Wealth, Poverty, & Christianity

Instructor: Dr. Jeremy Garber ( jgarber@iliff.edu ) and Dr. Julie Todd ( jtodd@iliff.edu )

Course Synopsis

Arguments about whether Christians are called to be poor or rich, to save or redistribute wealth, are older than the birth of the Christian Bible itself. From Mark 10:25 through medieval Franciscans, from liberation theology to the prosperity gospel, Christian’s thoughts and actions about money have directly impacted the church and the world. This course will introduce students to classic and contemporary texts from a variety of viewpoints that describe the relationship between wealth and poverty and historic and current Christianities. Students will learn to evaluate and formulate their own understanding of the intersection of wealth and religion, both from a theoretical/theological and from a social practical/peace and justice standpoint.

Course Overview

 The course will begin with an introduction to theological study and library resources. We will then look at biblical materials and the discipline of biblical studies; the era of early and medieval Christianities and the discipline of historical study of religion; the Reformation period; and contemporary theologies and the discipline of constructive theology.

The second half of the course will focus on the contemporary period and social justice and ethical approaches to the topic of wealth and poverty. Students will also learn how to view media and textual materials for academic analysis and be introduced to field research in the study of religion.

Course Objectives

1. Students will identify and describe characteristic approaches to the academic study of religion from the disciplines of theology, biblical studies, history, and ethics and social justice.
2. Students will demonstrate critical reading skills, such as the capacity to identify the thesis of a text, its methodology, the contextual situation of the author’s argument in a larger discourse, the contours of its argument, and the implications of its constructive work.
3. Students will demonstrate the capacity to write a brief, thesis-driven paper drawing on textual resources with appropriate academic citation and a writing style appropriate to the genre.
4. Students will be able to identify appropriate academic resources through library research in order to address a research question of significance to them.
5. Students engage in critical, respectful, and constructive academic dialogue and reflection in a diverse cultural setting (the classroom).
6. Students will identify and articulate academic approaches to the study of the concepts of wealth and poverty that are relevant to their personal and professional goals.

Degree Learning Goals: Please take some time to look over the Professional Degree Learning Goals (MDiv, MASC, MAPSC) and the Academic Degree Learning Goals (MTS, MA).

Incompletes:  Due to the official policies of the Iliff Master's Student Handbook, incompletes will not be granted in this course.

Pass/Fail:  Masters students wishing to take the class pass/fail should discuss this with the instructors by the second class session.

Academic Integrity and Community Covenant:  All students are expected to abide by Iliff’s statement on Academic Integrity, as published in the Masters Student Handbook, or the Joint PhD Statement on Academic Honesty, as published in the Joint PhD Student Handbook, as appropriate.  All participants in this class are expected to be familiar with Iliff’s Community Covenant.

Accommodations:  Iliff engages in a collaborative effort with students with disabilities to reasonably accommodate student needs.   Students are encouraged to contact their assigned advisor to initiate the process of requesting accommodations.  The advising center can be contacted at advising@iliff.edu or by phone at 303-765-1146. 

Writing Lab:  Grammar and organization are important for all written assignments.  Additional help is available from the Iliff Writing Lab, which is available for students of any level who need help beginning an assignment, organizing thoughts, or reviewing a final draft. 

Inclusive Language:  It is expected that all course participants will use inclusive language in speaking and writing, and will use terms that do not create barriers to classroom community. Please let the instructors know of your preferred pronouns if you feel comfortable doing so.