REQUIRED TEXTS:
St. John Chrysostom. On the Priesthood. Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2002.
St. Gregory the Great. Pastoral Care. New York: Paulist Press, 1950.
Ferguson, Everett, ed. Encyclopedia of Early Christianity. New York: Garland Publishing, 1990.
Niebhur, H. Richard, and Daniel D. Williams, eds. The Ministry in Historical Perspective San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1956; 2nd edition, 1983.
Booth, Wayne C., Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. The Craft of Research. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995.
Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. Sixth edition. Revised by John Grossman and Alice Bennett. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
Williams, Joseph. Style: Toward Clarity and Grace. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990.
REQUIREMENTS:
This course revolves around a series of group projects that are designed to help you explore in detail the lives of church fathers and their thoughts on the priesthood and Christian ministry. In the first week of class, students will form four groups (final number based on class enrollment). Each group will choose two church fathers from the available list and make two formal presentations to the class on the relevance of that church father for the priesthood and Christian ministry today, as explained by his writings and demonstrated by his life. The joint-presentation must incorporate an assessment of the church father’s life (e.g., family, education, spiritual life), ministry (e.g., philanthropy, administration, career), and teaching (e.g., preaching, catechism, biblical exegesis, spiritual teaching, and especially his teaching on Christian service). Basically, you must answer two simple questions: “What kind of Christian priest was he? Why should anyone care today?” You will be graded jointly for your class presentation and thus group cooperation is essential.
We will devote ample time in class to discussing how your project should be prepared from start to finish—how to formulate a thesis, how to research your project, how to plan your presentation, and write a polished paper—so that the course will provide you not only with knowledge and informational content, but it will also help you develop important skills that will transfer to other activities, too. Be advised that you must meet with your group at least twice weekly, regularly coordinating and dividing assignments amongst yourselves. You must also meet with me (at the end of class) at least two weeks before your presentation.
Each student will contribute to the group a six-page paper for which they will be graded individually. Papers must be coordinated so that together they constitute a single assessment of that particular church father. These papers, however, are your own, personal contribution. The work you submit must be your own, although you will share it and its insights with your colleague(s) as you prepare for the class presentation.
Each group must also prepare a reading selection from the writings of your church father that offer insight into his thought on ministry and the priesthood and which will promote class discussion (the quality of the assignment will count towards your presentation grade). The selection(s) should not exceed 5-7 pages and they must be made available to the rest of the class at least one week in advance of your presentation. These selections are required reading assignments and they will be incorporated into the final exam. Handouts should also be prepared to help students follow the presentation, together with a final bibliography to assist students in learning more about your topic.
The students in the audience must be attentive and should take notes carefully. They will also be expected to engage the presenters with questions gleaned from the readings assigned and the oral presentation. Students may also be picked at random.
At the end of the semester, each group will make a shorter, more informal presentation, on the life of an inspiring Christian minister (lay or ordained) not studied in class (anyone from antiquity to the twentieth century) who exemplified, complemented, or challenged the models set forth during the course of the semester. No paper is required, but students must demonstrate thorough knowledge of the subject and relate it to the semester’s work. You will be graded jointly for this presentation, too.
1. Two six-page papers, no less than 1500 words (25% each, 50% total). See the attached writing checklist for the method of evaluation.
2. Two formal group presentations (15% each, 30% total). Presentations will be evaluated on the quality (and timeliness!) of reading assignments distributed (10%), oral presentation (poise, articulation, preparation, 20%), organization (30%), content (30%), and the quality of questions generated and answers provided (10%).
3. One informal group presentation (10%). Your depth of knowledge and enthusiasm for the subject will determine your grade.
4. Final exam (10%). From a choice of four church fathers, you will be asked to compare three (from those whom you did not present to class) to the writings of St. John Chrysostom and St. Gregory the Great. In what ways did they demonstrate the ideals found in On the Priesthood and in Pastoral Care? Did they present new ones? How did they differ from one another and what did you learn from each? To perform well on the exam, students must read carefully the assignments (those assigned by both the instructor and student groups) and take notes during class discussions and presentations.
SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS
September
7 Course Introduction and Group Assignments
12 Group Assignments and Presentation Overview
Handouts; relevant articles in the Encyclopedia of Early Christianity, ed. E. Ferguson (Library Reference) or the Catholic Encyclopedia (available at www.newadvent.org); see also http://www.earlychurch.org.uk/people.php and http://www2.evansville.edu/ecoleweb/ecolea.html
14 ELEVATION OF THE HOLY CROSS—HOLIDAY
19 Discussion of Papers: Arguing, Writing, and Presenting Your Work Selections from the Craft of Research
21 Conducting Your Research and Preparing a Bibliography
Review the bibliography provided and bring a preliminary bibliography for your own project to class. Note: class will proceed to the library today.
26 Priesthood in the Bible
Numbers 3-4, 8, 12, 16-18, Hebrews 5-10, Isaiah 42.1-7, 50.4-9, 52.13-53.12 (BRING BIBLES)
OCTOBER
3 Ministry in the Bible
1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus (BRING BIBLES)
5 Development of the Priestly Office George H. Williams, “The Ministry of the Ante-Nicene Church” and “The Ministry in the Later Patristic Period,” in The Ministry in Historical Perspective, ed. H. Richard Niebhur and Daniel D. Williams (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1956; 2nd edition, 1983), 27-81. (Library Reserves)
10 Sts. John Chrysostom and Gregory the Great
Introductions to On the Priesthood and Pastoral Care
12 SPECIAL PRESENTATION: PROF. GEORGE DEMACOPOULOS (FORDHAM UNIVERSITY), MODELS OF PASTORAL CARE
17 Group 1
19 Serving the Church
OP 37-51, PC 1.1-2
24 Group 2
26 The Difficulties of Pastoral Care
OP 52-64, PC 1.3-7
31 Group 3
NOVEMBER
2 The Glory of Service to God
OP 65-74, PC 1.8-11
Know Thyself
OP 75-88, PC 2.6-8
7 Group 4
9 The Headaches!
OP 88-103, PC 3.1, 3.36-40
Proper Preparation and Training
OP 115-135, PC 2.9-11
14 Group 1
16 Group 2
21 Save Thyself
OP 136-42, PC 2.1-5
It’s Tougher Than You Think
OP 143-60, PC 4
23 THANKSGIVING RECESS
28 Group 3
30 Group 4
December
5 Informal Presentations, Groups 1 and 2
7 Informal Presentations, Groups 3 and 4
13-17 FINAL EXAMINATION PERIOD