Content

This unit introduces and examines a conversation between the resources of Christian theology and those of the arts, enquiring into the ways that these two fields of human activity both inform and are informed by each other. Students will be encouraged to think through the implications of such for theology, for human artistry, and for the shape and content of human vocation.

Unit code: DP2009W

Unit status: Archived (New unit)

Points: 18.0

Unit level: Undergraduate Level 2

Unit discipline: Pastoral Theology and Ministry Studies

Delivery Mode: Face to Face

Proposing College: Whitley College

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Learning outcomes

1.

Identify and analyse the respective contributions of theology and the arts to each other’s assumptions and methods.

2.

Describe a range of responses to how theologians and artists have understood each other’s vocations.

3.

Articulate a coherent theological statement on the relationship between theology and the arts.

Unit sequence

Prerequisites: 15 points in DP Prohibited combinations: DP 2/3/9012W The Arts and Theological Reflection

Pedagogy

Lectures, seminars, site visits

Indicative Bibliography

  • Begbie, Jeremy, ed. Beholding the Glory: Incarnation through the Arts. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2000.
  • Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. London: British Broadcasting Corporation/Penguin Books, 1977.
  • Dyrness, William A. Visual Faith: Art, Theology, and Worship in Dialogue. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001.
  • Farley, Edward. Faith and Beauty: A Theological Aesthetic. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2001.
  • Goroncy, Jason A., ed. Tikkun Olam – To Mend the World: A Confluence of Theology and the Arts. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2014.
  • Hart, Trevor A. Making Good: Creation, Creativity and Artistry. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press, 2014.
  • Jensen, Robin. The Substance Of Things Seen: Art, Faith and the Christian Community. Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2004.
  • Kidd, Richard, and Graham Sparkes. God and the Art of Seeing: Visual Resources for a Journey of Faith. Regent’s Study Guides. Macon, GA/Oxford: Smyth & Helwys/Regent’s Park College, 2003.
  • Pattison, George. Art, Modernity and Faith. London: SCM Press, 1988.
  • Rookmaaker, Hans R. Modern Art and the Death of a Culture. 2nd ed. Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1994.
  • Viladesau, Richard. Theology and the Arts: Encountering God through Music, Art, and Rhetoric. New York: Paulist Press, 2000.
  • Williams, Rowan. Grace and Necessity: Reflections on Art and Love. Harrisburg: Morehouse, 2005.
  • Wolterstorff, Nicholas P. Art in Action: Towards a Christian Aesthetic. Carlisle: Solway, 1997.

Assessment

Type Description Word count Weight (%)
Journal

Journal of critical reflections (1,000 words)

1000 30.0
Essay

Essay (2,000 words)

2000 50.0
Seminar or Tutorial

Seminar Paper (1,000 words)

1000 20.0
Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by John Capper on 30 Jul, 2015

Unit record last updated: 2021-10-05 09:58:42 +1100