HNR - Honors College

This course exposes students to a broad range of cultural and intellectual experiences in order to enrich their liberal arts foundation and to help develop as Christian agents of discernment in our society and culture. The Honors College will assemble a diverse schedule of events each semester in the arts, humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and religion. Students will be challenged to reflect critically on the meaning and significance of such events within our contemporary social and cultural contexts and in the light of the Christian faith. This course is limited to Honors College students and may be repeated up to 8 hours. Graded on a CR/NC basis.

"Practices of the Faithful - Called to Love" explores many of the Christian practices - such as Sabbath-keeping, prayer, service, and study of Scripture - through which God has sustained faithful Christians across the centuries. Students engage in each practice that is discussed and reflect on the role of Christian practices in their own life calling as participants in God's Love. HNR 130 also assists incoming freshmen with the college transition. Reserved for freshment in the John Wesley Honors College.

"Practices of the Faithful - Called to Create" continues to explore Christian practices through which God has sustained faithful Christians across the centuries, paying particular attention to those that redeem the imagination and cultivate students' creativity as image bearers of God and as part of their life calling.

Liberal Learning and Life Calling Seminars are interdisciplinary studies of the foundational questions intrincis to human existence. Each seminar explores the nature and significance of one of these questions: most fundamentally, within the framework of historic Christian theology and practice, but also in the light of various relevant academic disciplines and contemporary ideologies. The ultimate goal of the seminars is to equip students to better understand the meaning and purpose of life by cultivating an historic Christian vision of human flourishing and the capacity to discern how this vision relates to competing conceptions of human existence. HNR170 focuses on the most central of these foundational questions: 'what is truth?' As the gateway course for the LLLC Seminars, HNR170 introduces students to the nature and purpose of a Christianity, and helps them to understand their lives within the context of a kingdom-of-God calling that thoroughly integrates intellectual, moral, and spiritual formation. Reserved for students in the John Wesley Honors College.

Liberal Learning and Life Calling Seminars are interdisciplinary studies of the foundational questions intrinsic to human existence. Each seminar explores the nature and significance of one of these questions most fundamentally, within the framework of historic Christian theology and practice, but also in the light of various relevant academic disciplines and contemporary ideologies. The ultimate goal of the seminars is to equip students to better understand the meaning and purpose of life by cultivating an historic Christian vision of human flourishing and the capacity to discern how this vision relates to competing conceptions of human existence. HNR-175 explores the nature of beauty in light of God's character, His created order, and humanity's participation in divine creativity. Prerequisite: HNR-170.

This course is an introduction to the meaning and signficance of the Christian canon of Scripture. Students will learn how to read and interpret Scripture as the heart of the historic Christian tradition, attentive to the intepretive wisdom that the Body of Christ has cultivated over the centuries. After an historical study of the formation of the Christian canon, an overview of various unifying theological themes in the Old and New Testaments, and an introduction to the history of Scriptural exegesis from the early Church to modern biblical crticism, students will be instructed in the exegetical process and will be required to demonstrate their learning in the production of an exegetical work. Reserved for students in the John Wesley Honors College.

HNR-185 develops a student's written lieracy through practiced writing, dialogue, and critical thought. Using some of the best Christian fiction and nonfiction prose as a gateway for all writing assignments, this course explores how one's imaginative and rational thought intersect to shape one's vision of beauty, goodness, and truth. The classroom activities and writing assignments will develop a student's skills in expressive, expository, and research writing through an understanding and implementation of various writing patterns and strategies. The course's texts, classroom discussions, research, and written essays will highlight how the world and all that is in it are in constant interaction with the divine.

HNR 101HC is the first in a four-course sequence that Honors College students take to fulfill their General Education Humanities Fine Arts requirement. This course introduces students to the history and significance of the fine arts in antiquity.

HNR 102HC is the second in a four-course sequence that Honors College students take to fulfill their General Education Humanities Fine Arts requirement. This course introduces students to the history and significance of the fine arts in medieval and Byzantine cultures.

HNR 103HC is the third in a four-course sequence that Honors College students take to fulfill their General Education Humanities Fine Arts requirement. This course introduces studentsto the nature and significance of the fine arts in the Renaissance and early modern periods of history.

HNR 104HC is the first in a four-course sequence that Honors College students take to fulfill their General Education Humanities Fine Arts requirement. This course introduces students to the nature and significance of the fine arts in modern and contemporary cultures.

