RLGN 5327—CHRISTIAN WORSHIP
Summer Term (May
27-August 5, 2008)
Tuesdays, 6:00-10:00 pm, 11550 I.H. 35 N.,
Rm. 102
Dr. John M. Andrewartha, Ph.D., Instructor
30540 Bulverde Hills Dr. , Bulverde ,
TX 78163
Email
Address: jmandrew@gvtc.com / or / john.andrewartha@wayland.wbu.edu
Website:
http://satx.wbu.edu/john.andrewartha
Office Hours: By Appointment on Tuesdays 5:30-6:00 and
10:00-10:30 in Room 102
I. COURSE DESCRIPTION: The nature,
purpose, and methods of Christian worship.
RLGN 1301 and 1302 or consent of the Instructor are prerequisites.
II.
TEXTBOOKS: Segler, Franklin M. Understanding, Preparing for, and
Practicing Christian Worship, 2d Ed., Revised by Randall Bradley.
III. COURSE OUTLINE: The course outline is indicated in the
Assignments Calendar.
IV. COURSE REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADUATE CREDIT:
1.
Class attendance according to the WBU
catalog (see Appendix attached)
- Active, informed participation in class worship times
and discussions, taking appropriate notes
3.
Reading
of Understanding,
Preparing for, and Practicing Christian Worship
4.
Prepare
and conduct one “mini-worship” session
for opening class participation
5.
Plan
and present to the class seven Orders of Service for Christian worship
as indicated below
6.
Written reports on two
books as
indicated below
7.
A
research project on A Philosophy of Christian Worship as indicated below
8.
A
Case Study of a church worship
service whose worship style is different from the student’s own
9.
An
oral presentation and explanation of
the Case Study
- Copies
of all written assignments must
be sent by email to the Instructor and each
student in the class, as well as a printed hardcopy for the
Instructor, not later than the beginning of class on the dates
assigned.
§
CLASS
PARTICIPATION: Students will be graded on their attendance
and alert, informed, active participation in class activities.
§
ORDERS OF
WORSHIP SERVICES: Each student will plan and prepare seven
Orders of Service appropriate for Christian worship, to include four regular Sunday morning services (one in
each of these styles: Liturgical, Traditional Hymn-Based,
Contemporary Music-Driven, and Blended),
an Easter
Sunday morning service, a service featuring baptism, and a service
featuring the Lord’s Supper in the style of your choice. These are to demonstrate what the student has
learned about appropriate services of worship and the elements thereof. They will be presented, discussed, and
critiqued in open class discussion.
§
BOOK REPORTS: Each student will prepare a typed,
single-spaced reaction to Exploring the Worship Spectrum in
which you rank in order of your evaluation of the effectiveness of the
different worship styles in such length as may be needed to convey to a reader the
reasons for your choices. Students will be
prepared to participate meaningfully in open class discussion of the book. Graduate Students will also prepare typed,
single-spaced précis (i.e.
a concise summary of the main ideas) of Worship Evangelism, and
give an oral presentation to the class to inform the undergraduates of the
book’s content. Extra/bonus credit is available
for reading and reporting on an additional book from the
Instructor’s collection.
§
RESEARCH REPORT: Each
student will write a research paper on the subject, “A Philosophy of Christian Worship” to include a thorough
presentation on the definition, meaning, purpose, biblical and historical
bases, theology, and value of worship, suggestions for the practice of
meaningful worship, and other topics as the student’s research and religious convictions
may lead. The paper will be graded on
the basis of content, depth of research, coherence of reasoning, thoroughness
of presentation, style, and form, using the rubric attached to this
syllabus. Form, grammar, syntax, punctuation, spelling, and word usage are
expected to be flawless. For
additional information, see the class handouts, which are additional parts of
this syllabus.
o
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROJECT: The project must be typed and double-spaced, 20 to 30 content pages in length, in
addition to the title page, table of contents page, and bibliography pages. At least 15
authoritative,
scholarly books and/or articles must be used and cited in
the notes and bibliography. Not
more than five of these may be Internet articles. The Turabian (
o
ACADEMIC DISHONESTY, such as having someone else write your
reports, cheating on tests, or plagiarism, will not be tolerated. Plagiarism (the use of the words or ideas of others without giving
credit, thus silently pretending they are your own) is intellectual theft, will
result in no credit for the report, and is grounds for failure of the course,
suspension, or dismissal from the university.
