Instructor Information Course Proposal TRT2651 The Orthodox Church, Christianity and Other Faith Traditions Trinity College Toronto School of Theology May to June (Summer) 2017 Instructor: Dr Paul Ladouceur Office Location: Larkin Building, Office 317 Telephone: (450) 834-7203 Email: 123thabor@gmail.com Office Hours: To be determined Course Identification Course Number: Course Name: Course Location: Class Times: Prerequisites: TRT2651H The Orthodox Church, Christianity and Other Faith Traditions Larkin Building, Room Summer 2017: Mondays and Thursdays, 7:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. None Course Description This course explores how the Orthodox Church views itself (ecclesiology), relations between Orthodoxy and other Christians (ecumenism), and the role of non-christian religions in God's plan for salvation (religious pluralism). Course material includes lectures by the Instructor, a text book and extracts from books, and articles and essays. Evaluation of student learning will be by class attendance and participation (20%), a book review (30%) and a research essay (50%).
2 Expanded Course Description Metropolitan Kallistos Ware has written that ecclesiology was the most important field of Orthodox theology in the 20th century and should continue to be a major feature of Orthodox theology in the 21st century. Orthodoxy faced major challenges in last century, including intense persecution, the migration of large numbers of Orthodox faithful from traditional Orthodox homelands to countries of Western Christian traditions, the rise of the modern ecumenical movement and the development of interreligious dialogue, as well as internal questions bearing on the nature of the Church, particularly the organisation of the Church outside countries of Orthodox tradition and relations between Church and State. As a result, Orthodox have been obliged to reflect deeply on such questions as What is the Church? What identifies the Orthodox Church with respect to other Christian Churches and communities? How should Orthodox react to the ecumenical movement? What is the relationship of non-christian religions to God s revelation through Jesus Christ? In this course, Orthodox thinking on the Church will be considered initially from its biblical and patristic foundations, while the major emphasis will be on the ecclesiological perspectives of major modern Orthodox theologians, from the Slavophiles in the mid-19th century to the philosopher-theologians of the Russian religious renaissance and neo-patristic theologians, including the principal Orthodox advocates of eucharistic or communion ecclesiology. The course will also consider the theological foundations of Orthodox participation in the ecumenical movement, as well as the sources and nature of opposition within Orthodoxy to ecumenism. The course will include an overview of Orthodox involvement in major multilateral and bilateral ecumenical endeavours. Finally, the course will consider Orthodox thinking, still in its formative stage, on non- Christian religious traditions, especially in the light of the historical experience of Orthodox peoples living in non-christian countries and in pluralistic societies. Course Resources Required Course Books The following book should be acquired for this course as they will be read in their entirety. Copies will also be placed on reserve at Trinity College Library. Boris Bobrinskoy, The Mystery of the Church: A Course in Orthodox Dogmatic Theology (Yonkers NY: St Vladimir s Seminary Press, 2012). Required Course Readings Boris Bobrinskoy, The Mystery of the Church: A Course in Orthodox Dogmatic Theology (Yonkers NY: St Vladimir s Seminary Press, 2012). All texts contained in the Course Reader (The Spirit of Truth Will Guide You into All Truth (Jn 16:13)), covering ecclesiology, ecumenism and religious pluralism, drawn from patristic and modern Orthodox writers and sources including: Justin Martyr, Irenaeus of Lyon, John Chrysostom. Alexis Khomiakov, Vladimir Soloviev, Paul Florensky, Sergius Bulgakov, Georges Florovsky, Vladimir Lossky, Paul Evdokimov, Alexander Schmemann, John Meyendorff, Dumitru Staniloae, Nicholas Afanasiev, John Zizioulas, Athanasios Yannoulatos, Georges Khodr; Encyclical of the Eastern Patriarchs of 1848, Encyclicals of the Ecumenical Patriarch, Statements from Orthodox dialogues with the Catholic Church, the Anglican Church, and the Oriental Orthodox Churches; writings of Orthodox opponents to ecumenism and religious pluralism. Page 2 of 8
