A Journey through Western Christianity: from Persecuted Faith to Global Religion (200 - 1650)
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A Journey through Western Christianity: from Persecuted Faith to Global Religion (200 - 1650)
Yale University
Acerca de este Curso
4.7
170 ratings
This course follows the extraordinary development of Western Christianity from its early persecution under the Roman Empire in the third century to its global expansion with the Jesuits of the early modern world. We explore the dynamic and diverse character of a religion with an enormous cast characters. We will meet men and women who tell stories of faith as well as of violence, suppression, and division. Along the way, we encounter Perpetua and her martyrdom in Carthage; the struggles of Augustine the bishop in North Africa; the zeal of Celtic monks and missionaries; the viciousness of the Crusades; the visions of Brigit of Sweden; and the fracturing of Christianity by Martin Luther’s protest. We hear the voices of great theologians as well as of those branded heretics by the Church, a powerful reminder that the growth of Christianity is a story with many narratives of competing visions of reform and ideals, powerful critiques of corruption and venality, and exclusion of the vanquished. The troubled history of Christian engagement with Jews and Muslims is found in pogroms and expulsions, but also in the astonishing ways in which the culture of the West was transformed by Jewish and Islamic learning.
We shall explore the stunning beauty of the Book of Kells, exquisitely prepared by monks as the Vikings terrorized the coast of England. We will experience the blue light of the windows of Chartres, and ponder the opening questions of Thomas Aquinas’ great Summa. We will read from the Gutenberg Bible of the fifteenth century, which heralded the revolution brought by the printing press. We will travel from Calvin’s Geneva to Elizabeth’s England to Trent, where a Catholic Council met to inaugurate a modern, missionary Catholic church. We will walk through the great Escorial of Philip II of Spain, hear the poetry of John of the Cross, and follow the Jesuits to Brazil and China.
Christianity in the West was forged in the fires of conflict and tumult, and it brought forth both creativity and violence. It echoed with calls for God’s world to be transformed, it inspired the most sublime art and architecture, yet it also revealed the power of the union of cross and sword to destroy. The course is a journey through the formation of the West as one strand of Christianity, as one chapter in a global story. It is a journey that has shaped our world.
Programa - Qué aprenderás en este curso
1
Sección
Welcome to A Journey through Western Christianity: from Persecuted Faith to Global Religion (200 - 1650)
Learn what this course is about, who's teaching it, and other ways you can explore this topic. Meet and greet your peers as well!
1 video (Total: 2 min), 4 readings
1 video
4 lecturas
Course Description5m
Precourse Survey10m
Meet Your Instructional Team5m
Bonus course resources10m
Introduction: From Persecution to Empire
“From Persecution to Empire,” explores the interaction between the second-century Christian Church and the Roman Empire in which it existed. After the faith’s birth in Palestine, Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire with a rapidity that alarmed many Roman rulers. Persecution of Christians became common, and the experience of persecution shaped the Church. In 313 AD, the Roman Emperor Constantine ended persecution and Christianity transformed once more to become a pillar of Roman society.
6 videos (Total: 57 min), 3 readings, 1 quiz
6 videos
Diversity in the Year 200: Dura Europos (c. 240), with Dr. Lisa Brody [Yale University Art Gallery]10m
The Conversion of Constantine8m
The Arian-Nicene Controversy11m
The Nature of Christ8m
The Rise of Rome8m
3 lecturas
The Creed of Nicaea15m
Conversion of Constantine20m
Yale University Art Gallery—Dura-Europos: Excavating Antiquity10m
1 ejercicio de práctica
From Persecution to Empire20m
2
Sección
Augustine and the North African Church
“Augustine and the North African Church,” studies two areas of early and vibrant Christian growth: Egypt and North Africa. These areas responded to intense Roman persecution by developing a theology of martyrdom. Indeed, both areas became bastions of early Christian theological thinking, with the North African Church producing the most important Christian theologian ever: Augustine of Hippo.
6 videos (Total: 69 min), 4 readings, 1 quiz
6 videos
Alexandria11m
North African Christianity15m
Martyrdom and Persecution14m
The Martyrdom of Perpetua (with Max & Nazanin)5m
Augustine14m
Islamic Invasion of North Africa7m
4 lecturas
Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas30m
Augustine on Donatists40m
A timeline of the Great Persecution10m
See the Coptic necropolis el Bagawat (Egypt), one of the earliest Christian cemeteries10m
1 ejercicio de práctica
Augustine and North African Church20m
3
Sección
Monastic Lives: Desert Fathers to Celtic Christianity
“Monastic Lives: Desert Fathers to Celtic Christianity,” examines the origins of monasticism in Christianity. After the end of Roman persecution, some Christians chose to isolate themselves in the desert and deny themselves food, sleep, and material comforts. Why? And how did this movement develop into medieval monasticism? This module will explain the early roots and influence of monks and nuns in Christianity.
7 videos (Total: 80 min), 5 readings, 1 quiz
7 videos
Saint Catherine’s (with Max)4m
Saint Benedict10m
Irish Monasticism15m
The Viking Age (with Nazanin)5m
Venerable Bede, Saint Cuthbert, and Northumbria14m
Alcuin and the Carolingian Renaissance15m
5 lecturas
Life of St. Anthony10m
Benedict Rule10m
Explore the Gutenberg Bible and its history10m
Browse the Book of Kells medieval manuscript10m
View the Lindisfarne Gospels' early medieval illuminations10m
1 ejercicio de práctica
Monastic Lives, Desert Fathers to Celtic Christianity20m
4
Sección
Reformers and Crusaders
“Reformers and Crusaders,” focuses on Christianity during the dawn of the medieval period. Here we ask: How did Christianity respond to the new feudal world of medieval Europe? Popes, monks, and knights became essential features of the Christian faith during this period, roughly 950 – 1350 AD.
8 videos (Total: 68 min), 6 readings, 1 quiz
8 videos
Feudalism7m
Christian Reform12m
Bernard of Clairvaux (with Max)6m
Divided Christianity6m
Crusades14m
Innocent III10m
Cathar Heresy (with Nazanin)6m
6 lecturas
Fulcher of Chartres, Speech of Urban II10m
The Capture of Jerusalem (1244)10m
Christian Attacks on Jews30m
Henry IV's letter to Gregory VII10m
The Romance of the Rose10m
Hagia Sophia's Christian mosaics10m
1 ejercicio de práctica
Reformers and Crusaders20m
4.7
Principales revisiones
por ES•Mar 23rd 2018
A great journey! Lots of information and bonus material! I'm very thankful for the course. It might be that the professor's speech is sometimes a bit difficult to follow, but it's a minor drawback
por AW•Jun 20th 2017
Well developed and presented course.. It'll be good to have it continued from 1650 to where the Christian faith is today. I'll be very interested to be part of it if it is developed.
Instructor
Bruce Gordon
Titus Street Professor of Ecclesiastical HistoryYale Divinity School
Acerca de Yale University
For more than 300 years, Yale University has inspired the minds that inspire the world. Based in New Haven, Connecticut, Yale brings people and ideas together for positive impact around the globe. A research university that focuses on students and encourages learning as an essential way of life, Yale is a place for connection, creativity, and innovation among cultures and across disciplines.
Preguntas Frecuentes
When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
Once you enroll for a Certificate, you’ll have access to all videos, quizzes, and programming assignments (if applicable). Peer review assignments can only be submitted and reviewed once your session has begun. If you choose to explore the course without purchasing, you may not be able to access certain assignments.
What will I get if I purchase the Certificate?
When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
What is the refund policy?
Is financial aid available?
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