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Course Info for RELG - 231 - 01, Fall 2026
Class number: 3165 Title: Christianity in the Making Department: Religious Studies
Career: Undergraduate Component: Lecture Session: Regular
Instructor's Permission Required: No Grading Basis: Regular Units: 1.00
Enrollment limited to 39 Current enrollment: 39 Available seats: 0
Start date: Tuesday, September 8, 2026 End date: Wednesday, December 23, 2026 Mode of Instruction: In Person
Schedule: MW: 1:30PM-2:45PM, LSC - AUD Instructor(s): Jones, Tamsin
Prerequisite(s): None
Distribution Requirement: Meets Humanities Requirement
Course Description:
This course will examine the philosophical, cultural, religious and political contexts out of which Christianity emerged from the time of Jesus through the 5th century. Emphasis will be placed on the complexity and diversity of early Christian movements, as well as the process that occurred to establish Christianity as a religion that would dominate the Roman Empire. Topics to be covered will include the writings of the New Testament, Gnostics, martyrdom, desert monasticism and asceticism, the construction of orthodoxy and heresy, women in the early Church, the formation of the biblical canon, and the identity and role of Jesus of Nazareth.