Humanities (HUMN) 320
Rome and Early Christianity I

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Overview

What were the greatest achievements of Roman civilization? How did its best poets and political philosophers respond to the fall of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire? What was early Christianity really like, and how did it evolve in the century after the crucifixion? What roles did St. Paul and the authors of the Synoptic Gospels play in creating modern Christian theology? These are some of the topics addressed in HUMN 320.

The course consists of two parts. The first part (Units 1 to 3) deals with the history and culture of Rome, and concentrates especially on the period of transition from the Republic to the Principate This was a time when Rome was trying to adjust to its conquests, to far-reaching social and economic changes and to the influx of new ideas, and was trying to restore its roots and to refurbish its myths and traditions. This was an age of great Roman writers, including Cicero, Lucretius, Livy, and Vergil, all of whom are studied in the course. It was also the time of the birth of Christianity, and the second part of the course (Units 4 and 5) focuses on the origins and early development of Christianity under the Principate and the early Empire.

Special attention is paid to the historical evidence for the life of Jesus of Nazareth and the beginnings of the Church, to the seminal theology and influence of Paul of Tarsus, and to the controversial issues involved in dating and interpreting the three Synoptic Gospels. Although the course employs a historical perspective, its overall approach is interdisciplinary, drawing upon the insights of classical scholars, literary critics, theologians, and historians of the ancient world.

Outline

• Unit 1 The Romans and the Roman Republic
• Unit 2 Cicero, Lucretius, and Roman Religion
• Unit 3 The Early Empire and Roman Literature
• Unit 4 The Beginnings of Christianity
• Unit 5 The Synoptic Gospels

Evaluation

To receive credit for HUMN 320, students must achieve a course composite grade of at least "D" (50 percent) and a grade of at least 50 percent on the final examination. The weighting of the composite grade is as follows:

Short Essay	Research Essay	Final Exam	Total
25%	35%	40%	100%

Course Materials

Textbooks

Barrow, R.H. 1949. The Romans. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin.

Chadwick, Henry. 1967. The Early Church. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin.

Christ, Karl. 1984. The Romans: An Introduction to Their History and Civilization. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Gonzalez, Justo L. 1970. A History of Christian Thought: From the Beginning to the Council of Chalcedon. Nashville: Abingdon Press.

The Holy Bible: New International Version-The New Testament.1984. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

Other Material

The course materials include a study guide and student manual.

Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice.
Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized-study counterparts.


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This page was updated by G. Zahara