Russian church history course at SWU
A survey of Russian church history will be offered at Southern Wesleyan University in Central. The class will meet on Tuesday evenings from 6:15 to 9 p.m., Jan. 10 – April 18, 2006.
Topics will include the Byzantine roots of Russian Orthodoxy, Orthodox church-state relations, Roman and Eastern-Rite Catholicism, the origins of Protestantism, Marxism as religion, Christianity in the Soviet and post-Soviet eras, Orthodox-Evangelical relations and Protestant missions in the former Soviet Union. The focus will be on the Soviet and post-Soviet periods.
The instructor, Dr. Mark Elliott, is a professor of history and coordinator of studies in history at Southern Wesleyan University. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Asbury College and master’s and doctorate degrees from the University of Kentucky.
Elliott is the author of “Pawns of Yalta; Soviet Refugees and America’s Role in Their Repatriation.” He is founding editor of the “East-West Church and Ministry Report” and a founding trustee of the Russian-American Christian University in Moscow.
He is also the author of numerous articles about Soviet history and church issues in former Soviet bloc countries. Elliott has led many study courses and short-term missions to the former Soviet Union, including summer camps for Russian orphans and an exchange program with Moscow State University.
The cost of the course is $90 to audit (no university credit) or $250 for high school seniors and juniors for credit. Senior citizens (age 60 or older) may audit the course at no charge or take the course for university credit for $15. The course is $760 for students who already hold a bachelor’s degree by an accredited college or university and have been out of college for more than one year and $1,420 (for credit) for students not fitting any of these categories, and not seeking a degree at SWU.
For details, call SWU Admissions at 1-800-282-8798, ext. 5550.