3 Recommended Books Students are encouraged to consult the full works from which extracts are provided in the Course Reader. Recommended survey of Christian ecclesiology: Cyril Hovorun, Meta-Ecclesiology: Chronicles on Church Awareness (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015). Additional bibliographic references will be provided in the final Course Syllabus. Course Portal This course will make use of the University of Toronto s Learning Portal also known as Blackboard. To access the portal, go to the UofT portal login page at https://portal.utoronto.ca and log in using your UTORid and password. Once you have logged in to the portal using your UTORid and password, look for the My Courses module, where you ll find the link to the website for all your Blackboard-based courses. (Your course registration with ROSI gives you access to the course website at Blackboard.) Note also the information at http://www.portalinfo.utoronto.ca/content/information-students. Please ensure that you are familiar with how to access the system and navigate through it. The portal may be used in the following ways: Keeping an updated version of the course syllabus and calendar Providing course readings, bibliographies and other handouts Sharing additional online resources Communicating class notices and updates Issuing assignment guidelines and deadlines Accepting assignment submissions Providing feedback and grades for all assignments and other course requirements. In addition, for the online section, the portal may also be used in the following ways: Delivering weekly course lectures and seminars (available also for classroom-based students for review) Enabling student participation and interaction in the blogs, discussion forums and other online communications (see course requirements and evaluation below) Auditors who do not have a UTORid should speak to the instructor to receive guest access to the course portal. As in the classroom, online communication must be carried out respectfully and civilly at all times. Writing within the online media of blogs, discussion forums is not an excuse for laziness, lack of proper reflection or uncivility. Arguments must be carefully crafted, respectfully presented and grounded in source texts and solid reflection. Students who fail to adhere to these guidelines will not succeed in this course. Page 3 of 8
4 Course Learning Objectives Students successfully completing this course will: Understand and describe the main patristic and modern trends in Orthodox thinking on the Church, and especially the ecclesiology of the Slavophiles, Vladimir Soloviev, Sergius Bulgakov, Georges Florovsky, Nicholas Afanasiev, John Zizioulas and Boris Bobrinskoy. Understand and describe the main features and history of modern Orthodox thinking on relations between Orthodoxy and non-orthodox Christian churches and communities, especially the ecumenical theologies of the Slavophiles, Vladimir Soloviev, Sergius Bulgakov, Georges Florovsky, and of Orthodox opponents to ecumenism. Understand and describe the main patristic and modern trends in Orthodox reflection on non- Christian religions, and especially the thinking of Georges Khodre, Athanasius Yannoulatos and Seraphim Rose. Programme Outcomes Course Outcomes: Knowledge of the Area of Concentration Course Elements Programme Outcomes Students successfully completing this course will be able to: Students will develop a systematic and discriminating understanding of the main patristic and modern trends in Orthodox thinking on the Church This outcome will be achieved through these course elements: Lectures. Readings, in-class presentations and discussion of ancient and modern authors on the Church. Book review of Boris Bobrinskoy, The Mystery of the Church. Research essay (possible option). This course outcome corresponds to these aspects of the Basic Degree Learning Outcomes Patristic theology Modern theology Religious heritage Cultural context Page 4 of 8
5 Students will develop a systematic and discriminating understanding of the main features and history of modern Orthodox thinking on relations between Orthodoxy and non-orthodox Christian churches and communities Students will develop a systematic and discriminating understanding of the main patristic and modern trends in Orthodox reflection on non-christian religions Lectures. Readings, in-class presentations and discussion on relations between Orthodoxy and other Christians. Book review of Boris Bobrinskoy, The Mystery of the Church. Research essay (possible option). Lectures. Readings, in-class presentations and discussion on non-christian religions. Research essay (possible option). Modern theology Religious heritage Cultural context Modern theology Religious heritage Cultural context Course Requirements and Evaluation Classroom Section 1. Class attendance and participation: 20% Most classes will include a period of discussion of primary sources and liturgical texts. All students are expected to read all assigned texts. Students will prepare and deliver a 10 minute presentation during one of the class sessions, summarising and commenting on an assigned reading, as an introduction to discussion on the reading. Students will be assigned a grade based upon attendance, participation in discussion and presentation of a reading. 2. Book Review: 30% Students will write a review of Boris Bobrinskoy s The Mystery of the Church. The review should be a minimum of 1,500 words and a maximum of 2,000 words. 3. Research paper: 50% Students will write essay on a topic of their choice related to the subject of the course, to be agreed with the instructor. The essay should be a minimum of 2,500 words and a maximum of 3,000 words. Online Section To be determined. Page 5 of 8
