KCML Reformed and Presbyterian Studies 2008

This provides links to resources for Presbyterian and Reformed Christianity for interns and second year ordinands at the Knox Centre for Ministry and Leadership from the 2007 Spring School to the 2008 Winter School.

Guide to Resources

This table provides links to resources on this site organised in 3 groups and 7 modules. The questions are suggestions as to what you might be looking for as you engage with each topic. Not all the questions and topics listed will be covered in class.

I Foundations

Module	Topics and Links	Questions
1. Introduction and overview; Celtic and Medieval Foundations	Introductions Expectations	What studies have I done already? What would I like to explore some more?
	Characteristics and Differences	What are we looking for? What are common characteristics of Reformed and Presbyterian churches? How are they the same and different from other Christian traditions?
	Celtic History and Spirituality	Who were these saints that some of our churches are named after? Is the revival of interest in Celtic spirituality about history or imagination - or both? Are there other themes such as land, tribe and spiritual power and the importance of community for conversion which also need to be reclaimed?
	Medieval Scotland	Who was Queen Margaret and why is she remembered? Are there significant continuities with pre - Reformation Christianity in Scotland and what might they be?
2. Reformations in the 16th Century	Reformation Reformation Scotland Reformed theology	What was the geography of the Reformation? Who were the key players? What were the political and theological issues? What was the importance of exile and migration? What was the "DNA" of Reformed Christianity and where do you find it? What does "Semper Reformanda" actually mean and what might happen if we believed in it?
	John Calvin	Why was Calvin so influential?
3. Confessions and Covenants in the 17th Century	Community	Why were people so keen to impose their beliefs on others?
	Covenants	What were the covenants? Why did people write them and subscribe to them? Who were the Covenanters and what should we learn from them?
	Confessions	Why is the Westminster Confession so important in our history? What were those who wrote it trying to do? What should be the place of it and other confessions in our life today?

II Towards a Global Tradition

Module	Topics and Links	Questions
4. 18th Century Scotland: Revival and Party in an age of reason	Scotland	How did Scotland go from being bankrupt to become the educational powerhouse of the Western world?
	Scotland and the Global Expansion of Christianity	What was the basis of the Scottish contribution to the expansion of the church in the 18th and 19th centuries?
	Merchants Migrants and Missionaries	Who were the agents of expansion?
	Revival and the growth of parties in the General Assembly	Who were Moderates and who were Evangelicals and how were they different? What was patronage and why did people feel so strongly about it? What were revivals, such as those at Cambuslang, about?
5. Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847) and the mission of the Church	Mission and Disruption	What was the Disruption and what was it all about? What memories and values did the first generations of Scottish Protestant settlers bring to New Zealand.
	The legacy of Thomas Chalmers	Who was the person that Port Chalmers was named after?
6. New Zealand	New Zealand
	J D Salmond, Presbyterian Churches in the New Zealand Encyclopedia, 1966.	What dimensions of Presbyterian identity did Salmond consider important?
	19th Century New Zealand	Is it fair to say we were just a settler church in contrast to Anglicans, Methodists and Catholics who all began with missionaries to Maori?
	20th Century New Zealand	We began and ended the century with roughly the same membership. Was this a failure of theology? leadership? commitment to mission? - or were we just victims of changing social attitudes towards organisations in general and religious activity in particular?
	Rutherford Waddell	Why are Waddell and Lloyd Geering virtually the only Presbyterian clergymen identified in New Zealand's secular histories?
	Council for Mission 1984 to 2001	What might we learn from this ecumenical experiment in mission?

III Diversity and Renewal

Module	Topics and Links	Questions
7. Presbyterianism in an age of diversity and renewal.	20th Century New Zealand	What, looking back, worked well and badly as Presbyterian and other Kiwi Christians adjusted to change and opportunity in the late 20th century? Was there a turning point between modern and postmodern attitudes in New Zealand and was this reflected in any particular event or issue in the Presbyterian Church?
	Towards a Multicultural Church	Can a monocultural tradition provide the framework for a multicultural church of Maori, Pakeha, Asian and Pacific Islander? Can being global help us be more truly local?
	Leadership roles and structures for Persistent Presbyterians	In what ways do patterns of organization such as presbyteries and leadership structures such as the eldership help or hinder mission? Is the minister the CEO of the congregation and the session the Board, or are these models theologically and culturally inappropriate? Does ordination matter?
	Coping with Controversy	What processes work for Presbyterians when we see truth differently? Are these processes changing with shifts in the culture? How should our theology affect our processes and not just the options we consider?
	Baptism	Is a common theology compatible with diverse practices of milestone recognition and initiation into the community of the visible church?
	Presbyterian Worship then, now and tomorrow: psalms, hymns, songs, preaching and communion	Is it a good sign or a bad one that worship is often a source of conflict? Is it possible to build a tradition of innovation and continuity in the worship of God? Or should we be trying to do something else? What theological principles might guide us?
	Restructuring for a new era	Are we rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic or at last shaping ourselves to be a mission driven church?
	Presbyteries	Can presbyteries be communities of encouragement as well as courts of discipline and order?
	A Return to Theology?	Who is your favourite theologian and why? What do they help you do? What does this say about the contribution of theology to the missional future of the church?

Module	Dates	Topic
1	Spring School 2007 and Spring School 2008	Celtic and Medieval Foundations
2	Summer School 2008	16th Century: Reformations
3	Winter School 2008	17th Century: Confessions and Covenants
4	March 2008 and Spring School 2008	18th Century: Revival and Assembly
5	April to 9 May 2008	Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847), Global Expansion
6	13 May to 13 June 2008	New Zealand
7	17 June to 4 July 2008	Diversity and Renewal

Module / Topic	Date	Time	Location	Class	Theme	Topic
7.1	10/06/2008	9.15-10.15	Sonny Riini	OSP2	Diversity and Renewal	Edinburgh 1910 and IMC
7.2	13/06/2008	11.00-12.00	Sonny Riini	OSP2		Life & Work; Faith & Order; WCC
7.3	17/06/2008	9.15-10.15	Sonny Riini	OSP2		NCC & Campaign for Christian Order
7.4	20/06/2008	11.00-12.00	Sonny Riini	OSP2		Evangelicalism & Identity: BCNZ
7.5	24/06/2008	9.15-10.15	Sonny Riini	OSP2		Charismatic & Pentecostal Movements
7.6	27/06/2008	11.00-12.00	Sonny Riini	OSP2		Pacific Island Christianity / History
7.7	1/07/2008	9.15-10.15	Sonny Riini	OSP2		Korean Christian History
7.8	4/07/2008	11.00-12.00	Sonny Riini	OSP2		Reformed contributions to a theology of religions
3.1	24/07/2008		Sonny Riini	OSP2 ISP1	Confessions and Covenants	Presbyterians and the Civil War
3.2	24/07/2008		Sonny Riini	OSP2 ISP1		The Writing of the Confession
3.3	24/07/2008		Sonny Riini	OSP2 ISP1		Presbyterians from Restoration to Revolution
3.4	25/07/2008		Sonny Riini	OSP2 ISP1		Confession and Subscription
3.5	25/07/2008		Sonny Riini	OSP2 ISP1		Order and Worship

KCML Presbyterian and Reformed Christianity 2008 on roxborogh.com

Guide to Resources

I Foundations

II Towards a Global Tradition

III Diversity and Renewal