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Canyon College

online Christian Worship course at Canyon College

COURSE SYLLABUS: Christian Worship

Course Title: DV660 - Christian Worship
Department: Master of Divinity
Instructor: Gerald FitzGerald, BD, MDiv, DMin, Phd Theology CandidateE-Mail -- Vita
Prerequisites: None


PURPOSE OF THE COURSE

If an entity from the planet Mars visited earth and attended a Christian worship service then visited the House of Blues, would our intergalactic guest be able to discern the differences between the activities being conducted at these disparate locations? Would our guest get a sense of the sacred/secular dichotomy and what it signifies? Would our guest come to acknowledge that the object of attention at the worship service is far different than that at the House of Blues? Would it matter which house of worship our guest attended (i.e. whether Catholic or Protestant, Baptist or Pentecostal)?

What exactly is worship? What is Christian worship? How do we distinguish worship from secular activities such as would be taking place at the House of Blues? What would happen if our Martian visitor visited the House of Blues on Sunday during its Gospel Brunch? These are some of the key questions with which this course is concerned. This course posits that there is a qualitative difference between what goes on at the House of Blues and what takes place at houses of worship and that the difference can be studied, understood, and applied in ways to enhance the worship experience.

By the end of the course, students should understand that difference and be equipped with some tools which will enable them to analyze worship services and to offer advice on improving them.

INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE

Students should strive to use inclusive language in their writings. By inclusive language is meant language that is not gender specific and which attempts to include as many people as possible. For instance, instead of writing that “God wills that every man obeys His will,” inclusive language would suggest that we write, “God wills that everyone obeys God’s will.”

REQUIREMENTS
  1. Readings. The required texts are: Online Bookstore
  1. Foundations of Christian Worship, by Susan J. White. Westminster John Knox Press (2006). ISBN-13: 9780664229245 ISBN: 0664229247
  1. Culturally - Conscious Worship, by Kathy Black. Chalice Press (2000). ISBN-13: 9780827204812 ISBN: 0827204817
  1. Speaking to Silence: New Rites for Christian Worship and Healing, by Janet S. Peterson. Westminster John Knox Press (2007). ISBN-13: 9780664228804 ISBN: 0664228801
  1. Conferences. Students may schedule up to two conferences with the professor during the course. Students desiring to schedule a conference should email the professor and provide a general description of the matter(s) to be discussed. Of course, students may ask questions of the professor at any time by sending an E-mail to the address at the link above or by posting them to the bulletin board.
  1. Exams. There will be no exams for this course.
  1. Papers. There will be a short paper of no more than two to three single-spaced pages or 1,250 – 1,500 words, due at the end of each week’s readings in which students will reflect on a case study and answer the corresponding questions; and, a mid-term paper due at the end of the fourth week of study of between 1,750 and 2,200 words

    These papers are to be e-mailed to the professor. Students should include a word count with the heading of their papers, as well as the course title and number and the week of the assignment.
  1. Grades. Course work will be weighted as follows:
Weekly Papers
Midterm Paper
Total 		60 Points
40 Points
100 Points
  1. Grading Scale.
90-100
80-89
70-79
60-69
59 or below 		A Excellent
B Above Average
C Average
D Below Average
F Failing Grade
OTHER RESOURCES

Michael Battle, The Black church in America : African American Christian spirituality. Malden, MA : Blackwell Pub., 2006.

Edited by Mary Frank Fox, Deborah G. Johnson, and Sue V. Rosser, Women, gender, and technology. Urbana : University of Illinois Press, c2006.

Karen Farish Miller and Brenda Motley Newman, Brief dramas for worship : twelve ready-to-use scripts. Nashville, TN : Abingdon Press, c2005.

Tex Sample, Powerful persuasion : multimedia witness in Christian worship. Nashville : Abingdon Press, c2005.

Gerard S. Sloyan, Preaching from the lectionary [electronic resource] : an exegetical commentary. Minneapolis : Fortress Press, c2004. CD Rom.

