M9625
Course Unit Outline
Unit Code
M9625
Unit Name
Faith, Mission & Culture
Unit Weighting
9 credit points
Type of Unit
Specialised
Prerequisites
M8510 Evangelising Mission Today
Academic Staff
Noel Connolly BA [Macquarie University, 1981], STL [Rome, 1976], Master of Business Studies
[Dublin City University, 1993]
The SCD Registry of Teachers lists all teachers accredited to teach this course unit.
Curriculum Objectives
This unit builds on M8510 Evangelising Mission Today by applying its insights to the question of
culture. It is particularly concerned with the dynamic interaction between the faith of a community
and its culture and with the critical need for inculturation if evangelisation is to be meaningful,
deep and effective.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this unit students will be able to:
1. show a mastery of the basic anthropological concepts concerning culture
2. give a thorough account of the dynamic of inculturation and its history in the Scriptures and
the life of Church
3. analyse and evaluate the theological concept of inculturation and its importance for effective
evangelisation
4. identify the principal values and challenges in Australian culture and begin to develop an
Australian theology
5. specify aspects of their own Church in need of inculturation and develop appropriate strategies
for inculturation
Threshold concept to be acquired in this unit
Every human being is social and enculturated. Our culture influences what we think, how we feel,
our questions, what we can hear and what is meaningful to us. This means that : 1] we must
evangelise cultures as well as individuals; 2] our faith and our message must be inculturated to be
meaningful and effective; 3] without inculturation conversion is not profound and evangelisation
incomplete; and 4] every culture needs its own theology.
Content
1. Introduction to the basic anthropological concepts: culture, symbols, myth, ritual, enculturation
and acculturation
2. Inculturation in the Scriptures; the history of inculturation in the Church; the theology of
inculturation
3. Models of Contextual Theology; Local Theology
4. The Church’s encounter with Modernism & Postmodernism
5. Australian identity, approach to religion and spirituality
6. Other Australian contexts: aboriginal; multicultural; multifaith; fundamentalism
7. Developing an Australian theology
Learning Activities
Lectures & Tutorials
Required Specialist Facilities or Equipment
Nil
Assessment Profile
Assessment tasks are designed both to help students attain the unit outcomes and enable lecturers
to assess student attainment. In this unit, through the required assessment tasks students will be
able to:
1. Engage critically with selected readings in contextual theology, e.g. in a short essay or seminar
presentation. [Outcomes 1, 2, 3 & 4]
2. Draw out the missiological implications of some specific Australian myth, ritual, practice or
event, e.g. in a student debate or in an essay. [Outcomes 1, 2, 3 & 4]
3. Critically apply the principles of mission and contextual theology to the Australian context (e.g.
in a major essay or presentation). [All the outcomes but especially 3, 4 & 5]
Representative References
1. Arbuckle, Gerald A. Culture, Inculturation, Theologians: A Postmodern Critique. Collegeville,
Minnesota: Michael Glazier, 2010.
2. Bevans, Stephen & Roger Schroeder. Constants in Context. Maryknoll: Orbis. 2004.
3. Bevans, S. Models of Contextual Theology. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2002.
4. Bouma, G. Australian Soul: Religion and Spirituality in the Twenty-first Century. Melbourne:
Cambridge University Press, 2006.
5. D’Orsa, James & Therese. Explorers, Guides and Meaning-Makers: Mission Theology for Catholic
Educators. Mulgrave: John Garratt, 2010.
6. Langmead, R. (ed). Reimaging God and Mission. Adelaide: ATF Press, 2007.
7. Mackay, H. Advance Australia …Where? How we’ve changed, why we have changed and what
will happen next. Sydney: Hachettte Australia, 2007.
8. Malone, P. (ed). Developing an Australian Theology. Sydney: St Paul’s Publications, 1999.
9. Shorter, A. Evangelization and Culture. London: Geoffrey Chapman, 1994.
10. Tacey, D. ReEnchantment: The New Australian Spirituality. Sydney: Harper Collins Publishers.
2000.
11. Thornhill, J. Making Australia: Exploring our National Conversation. Newtown, Sydney:
Millennium Books, 1992.
12. Walls, Andrew & Cathy Ross (eds). Mission in the 21st Century: Exploring the Five Marks of
Global Mission. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2008.