From Perpetua to Dorothy Day: Women's Spiritual Experience from the Early Church to today (CH2215Y)

Undergraduate, 18.0 points

Content

This unit explores the meaning of Christian spirituality using the writings of women throughout history. Emphasis will be placed on the historical context of the primary sources used, the struggles of women in coming to find their own voices within their contexts, the theological relevance of their writings, and the specific literary genres that they used. This study enables students to appreciate both the significance of these writings for their own times, as well as their continuing relevance to our life and mission in the Christian Church today.

Unit code: CH2215Y

Unit status: Approved (Major revision)

Points: 18.0

Unit level: Undergraduate Level 2

Unit discipline: Church History

Delivery Mode: Blended

Proposing College: Yarra Theological Union

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Learning outcomes

1.

Outline the elements that identify Christian Spirituality particularly in relation to women’s writings throughout history.
2.

Articulate the historical context within which selected women communicate Christian spirituality throughout history.
3.

Identify and analyse key features of the Christian spirituality within women’s writings.
4.

Interpret a range of literary genres used by women writers in Christian History.
5.

Critically discuss the implications of the understanding of these texts for ministry in the contemporary Christian church.

Pedagogy

Asynchronous and synchronous lectures, tutorials, and discussion forums

Indicative Bibliography

  • Bennett, Judith M., and Ruth Mazo Karras, eds. The Oxford Handbook of Women and Gender in Medieval Europe. 1st ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013.
  • Castelli, Elizabeth A. Martyrdom and Memory: Early Christian Culture Making. New York: Columba University, 2007.
  • Day, Dorothy. The Long Loneliness. NY: Harper Collins, 2009.
  • Dronke, P. Women Writers of the Middle Ages. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
  • Harrison, Anna, Thousands and Thousands of Lovers: Sense of Community among the Nuns of Helfta. Collegeville, MN.: Cistercian Publications, 2022.
  • Harmless, William. Mystics. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2008.
  • Mayeski, Marie Anne. Women at the Table: Three Medieval Theologians. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press,2004.
  • Woodhouse, Patrick. Etty Hillesum: A Life Transformed. London: Bloomsbury, 2013.
  • Williams, Rowan. Teresa of Avila. London: Continuum, 2004.
  • Wheeler, Bonnie, ed. Listening to Heloise: The Voice of a Twelfth-Century Woman. Basingstoke, Hampshire: Macmillan, 2000.

Assessment

Type Description Word count Weight (%)
Portfolio

Portfolio of 5 Tutorial Exercises of 200 words each

 1000 20.0
Tutorial Paper/Seminar Paper 1000 30.0
Essay 2000 50.0
Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Prof Albert Haddad on 28 Jul, 2025

Unit record last updated: 2025-07-28 08:48:48 +1000