Fall '07 Semester in Swing

The fall semester is full throttle right now, so I thought I would take some time to share what I'm taking and reading.

Principles, Methods, and Strategies: I think that anyone desiring to be involved in local ministry here in the states should be in the mission concentration at Truett. It's only here that we read books that really get you to think, and our discussion usually take place outside of the box, teetering on revolution every day. I'm enjoying this class much more than I originally thought I would. Outside of some articles on missionary roles, we are reading:

John Nevius- The Planting and Developing of Missionary Churches
Jonathan Bonk- Missions and Money
Thomas Kuhn- The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Roland Allen- The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church

Biblical Themes and Theology: in this class we are picking up a new hermeneutic for reading the Bible- primarily missional. I'm preparing a paper on "Reconciling Economics," a biblical look at reconciliation and economics.

Jonathan Wright- The Mission of God
David Smith- Mission After Christendom
Harry Boer- Pentecost and Missions

TnT 3 (Texts and Traditions): This class is one of the reasons I came to Truett. Although, I must admit that Truett teaches theology historically by reading the primary sources, I am disappointed that my teacher this semester is a systematic theologian. Therefore, we are reading the primary sources, but these sources are structured around the Apostles Creed.

Karl Barth- Dogmatics in Outline
Wolfhart Pannenberg- The Apostles' Creed in Light of Todays Questions
Joseph Ratzinger- Introduction to Christianity
Hans Kung- Credo
Roger Can Harn- Exploring & Proclaiming the Apostles' Creed
we are also reading some Moltmann, Schleiermacher, Achetemeier, and Zannoni

Scriptures 4- Somehow in one semester we are going to cover the New Testament from Romans to Revelation. This class is reading intensive to say the least. I am doing my research paper on Paul and his relationship to Israel in Rom. 9-11.

Raymond Brown- An Intro to the New Testament
Meeks and Fitzgerald- Norton's The Writings of St. Paul
David Horrell- An Intro to the Study of Paul
Jouette Bassler- Navigating Paul
Richard Bauckham- The Theology of the Book of Revelation


As you can tell, this semester is quite reading intensive. With that said, I do have a few other reads I am trying to get through for myself that may or may not happen.

Levitt & Dubner- Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
Either Thomas Friedman' The World is Flat or The Lexus and The Olive Tree
Since are not reading much of Multmann, I plan on working through one of these on my book shelf: The Crucified God, Theology of Hope, or The Trinity and the Kingdom
And lastly, maybe to pick up for our Bible Study- Walsh & Keesmatt- Colossians Remixed