CHRISTIAN RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE

RS 247F8 / WS 247F8             SPRING SEMESTER 2007                EDGEWOOD COLLEGE                       

 

Christian Religious Experience

RS 247F8 / WGS 247                                                                                       John K. Leonard, PhD

Spring 2007, TR 2:00-3:50                                                                            324  Predolin   663-2823

Predolin 116                                                            Hours: M 1-3; T 12-1:30, 4-6; R 11-12, 1-1:30; F 3-4

4  Credits                                                                                                 (e) jleonard@edgewood.edu

 

Description/Objectives

An exploration of (a) the Christian experience of God's self-revelation in Jesus Christ; (b) the faith-response of Christian women and men in scripture, mysticism, music, art, worship, literature and lifestyle; and (c) theological reflection on the meaning of and relationship between (a) and (b).   By the end of the course students should be able to

- discuss the wide range of Christian Religious Experiences and the variety of expressions to which these give rise;

- summarize traditional approaches to the Christian journey and contemporary challenges to traditional ways of thinking;

- integrate their own life experiences and personal values with the issues raised;

- articulate the Judeo-Christian vision of Peace and Justice and some of the ways in which these are embodied in contemporary culture;

- provide evidence of  their understanding of Edgewood’s Catholic heritage and respect for other religious traditions; the development of intellect, spirit, imagination and heart; their participation in open caring, thoughtful engagement with one another; at least a budding commitment to service to seek truth, live justly and compassionately, and work in partnership with others in  building a just and compassionate world.

 

Requirements / Assessment

All students begin with 100 points = All are “A” Students from the beginning; if you think of yourself and act as an “A” student, you will quite naturally fulfill the following:

 

Attendance/Participation.   The success of the course depends on the full, conscious and active participation of all.  Absences.  Please inform the instructor of any necessary absences ahead of time and in writing.  In last-minute cases, please acknowledge your absence in writing ASAP and turn in any missed papers at the next meeting.  Participation.  Because in-class participation is so important, those who are absent more than 3 times will lose 10 additional points from their final score (in addition to the point lost for not being in class on the day that papers are discussed/presented).  However, even those who are bodily present in the classroom and fail to join in the discussion will lose up to one point from the RWD papers as described below.

 

Journals.  (20 Entries @ 2  points; 40% of the grade).  Students are to keep electronic “journals” for recording their thoughts, feelings, and reactions to the readings, discussions and experiences of each unit.  Students may elect to answer the proposed focus question or respond to the material in another way in their journals. In other words, journal entries MUST reveal that students have actually read & understood what was assigned for that unit (for example by integrating quotes or ideas from the readings).  Those entries which do not reveal that you have read and understood the assigned readings will be returned with a “?” rather than a grade; this means you have two days to re-do the entry or the “?” reverts to a “0”.

      While drafts of journal entries are normally prepared before each class; two or three journal entries are to be turned in on the date indicated in the syllabus.  These written journal entries are to be pasted into the body of a single e-mail message. Please do not send individual journal entries as e-mail attachments.

 

Readings/Viewings.  Fruitful discussion depends on an early, thoughtful and critical reading of the assigned texts or videos.  In addition, there are several readings from which students are to choose; most of these are hyperlinked and can be accessed from the electronic form of this syllabus.  All are encouraged to take notes and/or jot down any questions or objections that arise from what you read and discuss these in class or with the professor.   

 

Reflect/Write/Discuss. (10 points each; 60% of the grade)  Six, carefully written, succinct reflection papers (4 to 6 pages, typed- [final versions should be handed in as e-mail attachments!]) are to be prepared and shared as part of the class discussion on the days indicated.  Topics/focus questions are provided for each.  Be sure to answer the focus question(s) completely!  Papers are to be discussed and handed in on the dates indicated in the syllabus. NO EXTENSIONS, however rewrites or print outs may be handed in within 48 hours of due date (this assumes you bring at least a written draft or extensive outline to class and show it to the professor and join intelligently in the discussion).   Readiness to engage in vigorous discussion --a willingness to listen as well as speak--will be considered in grading these papers and will count for 1 of the 10 points.  NOTE WELL:  Students are to hand in all 6 of the Reflect/Write/Discuss assignments listed in the syllabus.

