Introduction to the Course and Resources for Learning

YEAR

1

A course to help you to grow in your faith: to live distinctively, to evangelise effectively, and to serve as a minister of the Gospel.

Introduction to the Course and Resources for Learning

1

Introduction to the Course in Christian studies

Welcome to the Course in Christian Studies! Over the next two years you will study a variety of topics related to the church, your faith, our mission in the world. Some icons (see table below) may help you to navigate through the material.

The course material was refreshed, updated and reformatted © 2013.

Symbols used to help you navigate your way through the material:

/ Opening/closing worship
/ Tutor input
/ Discussion
/ Something for you to do! This may be split into
Essential work and
Further, recommended work.
/ Indicates an activity
/ Indicates working as a whole group
/ Reference: either in the accompanying reading and reference book, the Bible or another book

Year One Synopsis

Unit A

Introduction to Theology – Understanding theology and how to do it from a Christian perspective. We will explore:

o  Experience, tradition

o  Bible

o  Christian

o  Anglican

o  Ourselves and our churches

Unit B

An introduction to the Bible and Old Testament study, giving confidence in handling Biblical material and becoming better acquainted with the Old Testament, through:

o  Different forms of communication

o  Genesis 1-11

o  The Ancestors

o  The Exodus

o  Judges to the exile

Unit C

Continuing examination of the Old Testament and developing knowledge of the Gospels; finding Jesus as the fulfilment of God’s promises to his people, using:

o  Common themes in the Old and New Testaments

o  The world between the Testaments

o  The Synoptic Gospels

o  John’s Gospel

o  What is the Gospel message?

Unit D

A look at Paul’s epistles as he applied the Good News for his communities. Taking an epistle each week, we will look at themes such as:

o  Law

o  Grace

o  The person of Christ

o  Christ’s second coming.

Unit E

The Sacraments and liturgy. This unit will explore Baptism, the Eucharist and ministry, with an emphasis on what they sacraments mean personally and for the church.

o  What is baptism

o  The practice of baptism in our churches

o  What is a sacrament? What is a priest?

o  The Eucharist in history and practice

o  How is receiving communion transformational?

Unit F

Spirituality using patterns of prayer, including the Psalms, to deepen our relationship with God

CCS Resources for Learning

This is designed to help you as you begin the CCS course. It is not an easy thing to return to study or to become accustomed to another subject, but your tutors, your fellow group members and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit are all there to help you. Don’t hesitate to ask!

Keep a Journal

Christian learning involves our whole lives: head and heart, our behaviour and our prayer as much as our thoughts. Keeping a journal is one way of reflecting on what you are discovering about God, recording your questions, answers to prayer, insights and feelings.

A journal can be a private and honest place to:

·  note observations

·  record insights

·  express questions

·  follow growth and change

·  listen to God

·  be myself

·  make connections

·  write your own prayers

You will need a notebook for keeping a Journal. The kind of notebook you choose is important because you are encouraged to keep the Journal for the whole of the Course, not just this introductory unit. So in preparation, find your notebook. It might be:

·  a beautiful hardback notebook which looks and feels special to hold and write in

·  a loose leaf binder so that it is easy to add things in and use plastic inserts for cards, pictures etc

·  a scrap book so that you can glue things in and lay them out attractively

·  created on your p.c.

The important things is that your journal is entirely your own, both in the way you choose to create it and in the sense that it is private. During the course you will be expected to contribute your thoughts, insights, experiences and reflections, to the group, and you will be invited to reflect in your Journal. But you will not be asked to show your Journal to anyone, it is a sacred place for you and your spiritual life.

Your journal is a place to reflect on the connections between what you are learning on the Course, and how new insights make a difference to the way you live in your own unique context. Perhaps you are exploring the Christian faith, perhaps you are seeking to live as a Christian disciple. Where are the connections between the Course and your spiritual growth, your work, relationships and the wider world? This may raise lots of questions which may not have easy or immediate answers, and you may find it helpful to express those questions and thoughts as prayers as you go along.

A journal can be a place you make a habit of writing in every day, or you can make an entry on particular days when you have been aware of questions or insights. Some people like to copy in short quotes from books, poems, prayers, hymns or verses of Scripture which have been especially meaningful. Sometimes it’s helpful to have a pattern of reflection:

Description – What happened? Who was there?

Interpretation/analysis - What did I feel? Why did I respond in the way I did? What are the most important/relevant aspects? How does it link to theory? What went well/what didn’t?

Outcome/evaluation - What have I learned? What would I change?

Find a Spiritual Companion

Many people find it helpful to talk to someone about their relationship with God, either as mutual friends, or with someone who is wiser and more experienced than yourself. Such a person may be called a ‘spiritual director,’ a ‘soul friend,’ or a ‘prayer companion.’ This is especially helpful during a time of change and learning and, if you have not already established such a relationship, now is a good time to start.

You could ask someone you know to pray with you, or you could approach the Spiritual Direction Co-ordinating Group for assistance. See http://www.spiritual-direction-in-essex.org.uk/ for more details.

Make your own glossary

During the course you will meet new words. You may wonder why the writers don’t use words that are understood by everybody! But, in fact, some of these words have no direct equivalent and you would lose some of the richness of meaning if they were substituted for something else.

