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Certificate
of Theological
Apologetics DEPARTMENT OF
CHRISTIAN DEFENSE
Printed
by:
(a)
CTA Courses (b)
Work Required (c)
Completed Reading Assignments (d)
Completed Tests (e)
Grading Guidelines (f)
Reading Requirements (g)
After Completing all the CTA Courses (h)
Course Assistance
(a)
Total Cost (b)
Individual Courses (c) Tuition Payment Options
(a)
Early Withdrawal
VI.
Completion Requirements for the CTA (a)
Completion Time (b)
Grade Description
Course
1: The Basics of Apologetics Course
2: Biblical Hermeneutics Course
3: The Biblical Doctrine of the Trinity Course
4: The Deity of Jesus Christ Course
5: The Biblical Doctrine of Justification Course
6: Oneness Theology (modalism) Course
7: Jehovah’s Witnesses Course
8: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormonism) Course
9: Roman Catholicism Course
10: The Reliability of Scripture Final
Exam (a)
Paper
Size and Type (b)
Length of Written Answers (c)
Page Numbers
(d) Font Size (e)
Font Type
XII.
Things to Avoid in Written Answers (a)
Never Address the Reader (b)
State/Affirm and Defend Only (c)
Grammar (d)
Clarity (e)
Provide Biblical and Extra-Biblical Support for all Assertions (f)
Footnotes (g)
Publication Facts (h)
Footnotes Examples (i)
Consistency
Department of Christian Defense’s Statement of Faith I. Purpose and Goal
The
Department of Christian Defense’s
(DCD) purpose in offering this program is 1.
To educate and equip Christians to assert and defend the essentials of historic
biblical Christianity. 2.
To communicate accurately and exegetically substantive biblical doctrines. 3.
To witness and reach out to those involved in non-Christian cults. 4.
To biblically distinguish between truth and falsities. 5.
To exegetically refute those who oppose sound doctrine. 6.
To provide a basic understanding of hermeneutics (i.e., critical interpretation)
ensuring a correct interpretation of biblical passages.
Certificate of Theological Apologetics
(CTA).
First, an CTA application must be submitted to start. Please write DCD, We will then send the application to you.
(a)
CTA Courses: The CTA program consists of 10 courses (total of 44
credits), which can be accomplished by correspondence.
(b)
Work Required:
Student must satisfactorily complete 1 test (exam) per course (above 70%
to pass).
Additionally, students will be required to provide several written
answers per course (
(c) Completed Reading Assignments:
1. After student completes all course required reading assignments,
student will email DCD a i. First and last name of student ii.
2. To receive test
examination, student must email (edward@christiandefense.org) a
completion notice of course before test will be sent to student.
Test will then be emailed to the student normally in Microsoft Word format or a specified format if necessary. If student has need of another format this must be indicated prior to starting the CTA program.
3. Completed Tests: After student completes a course test, student will mail the completed test (*hardcopy only) to DCD @ P.O. Box 2128, Winnetka, CA 91396-2128 and include a self-addressed stamped envelope inside. The graded course test will then be returned to the student. If proper postage is not on return envelope student will be charged for any additional postage
(d) Grading Guidelines: Work will be graded on (i) theological accuracy, (ii) doctrinal accuracy of particular religious groups discussed, (iii) citation accuracy (i.e., correctly citing biblical references, authors, works, pages of particular books, etc.), and (iv) grammar and style of all written work.
(e)
Reading Requirements:
For each
course there will be required reading assignments, that is, designated
material, which will consist of primarily written articles most of which can be
acquired at no cost at
www.christiandefnse.org. However, reading requirements may include a book or
particular chapter(s) of assigned books. Listed with each course (see
Listed
with each course (see Any book(s) that is required and also suggested can be purchased at most Bible bookstores or online bookstores (e.g., www.amazon.com). (f)
After completing all CTA Courses: After completion of the last
course of the CTA program there
will be a final exam. After the final exam is graded student will then receive
his or her CTA issued by DCD. Note, 65 is the minimum passing grade for all
courses (sec. (g)
Course Assistance: A
DCD staff member will be
available to personally assist the student with course work, questions, or any
problems that student may encounter.