Revised Common Lectionary. http://divinity.library.vanderbilt.edu/lectionary

WEEK 1

Read White 1-67
Case Study 1, p. 176.

WEEK 2

Read White 68-125
Case Study 5, p. 184

WEEK 3

Read Black pages 1 - 82

Case Study: Complete the Appendix D Questionnaire on your church. If you do not regularly attend a church, synagogue or mosque, or temple, then visit one and use it as the object of your analysis. If you do not have the capability to scan the questionnaire into your word processor, then you may copy it and fax it to: 877/441-3103 or mail it to: Don E. Peavy, Sr., P.O. Box 28, Claremont, CA 91711-0028. Attach a copy of a church bulletin from your church. After completing the questionnaire, what did you learn about your church’s worship ministry?

WEEK 4

Read White 126 - 173

PLEASE WRITE YOUR MID-TERM PAPER AND EMAIL IT TO THE INSTRUCTOR BY THE END OF THIS WEEK!!!

A WORSHIP EXPERIENCE

Somewhere in my seminary journey, someone related to me a story involving a young mother who had taken her young child to a funeral and was amazed at how well behaved the child was. As I recall the story, there was something about the place and its happenings that communicated to this young child that something special was happening and that she should be on her best behavior; or more importantly, something about the atmosphere created at the funeral awed this young person into silence.

This assignment asks you to try to get at that something that awed the young child into silence. What is it that people are about when they gather in worship? What exactly is worship?

To answer these questions, you are instructed to visit a place of worship other than the place where you worship traditionally and/or the place of worship attended by you during your formative years. For instance, if you are Protestant, you must attend the service of a Catholic or Eastern congregation. If you are Catholic, then you should attend the worship service of a Protestant or Eastern group. You must first try to locate an Eastern Religions worship experience. You may not attend a funeral or wedding or other event in fulfillment of this assignment. You MUST attend a worship service. Please be aware that not all worship services are open to the public and you might be required to make advance arrangements to attend. You should also inquire in advance regarding dress, shoes, hair, etc. For instance, many Eastern temples require that those entering remove their shoes. Some provide slippers but many do not. Therefore, you might want to wear socks. In addition, you may be required to sit on the floor or a cushion on the floor and therefore you should wear loose fitting and comfortable clothes.

You are to record your thoughts, feelings, fears and impressions of the architecture of the building as well as the reception you receive. What does the architecture say about the people who worship in that particular building? What do the people who worship there model about the object of their worship? Do you get a sense of the sacred? The holy? If you did not know that the people were engaged in worship, how would you describe their activity? Is the congregation culturally diverse? Did the sermon address that diversity?

This assignment is more concerned with your perceptions and feelings than whether or not you agree with what is going on. You are to assess the experience not the religion! You might want to review the Appendixes in White’s book.

WEEK 5

Read Black 83 - End
Case Study 12, p. 200 of White’s book.
Additional Assignment: Go to: http://www.christianworshipcenter.com

Is this congregation culturally diverse? If so, in what ways? Does its website make mention of that diversity in a celebratory manner? Listen to at least two of the sermons posted there. Do the sermons address cultural diversity? Give at least one example from each of the sermons of cultural diversity.

WEEK 6

Read Peterman Introduction to 56

Discussion Questions:
  1. Peterman writes that ritual is by its nature communal. Do you agree? Why or why not?
  2. Worship is a ritual. Are there times when worship may be engaged in by an individual alone? Why or why not?
  3. A member of your church has moved into a new apartment and has asked you to consecrate or bless the space. Your church has no written policy on this matter. What will you do? Prepare a program for a blessing of the apartment and explain what it is you are attempting to do in carrying out this ritual.
WEEK 7

Read Peterman 57-123.
Case Study 7 of White’s book, p. 189.

WEEK 8

Read Peterman 124-End.
Case Study 9 of White’s book, p. 194.