v     Plan ahead for Unit IV which suggests you attend/observe a Christian worship service (especially the Easter Vigil on April 7th). 

v     Also, plan ahead for Unit V by joining the Edgewood Community in Serving at Luke House, OR volunteer your services at St. Martin House, Habitat for Humanity, with ESPERANZA at Centro Hispano or Centro Guadalupano OR some other outreach/service project at least twice during this semester. Participation in the Hunger Banquet on Feb 21st will also be beneficial for this unit on Service and Justice.  

v     Lastly, PLAN ahead for Journal Entry 20 and Unit IX (Film Review) which expect you to synthesize and integrate material from the entire semester. 

 

Alternatives.  Students with any disability or genuine difficulty with these requirements are encouraged to meet with the instructor as soon as possible so that appropriate accommodations can be made.  If you have a documented disability, which requires accommodations
in this course, please contact the Director of Learning Support Services, located in the Student Resource Center in DeRicci 206, 663-2281.  She will work with you to provide appropriate accommodations, and all information will be kept confidential. All students are encouraged to suggest alternative readings from their own traditions or other perspectives to supplement those listed here.

 

Women's Studies 247  Students enrolled in WS 247 must choose Women's writings each time there are options. Note, too, that there are specific questions for WS 247 students in several of the assignments.    Please consult the instructor for further details. 

 

Required Texts

Bible [any modern translation]. 

DeMello, Anthony, The Way to Love.  NY: Doubleday, 1992; Image Books, 1995.

Johnson, Elizabeth A. Friends of God and Prophets: A Feminist Theological Reading of the Communion of the Saints. NY: Continuum, 1999. 

Nelson, Gertrud Müller. To Dance With God. NY: Paulist Press, 1986

Nolan, Albert.  Jesus Before Christianity.  Maryknoll: Orbis, 2001.

Rolheiser, Ronald.  The  Holy Longing: The Search for a Christian Spirituality. NY: Doubleday, 1999 (2004).

Articles and Handouts listed in the bibliography will be e-mailed as attachments or linked through Blackboard.  http://edgecms.edgewood.edu/

 

Unit I               Religious Experience:  The Self and The Other

(1/23)  Introduction:  What Are the Most Important Questions? What is IT all  about?

Journal Entry 1.  What is the most practical pursuit or endeavor in the world and why? OR Why are you getting a college education? Why does that matter?
[To be drafted in class and transferred to Journal Document afterwards]

 

 (1/25)  The Experience of  Mystery:  Revelation - Faith

      Read  Genesis 12-22; and one of the following:  Exodus 3:1 to 4:17; Exodus 19:1-20:26; Judges 4 - 5;   I Sam 3:1-21; Judith 9, 13:1 -20 and 16:1-17 (in Catholic Bibles or in the Apocrypha section of Protestant Bibles); Isaiah 6:1-13; Luke 1:26-56;   Acts 9:1-30; Then read Joan Chittister, “Finding God”  reprinted from The Other Side (July -Aug 1998) 26-28.

Journal Entry 2.  Does Joan Chittister’s idea about God’s presence throw light on what the biblical characters experienced?  What if all their language about hearing voices and burning bushes are metaphors for describing the in-breaking of God’s presence into the ordinary?[Bring Draft of this Journal entry to class on Jan 25th]

 

January 28th  Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, 13th-century Dominican Philosopher/Theologian who summarized Christian Theology of the first 13 centuries in his Summa Theologica but considered all his writings as “straw” when compared with the mystical/spiritual experience of God’s Love and Beauty.

 

(1/30) Repent!  Metanoeite!  Wake Up!: What is Spirituality?

      Read  Rolheiser, The  Holy Longing, chapts. 1-2, pp. 1-41; Acts. 9:1-30.

