CH 311 Course at a Glance (2025)

The Reformation

Lectures By: Dr. Herman Selderhuis

3 Credits


Course Description

This course will introduce you to the major events, personalities, and ideas which shaped the Reformation of the 16th and 17th centuries. Topics and personalities include the late medieval context, Luther, Calvin, Erasmus, Zwingli, Bucer, Melanchthon, the Reformation in the Netherlands.


Books to Purchase

The books listed below are required readings which students should acquire by the start of the term. Additional required readings will be listed in the course syllabus and available electronically in Canvas.

Reformation Theology: A Systematic Summary
by Matthew Barrett

Crossway, 2017
ISBN: 9781433543289
The European Reformation
by Euan Cameron
Oxford University Press, 2012
ISBN: 9780199547852
Creeds, Confessions, and Catechisms: A Reader's Edition
by Chad Van Dixhoorn
Crossway, 2022
ISBN: 9781433579875
You will choose a key academic text written in the past 15 years on the Reformation.
The book you review should be about 250-350 pages long.

Estimated Workload

Lectures Readings Assignments
1.3 51 2
Hours Per Week Pages Per Week Hours Per Week

Course Assignments

The assignments listed below are provided for general guidance for students to reference as they plan and register. Please reach out to support@wts.edu if you have any questions.

  • Class Meetings [4 - 1-1.5 hr meetings]
  • Book Review [1,250 words]
  • Final Paper [2,500 words]
  • Final Exam [3 hr written exam]

Synchronous Meeting Times

This course offers optional synchronous class meeting(s) through Zoom which will be scheduled during the term based on everyone's availability (a poll will be taken by the instructor for these meetings and they will be recorded for students who are unable to attend live). These meetings will be helpful for the formation your understanding of apologetics as well as provide an opportunity to practice the method live with your instructor.

The meeting times are for the Fall 2025 term:

  • Week 3: Thursday, 9/18, 7:30-8:30pm ET
  • Week 5: Thursday, 10/2, 7:30-8:30pm ET
  • Week 8: Thursday, 10/16, 7:30-8:30pm ET
  • Week 10: Thursday, 11/6, 7:30-8:30pm ET