Winter 2018/Pasadena

OT517

Butler

 

OT517:  OLD TESTAMENT BOOK STUDY: JEREMIAH (4 Units: 160 hours).  James T. Butler.

                                                                             

 

DESCRIPTION:  This course is designed to provide an overview of the historical context and the theological issues of the book of Jeremiah as well as an opportunity for close interpretation of representative passages.  Lectures will treat the historical background of the prophet’s ministry, the themes of his message and the literary forms of their expression, and the shaping of the Jeremianic corpus in the exilic period.  We will give attention to recent studies of forced migration and trauma as they offer insights into the book’s graphic portrayal of exilic experience. The issues of Judah’s misplaced trust, the conflict between true and false prophecy, and the complex hope for a restored community will be among the theological issues traced. 

 

LEARNING OUTCOMES:  Having successfully completed this course, students will have demonstrated that they (1) have read the book carefully and are familiar with its contents and themes; (2) can interpret passages within it in their own right and in their socio-historical, literary, and canonical contexts; (3) have identified central issues in the critical study of it; (4) can articulate its primary theological and ethical concerns; (5) can use English-based tools for interpreting it; (6) can recognize hermeneutical issues arising from the diverse contexts of contemporary readers; and (7) can interpret it faithfully and creatively in the context of their congregation, of the contemporary world and of their own lives.

 

COURSE FORMAT: The class meets weekly for three hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion; it also involves ten hours of directed learning activities for a total of 40 instructional hours.

 

REQUIRED READING: 900 pages required.

Text of Jeremiah in NRSV, TNIV, or CEB Bible [70 pp.].

Brueggemann, Walter. Prophetic Imagination, rev. ed. Fortress, 2001. ISBN: 978-0800632878, Pub. Price $19.00 [146 pp. assigned]

O’Brien, Julia M. Challenging Prophetic Metaphor: Theology and Ideology in the Prophets. Westminster John Knox, 2008. ISBN: 978-0664229641, Pub. Price $27.00 [188 pp. assigned].

Stulman, Louis. Jeremiah. Abingdon, 2005. ISBN: 978-0687057962, Pub. Price $43.99 [350 pp. assigned]. [Available online via the library under “Ministry Matters.”] 

 

eReserves:

Bright, John. “The Background of Jeremiah’s Career: The Last Days of the Kingdom of Judah,” in Jeremiah [Anchor Bible], 2nd ed. [Garden City, NY:  Doubleday, 1965], xxvii-liv [28 pp.].

DeBorst, Ruth Padilla. "Living Creation-Community in God's World Today." Journal of Latin American Theology 5 (2010): 56-72 [17 pp.]

King, Martin Luther, Jr. “The Significant Contributions of Jeremiah to Religious Thought,” unpublished essay submitted at Crozer Theological Seminary (Fall Semester, 1948). MLK papers online at stanford.edu. [10 pp.]

O'Connor, Kathleen M. "Teaching Jeremiah," Perspectives In Religious Studies 36 (2009): 273-287. [15 pp.]

Scalise, Pamela J. “Justice and Judgment in the Book of Jeremiah:  Discerning the Boundaries of God’s Wrath,” Ex Auditu 20 (2004): 89 -105 [17 pp.].

Stulman, Louis. “Conflicting Paths to Hope in Jeremiah,” in Christine Elizabeth Yoder et al. (eds.), Shaking Heaven and Earth: Essays in Honor of Walter Brueggemann and Charles B. Cousar (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2005), pp. 43-57 [15 pp.]

Weinfeld, Moshe. “Jeremiah and the Spiritual Metamorphosis of Israel,” Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 88 (1976): 17-56 [40 pp.]

 

RECOMMENDED READING:

Boda, Mark J. and J. Gordon McConville (eds.). Dictionary of the Old Testament: Prophets. IVP Academic, 2012. ISBN: 978-0830817849, Pub. Price $60.00.

Leclerc, Thomas L. Introduction to the Prophets: Their Stories, Sayings, and Scrolls, 2nd ed. Paulist, 2017. ISBN: 978-0809153619, Pub. Price $34.95.

O’Connor, Kathleen M. Jeremiah: Pain and Promise. Fortress, 2011. ISBN: 978-0800699307, Pub. Price $42.00.

Peterson, Eugene H. Run with the Horses, 2nd ed. InterVarsity, 2009. ISBN: 978-0830837069, Pub. Price $16.00.

 

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

1. 100 pp. of weekly assigned readings in the Old Testament and secondary literature for nine weeks (Pass-fail) [This assignment relates to learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, and 4.] [60 hours].
2. Weekly forum posts (200 words) and responses (100 words) in Canvas-based discussions of assigned reading (15%). [This assignment relates to learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, and 4.] [13 hours].
3. Short written responses to questions regarding the readings and lectures (7 weeks x 250 words=1,750 words) (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-5] [17 hours].
4. A 1,200-word essay on the historical context of Jeremiah’s ministry (20%). [This assignment is relates to learning outcomes 1, 2, and 3.] [15 hours].
5. A 2,000- to 2,500-word study of a text of about ten to thirty verses, chosen with the agreement of the professor (35%) [This assignment relates to learning outcomes 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7.] [25 hours].

 

PREREQUISITES:  BI500 or NE502; OT500 or OT501 or OT502.

 

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM:  Counts as a biblical elective for the 120 MDiv, 80 MAT, and 80 MATM Programs (Fall 2015). Meets the OTBK requirement for the MAT Program (Winter 2010).

 

FINAL EXAMINATION:  None.