Spring 2015/Pasadena

NT500

Black

NT500: NEW TESTAMENT INTRODUCTION (4 Units: 160 hours). Stephanie L. Black.

DESCRIPTION: This hybrid online and on-campus course orients students to the literature of the New Testament in its various literary, historical, and theological contexts and to New Testament interpretation in service of Christian practice.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Having successfully completed this course students will have demonstrated that they (1) have an introductory knowledge of the literature, history, and theology of the New Testament; (2) can identify a range of questions (e.g., historical, literary, canonical) that might be addressed to particular New Testament texts and can explore those questions in the process of interpreting particular New Testament texts; (3) are able to take into account the varied contexts of both the biblical materials and their contemporary interpreters; and (4) can read the New Testament in ways that foster faithful Christian practice, with special reference to and for the practice of church planting.

COURSE FORMAT: This is a hybrid course, meaning that it is a ten-week course with nine weeks of online instruction and one week of classroom instruction during week six of the quarter. The week of classroom instruction will include five hours daily of lecture and discussion. Classroom and online instruction will include lecture and discussion for a total of 40 instructional hours.

REQUIRED READING: 800total number of pages of books and articles required, plus reading the entire NT.

The entire New Testament in English, using the NRSV, TNIV or CEB translations.

Achtemeier, P., J. Green, and M. Meye Thompson. Introducing the New Testament: Its Literature and Theology. Eerdmans, 2001. ISBN: 978-0802837172, Pub. Price $46.00 [450 pp. assigned].

González, J. L. Santa Biblia: The Bible through Hispanic Eyes. Abingdon, 1996. ISBN: 978-0687014521, Pub. Price $18.99 [124 pp.].

Green, Joel B. Seized by Truth: Reading the Bible as Scripture. Abingdon, 2007. ISBN: 978-0687023554, Pub. Price $25.99 [142 pp.].

Course reader. [Readings from Elizabeth S. Malbon, Peter Nyende, Mark Allan Powell, Thomas R. Schreiner, F. Scott Spenser, R. S. Sugirtharajah, Justin S, Ukpong, Kevin J. Vanhoozer, David Wenham and Steve Walton, Bruce W. Winter]. [85 pp.].

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. Online instruction hours including video introductions, PowerPoint presentations, reading of uploaded lecture notes, etc. [5 hours].

  2. Classroom instruction hours (1-week intensive) [20 hours].

  3. 250-word weekly forum posts and 150-word weekly forum responses (25%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #3-4] [15 hours].

  4. 800 pages of assigned books and articles required, plus reading the entire NT; readings self-reported (10%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4] [75 hours, including 25 hours of reading the entire NT].

  5. Two interpretive exercises on assigned NT texts [2 papers; 1250 words each] (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4] [15 hours].

  6. Book review of González, Santa Biblia [1000 words] (10%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #2-3] [6 hours].

  7. FINAL research paper or on a NT passage with special relevance to church planting, subject to instructor’s approval [2000 words] (25%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #2-4] [24 hours research and writing].

PREREQUISITES: None.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Meets a core requirement in the 120 MDiv and the MATM, MAICS, and MACL Programs (Winter 2010). Required in the Church Planting Certificate.

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.


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.

For your convenience, order these texts online through the Archives Bookshop.