Messiah College: Philadelphia Campus

URB 319/RET 319
Practical Theology of the Urban Church

Course Description: This course studies how Christian beliefs and institutions have been shaped by and help to direct community life within urban locations. Course content focuses on current methods and skills of urban church ministry, community organizing, and social change within the city. Emphasis will be on the participant's own experience and discernments, resulting in some creative expression of how to build the church for the next generations. (Satisfies the General Education requirement in Christian Beliefs”)

Objectives:

General Education
To help students:
1. Acquire a basic familiarity with theological ways of thinking and writing.
2. Understand and affirm central beliefs of the Christian faith.
3. Understand Anabaptist, Wesleyan, and Pietistic theological distinctives.
4. Understand the diverse ways that the Christian faith is articulated.
5. Develop personal theological convictions.
6. Build a foundation for reflection on the integration of faith and learning.
7. Participate as a people in forming and building the church.

Urban Studies
To help students:
1. Understand and appreciate distinctives of the theologies of the urban church,
2. Understand the impact of the historical and present urban context on the church.
3. Appreciate the interaction of theology and practice in urban worshiping communities.
4. Summarize and critique academic writing on urban theology and the urban church.
5. Observe and reflect on the worship and congregational life of churches in the urban community.
6. Analyze a particular church or ministry to see how its Christian beliefs shape it.
7. Be an urban people adapting to the context of one's environment in Christ.

Required Textbooks

A Theology as Big as the City by Ray Bukke
Restoring At-Risk Communities, Doing it Together and Doing it Right by John M. Perkins
Churches that make a Difference, Reaching Your Community with Good News and Good Works by Ron Sider, Phil Olson, and Heidi Unruh
Seeking the Peace of the City by Eldin Villafane
The Cell Plan 2003, www.circleofhope.net/cellplan by Rod White, et al

Requirements

1. Exams (3): over the readings and lectures: The format is half open-book essay and half closed-book short answer.

2. Book Review: Interact with the contents, assess major isses and critique the author's conclusions, options for reading listed in the bibliography

3. Church Summaries:

Attend ameeting of two of the non-"Anglo" churches mentioned in Sider. Prepare a 2-page evaluation of whether their goals and character, as presented by the author, were reflected in your experience.
Attend a meeting of two other churches, one from each of the other two lists provided and prepare a 2-page reflection on your experience - what you heard from God, how you experienced body life, how you were challenged to think about the church's mission in an urban context.
Further visits and reviews can received for extra credit.

4. Ministry Analysis:

Complete a comprehensive analysis of a Philadelphia-oriented mission of Christian evangelism or compassion (or both), organized as the church or a parachurch agency.
The analysis will include at least four components:
- a description based on observation and at least some participation in the ministry
- an anaylsis of what motivates the founders and participants in terms of their Christian beliefs based on interviews, further theological study and research
- a critique of the program based on bibical and theological understandings
- a vision for what should be done next to improve or re-imagine the mission

5. Participation: Your "cell" will have a brief meeting each week and you will share in how it is organized and preceeds, our format in class will include many opportunities to share your knowledge, passion and questions.

Recommended churches:

List 1:
Bright Hope Baptist, 12th and Cecil B. Moore, 232-6004, 10:30.
Mother Bethel AME,(Begun by Richard Allen) 419 S. 6th St, 925-0616, 11:00
Deliverance Evangelistic, 2001 Wets Lehigh Ave., 226-7600, 10:45.
Spirit and Truth, 2719 N. Reese St. (near 5th and Lehigh), 457-9437, 10:00. Bethel Temple Community Bible Church, 228-234 East Allegheny, 423-0986, 9:30 & 11:00

List 2:
Circle of Hope Center City, 10th & Locust 629-0390, 5pm, 7pm (until March 31)
Love Truth Chinese Mennonite, 600 W. Chew Ave., 924-2248, 10:00
Vietnamese Mennonite Church, 6237 Woodland Ave. 610-352-8689, 11:00
Inglesia Del Barrio, 240 E. Cambria St, 634-6000
Emmanuel Church, 4723-41 Spruce St, 476-0330, 10am, 11, 12:45pm
Germantown Church of the Brethren, 6611 Germantown Ave., 848-6501, 11:00.
(International African service on Sunday afternoons)

GRADING
Weighting
Exams 30%
Church Summaries 20%
Ministry Analysis 20%
Book Review 10%
Participation 10%

Scale
93%-100% : A
90%-92% : A-
87%-89% : B+
83%-86% : B
80%-82% : B-
77%-79% : C+
73%-76% : C
70%-72% : C-
67%-69% : D+
60%-66% : D
0%-59% : F