Class 1: Introduction Church History

1. Class 1: IntroductionChurch History Dr. Ann T. Orlando Sept. 3, 2013

2. Introduction to Church History • Introductory remarks • Importance of Church History • Review Syllabus • Structure of course • Requirements • Course Web Site • Primary sources • Where are they? • How to read them • Periods or eras in histiography • Assignments

3. Importance of Church History • An appreciation for importance of Catholic Church in Western civilization • Papacy is oldest continually functioning institution in the world • Witness (testimony) of holy men and women • Context for the theological answers that have been developed and taught by the Church • Often, can’t appreciate the answer without knowing the question • Example: Jesus Christ whom we confess as one person with two natures • God’s plan of salvation unfolds in history • History is an aspect of theology, Providence

4. Pilgrim Church • The Pilgrim Church is moving toward her celestial home at the end of time • Individual members as members of the society of the Church • The Pilgrim Church is in the world but not of the world • Martyrs • Political entanglements • The Pilgrim Church is not a church of the pure • Sinful members • Political entanglements • History helps us to understand where the Church has been so far on her pilgrimage

5. Course covers Church History from Pentecost through late Middle Ages Divide semester into four parts Antiquity, especially late antiquity (100 – 604) Rise of Islam and Charlemagne (612 – 900) Early Middle Ages (900 – 1225) Late Middle Ages (1225 – 1415) Structure for Course

6. Requirements • Class attendance and active participation. • Papers and discussion on primary source readings three times during semester at conclusion of each Part • Papers should be 1-2 pages • Theme of thesis statement • FOCUS ON PRIMARY SOURCES • Presentation once during the semester • Small group assignment • Focus on how PRIMARY SOURCE readings impact Church today in, for example, CCC, Liturgy, VII documents, recent encyclicals, etc. • Two Exams: • Midterm will cover first half of semester (closed book) • Final will cover second half of semester (closed book) • Both midterm and final will include matching quotes to primary source authors; identification of terms and people; geography identification (midterm only) • Grade: • 1/3 papers and discussion, presentation • 1/3 midterm • 1/3 final

7. Texts for Class • 1. Modern text (secondary source) recommended text from list in syllabus • James Hitchcock, History of the Catholic Church: From the Apostolic Age to the Third Millennium is strongly recommended. • 2. Augustine, City of God, available at http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1201.htm or Dyson translation (Cambridge University Press, 1998) • 3. Many primary sources available on web, see syllabus for details

8. Web Site for Class • http://web.mit.edu/aorlando/www/BJFirstChurchHistory/ • Several files • Word file of syllabus • Web file (html) with links to web primary readings; other background resources of interest; • Basic map of key historical regions (large pdf file) • Lecture slides; posted day after each lecture, in a folder called Lectures; PowerPoint format

9. Sources • Primary Source: original works from the historical period under study • Secondary Source: later works written about earlier historical periods or works • Primary Source readings are FOCUS in class • Different, multiple sources each week; should be focus of papers and presentations • Reference ancient works using Book/Chapter/Paragraph numbering (e.g., Luke 1:1-4) • Most are available on the web; URL provided in syllabus and web site • Read everything critically (includes secondary sources) • What is author’s perspective • Bokenkotter: late 20th C American Catholic • Orlando: early 21st C American Catholic • What issues is the author addressing; • How important is the historical circumstance to those issues • Who is the audience • What is genre of the work (homily, thesis, poem, letter, Biblical commentary, histiography) • Caution using Web Resources • Anybody can put anything on the web and claim that it is ‘authoritative’ • Many ancient works, especially early Church Fathers, are available, but in older translations • Maintenance of a web resource is still on an individual basis; no guarantee that information will be well maintained

10. Difficulty of Primary Source Readings • I know that this is a lot of material • I know that it is often very difficult to read • Therefore • At the end of each class I will strongly suggest what should be read carefully, and what should be skimmed • I will try to point out key themes • It will serve you well to bring the next weeks’ readings with you • Remember when referring to primary source use Book.Chapter.Paragraph; NOT page number • Would you refer to a Biblical passage by page number??

11. Marking Sacred and Secular Time: B.C. and A.D. • Almost all journals and books in the last 20 years have gone to BCE and CE • BCE = Before the Common Era • CE = Common Era • I stubbornly hold on to B.C. and A.D.

12. Historical Eras or Periods… • Are arbitrary fictions of later historians • All historians have an agenda • But are convenient ways to arrange historical material. • Periods usually marked by some dramatic change causing a disruption in the ‘old’ order • But even dramatic changes do not change all of society all at once • Commonly referred to eras: • Antiquity • Late Antiquity • Early middle (dark) ages • Middle Ages • Renaissance • Reformation • Early Modernity • Enlightenment

13. Important Concepts in Antiquity • Actually concepts that will be unchallenged until the Enlightenment • There is no separation of Religion and State • Limited concept of individual rights – emphasis on individual duties • The antiquity of something was a direct measure of its value • Prophecy is not predicting the future like magic; it is more like cause and effect

14. Assignment • Recommended • Hitchcock, Introduction • Review rubric for essay papers