Syllabus –  The Bible

Dr. James F. McGrath, Butler University, Fall 2003

This class will survey the Biblical literature (questions of who, what, when and where). In addition, we will focus on the interpretation of different genres (i.e. types of literature), using as examples specific biblical books which will be the focus of attention in greater detail. Additional course information and resources can be found through http://blackboard.butler.edu or via the class home page at the following web address: http://blue.butler.edu/~jfmcgrat/bible/ .

Assignments:

Attendance and participation:	5%
Summary of a method of biblical study:	15%
Class presentation:	15%
On-line quizzes and 'overnight writes':	10%
Term paper:	30%
Final exam:	25%

 

 Summary of a method applied to the study of the Bible:

This assignment involves summarizing, explaining and evaluating a method that scholars apply to the study of the Bible. The best way to do this is to consult the relevant chapters in the following books, and perhaps also in relevant dictionaries of Biblical studies:

Barton, John (editor), The Cambridge Companion to Biblical Interpretation, Cambridge University Press, 1998.

Green, Joel B., Hearing the New Testament, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995.

Marshall, I. Howard, New Testament Interpretation, Carlisle: Paternoster, 1979.

McKenzie, Steven L. and Stephen R. Haynes, To Each Its Own Meaning: An Introduction to Biblical Criticisms and their Application, Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1993.

Choose one of the following methods of study: Historical-criticism; narrative/literary criticism; reader-response criticism; reader-response criticism; archaeology; social-scientific approaches; textual criticism; redaction criticism; form criticism; feminist interpretation; deconstructionist and/or political interpretations; source criticism; demythologization

These are due the 3rd week of the semester. Your summary will be made available to your colleagues to help with their understanding of these methods and to help with revision for the final – so do a good job, or you may become very unpopular! ;-)

Class presentation:  A list of students signed up to present can be found here

Each student is to sign up to make a class presentation of roughly 5 minutes. The student will, on the day in question, introduce some general points they have learned about the book/topic to be studied on that day, and will pose a few questions, thoughts, or reflections which will stimulate further discussion. Although you may make the presentation from memory if you are able, a sheet indicating books/articles used in researching the presentation, and an outline. Students must use at least two additional articles/chapters besides the textbooks in preparing this project.

 On-line quizzes:  REVIEW SHEET FOR THE MID-TERM QUIZ

Through http://blackboard.butler.edu you will be able to access short quizzes on what we have been doing in class or on the assigned reading. The quizzes will be short and will often be multiple choice. They will be open book unless otherwise indicated (in other words, you can go look something up if you have forgotten) and you will be allowed multiple attempts (in other words, you can keep trying until you get it right: I assume that by the time you do, you will probably have learned something!). Nevertheless, rules regarding plagiarism from your colleagues or from books still apply (in other words, you can revise together and you can look things up, but you must still answer in your own words and not just copy someone else’s). You are responsible to check after each class to see whether a quiz has been posted, and it must be taken before the next time the class meets. Missed quizzes cannot be made up.

Overnight writes are basically what they sound like: you will be asked to write up a 1-2 page summary of a particular topic, to be handed in the next time the class meets. These will be useful to you for exam revision, and may be shared with colleagues after they have been returned to you.

 Term paper:

The term paper for this class will consist of a short essay (around 4-5 pages) in which you analyze and interpret a passage from the Bible of your choice. You may approach the text from any perspective you like, provided it involves a scholarly analysis of the text such as we are adopting in class. You are welcome to add your own personal thoughts on the application of the text, however that must be in addition to the 4-5 pages of ‘exegesis’ (i.e. historical and/or literary analysis). By a passage I mean an individual psalm, a parable, a story, or the like. It should not be too short (e.g. less than a chapter) or too long (i.e. more than 2 chapters). If the story that interests you is too long, then choose an excerpt from it. Your choice of passage must be approved by the professor, so please consult me before starting. 

Final exam:

The final exam will cover general knowledge of the topics we have covered in class: scholarly methods of study, sources, the Synoptic problem, questions of historicity and authorship, as well as short selections from the set texts for you to comment on. You will have a larger number of questions, from which you must choose two. For more information on the topics that will be covered on the exam, click here.

Provisional class schedule

Bible readings for later in the semester will be added as the semester progresses.

   The text of the Revised Standard Version Bible can be found at: http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/rsv.browse.html or by clicking the hyperlinked names of Bible books in the syllabus below. The homeworks are due on the dates specified unless otherwise indicated.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

TEXTBOOKS

Borg, Marcus, Reading the Bible Again for the First Time, San Francisco: Harper Collins, 2002.

White, J. Benton and Walter T. Wilson, From Adam To Armageddon, Wadsworth-Thomson, 2001.

The Bible (the version recommended is the New Revised Standard Version, released by Oxford University Press in paperback under the title The Access Bible, including many helpful notes by scholars. Other versions may be supplemented but only after consultation with the professor)

OTHER USEFUL BOOKS

General

*Barton, John (editor), The Cambridge Companion to Biblical Interpretation, Cambridge University Press, 1998. [Highly recommended introduction to the study of the Bible, arranged by genre and by method]

Brown, Raymond E., Responses to 101 Questions on the Bible, Mahwah: Paulist, 1990.

