This course covers the overall history of Christianity from antiquity to just before the Reformation. Students will carefully read Alister McGrath's highly acclaimed 'Christianity: An Introduction' (Poiema, 2016) and use workbooks with comprehension questions about the book's content. Through this learning process, students will learn the history of Christianity after Jesus Christ. The content is written using the principle of selection and focus within vast historical content, and areas of academic controversy are covered only to the extent needed for understanding the text.
Examine the background of the Early Church (100-500 AD), the relationship between Christianity and the Roman Empire, Christianity and the Hellenistic world, changes after Constantine's conversion, and early church heresies.
In the Middle Ages and Renaissance (500-1500), examine the background and dawn of the high Middle Ages, medieval religious thought, and the appearance of medieval churches.
Examine the crisis of medieval churches just before the Reformation, the Renaissance and Christianity, to understand the background that led to the Reformation.