Master's Specialization in Church History/Historical Theology

Today Christians are asking who they are, what they believe, and why. Young believers yearn for community, accountability, spirituality, and mystery. They find answers to these key questions in the study of Christian history. Here they can appreciate the sense of belonging, not only to the global twenty-first century Church, but also to the Church across the centuries. They can confirm or change their own understanding as they see share experiences with those who yearned to know Christ in other times and other cultures. They can be mentored by the great spiritual masters, evangelists, missionaries, and church leaders throughout the centuries.

Church History/Historical Theology is the study of the Church’s past in order to understand the present and to improve the future. We stand in the roaring stream of a great “cloud of witnesses” who are now with Christ, but who passed the faith to us so we can pass the faith to our children. Like us, they studied Biblical passages, considered Christian doctrines, and developed faith practices. By including them in our lives we expand our horizons, increase our community, and provide accountability across cultural and temporal lines.

Christian history informs the very core of effective Biblical exegesis, preaching, teaching, ethics, spirituality, worship, and ecumenism, among others. Apart from this rich heritage, contemporary Christians are left to understand Scripture and reality through the isolated lens of their own cultural presuppositions and preferences. Including multiple cultural perspectives—both contemporary and historical—increases the probability of a more complete experience of Scripture, faith, and practice.

Studying Church History/Historical Theology will help you to:

  • Discover important parts of your Christian identity
  • Develop spiritually through the mentoring of the Church’s great spiritual masters
  • Know the great doctrines of the faith and how their understanding developed
  • Connect with the great leaders, teachings, documents, and developments in the Church throughout the ages
  • Test your own faith by the faith and biblical understanding of Christians across cultures and centuries
  • Fill gaps in your own theological commitments and perspectives
  • Expand your historical, theological, and future horizons by considering truths you might not otherwise have discovered

What Current Church History/Historical Theology Students Are Saying...

Jim Clark, MDiv

One of the greatest things about Dr. Rea is that he always has time for every single student. I have never spoken with Dr. Rea when I have gotten the sense that he didn’t have time to talk or didn’t want to talk to me about what was happening in my life, ministry or education. On the contrary, I thoroughly enjoy discussions and conversations with Dr. Rea both inside and outside of the classroom.
--Jim Clark, MDiv student
Student Minister, Fox Valley Christian Church, Batavia, IL

Sonny Clark, MDiv

I chose to study Church History/Historical Theology track because of my passion to study the spiritual masters. Dr. Rea gives the opportunity in each class to be mentored by a spiritual master from the corresponding era. I have the opportunity to study masters like Anthony, John Cassian, Benedict, Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Avila, the Pietists, Brother Lawrence, John Woolman, John Wesley, Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen, and Mother Teresa. Not only do I have the chance to read these great men and women but I get to read them in their historical contexts so that I better understand what shaped and formed them. I am excited about my degree path because I will regularly be rubbing shoulders with the great spiritual leaders of Christianity. I am bound to grow closer to my Lord and Savior sitting at the feet these men and women listening to and applying their advice to my everyday life.
--Sonny Clark, MDiv student
Pastor to Youth and Young Adults, Calvary Mennonite Church, Washington, IL

Dave Hershey, MDiv

When I came to Lincoln Christian Seminary I was randomly given Dr. Bob Rea as my adviser. From the very beginning Dr. Rea was more than just an adviser. He was a friend and mentor. After the MDiv, my decision to pursue an M.A. in church history/historical theology, a subject I was always interested in, was motivated by knowing him. It would be very tempting to make church history classes simply an information dump, but Dr. Rea always shows that the lessons of history are applicable to ministry today. Now I serve as campus pastor at Penn State University Berks campus, an hour from Philadelphia. Whether it is the challenge of trying to build a community that includes diverse Christians coming from the spectrum of Christian heritages, applying the scriptures to students' lives, talking with skeptical and cynical students, or working to balance ministry with family, the lessons from Bob's teaching in class and his example as a Christian mentor continue to impact me.
--Dave Hershey, M.Div. graduate
MA student, Campus Minister, Penn State Berks, Reading, PA

Julie Yarwood, MDiv

Though I had high expectations as I entered the church history/historical theology program at Lincoln Christian Seminary, I can say with confidence that both academically and spiritually I gained much more than I could have ever dreamed during my time as a student. Dr. Rea’s passion for the subject is evident in every aspect of his teaching. My personal devotional life has been forever impacted by his challenge to learn from spiritual masters throughout history. Both in and out of class, he encouraged me to think as an individual and to engage the material being presented. In each step of the academic process, I was challenged to view theology from a historical perspective. As I began to understand the development of doctrine and the evolution of religious movements and theological positions, my own faith was challenged as well. I was forced to seek answers for questions that I had never asked before. Through this journey, class discussions provided a time to engage in genuine dialogue with Dr. Rea and other students who were also seeing how church history matters in their own lives and ministries. I am honored to say that I had the opportunity to be impacted by Dr. Rea and that my life is changed because of my time as a student at Lincoln Christian Seminary.
--Julie Yarwood, MDiv graduate
PhD Student, Catholic University of America, Washington DC

Titus Benton, MA

My work in Church History/Historical Theology under Dr. Bob Rea profoundly impacted my view of the church, spirituality, and practical ministry. Under his patient guidance, I grew to love the church more deeply and practice my own spirituality more dynamically. Furthermore, my own ministry to students was put in the perspective of great thinkers like Augustine, Thomas à Kempis, and Martin Luther. A previously foggy understanding of the legacy of the church through the ages was made more clear, and I gained access to ancient insights that are just as valuable today as they were when first recorded by their authors. Perhaps most importantly, I did not simply learn facts. Instead, with Dr. Rea’s unique teaching style providing the framework, I learned to think in new ways. My processes of observation, critique, and methodology were permanently affected. I no longer see the church, society, or myself the way I once did. My education, full of individual and community learning settings, transformed me for good.
--Titus Benton, MA graduate
Associate Student Minister, First Christian Church of Florissant, MO
Author of Echoes: Reflections on Our First Fifty Years

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