The Honors College will assemble a diverse schedule of events each semester that explore the meaning and significance of our contemporary world. Students will have the opportunity to attend events, both on- and off-campus, from a broad array of areas (e.g., politics, economics, entertainment, world religions, genetics, psychology, technology, and the environment). Students will be challenged to reflect critically on these events, particularly in light of their broader liberal education and their developing understanding of the Christian faith. This course is limited to Honors College students and may be repeated up to six semester hours.

The purpose of this course is to provide a seminar setting in which narrowly defined topics may be subjected to an in-depth and interdisciplinary examination. The course, which will typically be co-taught by faculty from different fields of study, will challenge students to analyze various ideas and issues in a creative and methodological manner, with special attention being given to the broader contexts (historical, social, scientific, etc) within which such subjects must be understood and to the consideration of how a Christian worldview might inform one's perspectives and conclusions.

The purpose of this course is to help students cultivate a deeper understanding of various current events and issues that shape our world. In particular, students will be challenged to consider the meaning and significance of such matters in the light of the Christian faith. Typically, the course will focus on a particular contemporary issue or theme prominent in the news.

This course provides opportunities for Honors College students to grow as Christian liberal learners. Through various readings, discussions, written work, and personal assessments, students are challenged to deepen their understanding of the nature and purpose of a Christian liberal education, equipped to draw their general education and academic majors into formative dialogue with the Christian theological narrative, and taught to pursue an integrative life of learning, spirituality, and service within the context of a holistic Kingdom-of-God vocation. Students integrate the coursework from these tutorials into a Liberal Learning & Life Calling Portfolio (LLLC) that consolidates and documents their growth in the Honors College learning outcomes. This Portfolio culminates in a LLLC capstone course in which Seniors synthesize the fruits of their liberal education and cast a personal vision for the lifelong pursuit of intellectual and spiritual growth. This course is limited to Honors College students and may be repeated up to 6 hours.

"Habits of Faithfulness in One's Life Calling" explores how the Christian practices that students participated in during HNR 130 and HNR 135 might be drawn together into lifelong habits of faithfulness that sustain their life calling.

Liberal Learning and Life Calling Seminars are interdisciplinary studies of the foundational questions intrincis to human existence. Each seminar explores the nature and significance of one of these questions: most fundamentally, within the framework of historic Christian theology and practice, but also in the light of various relevant academic disciplines and contemporary ideologies. The ultimate goal of the seminars is to equip students to better understand the meaning and purpose of life by cultivating an historic Christian vision of human flourishing and the capacity to discern how this vision relates to competing conceptions of human existence. HNR 270 explores what it means to be human and traces how people's various answers to this question-whether by design or default-shape the substance of their daily lives. The course focuses on what it means for humans to be created in the image of the Triune God and to live out the essence of that image in a fallen world. Readings will draw from the creation narratives, the Gospels, Epistle to the Hebrews, as well as disciplines such as anthropology, biology, psychology, philosophy, and sociology. Prerequisite: HNR170

Liberal Learning and Life Calling Seminars are interdisciplinary studies of the foundational questions intrincis to human existence. Each seminar explores the nature and significance of one of these questions: most fundamentally, within the framework of historic Christian theology and practice, but also in the light of various relevant academic disciplines and contemporary ideologies. The ultimate goal of the seminars is to equip students to better understand the meaning and purpose of life by cultivating an historic Christian vision of human flourishing and the capacity to discern how this vision relates to competing conceptions of human existence. HNR 275 explores how the Church understands God's invitation to all of humanity to embrace "the good life." This theological vision of the good life will also engage insights offered by disciplines such as literature, political science, sociology, and economics. In the end, students will develop understandings of how God's call to faithfulness, hope, and love should orient their pursuits of lives well-lived in the face of competing cultural notions of goodness. Prerequisite: HNR170

This course explores the social, political, cultural and literary developments of human history from the 8th Century BCE to 1600 CE. Through key historical sources and literary texts students will examine how various societies through the centuries cultivated particular visions of wisdom, culture, and justice as well as how these visions nurtured key historical developments. Combining elements and methodologies of both Old and New Historicism along with various literary methodologies-new crticism, structuralism, reader response, deconstruction, Marxism, cultural poetics, etc.-this course investigates the shifting paradigms of Western Civilization in order to help students to situate contemporary society in this historical trajectory. Must be taken concurrently with HNR-285. Co-requisite: HNR-285.

