Early and Medieval Church History (CH2002L)

Content

This unit enables students to gain knowledge and understanding of the church’s historical development in theology, structure, worship, and mission from Pentecost through to the late medieval period (AD 1400) and in particular focusing on: the basic data of Christian history in respect to the church’s geographical growth in the Greco-Roman world, in the East and in Europe; the work of several outstanding bearers of Christian mission; important teachers of the church in their contexts and their distinctive contribution to theology; major theological issues the church grappled with in the early and medieval period; the significance of this history for the present situation of the church.

Learning outcomes

Unit sequence

Course relationship: A level 2 unit in undergraduate theology and ministry courses

Pedagogy

This unit is underpinned by teaching practices and strategies (e.g. face-to-face lectures with class participation, and tutorials based on readings) which encourage student engagement and participation in a variety of learning tasks and opportunities which foster deep learning.

Indicative Bibliography

• Chadwick, Henry. The early church. Rev. ed. Penguin History of the Church. London: Penguin, 1993.
• Davis, Leo Donald. The first seven ecumenical councils (325-787): their history and theology. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1988.
• Fitzgerald, Allan, ed. Augustine through the ages: an encyclopaedia. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999.
• Madigan, Kevin. Medieval Christianity: a new history. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2015.
• Pelikan, Jaroslav. The Christian tradition: a history of the development of doctrine. Volumes 1-4. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1971-1984.
• Riley-Smith, Jonathan. The Crusades: a history. 3rd ed. London: Bloomsbury, 2014.
• Stevenson, James, ed. A new Eusebius: documents illustrating the history of the church to AD 337. Rev. ed. Edited by W. Frend. London: SPCK, 1987.
• Stump, Eleonore. Aquinas. London and New York: Routledge, 2005.
• Wilken, Robert Louis. The first thousand years: a global history of Christianity. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2012.
• Young, Frances. From Nicaea to Chalcedon: a guide to the literature and its background. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2010.

Assessment