Papers from Corey’s Master’s Degree in Theology - Fuller Seminary (2000-2003)

(Please be aware that only the documents that have hyperlinks – underlined – are available to be read at this point. If you see other papers/topics listed here that you would like to read, please email me and ask me to publish it. I will be making most of these available
over time. See note concerning Adobe Acrobat at bottom of page if you cannot open these documents.)


Church History

Term Papers

  1. * The Criteria for Development of the New Testament Canon in the First Four Centuries of the Christian Church
  2. * John Wycliffe’s Motivation for Translating the Scriptures into his Vernacular Language
  3. * The Factors that Allowed the Development of Religious Freedom and Pluralism in Colonial America

Essay Questions 
(Please note the unpolished nature of these essays; they were closed book essays written under a time constraint.)

  1. How did the change in the legal status of the Church in the early fourth century (i.e. Constantine 's conversion and its impact) affect the development of the Church life, practice, worship and thought in the post-Nicene era? Be inclusive.
  2. Discuss the growth and impact of asceticism/monasticism upon the development of theology and church life in the Early Church era. Do not neglect its impact up on the theology of women.
  3. What role did mysticism play in the history of the Church?
  4. In what ways did the Catholic Reformation work to revitalize the church in the sixteenth century?
  5. Discuss and evaluate the paradigm shift of the late 19th century involving how knowledge is to be gathered, organized, and evaluated. How did the evolutionary model, comparative religion studies, Freudian theory, and biblical criticism influence this revolution?
  6. What is covenant theology? Contrast the “Covenant of Works” and “Covenant of Grace.” In what ways did covenant theology have a significant impact upon American colonial Church and society (give several examples)?

 

Systematic Theology

Theological Position Papers

  1. Justification: Emphasizing the Distinction between Protestant and Roman Catholic Thought
  2. Sanctification (Objective & Subjective-God's Operation & Our Cooperation-Good Works)
  3. Unity of the Person of Jesus Christ as God-man
  4. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
  5. Death
  6. Judgment
  7. The Millennium and the Second Coming of Christ
  8. Simple Outline of Six False Views of the Person of Christ
  9. Study Questions Regarding the Doctrine of Atonement

Term Papers

  1. * Homosexuality in the Church - from a Theological Perspective
  2. <!> God's Sovereignty and Human Suffering

 

Old Testament

O.T . Essay Questions

  1. Wilderness Wandering
  2. Covenant, Deliverance, and Creation Seen in the Pentateuch
  3. Creation and Re-Creation in Gen 1-11
  4. Different Theologies in the Pentateuch –Lay, Folk, Ministry, Academic
  5. Hebraic Holiness-Contemporary Discussions
  6. Compare and contrast the messages of Jeremiah and Hosea
  7. Two stories in 1-2 Kings: Elijah and Elisha
  8. Compare and contrast what prophetic figures do
  9. How does Jeremiah respond to the neo-Babylonian crisis
  10. How does Micah respond to the neo-Assyrian crisis
  11. The Psalms Contribution to Spirituality
  12. Compare the Theology of Jobs Four Counselors with the Whirlwind Speeches
  13. Compare and Contrast Jesus as Sage with Hidden Wisdom
  14. Compare-Contrast Brueggeman versus Peterson
  15. Describe and Critique “Character in Crisis”

O.T. Term Papers

  1. The Abrahamic Covenant Compared to Other Ancient Near East Covenant Forms
  2.   <!> Examining Jeremiah 29 to Ascertain Whether the Jewish Exiles Understood the Theological Significance of Jerusalem’s Destruction

 

Psalms

  1. * Exegetical Paper on Psalm 19
  2. * Theological Reflections on the Book of Psalms

 The Gospels

Essay Questions

  1. The Synoptic Problem
  2. The Theme of the Parables
  3. Jesus as the Shepherd in Mark 6
  4. The Theme of Righteousness in Matthew’s Gospel
  5. Five Major Themes in Luke’s Gospel
  6. The Role of John the Baptist
  7. The Meaning of the ‘Word’ (Logos) in the Prologue of John’s Gospel

Term Paper

  1. * The Evidence from History and the Gospels that Jesus Spoke Greek

 

New Testament Writings

  1. * How the Death and Resurrection of Christ Affects the Behavior of Believers
    1. Short Version (3 pages double-spaced)
    2. Long Version (7 pages double-spaced)

Essay Questions

  1. The Development of the Christian Canon, Including Marcion’s Influence
  2. * The Relationship between Faith and Works in James and Paul
  3. The Genre of Revelation: How it Affects Exegesis and Hermeneutics
  4. The Recipients and Major Themes of the Pastoral Epistles

Analytical Outlines of NT Books

  1. Analytical Outline of Romans
  2. Analytical Outline of 1 Corinthians
  3. Analytical Outline of Hebrews
  4. Analytical Outline of Revelation

 

Ephesians

  1. The Question of the Authorship of Ephesians
  2. Personal Insight from Ephesians 4
  3. Soteriology in Ephesians (Contrasted with Other Pauline Literature)
  4. Practical Implications of Ephesians 4:1-11
  5. Exegetical Paper on Ephesians 3:14-19

 

Advanced Greek Class

  1. <!>  Discourse Analysis of the Book of Titus

 

New Testament Exegesis

  1. Exegetical Paper on Titus 3:1-7

 

Foundations for Ministry

  1. Theological Reflections on the Nature of Ministry
  2. Theological Reflections on the Nature of Ministry: Loving Yourself
  3. Theological Reflections on the Nature of Ministry: Loving God

 

The Bible and Social Ethics

  1. How Kant and MacIntyre Would Argue Regarding Abortion
  2. Describe and Critique Bonhoeffer's Contribution to Christian Ethics
  3. What Kinds of Paradigmatic Stories in the Old Testament Help Us Make Better Ethical Decisions
  4. Four of the New Testament’s Most Important Ethical Themes
  5. How Niebuhr’s Relational Understanding of Love and Justice Impact Contemporary Ethics

 

Christian Apologetics

  1. The Apologetic Mix in the Ministry of the Apostle Paul

 

Book Reviews

Critical Book Reviews

  1. "Truth is Stranger Than It Used to Be: Biblical Faith in a Postmodern Age" Written by J. Richard Middleton & Brian J. Walsh
    (You may be interested in my views on postmodernism contained in the last section of the above review.)
  2. “Computer Ethics: Cautionary Tales and Ethical Dilemmas in Computing” by Tom Forester and Perry Morrison
  3. “Reading Law: The Rhetorical Shaping of the Pentateuch” by James Watts
  4. “An Introduction to the Old Testament Prophetic Books” by C. Hassell Bullock
  5. “Reason for Being: A Meditation on Ecclesiastes” by Jacques Ellul

Book Descriptions

  1. “Boundaries” by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend
  2. “The New Dare to Discipline” by James Dobson
  3. “Love Won Out” by John and Anne Paulk
  4. “Telling Yourself the Truth” by William Backus and Marie Chapian
  5. “The Safest Place on Earth” by Larry Crabb
  6. “The Wounded Healer: Ministry in Contemporary Society” by Henri J.M. Nouwen

 

Annotations:

* indicates more interesting and beneficial papers for the general audience

<!> indicates more interesting and beneficial papers for the more theologically inclined person

 

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