ST 1482 BONHOEFFER, ELEANOR ROOSEVELT, ML KING JR. IN DIALOGUE WITH PUBLIC THEOLOGY TODAY

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1 ST 1482 BONHOEFFER, ELEANOR ROOSEVELT, ML KING JR. IN DIALOGUE WITH PUBLIC THEOLOGY TODAY FALL 2014 ON LINE PROFESSOR GARY SIMPSON GULLIXSON HALL 203 COURSE DESCRIPTION This course focuses on Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King, Jr. in dialogue with public theology today. Students with explore these persons critical reflective insights within the contexts of their bold prophetic lives. Students will also have opportunity to make connections with current situations that call for theologicalethical insight and prophetic community life. LEARNING OUTCOMES 1. Students will gain familiarity with and understanding of the field of public theology, with its Scriptural and confessional roots, its theological exposition, its missional significance, and its lived vitalization in proclamation, worship, and community, in prayer, praise, and lament, and in spiritual practice, life together, and meeting the neighbor in their cultural, social, economic, political, and ecological contexts. 2. Students will explore the significance for the emerging field of public theology of the prophetic lives, personal practices, community forming capacities, and critical reflective insights of Bonhoeffer, ERoosevelt, and King. 3. Students will reflect upon and cultivate their own convictions, gifts, practices, challenges, and opportunities for becoming public theologians within current society challenges, controversies, crises, and opportunities, and for forming and leading faith communities in their vocations as public church. APPROACH AND ACTIVITIES The course follows a model of Learning as Conversation, which desires to norm the larger culture of all our learning and teaching practices. See Learning As Conversation Guidelines for Online Conversations (in MyLutherNet, Resources). As learners together students and faculty will explore the field of public theology and practice the vocation of public theologian. Each week we will read selections from either Bonhoeffer, Roosevelt, or King (4 weeks for each) and have the

2 opportunity in small groups to engage their writings within their context and to reflect on the pertinence of their thinking, imagination, and action for our times, places, and circumstances. Throughout the course Professor Simpson will post videos that seek to frame historically/culturally/socially/economically/politically and to map theologically/ethically the assigned readings. Such framing and mapping aims to aid students to discover and discern how our three public theologians can help us in our task today to engage our world as public theologians. Videos will be posted under PROFESSOR VIDEOS on our MyLutherNet site. Students are expected to render good faith efforts at reading and understanding the required course readings. For Week 1 by Wednesday 2/8 5:00pm CST each student will post an Introductory Post on MLN, Full Discussion, and by Friday 2/10 11:59pm CST each student will post a Response Post to at least three other students regarding their Introductory Post. Each week beginning with Week 2 by Monday 5:00pm CST one designated student in each small group will post a Lead Post that reflects on the possible meaning and significance of and/or the possible challenges and opportunities represented in the assigned readings (500-1,000 words). Each week by Wednesday 11:59pm CST the other students in your small group will post a Response Post that engages the Lead Post. Subsequent response/conversation is surely welcome. Weekly posts are required (20% of grade; failure to post weekly results in the loss of the entire 20%; an excused absence must be arranged with the professor). Students will either create their own blog site on WordPress (see to get started; I ll have more to say about this, watch for an upcoming announcement) or use an already existing blog site, through which you will practice the vocation of public theologian. Students will choose a question, issue, situation, or challenge of wide public moral/ethical pertinence as the focus of their blogging. At three designated times throughout the course (see Calendar) students will Blog on their site. The three blogs are required (20% of grade; failure to post all four blogs results in the loss of the entire 20%; an excused absence must be arranged with the professor). Your blogging reflections can also be used within your final oral exam paper (see below). Each student is required to respond to at least two other student blogs within four days of the blog due date. Students will write two Reflection Papers (5-7 pages, 12pt), one on Bonhoeffer due October 3 at 11:59pm CST, and one on ERoosevelt due October 31 at 11:59pm CST. Reflections from these papers may also be used within the final oral exam paper (see below). Each reflection paper is 10% of grade. Students will write a Final Critical Reflection Paper of 3,000-4,000 words that engages at least one of our three primary authors in a way that addresses the field of public theology today. This paper will be presented for a Small Group Oral Exam (the logistics will be discussed later) with your weekly small group conversation partners and the professor. The final oral exam paper is 40% of grade.

