Bexley Seabury Seminary
Course title:PSF 302 Anglican Spirituality and Ethos
Term offered:Spring 2018
Meeting Dates/Times/Place: Bexley Seabury Seminary, 1407 E. 60th St Chicago, IL 60637
March 2-3, April 13-14, May 11-12
Typical Schedule will be as follows:
Friday: 1:30-4:00pmClass session I
4:15pmEvening prayer
5:00-6:30pmClass session II
Saturday8:15amMorning prayer
8:45-11:00Class session III
11:15amEucharist
12:00Lunch
1:00-2:30Class session IV
2:45-4:00Class session V
Instructor:Brad Pickens
Contact information:E-mail:
Cell phone: 812-277-6808
Office hours:In person, by appointment on Thursday afternoon/evening or Friday mornings of course weekends—please text or e-mail to arrange a time.
E-mail or text to arrange a time to speak over the phone.
Course description:
This course offers an introduction to Anglican spirituality and the Anglican ethos in theology, liturgy, music, poetry and the visual arts. We will pay special attention to the interaction of the Bible and the Book(s) of Common Prayer; implications of baptismal and Eucharistic theology for spiritual life; Anglican theology and the arts; the diversity present within Anglicanism; the relation of Anglican social witness to the life of prayer; and new expressions of Anglican community life and liturgy. Participation in this course is experiential: one of its chief aims is to orient students to a variety of spiritual practices, including use of the Daily Office, lectio divina, and traditions of spiritual companionship and spiritual direction with attention to principles that guide their use for personal formation and cultivation of communities. Class sessions will include regular times for corporate prayer, drawing on Anglican Prayer Book traditions. We will also schedule field-trip sessions at the Art Institute of Chicago and St. Paul and the Redeemer Episcopal Church. We will pay particular attention to the implications of global Anglicanism for our own North American practices and assumptions about race and ethnicity, human sexuality and social justice. Three semester hours.
Open to both degree-credit students and lifelong learners
Course goals and outcomes:
The primary goals and learning outcomes that this course is designed to achieve are as follows:
[the numbers in brackets refer to applicable learning outcomes for the Master of Divinity
program].
1. To develop a knowledgeable and critically discerning understanding of the biblical, historical, and theological resources that inform the Anglican/Episcopal spiritual tradition, with a particular focus on the development of this tradition over time and the diversity present within the tradition. Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:
1.1. Demonstrate general knowledge of significant developments and persons in the Anglican spiritual tradition; an understanding of the forces that led to changes of thought and practice within this tradition; and an ability to correlate these historic realities with contemporary issues, practices, and contexts. [MDiv. 1.2; Electronic Journal, class participation; Final Paper]
2. To become familiar with global Anglican spirituality in a post-colonial setting and to explore the importance of race and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, and class and social justice for informing and maintaining a vibrant Anglican ethos capable of addressing current global and local realities. Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:
2.1. Demonstrate an understanding of the interrelationship between spirituality and mission and how diverse cultural resources might be employed in the proclamation of the gospel and in the life of Christian faith, in culturally sensitive and contextually appropriate ways. [MDiv. 3.1, 4.3; visit to St. Paul and the Redeemer; class participation; final paper; online discussions]
2.2. Demonstrate an understanding of how the intersection of historical experience, social identities (such as race, class, gender, physical ability, sexual orientation), and related systems of privilege, power, discrimination, and oppression have played a role in shaping contemporary Anglican spirituality and ethos and how resources that in the past have been a source of oppression might be redeemed to sustain mission and transform social contexts. [MDiv. 3.3, 4.3; class participation; Electronic Journal; final paper; online discussions]
3. To grow in personal faith, spiritual depth, and moral integrity by developing a deep awareness of the Anglican spiritual tradition as it is found in literature and the arts, cultivating personal and communal spiritual practices grounded in the common prayer of the Church, and engaging in theological reflection on the experience of prayer within the Anglican tradition, in preparation for ongoing spiritual engagement for personal growth that informs a life of ministerial service. Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:
3.1. Demonstrate an ability to utilize diverse media (such as poetry, art, music) as sources for theological reflection; to incorporate a variety of spiritual practices in one’s spiritual formation; and to consider how this influences one’s ministry. [MDiv. 3.1, 4.1; class participation; Electronic Journal; visit to Art Institute of Chicago]
