The Church in Theory and Practice (Non-linguistic Variant)
The course is offered as a standalone course. It is an elective course in the one-year Master's Program in Eastern Christian Studies.
The course prepares students to understand, assess and work with modern texts in relation to sociology and applied practices. Students choose a subject (church history, liturgical studies or ecclesiology), as well as texts that students use for their methods and applied theories. The course also discusses how to work with, establish and use empirical data. Literature is chosen partly in dialogue with the supervisor.
Learning objectives
By the end of the course, students are expected to be able to:
Knowledge and understanding
- provide an in-depth description of how modern theories and methods relate to historical documents and empirical data
- discuss how sociology and theology can interact, informed by current research
- explain the connection between history and sociology
Competence and skills
- independently gather, establish and critically analyze data, using the methods provided in the course
- independently analyse theological and social issues, and how they relate to each other, in selected texts in translation
- apply theories and methods from social behavioral science to discern and interpret textual sources, within a given time frame
- illustrate the connection between contemporary social structures in the church and historical development in an accessible and scholarly manner
Judgement and approach
- critically assess and formulate problems in regard to the relationship between source text, interpretation and applied practice
- assess different interpretations and practices, as well as their social and ethical consequences
- assess and argue for the limitations of research, and the need for ongoing research in the field as well as for individual learning
- assess the role of preserving and developing ancient languages and textual sources from democratic, cultural, and ecological perspectives
Requirements
Courses equivalent to 90 ECTS at first-cycle level, including 60 ECTS in religious studies/theology or Eastern Christian studies, or equivalent competence, are required. In addition, 15 ECTS at second-cycle level from the compulsory introductory courses during the first semester are required, including the course ”Method and Theory in Eastern Christian Studies” (10 ECTS). Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary school course English 6 is required.
Course Literature
See course literature for a list of mandatory reading.
Syllabus
See the syllabus for further information.