Spring 2020/Pasadena

OT584

Lee

OT584: RESTORATION: THEOLOGY, CULTURE, AND POLITICS IN POSTEXILIC JUDAH (4 Units: 160 Hours). Kyong-Jin Lee.

DESCRIPTION: This PhD seminar is open to a limited number of master’s level students. This seminar examines the physical and spiritual restoration and reorganization of the Judean community in the aftermath of the Babylonian exile. A literary and sociological study of the Persian period will familiarize the student with the prevailing economic, political, social, and religious conditions of Judah. A theological and ideological inquiry of postexilic Judah will center on the significance of the Temple in Jerusalem and a community’s struggle for self-identity. The class will explore the theological, political, and ethical principles underlining the reform and their relevance to the Church’s ongoing theological reflection.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon successful completion of this course, students will have demonstrated that they have (1) read select Old Testament passages pertinent to the restoration of Judah in the postexilic period and reflected on their theological relevance to the Church’s ongoing theological reflection; (2) considered key questions concerning the significance of the Temple in Jerusalem and a community’s struggle for self-identity; (3) reflected on postexilic Judah’s theological, political, and ethical principles underlining the reform; and (4) the capacity to produce sound research reflecting critical abilities.

RELATIONSHIP TO PROGRAM LEARNING OUTCOMES: This PhD seminar aims to develop scholarly skills in consonance with the goals of the program learning outcomes of CATS: 1) Argument of a Thesis, 2) Critical engagement with sources, 3) Content Development, 4) Control of Writing, and 5) Attentiveness to diverse perspectives.

COURSE FORMAT: This class meets once per week for three-hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion (including reading of the Old Testament text in Hebrew) and 10 hours of weekly posting on Canvas (of answers, comments, and reflections on the instructor’s and other participants’ questions and writings) for a total of 40 instructional hours. The instructor will comment on the material to open seminar discussion.

REQUIRED READING: 1000 pages approximately.

NRSV, TNIV or CEB Bible.

Albertz, Rainer.A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period, volume II: From the Exile to the Maccabees. Westminster John Knox Press, 1994. ISBN: 978-0664218478, Pub. Price $34.95.Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [200 pages assigned].

Brown, Francis, S.R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs. The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon. Hendrickson Publishers, 1994. ISBN: 978-1565632066, Pub. Price $39.95.

Elliger, K., and W. Rudolph. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. 5th ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1997. ISBN: 978-3438052223, Pub. Price $49.95.

Knoppers, Gary N. and Lester L. Grabbe.Exile and Restoration Revisited: Essays on the Babylonian and Persian Periods in Memory of Peter R. Ackroyd. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2009.ISBN: 978- 0567109828, Pub. Price $42.95.Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [200 pages assigned].

Seow, C. L. A Grammar for Biblical Hebrew. Rev. ed. Abingdon, 1995. ISBN: 978-0687157860, Pub. Price $42.99. Not available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Approved Bible software is mandatory in this course and will be used in other language and biblical studies courses. It can be useful, also, in subsequent ministry. Accordance is available for either PC or Mac (for system requirements, see https://www.accordancebible.com/SystemRequirements). 2. The Accordance Greek and Hebrew combined package (Academic Amber1 Bundle) is $499 with the Fuller discount. Alternatively, one may purchase individual Greek and Hebrew packages with Accordance; however, the full language package (Academic Amber 1 Bundle) includes the requisite software requirements for both LG500 (Hebrew Tools) and LG510 (Greek Tools). With the Fuller discount, the smaller language bundles are priced as follows: 1) The Hebrew Initial (Amber) Bundle is $300 (the Greek Upgrade to this Hebrew Initial Bundle is $250). 2) The Greek Initial (Amber) Bundle is $330 (the Hebrew Upgrade to this Greek Initial Bundle is $220). The Fuller coupon code will be distributed to Fuller students. 3. Successful completion of the course requires ongoing access to the following reference works, all of which are available in Accordance: the text of the Hebrew Bible (Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia); Koehler, L. and W. Baumgartner. Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. 2 Volumes. Brill, 2002 (HALOT); Gesenius, W., E.F. Kautzsch, et al. Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar. Dover Publications, 2006; Jouon, P. and T. Muraoka. A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew, Parts 1, 2 & 3. Biblical Institute Press, 2006; Waltke, B. K. and M. O’Connor, An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax. Eisenbrauns, 1990. 4. BibleWorks 10 software, which includes the following components: an exhaustive Hebrew concordance, the text of the Hebrew Bible, Brown, F. with S.R. Driver & C.A. Briggs. BrownDriver-Briggs Hebrew English Lexicon. Hendrickson, 1996. Gesenius, W., E.F. Kautzsch, et al. Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar. Dover Publications, 2006. OR Joüon, P.-T. Muraoka. A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew, Parts 1, 2 & 3. Biblical Institute Press, 2006. Koehler, L. and W. Baumgartner. Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. 2 Volumes. Brill, 2002.