3.2. Demonstrate an ability to engage materials and experiences with critical questions, articulate one’s own beliefs, and to reflect on one’s own spiritual and vocational experience and development. [MDiv. 4.2; Experiencing Anglicans at Prayer; Reflection Questions; Electronic Journal; online discussions]
Course Requirements:
- Completion of course readings required as noted below in advance of each weekend session
- Full attendance at all class sessions, and active participation in all class liturgies
- Full participation in class discussion, worship and interactive learning experiences
- On-time submission of weekly Electronic Journal entries as scheduled below, and completion of Electronic Journal by May 11
- Completion of personal introduction by February 9; written pre-assignment (2-3 pages) by February 19 and peer comment (1-2 paragraphs) by February 26 submitted electronically on the Moodle site
- On-time submission of Reflection Questions by the Wednesday prior to each course weekend
- Two consultations with course instructor regarding Final Paper topic and sources
- Completion of Reflections on Anglican Spirituality and Ethos final paper (10-12 pages) by May 13 (May 6 for graduating seniors)
Absence Policy:
Due to the intensive nature of our courses on campus, it especially important that you be present for the entire intensive session. Please adjust your personal and employment calendars accordingly. In the event of an unanticipated absence due to illness or emergency, you must notify your instructor immediately. It is within the discretion of the instructor, up to an absence of one day of instruction during an intensive, to determine whether or not and to what extent a grade reduction is appropriate and/or makeup work will be required. Beyond an absence of one day, it is within the discretion of the Academic Dean, in consultation with the instructor, to determine if a passing grade for academic credit will be permitted. It is the student’s responsibility to request class notes for missed classes from another student. Audit of CEU students who are absent for a whole weekend intensive session (2 days) or for more than one day of a week-long intensive will receive a grade of W (withdrawn).
Course Withdrawal Deadlines and Procedures:
Students who wish to withdraw from this course must do so by the end of the second day in a week-long intensive or by the Friday following the first weekend instensive. It is the responsibility of the student to formally withdraw from the course either online through SAM (the student portal available to students who have log in credentials) or by completing a “course withdrawal form” (available on the web site under “current students”/ “forms and documents”) and submitting the form to the registration coordinator, Susan Quigley: ents who stop attending classes but do not formally withdraw from a course in a timely manner will be ineligible for a refund and may receive a failing grade for the course.
Extensions and Incompletes:
Extensions for submission of course work required to complete the course are not routinely granted. Extensions for the submission of course work of up to one week beyond the posted deadline at the end of a semester or term are within the discretion of the instructor to grant upon good cause shown. Students who require a longer extension to complete course work, up to a maximum of 30 days, must obtain the permission of the Academic Dean by submitting a completed “Extension Request Form,” signed by the instructor, on or before the originally posted due date. See “Current Students”/ “Forms and Documents” on the seminary web site.
A grade of Incomplete (I) for a course will not be granted in the absence of the most extraordinary or unavoidable of circumstances as set forth in the Student Handbook. A completed “Incomplete Request Form,” signed by the instructor, must be submitted to the Academic Deanno later than the last date that course work is finally due. See “Current Students”/ “Forms and Documents” on the seminary web site.
A Word about Assessment:
Bexley Seabury Seminary regularly evaluates the quality of our programs using a variety of data and artifacts, including portfolios of students’ work. These portfolios consist of designated student work (artifacts) from each course, along with the instructor’s rubric-based evaluation of the artifact.
At the end of the term, the course instructor will send your Reflections on Anglican Spirituality and Ethos(the designated artifact for this course) and the evaluation of your work to you before it is placed in your portfolio.
We use your portfolio to assess student learning (in the aggregate) and the effectiveness of our curricula in reaching desired goals and objectives. This process does not involve any further evaluation of your work for grading purposes.No portfolio or artifact is evaluated until all identifying information is removed.No identifying information will be included in any evaluation or report.
For further information, see the Student Handbook. You may also talk with your instructor, your advisor, the Faculty Assessment Officer (Prof. Jason Fout, ), or the Academic Dean, .
