Master of Theology Course Curriculum 2012

January 2 - 6   ST 982L The Origins of English Nonconformity 1660-1735

Purpose: This course of study will concentrate on the period from 1660 to 1735, the age of  ‘Old Dissent’.  It will also focus on the nonconformity that developed between the Restoration of the Monarchy and the impact of the eighteenth century Evangelical Revival.  

Topics Include:

• Impact of the Restoration on Puritanism.
• Conflicting aspirations for comprehension and toleration.
• Important doctrinal issue of the Neonomian Controversy and its significance for the doctrine of justification, the growth of Arianism and different responses to this and the development of Hyper-Calvinism with some consideration of its extent.
• Significant theologians and leaders such as John Owen, Richard Baxter, Robert Trail, Benjamin Keach, Isaac Watts, Thomas Bradbury, Bernard Foskett and Philip Doddridge.

Robert Oliver

February 27-March 1 CH 820L Classic Reformed Covenant Theology

This course will cover the covenant theology of selected major authors from the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, especially Robert Rollock, John Ball, Samuel Petto, John Owen, Thomas Blake, and Thomas Boston. It will examine the evidence for and the relationship between the covenants, and will use material from the period to assess recent critiques of classic Reformed covenant theology.

Garry Williams

June 25-29 ST 733L Trinitarian Theology: Ancient and Modern

Purpose:

• To explore the doctrine of the trinity from primary texts from the fourth century trinitarian crisis, Augustine, key medieval theologians and a selection of Reformation and post-Reformation authors.
• To give the student a thorough knowledge of the church's historic doctrine of the trinity.
• To develop the ability to read primary theological sources, provide an understanding of how Reformation theologians interacted with the tradition, and enhance the student's ability to appreciate perspectives different than his own.
• To help students gain a base for further scholarly work in theology and/or the application of theology in church ministry.

Topics include:

• Reading and seminar discussion of key works of fourth century theologians such as Athanasius, Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory of Nazianzus, together with the resolution of the trinitarian crisis at the First Council of Constantinople.
• A consideration of Augustine's doctrine of the trinity and various critical appraisals of its role in the history of theology.
• An evaluation of the Eastern and Western doctrines of the trinity, together with claims that such distinctions are inapplicable.
• Reading and seminar discussion of important works on the trinity from within the Reformed church; such as John Calvin, John Owen, Jonathan Edwards and Karl Barth.

Robert Letham 

August 27-31 CH 941L Studies in Old Princeton Theology

Purpose:

• To deepen students’ knowledge of Old Princeton’s theological contribution
• To explore the writings of the Princeton theologians in the context of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries 
• To investigate the theology of Old Princeton within the wider history of the Reformed tradition

Topics covered include theological method, the influence of Common Sense Philosophy, doctrine of Scripture, Calvinism in North America, confessionalism, Presbyterian polity, and Reformed biblical theology.

Jeff Jue

September 3-7 ST 813L Covenant and Christology

Purpose: The course seeks to understand the comprehensive accomplishment of redemption by the Triune God in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Topics include:

• Plan of Salvation (historical conceptions and exegetical foundations)
• Covenant of Works (historical and biblical considerations)
• Covenant of Grace (christocentrism, redemptive organism, Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants)
• Person and work of Christ (hypostatic union, one person, two natures and two estates)
• Contemporary Christologies: Protestant and Roman Catholic (Rudolph Bultmann and Karl Rahner)

While the course will deal with historical concerns, the primary focus will rest on the biblical foundations for systematic theological formulation. Special attention will be given to the topics from an exegetical and redemptive-historical perspective.

Lane Tipton