Electronic Reserves: http://libweb.uoregon.edu/~acs/reserve-index.html 

Course Description

Over the centuries, the Christian tradition has repeatedly sought to identify and promote a “true” religious discourse, generally known as “orthodoxy.”  Correlate with the production of this discourse of religious truth is the identification and refutation of various “heresies,” that is, theological positions deviant from the truth of Christian orthodoxy.  As we will discover, however, heresy is generally not the “perversion” of a more primitive orthodoxy, as our “orthodox” sources would have us believe.  On the contrary, it seems that heterodoxy, that is, theological diversity, is the more primitive condition, and the “unity” of orthodoxy is forged only at the expense of this original diversity.  In this course we will study a variety of “heretical” beliefs from ancient Christianity, attempting to sift through the often caustic rhetoric of their opponents to recover these alternative visions of Christian truth.  In particular, we will focus especially on possible connections between "heretical" forms of Christianity and various other social and cultural forces of early medieval society.

Requirements

1.     Preparation of reading assignments prior to class and active participation in seminar (30% of grade).

2.     Each student will be responsible for initiating class discussion during one session.  Students will be expected to summarize the main points of the readings for that class and raise specific issues from the material for class discussion (20% of grade).

3.     A research paper or comparable project (ca. 8-10 pgs.; 12-15 pgs. for graduate credit) due Monday 6 Dec., 5 PM in 813 PLC.  Topics to be chosen in consultation with the instructor  (50% of grade).

Textbooks:

• Bart D. Ehrman, Lost Christianities: The Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew Oxford Univ.; ISBN: 0-19-514183-0.

• Bentley Layton, The Gnostic Scriptures, Doubleday; ISBN: 0385478437.

• Coursepack

Many of the reading assignments will be found either on the internet or on electronic reserve, as indicated in the schedule of readings below.  Please print these out and bring them to class.

The Catholic Encyclopedia Although this is an older edition (1907-12), there are many excellent articles on many of the key people, events, concepts, etc. covered in this class.  Although the articles naturally reflect a particularly Roman Catholic point of view, they are almost always fair and accurate.  The articles are often lengthy, but are usually worth the read. 

Glossary of Theological Terms This glossary, taken from Alister McGrath's Christian Theology (2nd edition) published by Blackwell Publishers, provides succinct definitions for a number of theological technical terms.

Course Outline

Week 1: Introduction to the Course & the Problem of “Orthodoxy”

9/28: Introduction

9/30: The Problem of “Orthodoxy” and “Heresy” in Early Christianity

• Ehrman, 1-9; 159-80
• Irenaeus of Lyons and Tertullian: Selections on the Origin of Heresy (web)

Week 2: Heresy as Orthodoxy in Early Christianity (?): Christianity in Syria and Egypt

10/5: "Thomas" Christianity, Jewish Christianity, & Marcionism

• Ehrman, 47-66; 95-112
• Layton, 359-99

10/7: Classical Gnostic Christianity

• Ehrman, 113-34
• Layton, 5-51

Week 3: Valentinus and Valentinian Christianity

10/12: Valentinus & Basilides: Two Early Christian Theologians

• Layton , 217-49; 267-302; 417-44

10/14: The Followers of Valentius: The Valentinian Church

• Layton, 303-54

Week 4: The Struggle to Define “Orthodoxy”

10/19: The War of Words: Orthodox and Anti-Orthodox Polemics

• Ehrman, 135-57; 181-202
• Layton , 199-214
• Ps-Clementines, Epistle of Peter to James (web)
• Kerygmata Petrou (The Preaching of Peter) (web)
• Apocalypse of Peter (web)
• Testimony of Truth (web)

Optional: Gedaliahu A. G.Stroumsa, "Christ's Laughter: Docetic Origins Reconsidered," Journal of Early Christian Studies 12.3 (2004): [Access article in HTML] [Access article in PDF]

10/21: A Discourse of Truth: The Construction of Orthodoxy

• Ehrman, 203-257
• Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Ephesians (web)
• 3 Corinthians (web)
• Muratorian Canon (web)

Week 5: Arius, Arianism, and the Trinity

10/26: Arius and the Council of Nicea

• Athanasius, On the Incarnation, selections (web)

• Arius, Letter to Alexander of Alexandria (web)

• The Nicene Creed (web)

• Athanasius, Defense of the Nicene Definition (web)

• Some important Biblical passages in the Arian controversy

10/28: Recent Approaches to Arianism and the Arian Controversy

• Robert C. Gregg and Dennis E. Groh, “The Centrality of Soteriology in Early Arianism,” Anglican Theological Review 59 (1977): 260-78 (e-reserve)