Schedule of class sessions (subject to adjustment as semester proceeds)
Reading and Writing assignments February 5-March 2
Reading assignments:
In Love’s Redeeming Work
General Introduction, pp. xix-xxix
Introduction to Part I: 1530-1650, pp. 3-12
Assigned readings for weekly Electronic Journal (see chart below)
From The Book of Common Prayer
Preface, pp. 9-11
Preface, The First Book of Common Prayer (1549), pp. 866-867
Articles of Religion, pp. 867-875
The Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral 1886, 1888, pp. 876-878
An Outline of the Faith: commonly called the Catechism, pp. 844-861
Stephanie Spellers, Radical Welcome: Embracing God, The Other, and the Spirit of Transformation (Church Publishing, 2006)
William Countryman, The Poetic Imagination: An Anglican Spiritual Tradition (Orbis, 1999), pp. 30-36. (available on Moodle)
Paul Avis, “The Distinctiveness of Anglicanism,” in Avis, The Identity of Anglicanism (T & T Clark, 2007) (available on Moodle)
Writing assignments(all assignments to be submitted electronically, double-spaced):
Introduce yourself on Moodle by February 9
Post preliminary essay on personal Anglican experience to Moodle by February 19
Electronic Journal Week One (due February 23)
Read and post your response to classmates’ entries by February 25
E-mail your reflection questions by February 28
Electronic JournalWeek Two (due March 2)
First Weekend March 2-3:
Exploring Anglican Ethos and Spirituality: Reformation Origins to Modern Understandings
Class Schedule
Day 1—Friday
1:30-4:00pm Introductions
Pre-course reflections: Who we are. What we seek to learn.
What makes for a coherent ethos? Does Anglicanism have one?
Backgrounds of Anglican Spirituality and Ethos
The Anglican Office
4:15pmEvening Office
5:00-6:30pmEarly Contributions to Anglican Identity
Spiritual practice: discussing Anglicans at Prayer essays
Day 2—Saturday
8:15amMorning Prayer
8:45-11:00amCommon Prayer as Practice and Identity
11:15amEucharist
12:00pmLunch
1:00-2:30pmIntroduction to spiritual practices
Exercise in lectio divina
2:45-4:00pmBaptism and Eucharist: a sacramental life
Reading and Writing assignmentsMarch 4-April 13
Reading assignments:
In Love’s Redeeming Work
Introduction to Part 2: 1650-1830, pp. 185-193
Assigned readings for weekly Electronic Journal (see chart below)
John Drury, Painting the Word: Christian Pictures and Their Meaning (Yale, 2000), 156-169 (available on Moodle)
Raymond F. Glover, “ What is Congregational Song,” in Glover, ed. The Hymnal 1982 Companion, Vol. I, pp. 3-6 (available on Moodle)
Carl P. Daw, Jr., “The Spirituality of Anglican Hymnody: A Twentieth-Centruy Perspective,” in Glover, ed. The Hymnal 1982 Companion, Vol. I, pp. 7-12 (available on Moodle)
Brad Pickens, “Introduction to Jasper and Coelho,” (available on Moodle)
David Jasper, “The Artist and Religion in the Contemporary World,” Text Matters, Vol 1, No. 1 (2011), pp. 215-225 (available on Moodle)
David Jasper, “The Arts and Modern Christian Architecture,” Theology 114(5) (2011), pp. 353-362 (available on Moodle)
Luiz Coelho, “ A Visual Gospel: Imagery as Mission,” in Cathy Ross, ed., Life-Widening Mission: Global Anglican Perspectives. (Eugene: Wipf and Stock, 2012), pp.113-133 (available on Moodle)
Writing Assignments(all assignments to be submitted electronically, double-spaced):
Electronic JournalWeek Three (due March 9)
Electronic Journal Week Four (due March 16)
Electronic Journal Week Five (due March 23)
Initial consultation with instructor regarding Final Paper (due March 23)
Electronic Journal Week Six (due April 6)
E-mail your reflection questions to by April 11
Electronic JournalWeek Seven (due April 13)
Post on Moodle a paragraph or two responding to one of your classmate’s journal entries by April 13
Second Weekend April 13-14: Anglican Development and the Religious Imagination
Class Schedule
Day 1
1:30-4:00pmAnglican Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual songs
Anglican Spirituality and the Arts I (Poetry, Art, and Architecture)
4:15pmEvening Prayer
5:00-6:30pmAnglican Spirituality and the Arts II (Poetry, Art, and Architecture)
Day 2
8:15amMorning Prayer
8:45-1:00pmAnglican Spirituality and the Visual Image I—Art Institute of Chicago
Lunch at Art Institute
1:30-4:00pmAnglican Spirituality and the Visual Image II—sharing insights
Anglican Spirituality and the Visual Image as Mission
Reading and Writing assignmentsApril 15-May 11
Reading assignments
In Love’s Redeeming Work
Introduction to Part 3: 1830-2001, pp. 369-376
Assigned readings for weekly Electronic Journal (see chart below)