ADDITIONAL READING: On Canvas.

Carter, Charles E.The Emergence of Yehud in the Persian period: A Social and Demographic Study. A&C Black, 1999.ISBN: 978-1841270128, Pub. Price $202.00. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Davies, Philip R. “Monotheism, Empire, and the Cult(s) of Yehud in the Persian Period.” Religion in the Achaemenid Persian Empire: Emerging Judaism and Trends. Eds. Diana Edelman, Anne Fitzpatrick-McKinley, Philippe Gillaume.Mohr Siebeck, 2016. 24-35. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Gallarreta, José E. Balcells.Household and Family Religion in Persian-Period Judah: An Archaeological Approach. SBL Press, 2017. $48.95. ISBN: 978-0884142263, Pub. Price $48.95. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Grabbe, Lester L. “The Reality of the Return: The Biblical Picture Versus Historical Reconstruction.” Exile and Return: The Babylonian Context.Eds. Jonathan Stökl and Caroline Waerzeggers. De Gruyter, 2015. 292-307. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Janzen, David. "Politics, Settlement, and Temple Community in Persian-period Yehud."The Catholic Biblical Quarterly64: 3. 2002. 490-510. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Japhet, Sara. "Exile and the Restoration in the Book of Chronicles." The Crisis of Israelite Religion: Transformation of Religious Tradition in Exilic and Post-Exilic Times. Eds. Bob Becking and Marjo C. A. Korpel. Brill, 1999. 33-44. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Japhet, Sara. “The People and the Land in the Restoration Period.” Das Land Israel in biblischer Zeit. Ed. Georg Srecker. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1983. 103-125. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Knoppers, Gary. “Exile, Return and Diaspora: Expatriates and Repatriates in Late Biblical Literature.” Texts, Contexts and Readings in Postexilic Literature. Ed. Louis Jonker. Mohr Siebeck, 2011. 29-61. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Kuhrt, Amélie. “The Cyrus Cylinder and Achaemenid Imperial Policy.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 25. 1983. 83-97. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Lipschits, Oded. “Persian Period Finds from Jerusalem: Facts and Interpretations.” Journal of Hebrew Scriptures 9: 20. 2009. 1-30. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Rugwiji, Temba. "Land, Farming and Socio-economic Development in Yehud: A Quest for Sustainable Development towards Poverty Reduction in Zimbabwe."Scriptura: Journal for Contextual Hermeneutics in Southern Africa116: 1. 2017. 1-34. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

Velázquez, Efraín II. "The Persian Period and the Origins of Israel: Beyond the ‘Myths’."Eds. Richard S. Hess, Gerald A. Klingbeil, and Paul J. Ray Jr. Critical Issues in Early Israelite History. Eisenbrauns,2008. 61-78. Available electronically from the Fuller Library.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

Attendance at and participation in all seminar meetings. [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4]. [30 hours].
100 pages of weekly assigned readings in the Old Testament and secondary literature. [This assignment relates to learning outcomes #1, 2, and 3]. [90 hours].
Weekly postings on Canvas in connection with assigned reading (20%). [This assignment relates to learning outcomes #1, 2, and 3]. [10 hours].
Two class presentations and critical response papers to selected weeks’ readings (10% * 2 = 20%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #3 and 4]. [10 hours].
5,000-6,000 word research paper on issues in the study of Old Testament ethics in the context of faith in Christ, written in light of the assigned reading and the classes (60%). [This assignment relates to learning outcomes #1, 2, and 3]. [20 hours].

PREREQUISITES: Admission into the ThM or PhD program. Open to a limited number of advanced master’s level students with the following prerequisites: LG500, LG502, and BI500 (or NE502) and OT500; and written permission of instructor.

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.