Historical Studies Courses

HISU-200. Introduction to the History of Christianity I. 2 crs. Discusses the history of Christianity from the founding of the early church to the 16th century, the development of doctrines and institutions; Christian biography, and the relationship between Christian and secular culture.

HISU-201. Introduction to the History of Christianity II. 2 crs. Analyzes the history of Christianity from the 16th century to the present; continuation of HISU-200.

HISU-211. Religion in American Life. 2 crs. Treats religion in American history from the era of exploration to the present.

HISU-213. Methodist History and Doctrine. 4 crs. Examines the history and doctrine of the Methodist church.

HISU-214. Methodist Polity. 2 crs. Examines the polity of the Methodist church.

HISU-220. History of the Black Churches. 3 crs. Examines the history of the religious life of black Americans, their relation to Protestantism and Roman Catholicism, the formation and development of independent black denominations, and black sects and cults.

HISU-226. Baptist History, Doctrine and Polity. 3 crs.

HISU-244. United Church of Christ Polity. 3 crs. Explores the historical roots, present structure and practices of the United Church of Christ, using various presenters from United Church of Christ Churches and agencies,

HISU-300. Blacks in the Major Religious Traditions. 3 crs. Prereq.: HISU-211 or its equivalent.

HISU-305. Personalities of the Black Churches. 3 crs. A biographical approach to the African-American religious experience; representative individuals from the colonial era through the twentieth century are studied.

HISU-306. Black Ministries in Historical Perspectives. 3 crs. Examines how black clergy have sought to enact their vision and understanding of the church and its ministry. Major emphases will be placed upon the developmental and contextual experiences out of which such ministries emerged.

HISU-309. History of the Black Religious Experience in America. 3 crs. A seminar focusing on selected topics announced by professor.

HISU-702-310. Marcus Garvey/Garveyism: Black Messianism? 3 crs. Focuses on Garvey/Garveyism and its role in Black Messianism. Material covered will include Garvey’s biography, fundamentals of Garveyism, evolution of the United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and its relationship with established forms of Black Christianity and those religious movements which were inspired by and/or grew out of Garveyism.

HISU-320. Seminar in Reformation Church History. 3 crs. Study of selected topics from the 16th and 17th centuries.

HISU-325. Seminar in Modern Church History. 3 crs. Study of selected topics from the 19th century to the present.

HISU-330. Seminar in American Religious Thought. 3 crs. Advanced study of American intellectual history from early Puritanism to the present.

HISU-335. Christian Foundations of American Culture. 3 crs. Examines relationships between colonial American Christianity and the development of American culture.

HISU-337. Telling the Church’s Story. 3 crs. Examines the way historians have related the faith experience from the first century to the present; introduces students to the varieties of methods and perspectives representative of different eras and forms of literature. Students will have the opportunity to apply techniques learned in the course to a local history project chosen in consultation with the instructor.

HISU-340. Patristics/Early African Christianity. 3 crs. A study of the African roots of Christianity. How the churches in Egypt, Ethiopia and North Africa influence the course of later development of Christianity. Special attention will be paid as well to the spirituality and liturgy of the pre-colonial African churches.

HISU-350. Ecumenical Movement and African American Religious Leadership. 2 crs. This course explores the experiences of African-American religious leaders in the ecumenical movement, beginning with the first General Assembly of the World Council of Churches in Amsterdam, and continuing to the present. Ecumenical activity at other levels, e.g. COCU, will be discussed as well.

HISU-354. Martin Luther King, Jr. Seminar. 3 crs. Critically examines the life, thought, and ministry of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and exposes students to the broad historical compass out of which he emerged as well as explores the context in which he sought to live out his ideals.

HISU-403. Gnosticism: African Context. 3 crs. Issues in the evolution of early Egyptian Christianity. Emphasis placed on looking at gnosticism on the basis of its own claims. Special consideration given to the role of women, notions of God, attitudes of the body and other pertinent questions. Prereq.: HISU-337, Telling the Church’s Story or HISU-201, Introduction to History of Christianity II.

HISU-425. Seminar in American Religious Liberty. 3 crs. This seminar will explore the various sources which provide the basis for one of the characteristic themes in the American religious experience, the quest for religious liberty. Civil religion, church establishment, political and theological theories of church/state relations, and popular culture notions of religious freedom from the seventeenth century to the present will be examined. Students will be introduced to the tradition of legal argument as is relates to First Amendment interpretations.

HISU-440. Directed Research in Church History. 3 crs.

HISU-510. Social Gospel in America. 3 crs. A study of Protestant social thought and action in America since 1865, inclusive of the leadership of Afro-Americans and women. Non-D.Min. students need permission of instructor.

HISU-515. East Meets West: Asian American and African American Christianity in Dialogue. 3 crs. Exploration of intercultural religious experience.

HISU-545. Directed Research in Black Church History. 3 crs.