|
Academic Programs
|
|
Evangelicalism in America
(RS-685)
Summer 2005 |
| This course will provide an understanding of how Evangelicalism has come to have such a prominent role in American Christianity and how American culture, and Christianity in particular, are being molded by this dynamic movement. Special attention will be given to the ways in which evangelicalism has impacted the American political process. The socio/cultural dimensions of evangelicalism also will be explored. Finally, some efforts will be made to predict the future of Evangelicalism.
Meeting
Day, Time and Dates:
Monday, June 20 – Friday, June 24 from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
|
 Tony
Campolo
Adjunct Professor of Religion and Society and Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Eastern University in St. Davids,
Pennsylvania
Contact
Information:
phone: (860)
509-9500
email:
|
Course
Syllabus
web page
|
Over the past 25 years, evangelicalism has
changed from being a sectarian movement within Protestant Christianity to
becoming one of its most prominent expressions.
It has gained a virtual monopoly over religious programming in television
and radio. It dominates religious
publishing and has overwhelmed traditional denominational presses.
It has created its own music industries that have become multi-million
dollar successes. Most communities
in America have witnessed the emergence of evangelical super churches, often
with several thousand in attendance. This
explosion of evangelicalism over the past half century has come at the expense
of mainline churches which, in turn, have been suffering a steady decline over
the same period. While mainline
denominations have been cutting back on their budgets and bringing missionaries
home from overseas assignments, evangelicals have been sending out missionaries
in staggering numbers. Evangelical
Christianity has come to dominate in the third world and this third world
domination has a had a feedback effect on the United States.
Evangelical third world Christianity has become more and more vocal and
powerful on the world scene. Today,
third world Christians of mainline denominations are challenging the hegemony
that more liberal American Protestantism had earlier exercised. In
this course of study, we will review the origins and development of this modern
Evangelical movement starting in the 19th century and tracing it up
to the present time. We will
outline both its history and its theology.
Special attention will be given to the ways in which evangelicalism has
impacted the American political process. In the course of our
study we will consider the growing tendency toward schisms that have surfaced
within evangelicalism over the last couple of years, fostered by such movements
as the Emergent Church and Progressive Evangelicalism, which have reacted
against the marriage of evangelicalism with the right wing of the Republican
party. The socio/cultural
dimensions of evangelicalism will be explored evaluating its impact on the
contemporary culture. Finally, some efforts will be made to
predict the future of Evangelicalism, and how the rest of Christianity will be
influenced by the Evangelical witness. The purpose of this
course is to provide the student with an understanding of how Evangelicalism
has come to have such a prominent role in American Christianity and how American
culture, and Christianity in particular, are being molded by this dynamic
movement.
Readings
- Prior to the start of the class, students are
requested to read Speaking My Mind by Tony Campolo, W Publishing
Group, 2004.
-
The readings of the course will have the following
books for consideration:
-
Joel A. Carpenter, Revive Us Again, Oxford
University Press, 1997.
- Donald E. Miller, Reinventing American
Protestantism, University of California Press, Berkeley/Los
Angeles/London, 1997.
-
Allister McGrath, Evangelicalism and the Future
of Christianity, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 1995.
-
Henry H. Knight III,
A Future for Truth:
Evangelical Theology in a Postmodern World;
Abingdon Press, Nashville, 1997.
Written Assignments
- A six page double spaced paper critiquing the book Speaking
My Mind, written by the professor.
- A fifteen-page double spaced paper on a subject
related to the subject matter of the course, and agreed upon by the teaching
assistant. The paper should
combine insights from readings and lectures along with personal reflections
by the student.
Outline
I.
The History of Evangelicalism
A.
19th Century Revivalism
1.
The Finny Revivals
2.
Adventist Movements
3.
Defining Issues
(a)
Slavery
(b)
The Feminist Movement
B.
20th Century Evangelicalism
1.
The Impact of Modernism
(a)
Higher and Lower Biblical Criticism
(b)
Modernist Theology (i.e., Schliermacher, Strauss, Feuerbach, Biedermann)
2.
The Fundamentalist Reaction to Modernism
II. The Defining Issues of Evangelicalism
A. Evolution versus
Creationism
B.
The Authority of Scripture
C.
The Sectarian
Tendencies
D.
The Struggle Against Communism
E. The Confrontation with Catholicism
F. The Emergence of Abortion and Homosexuality as Defining
Issues
III.
The Growth and Development of Evangelicalism
A. The Creation of Evangelical Colleges and Seminaries
B. The Creation of Independent Missionary Organizations
C. The Creation of Evangelical Publishing Houses
D. The Creation of Evangelical Broadcasting
E. The Role of Evangelical Organizations
1.
Campus Crusade
2.
Youth for Christ
3.
Young Life
4.
Intervarsity Fellowship
5.
Navigators
IV.
The Mainstreaming of Evangelicalism
A.
The Increasing Sophistication of Evangelical Apologetics
B.
The Church Growth Movement and the Emergence of Mega-Churches
V.
The Politicizing of Evangelicalism
A.
The Moral Majority
B.
The Christian Coalition
C.
The Marriage of Evangelicalism with the Republican Party
VI.
The Future of Evangelicalism
A. The Growing Tendency Toward Schism in Evangelicalism
B.
The Emergence of Counter Movements
1. The Emergent Churches
2. The Call to Renewal
3. Progressive Evangelicalism
C. The Responses of Mainline Christianity
|