All courses and final exam must be satisfactorily completed for a passing grade (above 70%). Students that do not receive a passing grade may re-submit a test and/or final exam once. Once the full CTA program is completed, student will then receive his or her Certificate of Theology Apologetics issued by the Department of Christian Defense. (a)
Total Cost: The total cost for the CTA program is $600.00 (see
below for payment options). In addition, there will be a $25.00
enrollment fee. Student will incur some additional costs for required books (a
minimum of 9 books). However, all required articles can be downloaded free from
the DCD website. Payment(s) can be made by check or money order only (no cash is
accepted). All checks or money orders must be made payable to Department of
Christian Defense. The Department of Christian Defense is a state and
federal recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization. (b)
Individual Courses: Courses may be taken separately from the CTA
program for $100.00 per course, in which course credit may apply to the CTA
program. (c) Tuition Payment Options: Option
1:
Paid in full $600.00 Option 2: 25% down ($150.00) and the balance paid in thee equal monthly payments of $160.00. Option
3: 10%
down ($60.00) and a monthly minimum payment of $50.00 for 12 months. Option
4: 50%
down and a monthly payment of $30.00 for 12 months. Student may pay tuition early in which only unpaid balance excluding additional service charges would be due. Student must choose payment method before starting program. This must be indicated on the enrollment application. Note: There will be a $35.00 late charge if payment is not received on or before the 20th of every month of payment schedule. It is the responsibility of the student to mail payment out. No generated monthly payment bills will be sent out, with the exception of late fees, and/or postage fees, which will be billed at the end of payment schedule. (a)
Early Withdrawal: Students who officially withdrawal in writing
from the CTA program may be granted a refund of tuition on uncompleted work.
Terms of refund are as follows: 30
days of enrollment………………………………80% 60
days of enrollment.……………………………....60% 90
days of enrollment……………………………….40% After
90 days of enrollment………………………...None The
$25.00 enrollment fee is non-refundable. No
refund shall be made for any finance payment schedule. VI.
COMPLETION
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE CTA: (a)
Completion Time: The completion time for the CTA program is 12
months. However, depending on how much times is devoted, many students can
acquire their CTA earlier. Also, students may be granted an extension simply by requesting one. There
is no extension fee. In addition, student may finish before the time
allotted.
(b)
Grade description as follows: A…………………………….92-100 B…………………………….85-91 C…………………………….70-84 D…………………………….65-73 F…….……………………….0-64 To
start the CTA program potential student must: 1.
Request a CTA application, which will immediately be sent (emailed) on request
(in Microsoft Word format or format specified). Once DCD receives the signed
and completed CTA application by mail only, along with the $25.00 enrollment fee, a DCD staff
member will respond within 10 days. Subsequently, student may send tuition
payment and begin the CTA program beginning with the course #1. 2. As
indicated (see III. c), after completing all required reading assignments student
must send to DCD a completion notice of course, at which time the
appropriate test will be sent to student. The completed test must be sent to DCD
to be graded. Student should make copies of all tests submitted. Questions
may be submitted to the director of the CTA program, Edward Dalcour, or a DCD
staff member at: 818-377-5272. We
at DCD are pledged to make sure that all men and women who participate in the
CTA program will become biblically equipped to defend the gospel and be able to
accurately communicate definitive biblical doctrine to all people. IX.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The
Certificate of Theological Apologetics consists of the following
courses: COURSE
1: THE BASICS OF THEOLOGICAL APOLOGETICS (4
credits):
REQUIRED
READING: 1. 2. Articles: (a) The Rise of False Teachings within the Church, (b) The Biblical Illiteracy in the Christian Church, (c) Tota Scriptura: All of Scripture and Acts 20:28 , (d) The Do’s and Don’ts of Effective Witnessing, (e) The Sovereignty of God in ALL Things
Suggested
books to read:
Defending Your Faith: An
Introduction to Apologetics, by R. C. Sproul
Always Ready, by Greg L. Bahsen (advanced).
