Course Syllabus

Instructor: Tim Bryan, M. S., M. A., Th.D., The John Wesley Iliff Senior Instructor in Church History, The Iliff School of Theology 

Personal Email: bryan147@msn.com (will return messages within 24-48 hours)

Cell Phone: 303-565-9312 (please call after 9:00 AM and before 9:00 PM)

Course Synopsis

“Who do people say the Son of Man is?”  (Matthew 16:13). It is a question asked since Jesus roamed the Galilean countryside. This course will examine how people have responded to that question over the centuries since Jesus. After surveying the efforts of the historical “questers” over the last couple of centuries to describe Jesus and his relationship to his religious, social, and political environment, we will follow the theological efforts of the church to understand his nature and his work, including the doctrinal conflicts of the fourth and fifth centuries, medieval and Reformation soteriological considerations, and modern Christological reflections that speak to new understandings of human experience and history, special concerns about individual and collective evil, and globalization. The course will conclude with Jesus’ other question, “Who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15)---with each student developing his or her own Christology.

Books for the Course

Marcus J. Borg & N. T. Wright. The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions. HarperOne. 2007 (paperback). ISBN 978-0-06-128554-7. 

David F. Ford & Mike Higton (eds.) Jesus. Oxford Readers. Oxford University Press. 2002 (paperback). ISBN 978-0-19-289316-1.

Tyron L. Inbody. The Many Faces of Christology. Abingdon Press. 2002 (paperback). ISBN 0-687-030003-X.

Elizabeth A. Johnson. Consider Jesus: Waves of Renewal in Christology. Crossroad. 1995 (paperback). ISBN 0-8245-1161-1 (PK). 

Jaroslav Pelikan. Jesus Through the Centuries: His Place in the History of Culture. Yale University Press. 1999 (paperback). ISBN 978-0-300-07987-6.

A Word About the Course Texts

There are many studies and texts on the historical Jesus and Christology. The bibliographical materials listed in the texts chosen for this course highlight many of the seminal ones. I have chosen the texts for this course using the following criteria: scholarly reliability, readability, usefulness beyond the course, diversity, cost (usually available through Amazon at very reasonable prices), and content that engages important aspects of the historical Jesus and the Christological images and ideas that have emerged historically since the first century.

The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions is a collaborative effort of two of the best scholars of the most recent quest for the historical Jesus: Marcus Borg and N. T. Wright. They present their conclusions about the historical Jesus from liberal and conservative positions.

 Jesus is an excellent collection of primary sources in the Oxford Readers series for topical reflections on Jesus throughout history. We will be reading some of the selections during the course; however, overall, I think that it will be a valuable resource for your preaching, teaching, pastoral care, formation workshops, and personal reflections.

 The Many Faces of Christology has a good introductory section on the modern quests for the historical Jesus and some good insights into the development of Christology historically, including some valuable chapters on Evangelical, Liberal, Postliberal, Feminist, and Global perspectives. 

 Consider Jesus: Waves of Renewal in Christology is an older work but a very good introduction to Christology, written by a well-known and sometimes controversial (a good sign) Roman Catholic woman theologian Elizabeth Johnson. Catholics have contributed greatly to the modern debates about Christology and the historical Jesus, with studies by Karl Rahner, Gerald O’Collins, Edward Schillebeeckx, John Dominic Crossan, John Meier, Raymond Brown, and others. Consider Jesus focuses on Catholic contributions with an ecumenical spirit and an adroit teacher’s clarity.

 Jesus Through the Centuries: His Place in the History of Culture was written by Jaroslav Pelikan, a convert to Orthodoxy and considered in his lifetime the most renowned historian of the development of Christian doctrine. The text presents a cultural history of Jesus by focusing on the popular images of Jesus that have appeared theologically and artistically throughout history. 

See Taylor Library's list of online book sellers for purchasing options.

Evaluation

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