Journal Entry 3.  How does Rolheiser describe “spirituality”? If everyone has a spirituality, what would it mean to “repent” or convert?  If you consider yourself a spiritual person what are some of the modern “demons” described by Rolheiser in chapter 2 with which you have struggled ? [Bring Draft of this Journal entry to class on Jan 30th]

 

[Journal Entries 1, 2 & 3 Due Jan 31st]

January 31st   STEM CELLS:  WHAT ARE THEY?  HOW ARE THEY USED? WHAT ARE THE MORAL ISSUES?  Second Annual Thomas Aquinas Panel Discussion co-sponsored by Campus Ministry, Religious Studies and Natural Sciences.  Anderson Auditorium 3pm.

 

 (2/1) Belief, Repentance, Discipleship

      Read DeMello, Way to Love, intro and pp. 1-91 (chapters from “Profit and Loss” to “Show No Partiality”);  Alice Walker, “God Is Inside You and Inside Everybody Else” from The Color Purple.  

Reflect/Write/Discuss 1.   For DeMello, genuine happiness  (=spirituality) is beyond description but includes the freedom to love unconditionally that is realized when we drop attachments, beliefs, illusions, programming.  How does dropping these things make a person capable of genuine love?  In the selection from The Color Purple, what did Shug and Celie “drop” and what happened to them as a result?

 

[Bring Draft/Final version of RWD#1 to class on Feb 1st. Final Version due Feb 2nd ]

                                                                                                                                                                                   

 

Unit II             Jesus of Nazareth: Source, Guide, and Goal for the Christian Journey

(2/6)  Who is Jesus?  Who are you? How do Christians understand and use Scripture?

      Read the Gospel of Mark 1:1 to 16:8 and be ready to discuss in class the general picture or impression you get of Jesus from Mark’s Gospel; read also: Marcus Borg, Reading the Bible Again for the First Time, (Harper San Francisco 2001) chapters 1-3, pp. 3-53.

Journal Entry 4.  The remainder of this class will assume that the Truth of Scripture is not to be found at the Literal Level.  Will the Sacramental, Historical-Metaphorical reading of Scripture be a problem for you this semester?  Why or why not?

 

(2/8)   Is Jesus relevant in 2007? 

      Read   Nolan, Jesus Before Christianity, chs 1-2, pp. 1-23.   

Journal Entry 5.   What do you consider the major obstacles to world peace and security now? What would it take to overcome these obstacles? Do you think Jesus’ approach to the impending catastrophe of his day has anything to offer today? How would things be different in Iraq if the US had examined its own conscience instead of calling for revenge and war?

 

 Feb 11th  Edgewood Prepares/Serves Dinner @ Luke House

              Sign-up on Campus Ministry Bulletin Board—2nd Floor DeRicci

 

 

(2/13)  Friend of Sinners:  Unconditional Love

      Read  Nolan, Jesus Before Christianity, chs 3-5, pp. 24-51.

Journal Entry 6.   How would you relate the stories of Jesus solidarity with the poor, healing the sick, and forgiving sin with the Edgewood College values of Truth, Justice, Compassion, Community and Partnership? 

 

(2/15)  Teacher of the "Kingdom" Life:  Implications of Love

      Read Nolan, Jesus Before Christianity, chs. 6-12 pp. 55-109.

Reflect/Write/Discuss 2.  Complete the “Values of the Kingdom” Spreadsheet by including both words  (sayings, teachings or parables) and deeds (actions, behaviors) of Jesus that illustrate each of these values: Quote or paraphrase using Nolan and the Bible; include chapter and verse(s) where appropriate. 

[Bring at least a Draft Version of  RWD#2 on Feb 15th—Final Versions due Feb 17th]

 

[Journal Entries 4, 5 & 6 Due Feb 17th]

                                                                                                                                                                       

 

Unit III            Jesus' Threat to the Status Quo:  Then and Now

(2/20) Politics and Good Religion:  Are they Separable?

      Read Nolan, Jesus Before Christianity, chs. 13-15, 113-136; Barak Obama, “Faith” in The Audacity of Hope (NY: Crown, 2006) 208-226.