Kwok Pui-lan, Judith A. Berling, and Jenny Plane TePaa, eds., Anglican Women on Church and Mission (Morehouse, 2012), pp. 3-93
William Stringfellow, “An Open Letter to the Presiding Bishop,” in Bill Wylie Kellerman, ed., A Keeper of the Word: Selected Writings of William Stringfellow (Eerdmans, 1994), 280-283 (available on Moodle)
William Stringfellow, “Money,” in Love’s Redeeming Work, pp. 744-747
Juan M.C. Oliver, “Our Place: Inculturating [Anglo] Liturgical Space,” in The Chant of Life: Inculturation and the People of the Land, Liturgical Studies 4 (Church Publishing, 2003), 100-120. (available on Moodle)
Writing Assignments(all assignments to be submitted electronically, double-spaced):
Electronic Journal Eight (due April 20)
Electronic JournalNine (due April 27)
Follow-up consultation with instructor regarding Final Paper (due April 27)
Electronic Journal Ten (due May 4)
Final Essay for graduating seniors to be posted on Moodle no later than May 6
E-mail your reflection questions to by May 9
Electronic Journal Eleven (due May 11)
Post on Moodle a paragraph or two responding to one of your classmate’s journal entries by May 11
Final essay to be posted on Moodle no later than May 13
Third Weekend May 11-12: Global Anglicanism and the Spirituality of Justice
Class schedule
Day 1
1:30-4:00pmAnglicanism in Context: A Visit to St. Paul and the Redeemer
4:15pmEvening Prayer
5:00-6:30pm Power, Authority, and Spiritual Formation
Day 2
8:15amMorning Prayer
8:45-11:00amGlobal/Post-colonial Anglicanism
Anglican Social Witness I
11:15amEucharist
12:00pmLunch
1:00-2:30pmContextual Anglicanism
Final project discussion I
2:45-4:00pmFinal project discussion II
Closing Reflections
Final Paper due May 13 (May 6 for graduating seniors)
Instructions for paper are included below.
Writing assignments (all assignments to be submitted electronically, double-spaced):
- Introduce yourself
Rubrics: Online discussions
DUE DATE FOR YOUR POST February 9
Write and post a short paragraph or two introducing yourself. Say why you are taking this course, and what you hope to learn.
- Experiencing Anglicans at prayer
DUE DATE FOR YOUR POST February 19
DUE DATE FOR YOUR COMMENT February 26
Rubrics: Online discussions; reflective writing
In the light of your reading of your preliminary reading in the Book of Common Prayer, Spellers, the introductions to Love’s Redeeming Work, and Chapman, write a 2-3 page reflection on a recent personal experience of Anglican worship. If you are an Episcopalian, this could be a description of and reflection on an experience of worship in your own parish. However, for the purposes of this assignment, you may wish to experience worship in a setting outside of your “norm”—for example, if you typically worship in a parish that tends toward Anglo-Catholic worship, you might consider worshipping for a Sunday in a parish that is more Evangelical in its orientation; if you are part of a suburban or urban parish, seek out a rural parish to experience worship there; find out if there is a mission church in your diocese or a parish using innovative liturgical resources and attend worship there; or seek out an ordination service, weekday prayer, or other experience of Episcopal worship. If you are from another tradition (or none), attend a Sunday service in a nearby Episcopal church and report on what you experienced. You may wish to reflect on a particular element of the service—perhaps on the sermon you have heard, the way the architectural space reflects (or hinders) the spiritual practices of the congregation, the hymnody chosen for the service, the content and structure of the prayers that are said and sung—or you may consider the experience as a whole. Post your essay as directed on Moodle by February 19. Between that date and February 28, read through the posts from your classmates, and post a short comment (just a paragraph or two) on at least two of them. These essays will form a basis for part of the first weekend’s discussion.
- Reflection Questions
DUE DATE FOR YOUR QUESTIONS Wednesdays prior to each class weekend. (February 28, April 11, and May 9)
Rubrics: Online discussions
For three of the class meetings, you will prepare three to four questions which arose for you out of the reading done that week (and prior). While any genuine question you have about the readings is perfectly fine—there are no “dumb” questions for this assignment or in class—better sets of questions will show careful engagement with the text (including a page number, a quotation, perhaps some context), seek to correlate current reading with previous course work, and/or will show some effort to make connections or application beyond the reading.