Davis, Kenneth C., Don't Know Much About the Bible, New York: Eagle Brook, 1998. [Good for those approaching the Bible for the first time]

Harris, Stephen L., Understanding the Bible: A Reader's Introduction, Palo Alto, CA: Mayfield, 1985.

Hiers, Richard H., The Trinity Guide to the Bible, Harrisburg: Trinity Press International, 2001. [Another one volume introduction to the Biblical literature]

Hughes, Gerald and Stephen Travis, Harper's Introduction to the Bible, San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1981. [A nice but very superficial of the Bible with lots of pictures]

Hebrew Bible

Anderson, Bernhard W., The Living World of the Old Testament [4^th edition], Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1988. [A classic survey of the Hebrew Bible, with pictures. Very readable and accessible]

Gottwald, Norman K., The Hebrew Bible: A Socio-Literary Introduction, Philadelphia: Fortress, 1985.

The Apocrypha

Russell, D. S., Between the Testaments, London: SCM, 1963.

Kraft, Robert A. and George W. E. Nickelsburg (editors), Early Judaism and Its Modern Interpreters, Atlanta: Scholars, 1986.

VanderKam, James C., An Introduction to Early Judaism, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001.

New Testament

Brown, Raymond E., An Introduction to the New Testament, New York: Doubleday, 1997.

Johnson, Luke T., The Writings of the New Testament: An Interpretation, Minneapolis: Fortress, 1986.

Rowland, Christopher, Christian Origins, London: SPCK, 1985.

History and the Bible

Fox, Robin Lane, The Unauthorized Version: Truth and Fiction in the Bible, New York: Penguin, 1992. [An atheist historian candidly discusses historical difficulties]

Lüdemann, Gerd, The Unholy in Holy Scripture: The Dark Side of the Bible, London: SCM, 1996. [For those who want to tackle the hardest difficulties head-on]

Wilson, Ian, The Bible Is History, Washington: Regnery, 1999. [A nice, up-to-date survey of historical and archaeological research and perspectives on the Bible, with lots of photographs and maps]

Biblical Interpretation

Fee, Gordon D. and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth [2^nd edition], Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1993  [An excellent introduction to the different genres in the Bible by conservative scholars who respect the Bible as sacred scripture]

Gillingham, Susan E., One Bible, Many Voices. Different Approaches to Biblical Studies, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998. [An introduction not only to the methods of Biblical interpretation (with particular focus on the Hebrew Bible), but also spends a great deal of time looking at the formation of the canon and text-critical issues]

Johnson, Marshall D., Making Sense of the Bible, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002.

McKenzie, Steven L. and Stephen R. Haynes, To Each Its Own Meaning: An Introduction to Biblical Criticisms and their Application, Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1993.

The Canon

Bruce, F. F., The Canon of Scripture, Glasgow: Chapter House, 1988.

Metzger, Bruce M., The Canon of the New Testament, Oxford, 1987.

The following points represent key things that will be looked for in all your written work:

1) Intellectual honesty: All written work must be your own. If you use someone else's words, there must be quotation marks and a footnote indicating this (see the links I have provided on my home page at http://blue.butler.edu/~jfmcgrat/). Simply changing a few words is not good enough. You must put ideas in your own words; and even then, if the idea is someone else's, you must still provide a footnote or other reference. If you plagiarize you will get a zero grade for the assignment with no opportunity to redo it. If you plagiarize a second time you will fail the class. Intellectual honesty is of more fundamental importance than anything you will learn by taking this class.

2) Critical thinking: How you think is infinitely more important to me than what you think. You will gain no points by agreeing with me, and lose none by disagreeing. What matters is how you argue your case, and that you examine critically not only the views of others, but also your own views. Coupled with the need for critical thinking is a need for:

3) Fairness: You must understand the views of others, even if you disagree with them. Treat their views the way you would like your own viewpoints to be treated. Again, whether you agree or disagree with an author's viewpoint is completely up to you. But you must understand what he or she says, and not merely in a superficial manner. Recent (postmodern) thought may emphasize that none of us can claim to be objective: we all have a viewpoint, and we all have assumptions and biases. But this need not mean that we are incapable of interacting with the views of others in a manner that is fair.

4) Breadth of reading, reflection, and interaction with scholarly writings: Your view and opinion are important; in fact, your ability to evaluate different viewpoints and then draw your own conclusions will make the difference between B+ or A- work and A work. On the other hand, a university essay is not simply your reflections. You must find out what others have to say, and relate your conclusions to theirs. To simply reference one or two books or articles (or worse, one or two web pages) will not be adequate. The best research papers will combine in-depth research with creativity and originality. Please also note that, although I have sought to make available to you the highest quality of online resources via the course web page, online reading is rarely if ever sufficient for writing a college-level paper. Unless you are certain you have access to complete online articles and books by authors who deal with topics in a scholarly manner, you should use web-based resources with caution.

5) Although it should not be necessary to specify this, all work submitted must be typed and must be in appropriate English (i.e. correct spelling and punctuation, no IM abbreviations). What you are trying to say is important, but it will not count for much if your ideas are not communicated clearly and intelligibly. A good idea might be to have a study partner or other individual who can proofread your work, in some form of reciprocal arrangement. Getting critical feedback prior to handing work in will also very likely contribute to you receiving a higher grade.

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LINK TO FIRST PAGE OF BIBLE CLASS NOTES ON-LINE

Contact me at:   jfmcgrat@butler.edu