• Harry O. Meier, "Private Space as the Social Context of Arianism in Ambrose's Milan," Journal of Theological Studies, n.s. 45 (1994): 72-93 (e-reserve)

• Maurice Wiles, “What is Arianism?,” Archetypal Heresy: Arianism through the Centuries, 1-26 (e-reserve)

Week 6: Origen and Origenism

11/2: Origen of Alexandria

• Origen, On First Principles, bk. 1 (coursepack)

11/4: The Origenist Controversy

• Evagrius Ponticus, Letter to Melania (e-reserve)
• Elizabeth A. Clark, “Elite Networks and Heresy Accusations: Towards a Social Description of the Origenist Controversy,” The Origenist Controversy: The Cultural Construction of an Early Christian Debate, 10-42 (e-reserve)
• Elizabeth A. Clark, “Melania the Elder and the Origenist Controversy: The Status of the Body in a Late-Ancient Debate,” Nova & Vetera, 117-127 (e-reserve)

Week 7: Augustine’s Opponents I: Manichaeism & Donatism

11/9: Augustine & the Manichaeans

• The Life of Mani (Cameron and Dewey, The Cologne Mani Codex) (coursepack)
• Augustine of Hippo, Confessions, bk. 5 (web)
• Augustine of Hippo, Disputation with Fortunatus (web)
• Hans-Joachim Klimkeit, Gnosis on the Silk Road : Gnostic Texts from Central Asia (San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1993), 279-86; 325-35 (e-reserve)

11/11: Augustine & the Donatists

• Augustine of Hippo, On Baptism I (web)
• A. H. M. Jones, “Were Ancient Heresies National or Social Movements in Disguise?” Journal of Theological Studies, n.s.10 (1959): 280-86 (e-reserve)
• W. H. C. Frend, “Heresy and Schism as Social and National Movements,” Studies in Church History 9 (1972): 37-49 (e-reserve)
• Robert Markus, "Christianity and Dissent in Roman North Africa," Studies in Church History 9 (1972): 21-36 (e-reserve)
• Peter Brown, "Religious Dissent in the Later Roman Empire: The Case of North Africa," History 46 (1961): 83-101 (e-reserve)

Week 8: Augustine's Opponents II: Pelagius and Pelagianism

11/16: Augustine & the Pelagians

• Pelagius, Letter to Demetrias (e-reserve)
• Augustine, On the Grace of Christ, (web)

11/18: Augustine & the Pelagians: Recent Assessments

• Elizabeth A. Clark, “From Origenism to Pelagianism,” Princeton Seminary Bulletin 12 (1991): 283-303 (e-reserve)
• Peter Brown, "Pelagius and his Supporters: Aims and Environment," Journal of Theological Studies n.s., 19 (1968): 93-114 (e-reserve)
• W. Liebeschuetz, “Did the Pelagian Movement Have Social Aims?” Historia 12 (1963): 227-41 (e-reserve)
• Peter Brown, "Sexuality and Society in the Fifth Century A.D.:  Augustine and Julian of Eclanum,"  Tria Corda.  Scritti in onore di Arnaldo Momigliano, 49-70 (e-reserve)

Week 9: No Class

11/23: No Class – Instructor away for conference

11/25: No Class – Thanksgiving holiday

Week 10: Orthodoxy and Empire

11/30: “Heresy” and “Nationalism”: The Christological Controversies

• The Tome of Leo (web); the Chalcedonian Definition (web)
• L. Woodward, Christianity and Nationalism in the Later Roman Empire, ch. 3 (web)
• A. H. M. Jones, “Were Ancient Heresies National or Social Movements in Disguise?” Journal of Theological Studies, n.s. 10 (1959): 286-97 (e-reserve)

12/2: Rethinking “Heresy” and Identity

• W. H. C. Frend, “Popular Religion and Christological Controversy in the Fifth Century,” Studies in Church History 8 (1972): 19-29 (e-reserve)
• W. H. C. Frend, “Nationalism as a Factor in Anti-Chalcedonian Feeling in Egypt ,” Studies in Church History 18 (1982): 21-38 (e-reserve)
• W. H. C. Frend, “Heresy and Schism as Social and National Movements,” Studies in Church History 9 (1972): 49-56 (e-reserve)
• Sebastian P. Brock, “Christians in the Sasanian Empire: A Case of Divided Loyalties” (e-reserve)