ME515: Communicating Christ through Narrative and
Song (4 units)
DESCRIPTION:
The whole world communicates! And
not only in written form. In an age of electronic media, communicators rely
heavily on oral communication forms, the soft media. Communicating to
predominantly oral peoples, whether literate or non-literate, requires
investigating oral communication technologies, among them storytelling, songs,
and proverbs. These are investigated with four goals in mind: to understand our
audience and their perceptions of the world, to discover effective ways to
communicate to oral peoples, to create and develop oral resources for
communicating Christ, and to design strategies for doing oral communication in
Christian witness.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
· Gain
understanding of the impact and role of orality among literate, semi-literate,
and non-literate peoples.
· Develop
skills in discovering, analyzing and interpreting oral communication forms
within varying cultural contexts.
· Explore
ways of using proverbs, story, and songs in Christian worship, witness, and
spiritual formation.
· Learn a
method for working with groups to develop appropriate and relevant oral forms,
i.e. composing songs in groups, for communicating the Gospel.
· Design
and present a contextualized Christian event that communicates a biblical
message through oral forms.
COURSE FORMAT: Lectures, in-class
group presentations, audio and videoclips, and class discussions create an
interactive class format.
REQUIRED READING: If you have
read any of the required texts for another course, please select an alternative
text from the recommended reading list or a book approved by the instructor.
Healey Joseph, MM and Donald
Sybertz, MM Towards an African Narrative Theology. Nairobi, Kenya:
Paulines Publications, Africa, 1996.
King, Roberta R. A Time to Sing: A Manual for the African Church.
Nairobi, Kenya: Evangel Publishing House, 1999.
King, Roberta R. Syllabus and Readings in Oral Communication. Pasadena,
CA: Fuller Theological Seminary, 2000.
Klem, Herbert. Oral Communication of the Scriptures. Pasadena, CA:
William Carey Library, 1978.
Rhoads, David. Mark as Story: An Introduction to the Narrative of a Gospel.
2nd Edition. Fortress Press, 1999.
Steffan, Tom A. Reconnecting God’s Story to Ministry: Crosscultural
Storytelling at Home and Abroad. La Habra, CA: Center for Organizational
and Ministry Development, 1996.
RECOMMENDED READING:
Boomershine, Thomas E. Story
Journey: An Invitation to the Gospel as Storytelling. Nashville: Abingdon
Press, 1988.
Finnegan, Ruth. Literacy & Orality: Studies
in the Technology of Communication. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Graham, William A. Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspects of Scripture in the
History of Religion. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
Ong, Walter J. Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word. New
York: Routledge, 1988.
Sample, Tex. Ministry in an Oral Culture: Living with Will Rogers, Uncle
Remus, & Minnie Pearl. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press,
1994.
Van Engen, Charles, Nancy Thomas, and Robert Gallagher, eds. Footprints of
God: A Narrative Theology of Mission. Monrovia, CA: Marc, 1999.
ASSIGNMENTS:
· Four critical
evaluations of various oral communication formats: 500 words each.
· Group
project.
· 3000 to
3750 word term paper or project.
· ThM
Students: Term paper or project will be 3750 to 5000 words.
PREREQUISITES: None.
RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Elective.
Course fits well into the anthropology or communication concentrations, as well
as the postmodern, urban areas, and children-at-risk. Required for the Global
Worship Concentration.
FINAL EXAM: None.