Cultural Engagement and the Early Church

January 2026 Intensive – Week Two – January 12-16, 2026

Course Description

This course will consider early Christian cultural engagement. We will look at the role of catechesis and liturgy, as well as the emergence of both political theology and public theology in the early Christian texts and reflect on the ways that the early church can guide ministry today.

Instructors: Dr. Stephen Presley

Stephen O. Presley serves as the Senior Fellow for Religion and Public Life at the Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy and Associate Professor of Church History at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Presley holds B.S. from Baylor University, a Th.M. from Dallas Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. He is the author of Cultural Sanctification: Engaging the World Like the Early Church (Eerdmans, 2024) and Biblical Theology in the Life of the Early Church: Recovering an Ancient Vision (Baker Academic, 2025). Presley is actively writing, and speaking on topics related to Christian cultural engagement, blending his passion for the richness of the Christian tradition with a practical vision for cultural renewal.

If this is your first credit class at Trinity, or you are not taking the course as part of a degree, please complete the non-matriculated application. A bachelor’s degree is required to obtain credit.

To register to audit a Master’s Level course, please complete an audit application.