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God and the History of God's People

Partner Disciples Seminary Foundation
Learning Pillar Wisdom-Based Leadership
Rigor Level Medium

This introduction to church history gives us a view of where we have been and sheds light on directions we may be going. This will be a deeply contextualized look at the historical growth of the Church in the Americas (South, Central, and North), in Korea, and throughout the development of the United States. We will focus on the ways missionary movements, Manifest Destiny, migration, and colonization have influenced (and continue to influence?) the development of the Church. How does this history influence Christian education today? 

Competency Areas

Aligned with Competency Area(s) 15

15. Understanding of Heritage

Have knowledge of and appreciation for the history and thought of Christianity and of the history, structure, practices, and ethos of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

God and the History of God's People

Taught by Dr. Lisa Barnett

This introductory course in church history looks at where the Church has been and how its past shapes future directions. We will examine the Church’s development in the Americas, in Korea, and in the United States, focusing on how missionary movements, Manifest Destiny, migration, and colonization have shaped Christian communities. We will also consider how this history informs Christian education today.

This course is part of the DSF Certificate Program.

Dr. Lisa Barnett

Meet Your Instructor,
Dr. Lisa Barnett

Dr. Lisa Barnett is an Associate Professor of American Religious History at Phillips Theological Seminary. She did her PhD work in the history department at Texas Christian University, focusing on U.S. history since 1877 and specifically American Indian history and American religious history. She has two Master’s degrees from Brite Divinity School—a Master of Divinity and a Master of Theology degree in History. She is also an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Dr. Barnett currently serves as a trustee for the Disciples of Christ Historical Society, oversees the Isaac Errett student history paper competition, and is the co-moderator of the Center for Indigenous Ministries (DOC). Dr. Barnett was the 2012 winner of the Isaac Errett Award for History sponsored by the Stone-Campbell Journal and the Disciples Historical Society. Her paper was published in the Spring 2013 edition of the Stone-Campbell Journal. She is also the author of two essays in the book on the history of Brite Divinity School published by TCU Press in 2011, and has a chapter included in Border Policing: A History of Enforcement and Evasion in North America released by the University of Texas Press. She has a chapter on the Otoe Church of the First Born that will be included in Religion in the North American West, forthcoming with University of Nebraska Press and a chapter for another edited collection titled “Oklahoma Women Lead the Way into the KKK,” for American West between the World Wars forthcoming with the University of Oklahoma Press. Her book, Peyote Politics: The Making of the Native American Church, 1880-1937,  with the University of Oklahoma Press was published in Spring 2025.

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