ASIAN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

SEMINAR ON CONTEXTUAL THEOLOGY

Instructor, Dr. William Dyrness
September 8-12, 2014
Course Description: This graduate seminar is designed to encourage students to develop
an intentional method for exploring the contextual nature of theological reflection. It will
include developing a critical methodology for interpreting cultural products (i.e. literary
texts, artwork, films, music etc.) and developments (i.e. Neo-Colonialism, Modernity) on
the one hand, and for exploring the role of culture in theological reflection on the other.
The first part asks: Where is God at work in culture or in this cultural artifact? The
second inquires into the influence, for better or worse, of cultural contexts on theological
reflection.
Course Format: The course will be run in a seminar format, meeting from 8am-12nn
daily, from September 8-12. The professor will provide introductory lectures and
bibliographic overviews, and students, after the first day, will present short papers on
assigned readings and lead discussions on the material.
Course Assignments: Each student will make two (or three) presentations, depending on
the size of the class, based on short (2-4pp) papers that they prepare that critically review
the reading assignment for that day (10% or 15% of the grade each). Additionally, after
the class ends, they will prepare (1) a research paper on some aspect of contextual
theology covered in class: 15-17 pp for Masters level students; 20-25pp for ThM and
PhD students (Emailed to professor: wdyrness@fuller.edu).

Recommended readings represent a good place to start research for this paper. All of
them should be on reserve in the ATS library Papers are to be double spaced, in the
Chicago manual of Style:
(http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html) (50%) and (2) an 8-10
page critical review of the assigned readings for the course, that is the two assigned books
and the reader of articles (20%). Paper and review due October 1, 2014 emailed to the
professor.
Instructor: William Dyrness is Professor of Theology and Culture and Dean Emeritus, at
Fuller Theological Seminary, where he has taught for 25 years. Before that he was a
Professor at Asian Theological Seminary (1974-1982) and at New College Berkeley
(1982-1990). His recent publications include Reformed Theology and Visual Culture
(Cambridge, 2004), The Global Dictionary of Theology, edited with V. M. Karkkainen
(IVP, 2008); Primer on Christian Worship (Eerdmans, 2009); Poetic Theology: God and
the Poetics of Everyday Life (Eerdmans, 2011), Senses of Devotion: Interfaith Aesthetics
in Buddhist and Muslim Communities (Cascade, 2013) and Introduction to Global
Theology, co-authored with Oscar Garcia-Johnson (Baker, Forthcoming).

Schedule of Lectures and Presentations:
Monday, Sept. 8 Introduction to the Course:
Development of Evangelical study of culture, from Niebuhr to Charles Taylor and from
contextualization to integral mission. Downloading reader reviewing weeks assignments.

Small Group: Neibuhrs typology.

Tuesday, Sept. 9. Creation and Culture; Theological frameworks for understanding
culture: Reformed, Anabaptist, Catholic.

Assignments: Genesis 1-11. Dyrness, The Earth is Gods, Creation and Culture.
David Tracy, Stassen, Yaeger, Yoder.

Wednesday, Sept. 10 Historical Analysis of Cultural Trends: Medieval, Reformation,
and modern. Indigenous traditions. Charles Taylor, M. Maggay and Cristian Parker

Assignments: Jennings, Taylor, Maggay, Cristian Parker.
Thursday, Sept. 11 Art, Aesthetics and wisdom. Society Shaped by Theology.
Assignments: Dyrness, Poetic Theology; Robin Gill, Woodberry.
Friday, Sept. 12. Theology of Media; process for theology of culture in the local
congregations.

Required Texts:
Padilla Maggay, ed. The Book of the Gospel in Culture. (ISAAC, 2014)
Simon Chan, Rethinking Asian Theology: A Grassroots Perspective (Downers Grove, IL:
Inter Varsity Press, 2014).
Reader (of Books and Articles in Digital Format):
William Dyrness. The Earth is Gods (Orbis, 1996). Chapters on creation and culture.
John Milbank, Beauty and the Soul from Theological Perspectives on God and Beauty
(Trinity Press, 2003), pp. 1-65.
Paul Ricoeur. The Circle of Narrative and Temporality from Time and Narrative (Vol.
I), pp. 3-87.
Joel Robbins, Anthropology and Theology: An Awkward Relationship?
Anthropological Quarterly Spring 2006, pp. 285-293.
Max Stackhouse, God and Globalization, (Harrisburg: Trinity, 2000), pp. 158-193.
Ann Swidler, Culture in Action: Symbols and Strategies. Amer Soc Review. Vol 51.
No. 2, 1986, pp.273-286.
Paul Tillich, Analysis of Culture From Theology of Culture (1964). pp. 40-51.
David Tracy. The Social Portrait of a Theologian from The Analogical Imagination
(1981), pp. 4-41 and 101-153.
Graham Ward. Cultural Transformation and Religious Practice (Cambridge, 2005), pp.
61-116.
Robert D. Woodberry. The Missionary Roots of Liberal DemocracyAmer Pol Sc Rev.
May 2012. pp. 244-273.

Recommended Readings:
Benigno Beltran, The Christology of the Inarticulate: An Inquire into the Filipino
Understanding of Jesus the Christ (Manila: Divine Word Publications 1987).
William Dyrness. Poetic Theology: God and the Poetics of Everyday Life (Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011).
Robin Gill. Society shaped by Theology (Ashgate, 2013).
Roberto Goizueta, Caminemos con Jesus: Toward an Hispanic/LatinoTheology of
Accompaniment (Maryknoll: Orbis, 1995).
Colin Gunton. The One, The Three and the Many (Cambridge, 1993).
Willie Jennings, The Christian Imagination (Yale University Press, 2010).
H. Richard Niebuhr, Christ and Culture (Harper, 1951).
Rena Padilla. Mission Between the Times: Essays on the Kingdom (Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 1985).
Cristian Parker, Religion and Modernization in Latin America: A Different Logic
(Maryknoll: Orbis, 1996).
Jon Sobrino, Christology at the Crossroads: A Latin American Approach (Maryknoll:
Orbis, 1978).
Glen H. Stassen, D. M. Yeager, and John Howard Yoder, Authentic transformation : a
new vision of Christ and culture (Abingdon, 1996).
Kathryn Tanner, Theories of Culture: a New Agenda for Theology (Fortress, 1997).
Charles Taylor. A Secular Age (Harvard, 2007).
Graham Ward. Cultural Transformation and Religious Practice. (Cambridge, 2005).