Journal Entry 7.   What would be different if (choose one)
a) United States’ Foreign Policy were guided by the values of Jesus?
or b)the institution (business, organization, hospital, agency, school, etc) where you work changed the meaning of success from making money and living comfortably to…  Fostering more loving and caring, more generosity and open-heartedness, more ecological and ethical sensitivity, more awe and wonder, more appreciation of our interdependence, more celebration, gratitude and joy? [Bring draft of Journal #7 to class on Feb 20th]

 

February 21 – Ash Wednesday: Beginning of the Lenten Fast=Intensive Preparation for Baptism and its annual Renewal at Easter on April 5-8.  Several Special Services with Distribution of Ashes held in St. Joseph Chapel and in most Christian Churches today.

All are encouraged to participate in the Hunger Banquet on Ash Wednesday, February 21, beginning at 6 PM in the Washburn Heritage Room  www.oxfamamerica.org

 

 

(2/22) Freed for Self and for Others: Oscar Romero

      Read Nolan, Jesus Before Christianity, chs. 16-18, pp. 137-162;
Rolheiser, Holy Longing, 167-191;
Flaherty, OP, Arlene, Selection from “Solidarity: The Spirit, Challenge and Mission of the Dominican Tradition;” 
M. L. King, Jr. “I Have A Dream” http://douglassarchives.org/king_b12.htm;
Browse the sayings of Gandhi listed under “5. Religion and Truth” and “6. Ahimsa or the way of Non-Violence” at http://www.mkgandhi.org/amabrothers/amabrothers.htm ;
We will Watch the video: ROMERO in class. 

Journal Entry 8. Which kingdom values did the 16th-century Dominicans,  Romero, Gandhi and ML King live by and die for (NOTE: You will need to quote or paraphrase all three in order to illustrate their values)?  Can those who adhere to the “Kingdom” values justify violence or war?

 

 

(2/27) Jesus & the Equality of Women, Critique of Patriarchy & Option for the Marginalized

      Read Johnson, Friends of God & Prophets, chapts. 1-2, pp. 7-45;  AND from ch. 8. pp. 141-150.

Journal Entry 9.  How does a Feminist reading of the Jesus tradition threaten our male-dominated churches, businesses, organizations and politics? What surprises, delights or angers you about Johnson’s approach to the Symbol of “the Saints”? [Bring Draft of Journal 9 to class on Feb 27th ]

 

[Journal Entries 7, 8 & 9 Due Feb 28th]

                                                                                                                                                                                   

 

Unit IV            Death & Resurrection:  Jesus Experienced As Both Lord and Christ

(3/1) Why Did Jesus Die?  Historical (Imperial-Economic-Religious) & Theological Answers

      READ Nolan, Jesus Before Christianity, chs. 16-18, pp. 137-162;  S. Mark Heim, “Cross Purposes: Rethinking the Death of Jesus,” Christian Century  (22 March 2005). 

 

(3/6) Experience of the Earliest Disciples

      Read Compare/Contrast Mark 16:1-8; Matthew 28: 1-10; Luke 24: 1-12; John 20:1-18; 
Also read Acts 2:1-47; 9:1-30; Galatians 1:1 to 2:10;
James Alison, “The Resurrection,” Knowing Jesus (Springfield, IL: Templegate, 1994) esp. pp. 7-30.

 

 (3/8)  Jesus Christ: 100% Human and 100% Divine

      Read  Nolan, Jesus Before Christianity.  ch. 19, pp. 163-171; Elizabeth Johnson, “The Humanity of Jesus,” = ch. 2 in Consider Jesus, pp. 19-33.

Reflect/Write/Discuss 3.  What does it mean to say that the humanity of Jesus of Nazareth reveals what Divinity is really like? How does Elizabeth Johnson describe the relationship between Jesus’ Human Nature and his Divine Nature?  What does this approach to Christology mean for every other human being?