§
CASE STUDY: Each student will attend a main worship
service in a church where the worship style is different from that of the
church the student regularly attends.
The Instructor must approve the church selected for the Case
Study in advance. After attending the
worship service chosen, the student will write a 6-8 page report that
begins by identifying the church chosen and clarifies how it differs from the
student’s own. The report will describe
the service and include the printed order of worship. If there is no printed order, the student
will write his or her own from notes taken during or immediately following the
service. The report will evaluate the
service biblically, theologically, historically, and congregationally (that is,
was the style of worship appropriate for the congregation). Questions to be answered by the report
include at least the following:
1.
What
was the style of worship (contemporary, traditional, blended, liturgical,
etc.)?
2.
Did
the service reflect a clearly discerned purpose or theme?
3.
How
well was that purpose achieved?
4.
Did
the service reflect a particular theology of worship, and if so, what was it?
5.
Did
the service indicate careful planning?
6.
Did
it reflect an awareness of the history of Christian worship?
7.
Was
it conducted in an appropriate manner?
8.
Were
music and/or other art forms used appropriately?
The paper will conclude
with a general evaluation of the effectiveness of the worship service, an
explanation for that evaluation, and any suggestions the student may have for
improvements that could be made.
V. GRADING:
Students will be graded on their book reports and research projects, and
on their class attendance and participation in class discussion.
EVALUATION: Class Participation 10% WBU
GRADE SYSTEM: A = 90-100% ...
Orders of
Service 15% B = 80-89% .....
Book Reports 15% C
= 70-79%.....
Research
Report 40%
D = 60-69%.....
Case Study 20% F = Below 60%
VI. CLASS OBJECTIVES: As a result of this study, the student will
be able to:
1.
Demonstrate
a basic understanding of the history and biblical, and theological bases of
Christian worship
2.
Articulate
clearly an appropriate philosophy of Christian worship
3.
Discuss
and evaluate current trends and changes in Christian worship
4.
Demonstrate
understanding of Christian worship by planning worship services
These outcome competencies will be demonstrated by the
completion of the assignments indicated in this syllabus with grades of 60% or
more.
VII. CLASS PROCEDURE: The class will be taught by a combination of
lecture and class discussion of the textbooks and supplemental materials, with
student presentations of their research reports. The class meets for four hours each Tuesday
for eleven weeks and will begin with a brief period of worship each week
conducted by the Instructor and by each student. Please be in place, on time, and prepared to
participate in this opening worship.
VIII. SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS: The Instructor will provide photocopied
materials and various audio and visual aids as appropriate to the class
activities.
IX. BIBLIOGRAPHY:
In addition to the textbooks and the
bibliographies included in the textbooks.
Books marked * are available
for lending by the Instructor. Others
are available from the
*Allen,
Ronald B. and Craig H. Allen. The
Wonder of Worship: A New Understanding of the Worship Experience.
*Allen,
Ronald and Gordon Borror. Worship:
Rediscovering the Missing Jewel.
Publishers, 2000.
Black, Kathy.
Culturally-Conscious Worship.
*Carson, D.
A., Editor, with Mark Ashton, R. Kent Hughes, and Timothy J. Keller. Worship by the Book. Grand
Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002.
*Dawn, Marva. Reaching Out Without Dumbing Down: A
Theology of Worship for This Urgent Time. Grand
Rapids, MI: Eerdmans
Publishing Company, 1998.
*Frame, John
M. Contemporary
Worship Music: A Biblical Defense.
Publishing
* Gaither,
Bill, Host. Amazing Grace. DVD.
*Long, Thomas
G. Beyond the Worship Wars: Building Vital and
Faithful Worship.
Institute, 2001.
Martin, Ralph P. Worship in the Early Church.
Company, 1964.
Peterson,David. Engaging with God: a Biblical Theology of
Worship (
Skoglund, John E. and Nancy E.
Hall. A Manual of Worship, New Edition.
1993.
Spruce, James R., ed. A Pastor’s Worship Resource for Advent,
Lent, and Other Occasions.
MO:
*Webber, Robert E. Blended
Worship.
*Webber,
Robert E. Worship Is a Verb: Eight
Principles for Transforming Worship, 2d Ed.
Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1992.
Webber, Robert E. Worship Old and New: a Biblical, Historical,
and Practical Introduction, Rev. Ed.
