Pre-requisites

None.

Co-requisites

None.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, the student will be able to:

• Analyse important moments, people, ideas and issues, in the history of Christianity, that have significantly shaped the development of the church’s actions and thought.

• Interpret electronic texts related to Christian history, located by the student

• Differentiate between primary and secondary sources in the presentation of Christian history

Unit Description

The unit considers a number of “Turning Points” in Christian History and considers how electronic resources assist in understanding Christian history from the perspective of theologians, common people and outsiders.

Students will learn ways to locate reliable resources for history in a digital age and to differentiate the use of primary and secondary sources.

The unit requires the student to evaluate selected arguments that took place during various periods in church history. Through the use of electronic media analysis of arguments for various positions will take place, and conclusions reached about the validity of those groups or movements.

Topics

• The nature of Christian history
• Locating and evaluating digital sources
• The Fall of Jerusalem - Prophecy and History in Christian History
• The Councils of Nicaea & Chalcedon in the Christian Classics Ethereal Library
• Benedict’s Rule and Monasteries - printed material in a digital age
• Charlemagne’s Coronation - digital images of history
• The Great Schism - conflicting perspectives in digital records
• The Reformation in media
• The Wesley’s - tweeting in the 18th century
• The Beginning of Secularism - documents in context
• The Expansion of Missions and their records in a digital age
• Records of the Vatican Council and the Lausanne Movement

Teaching Strategies

Teaching strategies include some or all of the following: lectures and tutorials; residential and weekend schools; class discussions; presentation of instructional material in the form of printed documentation, DVD, video and audio tape and on-line interaction.

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Unit offerings

Face to face: Semester 2, 2025 and Semester 2, 2026 (Every Year, Semester 2)

Please note

The Unit Offerings listed above are a guide only and the timetable for any year is the final authority. The College may vary offerings based on demand, regulatory requirements, continual improvement processes or other conditions.

This unit may be available in different modes of delivery i.e. online and face-to-face as listed above. The unit content will not differ between these modes of delivery. There will possibly be a difference in the schedule and/or the prescribed assessment tasks, however both will cover and assess the same content.