Humanities
2001-001, Spring 2012
God: Loving the Divine and Love Divine
SAC 310,
Mon/Wed
1:30 – 2:45 pm
Dr. Jesse Couenhoven
Office hours: Anytime! by
appointment. Or Mondays, 3 – 4 pm.
My email address:
jesse.couenhoven@gmail.com
jesse.couenhoven@villanova.edu is forwarded to my gmail account, as
is
jesse.couenhoven@aya.yale.edu. Feel free to e-mail me at any time
with questions or comments.
Office: SAC 473
The Christian tradition has long held that “God is love.” It also claims,
“Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (I Jn 4:8, 16).
In this course we attempt to understand some of what Christian claims about God
mean, what they imply, and whether they are well founded. Thus, this is a course
in which we will explore central questions about the nature of divine life, and
what those questions and their potential answers reveal about the nature of
human life. We will take up these issues from an interdisciplinary perspective.
Religion is one way we traditionally approach God, but it is important to ask
whether conventional uses of religion in today’s world are about love of God or
something else. Thus, we begin by considering some modern critiques of religion
that might help us understand our own uses of religion. After these
investigations, we will take up the question of whether it is responsible to
love and believe in a Christian God—and how we know what kind of God to love and
believe in. Investigating this issue raises the possibility that God reveals
Himself precisely to help us know and love God. After investigating claims about
Christian revelation, we turn to theological questions that arise out of the
experience of having a relationship with God.
We conclude with a dramatic investigation of some of the major themes of
the course.
PS: this course is writing enriched and fulfills the university research paper
requirement.
Readings should
be completed prior to the class for which they are assigned. Students are
expected to read all assigned pages; we will typically discuss the reading in
the class for which it is assigned. I expect each student to come to class ready
to speak about the issues raised and discussed in the assigned readings. When
reading the assignments, keep the following questions in mind:
I will expect you to be able to answer these questions (and
many more!) in class discussion. Once during the semester I’ll ask you to
present your thoughts to the class.
Grading is based
on attendance and participation in class (20%), a comprehensive oral exam final
(25%), and a 15 page research paper that must go through a revision process by
being peer edited (15% for the first draft, 40% for the second). The due date
for the paper is the last day of class. All papers should be typed, double
spaced, with 1 inch margins. Use Times New Roman font, 12 point. Papers should
be emailed to me; I will email them back to you with my comments. You
must discuss your paper topics with
me and fill out an “application” before writing your papers.
Paper Grading
Rubric
An A is reserved for outstanding work that clearly understands and helpfully
interacts with the texts and arguments of a broader conversation.
Papers earning such a grade
• have an original, helpful thesis that develops new insights,
directions, or connections (thus making it worthwhile reading to some public);
• make that thesis discipline the entire essay, especially the
conclusion;
• anticipate criticisms and, insofar as possible, account for alternative
positions;
• use an effective rhetorical structure, including an accountable method
of argument and a clear flow of ideas;
• are very well-written.
An A- or B+ indicates that you have successfully and competently written an
essay. You demonstrate accurate understanding of texts and arguments and you
have a clear thesis in a well-written paper. To develop into an A-level essay,
it may need a more original thesis. Or you may have an excellent thesis that is
not completely realized in the subsequent argument. Or your reading of some of
your conversation partners may be slightly distorted at points.
A grade of B or B- indicates acceptable completion of the assignment, with room
for improvement in argument, and/or in understanding of other texts. This may be
a grade for a reasonable essay that remains descriptive rather than critical, or
that seems rushed in its consideration. It may be the grade for an exciting idea
that suffers from sloppy writing and argumentation.
A grade of C indicates inadequate completion of the assignment but good faith
effort in approaching it. The paper probably suffers from lack of a clear thesis
and disorganized argument, and may incorrectly understand other arguments.
However, this may also be the grade for a paper with a good thesis but confusing
flow, undefended assumptions, or inappropriate reading of other arguments.
Attendance
Policy
Students are expected to attend all class meetings in order to receive a high
grade for attendence; our conversations are central to this class, and you are
responsible for them. Coming to class late is not acceptable, as it disrupts the
class. If you must miss a class, please contact me as soon as possible,
preferably via email, to let me know why.
Academic
Integrity
Students are expected to adhere to the most rigorous
standards of academic integrity. The Arts and Sciences academic integrity policy
will be followed scrupulously in this course. Students who plagiarize or
cheat on any assignment will receive either an F for the assignment or for the
course (depending on the seriousness of the violation), and a letter
will be filed with the student's dean and with the
Vice President for Academic Affairs. A second offense either in this or
any other course at Villanova will result in dismissal from the university; a
permanent indication of the reason for dismissal will appear on the student’s
transcript. If you are concerned about what it means to write with academic
integrity, ask me! You should also feel free to check out this site:
http://www.library.villanova.edu/academic_integrity/
Learning Disabilities
Villanova attempts to make
reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities. Persons with
disabilities that might affect their academic performance should contact me, or
register with the Learning Support Office at 610-519-5636 or
nancy.mott@villanova.edu as soon as possible. Registration is
necessary in order to receive accommodations.
Books to
Purchase:
William
Lane Craig & Walter Sinnot-Armstrong,
God? A Debate Between a Christian and an Atheist. Oxford University Press.
Anselm of Canterbury,
Anselm of Canterbury: The Major Works.
Oxford University Press.
Ed. John Dillenberger,
Martin Luther: Selections from his Writings.
Anchor Press.
Don Saliers, The Soul in Paraphrase:
Prayer and the Religious Affections. Order of St Luke Publications, 2nd
ed.