[Bring Draft to class on Mar 8th—Final Version of RWD #3 due Mar 10th]

 

Mar 11  Edgewood Prepares/Serves Dinner @ Luke House

                                                                                                                                                                       

 

Unit V    Saints and Mystics: Medieval & Modern

 (3/13)  Saints & Martyrs; The Empire and Christianity

      Read   Johnson, Friends of God and Prophets, chapters 3-4, pp. 46-93; Handouts:  “Handing on the Experience (110-313) and “The Constantinian Peace: Whose Triumph Was It?” 

Journal Entry 10.  How did the Church benefit from the Roman Empire’s acceptance of Christianity?  What did it lose or suffer because of its new partnership with civil power? Describe the differences between the two paradigms for understanding the “Communion of the Saints” that emerged in the first centuries after Jesus. 

 

 (3/15)  Medieval, Reformation and Modern Christians 

      Read   Johnson, Friends of God and Prophets, chapters 5-7, 94-138.  

Journal Entry 11.  What happened to the relationship between ordinary Christians and the “saints” from the 4th to the 20th centuries?

 

(3/20)  Christian Mysticism/Spirituality Today

      Nelson, To Dance With God, chapter 11, pp. 221-241; Rolheiser, Holy Longing, chapter 10, “Sustaining Ourselves in the Spiritual Life” pp, 213-241 ; Frank X. Tuoti, “Christian Ways of Meditation” in The Dawn of the Mystical Age

Journal Entry 12.  What do these authors mean when they say we need to be Mystics?  What is the place of prayer and worship in the life of a mystic?  Why are mystics usually involved with serving the sick, poor, disadvantaged, marginalized and rejected?

 

[Journal Entries 10, 11 & 12 are due Mar 21st !]

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

 

Unit VI            Celebrating the Experience in Ritual & Prayer

(3/22)  Sacramental Embodiment: The Christian Eucharist

      Read  Nelson, To Dance With God, chapters 1-2, pp. 3-20.

      DeMello, The Way to Love, 93-116; Rolheiser, Holy Longing, 71-107.   

      In-class Handout:  Towards an Experiential Understanding of Sacramental Embodiment.”

 

March 24 = 27th Anniversary of the Martyrdom of Oscar Arnulfo Romero of San Salvador

 

 (3/27)  Giving Thanks; Saying Amen; Dancing With God

      Read   Nelson, To Dance With God, chapters 3-4, pp. 23-55, and chapter 7, pp. 129-153.

Journal Entry 13 & 14.  What will you remember most from last Thursday’s experience & discussion?  How does that experience connect in any way with the discussions of rituals and seasons in Nelson? With genuine spirituality in DeMello and sustaining the spiritual life in Rolheiser?

 

 (3/29)   Holy Week and Easter

      Read   Nelson, To Dance With God, chapter 8, pp. 155-185 and The Three Days of Pascha = Assembly 18:1 (January 1992) 541-548; Celebrating Eastertime = Assembly 14:3 (March 1988) 394-400; The Blessed Pentecost = Assembly 20:1 (February 1994) 623-630. AND “Introduction to the Paschal Triduum.”  

      Video: This Is the Night   

Journal Entry 15.       What did you learn about the way liturgy can be celebrated and linked to the rest of life from today’s video/discussion?

[Journal Entries 13, 14 and 15 are due before Spring Break ]

 

April 5-8th  – Paschal Triduum of the Passion, Death & Resurrection of Jesus.  This single feast begins with the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday and is concluded by Evening Prayer at Sunset on Easter Sunday. 

 

Apr 8 Edgewood Prepares/Serves Dinner @ Luke House

 

Attend/Reflect/Write 4. A. Anytime before April 9th, participate as an observer at (1) a Sunday Service or Liturgy of a Christian denomination that includes Communion/Lord’s Supper/Holy Eucharist AND/OR (2) the special services for Holy Week (Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, Easter Sunday) at any Christian Church AND/OR (3) Orthodox Vespers &/or Divine Liturgy celebrated on most Saturdays @6:30pm and Sundays at 9:30 am at the Antiochean Orthodox Mission of Madison [or any one of the vesperal Liturgies celebrated during the week]

      (The Catholic Eucharist [Mass] is celebrated Mondays and Wednesdays at noon and Sundays at 11:00 am in  Edgewood’s St. Joseph Chapel)   Note: Students enrolled in WS 247 should attend a church where the pastor or minister is a woman.
 
