History of Christian Thought Study Guide

Last updated 03/16/2010

 

EXAM II will be held on Monday, March 22nd and will cover the material from Chapters 6, 8, 9 and 10.

 

Format for exam:

Part I. True/false statements (10).

Part II. Matching (10).

Part III. Multiple Choice (10).

Part IV. 3 short essay answer (5 points each)

 

Please review powerpoints as well (posted to Moodle).

 

From Placher Ch 6 "Truly Human, Truly Divine"

Docetism

Arius

Arianism

Athanasius

Nestorianism

Council of Nicea in 325

Council of Chalcedon in 451

theory of recapitulation

Nicene Creed

Principles that guided debates (rf Placher 69)

creating versus begetting

in time versus eternally (rf Placher 74)

idea of "of the same substance"  

Sabellianism

(Skip pages 80-85 although review discussion of Nestorianism on page 81-82.

Mary as the "bearer of Christ" (vs. "mother of God")

From Placher Ch 8 (Augustine)

Monica's role in A's life

The Confessions

The pear-tree incident

A's early Manicheanism

Manichean dualism

A's Platonism

Augustine's "conversion" experience [see passage on page 112]

Donatism

Pelagius and Pelagianism

doctrine of original sin

Augustine's view of grace (see lecture notes)

The City of God

Review final paragraph of chapter as useful summary

From Placher Ch 9 The Path to Salvation

Monasticism

Life of Antony

Sacraments

asceticism

celibacy

Antony

controversy re: marriage

St. Benedict

Eucharist

transsubstantiation

cult of the saints

Mary, debates about Mary

immaculate conception

martyrs

penance, the system of penance

penitentials

a general sense of the tensions between the church and the state  (skim "Popes and Emperors")

 

From Placher Ch 10 "The Fragile Synthesis"

New emphasis on human reason (from God)

Dominicans

Franciscans

St. Anselm

"faith seeking understanding"

Anselm's "ontological argument" for the existence of God

Anselm's view of atonement (owe a debt to God)

Peter Abelard; Abelard's view of the significance of God's love in Christ (145)

Heloise

Bernard of Clairvaux

Conflict between Bernard and Abelard

Bernard's view of the disinterested love of God

Cathari

Dominican "friars"

St. Francis of Assisi, the Franciscans

ideal of poverty

Aristotle; suspicious of Aristotle

Thomas Aquinas

Aquinas on reason and revelation

Aquinas on nature and grace

Aquinas' argument for the existence of God  - beginning from observations about the world

new attitude toard the body

"natural law"

changing attitudes towards papal authority