C. S. Lewis
Perelandra. Scribners.
A large number of readings will be made available online during the semester.
Print them out, mark them up, and bring them to class!
There are Cambridge Companions
to a number of the authors assigned. Helpful discussions of some of our authors
are included in J. Livingston’s Modern Christian Thought, in two volumes,
in David Ford’s Modern Theologians, and in Alistair McGrath’s
Christian Theology: An Introduction. You may also wish to refer to V.
Harvey’s Handbook of Theological Terms or InterVarsity Press’s
New Dictionary of Theology. There are
other guides and handbooks out there, but these are some of the better ones. You
can find some useful information online, but you should also be careful about
what you trust. Stanford’s Philosophy Encyclopedia is a good resource for some
topics, see: http://plato.stanford.edu/.
Wed, January 18
Introduction
I. A Challenge of this
Course: the difference between religion and loving Jesus Christ
Mon, January 23
- Christian Smith, Soul
Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives
of American Teenagers (skim Ch 4,
118-62; read 162-71, the Conclusion and the PS, 259-71; also read the selections
posted online from Michael Cromartie’s interview with Smith, which underline the
main points of the book).
Extra credit: summarize the findings of
Souls in Transition: The Religious and
Spiritual Lives of Emerging Adults (Christian Smith
and Patricia Snell) for us in class.
II. Modern critiques of religion (all readings online)
Wed, Jan 25
- Nietzsche, Gay Science
(pages 29-30, 179-80, 200-1, all on conscience);
The Anti-Christ (section 54)
- Feuerbach, The Essence of Christianity
(Ch 1, part 2; the essence of religion, 15 pages)
- Marx, “Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right” (11 pages)
Mon, Jan 30
- Nietzsche, The Anti-Christ(ian)
(sections
5, 15, 16, 18, 20, 41)
- Freud,
Future of an Illusion (Ch. V and VI,
12 pages)
- McFague,
Models of God, pages 63-78 (15 pages)
III. Philosophy of Religion: An Introduction
Wed, February 1
- Craig and Armstrong,
God?, Preface and Ch. 1-2
Mon, Feb 6
- Craig and Armstrong, God?,
Ch. 3-4
Wed, Feb 8
- Craig and Armstrong, God?,
Ch. 5-6
Mon, Feb 13
- Plantinga,
Warranted Christian Belief: The Freud
and Marx
Complaint,
pages 135-56, 161-3, 192-8 (online)
III. The idea of Revelation (all readings online)
Wed, Feb 15
- Schmemann, Celebration of
Faith, part II (18 pages);
For the Life
of the World, Ch 1 (11 pages)
(online)
Mon, Feb 20
- Class replaced by my conference on “Possibilities of Forgiveness” at
the VU conference center (see
http://www1.villanova.edu/villanova/artsci/humanities/forgivenessconference/schedule.html)
Wed, Feb 22
- Karl Barth, The Strange New World
of the Bible (online)
Mon, Feb 27
- Calvin, Institutes of the
Christian Religion pages 35-45; 47-8; 49-50,
51-6, 63-6, 69-74, 120-3, 128,
140-5 (35 pages) (online)
IV. The Classical Christian view of God
Wed, Feb 29
- Olson and Hall,
The Trinity. Introduction and Ch. 1,
also pages 58 - top
of 60
(Victorines), and 64 (Aquinas).
(online)
Mon, March 5
- No Class: Spring Break
Wed, March 7
- No Class: Spring Break
Mon, Mar 12
- Anselm, Proslogian (entire)
Wed, Mar 14
- No Class: I will be out of town for a
meeting.
Mon, Mar 19 - Erikson,
Making Sense of the Trinity, Ch 3:
Does the Doctrine of the
Trinity Make any Difference? (online);
Also, we will discuss writing research papers
V.
Soteriology: Righteousness, Grace, and Freedom
Wed, Mar 21 - Martin Luther,
Two Kinds of Righteousness
(Dillenberger, pages 86-96);
Preface to the Epistle of St. Paul
to the Romans (pages 19-34)
Mon, Mar 26 - Luther,
The Freedom of a Christian (pages
42-85)
Wed, Mar 28 - St. Thomas Aquinas,
selections from his Summa Contra Gentiles
(online)
Mon, April 2
- Soren Kierkegaard, The
Expectancy of an Eternal Salvation (online)
Wed, April 4 -
Anselm, De Concordia Parts 1 – 2, pp
435-52
Mon, April 9
- No Class: Easter Break
Wed, April 11 -
Anselm, De Concordia Part 3, skip
section 9 (pp 464-6)
V. Prayer: a Study in Encountering God
Mon, April 16
- Don Saliers, The Soul in
Paraphrase, Preface to Second Ed. - page 48
Wed,
April 18 - Don Saliers, The Soul
in Paraphrase, pages 49 -101
Fri, April 20:
Paper “applications” Due
Mon, April 23
- Karl Barth, selections from The
Christian Life:
In this excerpt Barth asks, “how
should we characterize the Christian life?”
he answers: as a life of thanksgiving, and also of
invocation pp 43-6; 85-109; 260-271
VII. A
Narrative Exploration of Faith
Wed, April 25 - CS Lewis,
Perelandra, pp. 29 - 84
Friday, April 27:
Paper Due (first draft); my comments
are due to be back to you by the 30th.
Mon, April 30 -
CS Lewis, Perelandra, pp. 85 - 127
Wed, May 2 - CS
Lewis, Perelandra, pp. 128 - 190
***
Mon, May 7:
Research Papers Due, via email, by
the end of the day (midnight!).
Fri, May 11 11:30 - 2:00 Oral Final exam