B. Prepare a report on this worship experience in which you:  a) Describe the non-verbal, sensate experiences and elements (architecture, art, music, movements, gestures, smells, sounds, action and interaction of the assembly).    b) Summarize how and where the story/values of Jesus were expressed in words and enacted in deeds during the celebration?   c) Describe how women, minorities, other marginalized persons were involved in the service? How does this resonate with the stories of Jesus’ relationship with women?  [WS 247: d) What was it like to be in a worship service where the presider/leader is a woman?  How does this resonate with the stories of Jesus’ relationship with women? ]  BE SURE TO INCORPORATE SEVERAL INSIGHTS FROM THE READINGS ASSIGNED AND DISCUSSIONS  this unit!!! 

[Bring Draft to class on Apr 10th—Final Version of ARW #4 due Apr 11th]

 

 (4/10) The Cycle of Feasts and the Seasons of Our Lives:

                                 Read Nelson, To Dance With God, chapters 5-6, 10-11 pp. 50-127, 197- 241.
                                                                                                                                                                       

 

Unit VII        Implications of the Experience:  Discipleship & Ethics

(4/12)  "No Longer I, but Christ who lives in me" How are Disciples to Behave?

      Read I Cor 12: 1- 14:40; DeMello, The Way to Love, 117-196; Rolheiser, Holy Longing,  pp. 141-166;  AND Consult http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restorative_Justice and http://www.restorativejustice.org/intro/  to understand “Restorative Justice” and click on Download Executive Summary at http://www.tipwis.org to understand“Treatment Instead of Prison (TIP)”

Journal Entry 16.  If Christian morality has its basis in the experience of God’s unconditional love--and we humans experience God’s love in and through the love of other humans--then how should Christians treat those who commit crimes and why? Does Restorative justiece make more sense than retributive justice? Should persons caught selling or abusing illegal substances be incarcerated or treated? [Bring Draft of Journal 16 to class on Apr 12th]

 

 (4/17)    From Jesus to “Christian Morality”?  

      Read and Handouts:  “Jesus, the Foundation of Morality” and “The Origin and Evolution of Christian Ethics” = “Christian Thought about God” 13-15; 

Journal Entry 17.  If the “core imperative” (= central commandment) that flows from the experience of being loved unconditionally by God is ALWAYS DO THE MOST LOVING THING, then what use are other “laws,” “rules” or “moral teachings.” [Bring Draft of Journal 16 to class on Apr 17h]

 

(4/19) Economic Justice for All:  The Christian Option for the Poor

      Read   Wm. J. Byron, “Ten Building Blocks of Catholic Social Teaching,” America 179:13 (Oct 31, 1998): 9-13 http://www.americamagazine.org/articles/Byron.htm; Rolheiser, Holy Longing, 167-191.

      View on your own: “Entertaining Angels: the Dorothy Day Story” and/or see an online biography, e.g., http://www.catholicworker.org/dorothyday/ddbiographytext.cfm?Number=3

 

Reflect/Write/Discuss 5. Having participated more than once in a service project this semester (Luke House, a neighborhood center, Centro Guadalupano, St. Martin House, Homeless Shelter, etc.), reflect on your experiences there, the example of Dorothy Day, and the basic principles of Catholic Social Teaching enumerated by Byron.

 [You cannot write this paper unless you have participated in some form of service this semester and have learned about Dorothy Day’s example from your own reading &/or from viewing the video.  This paper is due on April 21st.

 

 Please paste JOURNAL ENTRIES 15 and 16 to the bottom of RWD#5 so that all three items are included in the same document—Journals 16 & 17 are due April 21st .