Anywhere you work, any hobby you have, and any community that you are a part of will have some words which are special and used in a particular way. You may not even be aware of them, but they may seem like ‘jargon’ to others. It’s important not to exclude people by the language we use, but also, since we are trying to learn about God, to pick up some of the ways that others have tried to describe God.

As you begin reading start to make your own glossary. Write down any words that are not clear and, with a dictionary or by asking someone, find out what it means. Don’t hesitate to ask your tutor! Then look out for them appearing again and see if they are clearer now.

How to read and make notes[1]

Be selective about what you read and remember you can’t read everything. Don’t spend time reading in detail without first checking how relevant the text is. You can do this by:

·  Surveying the text by looking at the table of contents, chapter headings, abstracts and summaries. This will help you assess the material so you can decide if it contains the information you need.

·  Scanning to get a general feel for the text. Look over the material quickly for key words, headings and illustrations. You can get an idea of what the text is about by reading the first and last sentence of each paragraph.

Closer Reading After deciding if it is relevant, you will sometimes need to analyse, question and evaluate what you are reading. Some useful questions include asking yourself:

·  Who is the author/source? Are they credible?

·  What is the main argument?

·  What evidence does the author use to support the argument?

·  Do you agree with the author, if so why? /why not?

·  How can you use this information (e.g. assignment/report/presentation)?

Make notes to help you remember key points. Your notes will prove useful when writing assignments. When you are making notes don’t write out every thing again! If you are keeping the book you might want just to jot down a note and the page number so that you can find something again. If you want to make a summary keep asking yourself what the main points are and only record those.

Take regular breaks when you are reading or studying. Reading for short periods of time of about 20-30 minutes should be enough to really focus on the text and take in as much as possible. Read in an environment that is comfortable and free of distractions as this will help improve your concentration.

Review in short chunks. After reading a passage, put the book down and try to recall what it said. You will get better and better at this! It will help you to absorb what has been written.

You could try following the pattern SQ3R:

Survey the material, skimming it to see if there is anything useful

Question the text: What is it saying? How does it agree or disagree with other texts? Is it useful for the assignment?

Read the text more closely and make notes

Recall Put the notes to one side and try to remember what they said

Review: Re-read your notes and the text to check your memory and your understanding.

Checking your sources

There is a vast amount of information out there in books, magazines and, particularly, on the internet. Though this is a wonderful resource and means everyone is able to have access to information, there is no regulation of the internet and much of it is inaccurate, biased and misleading. Try asking the following questions, using the mnemonic CARS.

Credibility: / • Is there evidence of the author’s standing amongst their peers?
• Check for information about the author’s education, training and experience in the field.
• Look for biographical information such as the author’s title (Dr., Prof. etc.) and career history.
Accuracy: / • Is there a date on the information?
• Is the information current, or are the ideas now outdated?
• Is the information detailed, exact and comprehensive?
Reasonableness / • Does the article present a balanced argument?
• Is the tone of the writing reasoned?
• How objective is the author?
• Is the information consistent?
• Are there conflicts of interest?
Support: / • Where did the information come from?
• Are the sources for the information listed?
• Is there a bibliography?
• What support does the author give for the information provided?
• Is contact information provided for the author?

Recommended websites include:

BBC www.bbc.org.uk/learning Look for ‘Religious Studies’

Open University www.ou.ac.uk

(Note, any website ending “.ac.uk” is a British university)

www.biblegateway.com Good for searching the Bible in several different translations

www.oremus.org Daily prayer and worship resources

At http://www.vtstutorials.co.uk/tutorial/religiousstudies you will find information on how to use the internet for theological research:

Completing an assignment

You may not have done much study since school – or you may have a post graduate qualification in a maths or science subject. Either way, if a written assignment seems daunting, here’s some tips. There are other kinds of assessments as well as essays, these tips relate to them all.

PLAN!

Planning your assignment can help in several ways. Firstly it focuses you on what the assignment is really asking for. It then helps you create a structure for your assignment, and then guides you through working within that structure. It gives you a timescale to work to which, if followed, will help avoid any last minute rush. By creating and following an assignment plan, your work will be better prepared, written and presented.

Steps for Planning Your Assignment

1.  Analyse the question.

What is it you are being asked to do? Is it an essay? Is it a presentation? Is it a report? Look for the type of activity you are being asked to carry out. Are you being asked to evaluate? Discuss? Compare? Each of these will result in a different final piece of work. Are there multiple sections to the question? If so, make sure you answer each part fully.

2.  What do you already know? Try making a list of everything you already know about the assignment subject. Can you identify any areas that you need to work on?

3.  Start your research. Identify relevant information resources. Start researching your assignment subject. Stay focused on what you need to know for your assignment. Keep a list of searches you have conducted.

4.  Read. Make notes; identify which parts relate to the assignment question. Try and spot recurring themes, separate your search results into these themes. This can then form the basis of your assignment.

5.  Develop a first draft. You now have a quantity of information about different themes, all relevant to your assignment. You can now write a first draft using the information you have gathered to answer the question set. At this point, it is just a first draft; it does not need to be perfect.

6.  Second draft. Read through your first draft. Can it be improved? Does it fully answer the question? Do the paragraphs follow on from each other? Only include one argument or point of information per paragraph – this will make your work easier to read and understand.

Does the conclusion sum up what you have written and answer the question? Do not include any new information in your conclusions –If there is new information to be presented, it should be included in the main body of your assignment.