Required Textbooks
- People of the Covenant: An Introduction to the Hebrew Bible by Henry Jackson Flanders, Jr., Robert Wilson Crapps and David Anthony Smith (Oxford University Press, 1996).
- A New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible. Recommended: HarperCollins Study Bible: New Revised Standard Version (with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books) by Wayne A. Meeks (Editor), Jouette M. Bassler (Editor) (HarperCollins, 1991)
- (NB: I recommend this particular edition of the NRSV because the notes for each biblical book have been done by a recognized scholar whose field of expertise is the book in question. If finances are an issue, any edition of the NRSV will do, but you must use the NRSV--no other translation will be used in this course.)
Description
This course will investigate the literature of the Old Testament as part of the Christian Scriptures. Significant attention will be given to a theological appropriation of the material and its relation to the work of the church.
In this course we will explore:
- The narrative history that the Old Testament articulates.
- The contrasting theological voices to which the text bears witness.
- The socio-cultural context that the Old Testament represents.
Course Description
This course will investigate the literature of Old Testament as part of the Christian Scriptures. Significant attention will be given to a theological appropriation of the material and its relation to the work of the church.
In this course we will explore:
- The narrative history that the Old Testament articulates.
- The contrasting theological voices to which the text bears witness.
- The socio-cultural context that the Old Testament represents
Course Requirements
- Weekly readings of both scripture and textbook.
- Weekly participation in the class discussion.
The primary requirement for this class will be weekly participation in the discussion groups. There will be three questions that each student will be asked to answer each week (three points per week). In addition to giving answers to the questions posed by the instructor, students will be required to present a response at least once to an answer given by another student for each question (three points per week).
3 answers per week + 3 responses per week = 6 possible points per week (72 possible for course)
The course is evaluated on a pass/fail basis. Sixty points out of a possible seventy-two constitutes a passing grade.