HNR280/285 explore the social, political, cultural and literary developments of human history from the 8th Century BCE to 1600 CE. Through key historical sources and literary texts, we will explore answers to the following questions: What is truth? What is humanity? What is the Good Life? and Who is our neighbor? Combining elements and methodologies of both Old and New Historicism along with various literary methodologies-New Criticism, Structuralism, Reader-Response, Deconstruction, Marxism, Cultural Poetics, and others,-these courses will investigate the shifting epistemes of Western Civilization and literature. The success of these interdisciplinary courses is dependent on the presence of both a literature and history professor in each class session. Must be taken concurrently with HNR-280. Co-requisite: HNR-280.

The purpose of this course is to provide a seminar setting in which narrowly defined topics may be subjected to an in-depth and interdisciplinary examination. The course, which will typically be co-taught by faculty from different fields of study, will challenge students to analyze various ideas and issues in a creative and methodological manner, with special attention being given to the broader contexts (historical, social, scientific, etc) within which such subjects must be understood and to the consideration of how a Christian worldview might inform one's perspectives and conclusions.

The purpose of this course is to explore the nature and meaning of Christian scholarship. This will be accomplished in one of two ways: either through the study of thinkers, movements, and/or themes which provide notable and creative models for the integration of faith and reason, or by reflecting critically on contemporary efforts to analyze modern learning and ideas from a biblical perspective. Possible topics may include Augustine's "City of God", the works of Martin Luther, Jonathan Edwards, John Henry Newman or C.S. Lewis; Christian scholarship in the Reformation era; an evaluative survey of Christian Feminism, liberation theology, or Christian approaches to behavioral science. This course may be repeated. Prerequisite: UNV-180.

This course will acquaint students with the nature, roles, and value of humanities/social science research. In small groups, students will explore a specialized topic from the humanities/social sciences by engaging in collaborative research project with an instructor that will culminate in publishable scholarly work(s). This inquiry-based approach to learning should yield a critical appreciation for the humanities and social sciences that helps students to recognize the relevance of such disciplines to their daily lives. The course will also challenge students to cultivate intellectual skills that are essential to the profitable pursuit of a liberal education: e.g., analytical thinking, critical and reflective reading, well-expressed writing, and articulate oral communication.

In this course, students continue to explore the incarnational nature of servant leadership and consider how servant leaders foster redemptive forms of diverse communities. Students collaboratively develop and implement a service project for the Marion Community, ideally one that draws upon their growing expertise in their fields of study. Students also begin to consider post-graduation plans for servant leadership and the transition to life after college. Prerequisite: Junior standing in the John Wesley Scholars Program and the Mary C. Dodd Honors Program.

The purpose of this course is to prepare John Wesley Scholars to undertake an Honors Scholarship Project. Students will cultivate preliminary research skills and methods, sharpen their proficiency in critical analysis, reflect critically on the meaning of Christian scholarship within their chosen discipline(s), and receive guidance in the preparation of their Honors Scholarship Project proposal. After a series of introductory readings and class discussions, students will explore potential avenues of research and/or creativity that might prove fruitful for their Honors Project. Each student's work will culminate in a preliminary Project proposal that has passed through a collaborative process of assessment within the seminar and has been reviewed by a faculty member from the student's area of study.

Liberal Learning and Life Calling Seminars are interdisciplinary studies of the foundational questions intrincis to human existence. Each seminar explores the nature and significance of one of these questions: most fundamentally, within the framework of historic Christian theology and practice, but also in the light of various relevant academic disciplines and contemporary ideologies. The ultimate goal of the seminars is to equip students to better understand the meaning and purpose of life by cultivating an historic Christian vision of human flourishing and the capacity to discern how this vision relates to competing conceptions of human existence. HNR-375 focuses on the character of human community and diversity in light of Christian conceptions of creation, sin, redemption, and reconciliation. Drawing on canonical and theological writings, as well as disciplines such as history, sociology, political science, and intercultural studies, the course will help students to develop both a theologically grounded response to the question, "Who is our neighbor?", and a well-informed understanding of how to embody their response in a variety of diverse contexts. Meets Intercultural Competency requirements. Prerequisite: HNR170

This course explores the social, political, cultural and literary developments of human history from 1600 CE to the present. Through key historical sources and literary texts students will examine how various societies through the centuries cultivated particular visions of wisdom, culture, and justice as well as how these visions nurtured key historical developments. Combining elements and methodologies of both Old and New Historicism along with various literary methodologies-new crticism, structuralism, reader response, deconstruction, Marxism, cultural poetics, etc.-this course investigates the shifting paradigms of Western Civilization in order to help students to situate contemporary society in this historical trajectory. Special emphasis in this course will be placed on explicating "who is our neighbor" as we explore the cultural exchanges that occurred across the global community beginning with the seventeenth century age of exploration and ending with the anticolonial movements of the twentieth century. Prerequisite: HNR-280 and HNR-285. Co-requisite: HNR-385.

