| Course Description and Objectives This course will help students understand the origins of the denomination, including its Anabaptist and Radical Pietist roots, as well as changes to the denomination over the past 300 years. Emphasis will be placed on Brethren theological understandings and how these have impacted its history.
After successfully completing this course, the student will be able to:
- Recognize the Anabaptist and Radical Pietist influences of the early Brethren.
- Identify the origins of the Brethren movement and how it developed into its own church denomination, including important people who helped shape the denomination.
- Identify the theological issues involved in the formation of the Brethren and how differing theological understandings led to later divisions within the church.
- Relate how those theological issues changed over time, especially moving from their sectarian roots towards the twentieth-century shift of becoming mainstream.
Required Text Donald F. Durnbaugh, Fruit of the Vine: A History of the Brethren, 1708-1995, Brethren Press, second edition, 2008. ISBN: 0871780038
Schedule The course will be held from March 16 – May 11, 2026.
Expectations Distance learning, especially during intensives, requires students to be disciplined in their time management. Students are expected to do all preparatory work and assignments as listed in the syllabus. The syllabus will be emailed to students upon registration.
Students will need basic computer skills, an e-mail account, access to the internet with an up-to-date web browser (Firefox, Safari, Edge, Chrome, etc.), and Zoom. While broadband is preferred, dial-up internet can be used for coursework, though video and audio resources may be difficult to use.
|