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4 REQUIRED READINGS BOOKS Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. A Testament to Freedom: The Essential Writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, edited by Geffrey Kelly and F. Burton Nelson (San Francisco: Harper, Revised Edition, 1995) (TF in syllabus) Glendon, Mary Ann. A World Made New: Eleanor Roosevelt and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (New York: Random House, 2001). King, Jr., Martin Luther. A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr., edited by James M. Washington (San Francisco: Harper, 1986). (TH in syllabus) LIBRARY E-RESERVE SELECTED READINGS Luther Seminary, Promise, Community, Neighbor: Curriculum Theological Rationale Luther, Martin Luther. The Blessed Sacrament of the Holy and True Body and Blood of Christ, and the Brotherhoods. Roosevelt, Eleanor. Selected Writings. Simpson, Gary M. Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In Encyclopedia of Global Justice. Simpson, Gary M. Eleanor Roosevelt. In Encyclopedia of Global Justice. Simpson, Gary M. Francisco de Vitoria. In Encyclopedia of Global Justice. Simpson, Gary M. Martin Luther. In Encyclopedia of Global Justice. Stackhouse, Max. Public Theology. In Dictionary of the Ecumenical Movement.

5 CALENDAR Week 1 Course Overview/Weekly Rhythm/Introductions Course Orientation Readings (all on Library E-Reserve): Luther Seminary, Promise, Community, Neighbor: Curriculum Theological Rationale ; Luther; Simpson, Francisco de Vitoria ; Stackhouse. 2/8 Introductory Posts (due by 5:00pm CST) 2/10 Response Posts (due by 11:59pm CST) Week 2 Bonhoeffer I Documentary Movie: Martin Doblmeier, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Pacifist, Nazi Resister (to purchase or rent this video from itunes go to: to download itunes go to: Readings: Bonhoeffer, TF 50-53, 56-63, 83-87, 89-92; Simpson, Dietrich Bonhoeffer (Library E-Reserve) 2/13 Lead Post 2/15 Response Posts Week 3 Bonhoeffer II Readings: Bonhoeffer, TF , , , 412, /20 Lead Post 2/22 Response Posts Week 4 Bonhoeffer III Readings: Bonhoeffer, TF , , , , /27 Lead Post 3/1 Response Posts 3/3 BLOG #1 Week 5 Bonhoeffer IV Readings: Ultimate and Penultimate Things (Library E-Reserve); Ethics as Formation (Library E-Reserve); TF , /6 Lead Post 3/8 Response Posts 3/10 REFLECTION PAPER #1 Week 6 ERoosevelt I Readings: Simpson, Eleanor Roosevelt (Library E-Reserve, Week 6); Glendon, xv-51; ERoosevelt (Library E-Reserve, Week 6) 3/13 Lead Post 3/15 Response Posts Week 7 ERoosevelt II Readings: Glendon, 52-98; ERoosevelt (Library E-Reserve, Week 7)

6 3/20 Lead Post 3/22 Response Posts Week 8 ERoosevelt III Readings: Glendon, ; ERoosevelt (Library E-Reserve, Week 8) 3/27 Lead Post 3/29 Response Posts 3/31 BLOG #2 Week 9 ERoosevelt IV Readings: Glendon, ; ERoosevelt (Library E-Reserve, Week 9) 4/3 Lead Post 4/5 Response Posts 4/7 REFLECTION PAPER #2 EASTER BREAK Week 10 King I Readings: TH /18 Lead Post 4/20 Response Posts Week 11 King II Readings: TH 5-53, 75-90, /24 Lead Post 4/26 Response Posts Week 12 King III Readings: TH , , , /1 Lead Post 5/3 Response Posts 5/5 Blog #3 Week 13 King IV Readings: TH , , , /8 Lead Post 5/10 Response Posts FINAL ORAL EXAMS: To Be Arranged