Spring 2014/Pasadena

NS500

Givens

NS500: NEW TESTAMENT 1: GOSPELS AND ACTS (4 Units). Tommy Givens.

DESCRIPTION: This course constitutes an introduction to the nature, structure, and message of the New Testament Gospels and Acts in their historical, literary, and canonical contexts.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Having successfully completed this course, students will have demonstrated the ability to (1) articulate the character of the Gospels and Acts as witnesses to Jesus Christ and the Spirit of his church; (2) demonstrate familiarity with the historical background, content, structure, and message of each of the Gospels and Acts; and (3) demonstrate developing skill in the interpretation of the Gospels and Acts as appropriate for effective leadership in Christian communities.

COURSE FORMAT: We will meet twice weekly for two-hour sessions of lecture and discussion and make use of Moodle for work submission.

REQUIRED READING:

Either the CEB, NRSV, or TNIV translation of the New Testament.

Barton, Stephen C., ed. The Cambridge Companion to the Gospels. Cambridge University Press, 2006. ISBN: 978-0521002615, Pub. Price $34.00 [314 pp.].

Theissen, Gerd. The Shadow of the Galilean: The Quest for the Historical Jesus in Narrative Form. 2nd ed. Fortress, 2007. ISBN: 978-0800639006, Pub. Price $23.00 [232 pp.].

Course packet: Includes Gospel texts and articles/chapters by Frances Taylor Gench, Joel Green (on Acts), Amy Jill Levine, Teresa Okure, Elsa Tamez, Marianne Meye Thompson, N. T. Wright, and others.

RECOMMENDED READING:

Achtemeier, P., J. Green, and M. Meye Thompson. Introducing the New Testament: Its Literature and Theology. Eerdmans, 2001. ISBN: 978-0802837172, Pub. Price $44.00.

Ferguson, Everett. Backgrounds of Early Christianity. 3rd ed. Eerdmans, 2003. ISBN: 978-0802822215, Pub. Price $40.00.

Green, Joel B., Scot McKnight, and I. Howard Marshall, eds. Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1992. ISBN: 978-0830817771, Pub. Price $60.00.

Wright, N. T. Jesus and the Victory of God. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1996. ISBN: 978-0800626822, Pub. Price $45.00.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. Exegetical outline of three Gospels and Acts (750-1000 words each, worth total of 40%).

  2. One exegetical working paper (1500-2500 words; 20%).

  3. One book review of Theissen’s In the Shadow of the Galilean (1000-1500 words, 10%).

  4. FINAL exam assessing students’ familiarity with the Gospels and Acts and understanding of central course issues (e.g., genre of Gospel and Acts narratives, the relation of Jesus and the church to the biblical hope of Israel) (30%).

PREREQUISITES: None.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Meets MDiv core requirement in New Testament 1 (NT1); meets MAT (2010) program requirement.

FINAL EXAMINATION: Yes.


NOTE: This ECD is a reliable guide to the course design but is subject to modification. Textbook prices are set by publishers and are subject to change.