Grand
Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994.
White, James F. Introduction to Christian Worship,
3d Ed, revised and expanded.
Press, 2000.
*Woods,
Robert and Brian Walrath, Editors. The
Message in the Music: Studying Contemporary Praise and Worship.
*Wilt, Bill,
Host. Leading Worship. DVD.
*Wilt,
Bill, Host. What is Worship. DVD.
*York, Terry
W.
X. CLASS ASSIGNMENTS: Students are expected to have read the text
material prior to the dates assigned for class discussion and to be prepared to
enter into meaningful discussion of the topics covered. Due to the nature of the class, it is absolutely imperative that
assignments be turned in when due. Late papers cannot be accepted. Student absence is not an excuse—arrange to
have your papers in even if you are out!
Early is dandy, but late is deadly!
|
Dates: |
Written Assignments: |
|
|
May 31 |
Instructor’s Introduction to the course |
Christian Worship (CW) Exploring Worship
Spectrum (ES) |
|
June 7 |
|
CW: pp. 5-46 (Ch 1-3) ES: pp.
11-20 (Introduction) |
|
June 14 |
|
CW: pp. 47-98 (Ch 4-7) ES: pp.
21-56 (Ch 1) |
|
June 21 |
|
CW: pp. 99-154 (Ch 8-1 ES: pp.
57-96 (Ch 2) |
|
June 28 |
|
CW: pp. 155-214 (Ch 13-17) ES: pp.
97-136 (Ch 3) |
|
July 5 |
|
CW: pp. 155-292 (Ch 18-end) ES: pp.
137-172 (Ch 4) |
|
July 12 |
Orders of Service Due |
ES: pp.
173-214 Ch 5) Discuss Orders of Service |
|
July 19 |
Reaction to Exploring the Worship Spectrum Due (Grad Students) Précis of Worship Evangelism Due |
ES: pp
215-257 (Ch 6 & Conclusion) Discuss Exploring
Worship Spectrum |
|
July 26 |
Philosophy
of Worship Reports
Due |
Discuss Worship
Evangelism |
|
Aug. 2 |
Case Studies Due |
Defend Philosophy
of Worship |
|
Aug. 9 |
Present and Defend Case Studies |
Supper at Instructor’s home |
APPENDIX:
This syllabus
is only a plan, not a contract. Though
there is no current expectation to do so, the Instructor may modify the plan
during the course. The requirements for
the course, assignments, their due dates, criteria for measuring student progress
and performance, and other aspects of the syllabus may be changed by the
Instructor if,
in his professional judgment, it becomes necessary.
It is
university policy that no otherwise qualified disabled person be excluded from
participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under
any educational program or activity in the university.
Any student
who needs special arrangements to meet the course requirements should inform
The Instructor
immediately
upon entering the course.
Class
Attendance—External Campuses:
- Students
enrolled at one of the University’s external campuses should make every
effort to attend all class meetings.
All absences must be explained to the satisfaction of the
instructor, who will then determine whether the omitted work may be made
up. When a student reaches that
number of absences considered by the instructor to be excessive, the
instructor will so advise the student and file an Unsatisfactory Progress
Report with the campus dean. Any student who misses 25 percent or
more of the regularly scheduled class meetings may receive a grade of F in
the course. Additional
attendance policies for each course, as defined by the instructor in the
course syllabus, are considered a part of the University’s attendance
policy. A student may petition the
Academic Council for Exceptions to the above stated policies by filing a
written request for an appeal to the provost/academic vice-president.
- If an
instructor fails to appear or fails to send notification of his arrival
within the first ten minutes of a class period, students may leave without
incurring an absence. (If
I am not in class at
- Please
do not call me to tell me you will
not be in class unless you will be absent two or more weeks.
Addendum and Comments
1. Please do not assume that you can miss almost 25% of the class meetings with
no penalty at all. Very few students can
be absent that much and still pass the course.
Almost inevitably, students who miss class perform less well than they
expect, and their grades are lower.
2. NOTE THAT THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN “EXCUSED” ABSENCE from class. The
reason for your absence does not matter.
Even if it is unavoidable and beyond your control, if you are not in class, you are
absent. If you are obviously
ill, especially if your illness may be contagious, please stay home until you
have recovered. Anyone who is ill 25% of
the time probably needs to drop the course and rest to get well.
3.