6 Grading System Policy on Late Assignments Students are generally granted a grace week provided the instructor is informed of any special circumstances before the assignment deadline. This penalty is not applied to students with medical or compassionate difficulties; students facing such difficulties are kindly requested to consult with their faculty advisor or basic degree director, who should make a recommendation on the matter to the instructor. The absolute deadline for the course is the examination day scheduled for the course. Students who for exceptional reasons (for instance, a death in the family or a serious illness) are unable to complete work by this date may request an extension (SDF = standing deferred ) beyond the term. An SDF must be requested from the registrar s office in the student s college of registration no later than the last day of classes in which the course is taken. The SDF, when approved, will have a mutually agreed upon deadline that does not extend beyond the conclusion of the following term. If a student has not completed work but has not been granted an SDF, a final mark will be submitted calculating a zero for work not submitted. Page 6 of 8
7 Course Grades Consistently with the policy of the University of Toronto, course grades submitted by an instructor are reviewed by a committee of the instructor s college before being posted. Course grades may be adjusted where they do not comply with University grading policy (http://www.governingcouncil.utoronto.ca/policies/grading.htm) or college grading policy. Policies Accessibility. Students with a disability or health consideration are entitled to accommodation. Students must register at the University of Toronto s Accessibility Services offices; information is available at http://www.accessibility.utoronto.ca/. The sooner a student seeks accommodation, the quicker we can assist. Plagiarism. Students submitting written material in courses are expected to provide full documentation for sources of both words and ideas in footnotes or endnotes. Direct quotations should be placed within quotation marks. (If small changes are made in the quotation, they should be indicated by appropriate punctuation such as brackets and ellipses, but the quotation still counts as a direct quotation.) Failure to document borrowed material constitutes plagiarism, which is a serious breach of academic, professional, and Christian ethics. An instructor who discovers evidence of student plagiarism is not permitted to deal with the situation individually but is required to report it to his or her head of college or delegate according to the TST Basic Degree Handbook (linked from http://www.tst.edu/content/handbooks) and the University of Toronto Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters http://www.governingcouncil.utoronto.ca/assetfactory.aspx?did=4871. A student who plagiarizes in this course. Students will be assumed to have read the document Avoidance of plagiarism in theological writing published by the Graham Library of Trinity and Wycliffe Colleges (http://www.trinity.utoronto.ca/library_archives/theological_resources/tools/guides/plag.htm. Other academic offences. TST students come under the jurisdiction of the University of Toronto Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters http://www.governingcouncil.utoronto.ca/policies/behaveac.htm). Back-up copies. Please make back-up copies of essays before handing them in. Email. At times, the course instructor may decide to send out important course information by email. To that end, all credit students are required to have a valid utoronto email address. Students must have set up a utoronto email address which is entered in the ROSI system. Information is available at www.utorid.utoronto.ca. The course instructor will not be able to help you with this. 416-978-HELP and the Help Desk at the Information Commons can answer questions you may have about your UTORid and password. Students should check utoronto email regularly for messages about the course. Forwarding your utoronto.ca email to a Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo or other type of email account is not advisable. Email communication with the course instructor. The instructor aims to respond to email communications from students in a timely manner. Email communications from students may be sent from a utoronto email address, or from a personal email address. However, email communications from other email addresses are not necessarily secure. Page 7 of 8
8 Course Schedule Preliminary Course Outline: I. ECCLESIOLOGY. What is the Church? Eucharistic Ecclesiology. Characteristics of the Church. Ministries of the Church. Institution and Hierarchy in the Church. II. ECUMENISM. Theology of Ecumenism. The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism. Opposition to Ecumenism in Orthodoxy. III. RELIGIOUS PLURALISM. Theology of Religious Pluralism. Experience of Religious Pluralism in Orthodoxy. To be further developed following course approval. This syllabus is subject to change in accordance with the regulations in the TST Basic Degree Handbook. Prepared by Dr Paul Ladouceur January 29, 2016. Page 8 of 8