This course explores the writings of the major authors of world literature from 1600 CE to the present. By analyzing key literary texts from the Age of Enlightenment through the Twentieth Century, students will learn about the nature and character of the theological/philosophical narratives that shaped these periods of literature. Students will also investigate how each of these major literary periods answers the following questions: What is truth? What is humanity? What is the Good Life? and Who is our neighbor? Utilizing elements and methodologies of both Old and New Historicism, students will author papers that compare and contrast the literary and philosophical assumptions of the various literary periods studied in the course to Christianity. Prerequisites: HNR-280 and HNR-285. Corequisite: HNR-380

The purpose of this course is to provide a seminar setting in which narrowly defined topics may be subjected to an in-depth and interdisciplinary examination. The course, which will typically be co-taught by faculty from different fields of study, will challenge students to analyze various ideas and issues in a creative and methodological manner, with special attention being given to the broader contexts (historical, social, scientific, etc) within which such subjects must be understood and to the consideration of how a Christian worldview might inform one's perspectives and conclusions.

In this course, students continue to consider post-graduation plans for servant leadership and the transition to life after college. They also provide leadership for the HNR-130 retreat, sharing what they have learned with the next generation of JWHC students. Reserved for students with senior standing in John Wesley Honors College.

Liberal Learning and Life Calling Seminars are interdisciplinary studies of the foundational questions intrincis to human existence. Each seminar explores the nature and significance of one of these questions: most fundamentally, within the framework of historic Christian theology and practice, but also in the light of various relevant academic disciplines and contemporary ideologies. The ultimate goal of the seminars is to equip students to better understand the meaning and purpose of life by cultivating an historic Christian vision of human flourishing and the capacity to discern how this vision relates to competing conceptions of human existence. HNR-450 is the capstone for LLLC Seminars. Students in this course draw on their theological work from previous semesters in order to formulate a 'theology of vocation' that integrates their understanding of the historic Christian narrative, their life calling, and their anticipated profession into a holistic vision of human flourishing. Students will also craft an agenda for lifelong learning and character formation in order to prepare them to continue their trajectory of intellectual and spiritual growth in their post-collegiate lives. Prerequisite: HNR170

As an advanced interdisciplinary study of issues related to human life and society, this course will explore the meaning and significance of a contemporary topic through the lenses of multiple academic disciplines. The course topic and the disciplinary methodologies employed will vary from one semester to the next. Ideally, the course will be team taught by faculty members who expertise helps to nurture its interdisciplinary approach. Ultimately, the course will require students to integrate the knowledge and insights of their interdisciplinary study into their vision of life calling and human flourishing. Open to students in John Wesley Honors College.

As the first part of the Honors Scholarship Project, the aim of this independent learning experience is to refine the subject of the Honors Project and begin the formal process of research and/or creative endeavor. Working under the guidance of a faculty mentor, the student establishes a detailed plan of scholarship and begins to pursue it. In addition to regular meetings with the faculty mentor during the semester, the student must submit midterm and final progress reports to the Honors College Director. Prerequisite: HNR-350.

The aim of this independent learning experience is to complete the process of research and/or creative endeavor begun in HNR-498. Working under the guidance of a faculty mentor, the student's work should culminate in a scholarship project that demonstrates rigor and creativity in the field of study. The final Honors Scholarship Project must collectively represent at least 3 hours of work. Prerequisites: HNR-350 and HNR-497.

After completing their Honors Scholarship projects, John Wesley Scholars are required to share the fruits of their scholarship in an on-campus public forum appropriate to their discipline. Through their engagement of a public audience, students should demonstrate both the merits of their Honors Project and a good capacity for addressing feedback about the development and outcomes of their scholarship. Students will also be encouraged to share their work at regional and national conferences and to revise their project for submission to journals of undergraduate scholarship in their disciplines. Prerequisite: HNR-497; HNR-498 must be taken prior to or with HNR-499.