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

 

Unit VIII         Implications of the Experience:  Love & the Spirituality of Sex

(4/24)  Traditional Sources for Moral Decision-Making regarding Sexuality

      Read   Rolheiser, The Holy Longing, chapter 9, pp. 192-212. Catechism of the Catholic Church numbers 2331-2400 accessible on the web at… http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm

Journal Entry 18.  If you were asked to teach Catholic high school youth about sexual morality, would you use the Catechism or would you use Rolheiser’s Spirituality of Sexuality to approach the topic?  Why? What are the strongest or most convincing statements of the approach you have chosen?  [Bring draft of Journal 18 to class on 4/24]

 

(4/26)  Sexual Self-giving as “sacrament” of God’s Self-gift to humanity

      Read   Rolheiser, The Holy Longing, chapter 9, pp. 192-212 again!  James Alison, “Good-Faith Learning and the Fear of God” from Opening Up: Speaking Out in the Church (London: DLT, 2005) available on his web page http://www.jamesalison.co.uk/texts/eng17.html

Journal Entry 19.  How and when can genital expression be related to Jesus’ self-giving on the Cross and in the Eucharist? What do you now understand about the relationship between spirituality, love, sex and all of life that you did not know before this course?)[Bring draft of Journal 19 to class on 4/26]

 

April 29th  Feast of St. Catherine of Siena, 14th-century Dominican mystic who “spoke truth to power with love.”

 

Journal Entry 20.  How would you explain the ideal relationships/connections between-among spirituality, religion, worship, love, social justice, sex and life?  In other words, how do you answer the question: “What is IT all about?” [NOTE: This final journal entry provides an opportunity for you to summarize and synthesize the entire course.  Those who do well on this final journal entry may restore points lost earlier in the semester in addition to the 2 points

 

 

Journals with entries 17-20 are due April 29th at Noon.

                                                                                                                                                                       

UNIT IX    Christian Experience and Contemporary Culture

 (5/1)  Christian/Human Values in Film

Read Margaret R. Miles. Seeing and Believing: Religion and Values in the Movies.   ch. 9, pp.182-193.  View outside of  Class: Babette’s Feast and/or Chocolat  (Starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp)

 

 (5/3 and 5/8 and 5/10)      Group Film Review Presentations

      Form a Group of 4 students to work together to prepare a film review.

      View A Popular Film of your choice.

      Read At least one Professional Review by a religion-related reviewer of the film that highlights the religious or human values of the film.  [Professional Film Reviews  may be found in current and back issues of  New Yorker, Commonweal, America (Richard Blake writes the film reviews),  New Republic, New York Review of Books, Newsweek, Time, Rolling Stone, Journal of Popular Film and Television, Monthly Film Bulletin, Film Quarterly, Film/Literature Quarterly, Screen, Film Comment, etc.  (See the Reference Librarians for assistance in locating a worthy film review!)] include insights from one or more of these reviews in your own film review!

Reflect/Write/Discuss 6.   Each group prepares a review that analyzes the religious/human values of one popular film.   Your group review will include
(1) a brief synopsis of the film (what the film is about and what happens),

(2) a summary of what the professional film reviewer(s) said about the film

(3) summaries or clips from the film that express the “Kingdom” values or their opposites
[(a) wealth: sharing vs. greed; (b) group solidarity: all-inclusive vs. exclusive of others; (c) human dignity: equal valuing of all vs. prestige/honor/status for some; (d) power: empowering service vs. control/domination/force; (e) attitudes toward others: compassion vs. disdain, forgiveness vs. revenge, etc. and (f) if appropriate—the spirituality of sexuality ]. 
(4) In conclusion, the review will answer the questions, “What does this film say about how we should live?” (Remember that Margaret Miles discusses “What film says about how we should live” in the chapter assigned for 5/1) or “How does this film’s understanding of what is most important in life compare with what your group understands to be the central values of a healthy Christian spirituality.?”

      NOTE.  This review must be completed and ready for presentation in class on May 3rd. The names of all group members and a description of each one’s contributions to the project must be included with the final film review. Final Version of RWD# due 24 hours after your group presents its review in class. 

 

 

May 13  Edgewood Prepares/Serves Dinner @ Luke House