Evolution—The
Fossils say No, by Duane
Gish.
The Case for
Christ, by Lee Strobel.
COURSE
2: BIBLICAL HERMENEUTICS
(4
credits):
REQUIRED
READING: 1. Book: Knowing Scripture, by R. C. Sproul.
Suggested
books to read:
COURSE
3: THE BIBLICAL DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY (4
credits):
REQUIRED
READING:
2. Articles: (a) God the Holy Spirit: The Third Person of the Trinity, (b) The Soteriological Trinity
Suggested books to read:
C REQUIRED
READING: 1.
Book: Jesus
is Both God and Man,
by Stuart Olyott; or Christ
Before the Manger, by Ron
Rhodes. 2. Article: (a) The Birth of Christ: Taking the nature of a Servant (b) Deity of Jesus Christ the Son of God (c)
This
article above deals primarily with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, however, it is
greatly beneficial in studying the deity of Jesus Christ. Suggested
books to read: COURSE
5: THE BIBLICAL DOCTRINE OF JUSTIFICATION (4
credits): REQUIRED
READING:
Suggested books to read: COURSE
6: ONENESS THEOLOGY (modalism) (8
credits). Note: since there is
an enormous lack of Oneness apologetic material available, all reading
requirements below are found on DCD’s website. This will be the only reading
necessary for this course. SUBJECT A: The Oneness fundamental doctrinal assertion: Jesus is the Father.
SUBJECT B: The preexistence of
Jesus Christ. REQUIRED
READING:
A Concise Look at Oneness Beliefs
Introduction
to Oneness Theology (modalism) Oneness Pentecostals and Acts 2:38: “In the Name of Jesus” Only Formula The Multi-Personal God in the Old Testament and Oneness Theology SUBJECT
C: The
Oneness objections to the doctrine of the Trinity.
1.
Article:
Examining the Oneness
Objections to the Doctrine of the Trinity
COURSE
7: JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES (8
credits):
SUBJECT A: Fundamental Watchtower
doctrines. REQUIRED
READING: Suggested
books to read:
Articles: Effective Verses to Show that Jesus Christ is Jehovah
The
Jehovah's Witnesses and the Doctrine of the Trinity
John 1:1 and the Jehovah's Witnesses' New World Translation Who Can you Trust: Is the New World Translation Reliable? Colossians 1:15-17 and the Jehovah Witnesses’ NWT
Articles (a) How to share your faith with Jehovah’s Witnesses (Q&A) (b) Quick Answers for the Jehovah's Witnesses: The deity of Christ (c) The term "Jehovah" and the Jehovah's Witnesses
COURSE
8: The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints
(Mormonism)
(8
credits):
SUBJECT A: Fundamental
LDS doctrines.
SUBJECT B: Early
teachings of Joseph Smith and the LDS Church. REQUIRED
READING:
2. Articles God the Father is an exalted man with body parts and passions Many Gods (Polytheism), thus denying what God had already said concerning Himself. Responding to the Mormon Assertion of God the Father Jesus Lucifer's spirit brother Exaltation, Man becoming a God The Early Teachings of Joseph Smith
Suggested books to read: What
Do Mormons Really Believe?: What the Ads Don't Tell You,
by John Ankerberg, John Weldon. Kingdom
of the Cults,
rev. ed. (section on Mormonism), by Walter Martin. Letters
to a Mormon Elder,
by
James White. Reasoning
from the Scripture with the Mormons,
by Ron Rhodes.
COURSE
9: ROMAN CATHOLICISM (4
credits):
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