webber, Robert. The Younger Evangelicals. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2002. Willimon, William. The Intrusive Word: Preaching to the Unbaptized. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,

1994. Wright, N.T. Bringing The Church to the World. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1992. Vanier, John. Community & Growth. New York: Paulist Press, 1979. Mission and evangelism Brueggeman, Walter. Biblical Perspectives on Evangelism: Living in a Three-Storied Universe.

Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1993. Gibbs, Eddie. In Name Only: Tackling the Problem of Nominal Christianity. Wheaton:

BridgePoint Book, 1994. Green, Michael. Evangelism Through the Local Church. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1992. Hunter, George. How to Reach Secular People. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1992. Pannell, William. Evangelism from the Bottom Up. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing, 1992. Posterski, Don. Reinventing Evangelism: New Strategies for Tomorrow’s Church. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1993. Roxburgh, Alan. Reaching a New Generation: Strategies for Tomorrow’s Church. Downers

Grove: IV Press, 1993. Sider, Ronald J. One-Sided Christianity: Uniting the Church to Heal a Lost and Broken World.

San Francisco: Harper/Collins, 1993.

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On living missionally Frost, Michael. Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture. Peabody: Hendrickson

Publishers, 2006. Mulholland, M. R. Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation. Downers

Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1993. Peterson, Eugene. The Contemplative Pastor: Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction. Grand

Rapids, MI: Wm B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Reprint edition, 1993. Willard, Dallas. Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ. NavPress:

Colorado Springs, Colorado, 2002. On missioning your vocation Banks, Robert. Faith Goes to Work. New York: The Alban Institute, 1993. Diehl, William E. The Monday Connection. San Francisco: HarperCollins Publisher, 1991. Nouwen, Henri. In the Name of Jesus. New York: Crossroads, 1989. Palmer, Parker. The Active Life. San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1990. ______. The Courage to Teach. John Wiley & Sons Inc., 1999. Van Engen, C. God So Loves the City: Seeking a Theology for Urban Mission. Monrovia: MARC,

1994.