Summer 2015/Pasadena

NT500

Miller

NT500: NEW TESTAMENT INTRODUCTION (4 Units: 160 Hours). Renee Dutter Miller.

DESCRIPTION: New Testament Introduction 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 to explore those questions in the process of interpreting particular New Testament texts; (3) can identify significant, critical resources for New Testament study and deploy those sources critically in New Testament study; (4) are able to take into account the varied contexts of both the biblical materials and their contemporary interpreters; and (5) can read the New Testament in ways that foster faithful Christian practice.

COURSE FORMAT: The course meets daily for four-hour sessions over two weeks for a total of 36 hours. Class time will be divided between lectures on content and method, and hands-on work with texts. Significant student participation is expected; students will be responsible for preparing assigned passages of the New Testament to discuss online and in class.

REQUIRED READING: 880 total pages required.

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

Achtemeier, Paul J., Joel B. Green, and Marianne Meye Thompson. Introducing the New Testament: Its Literature and Message. Eerdmans, 2001. ISBN: 978-0802837172, Pub. Price $44.00 [636 pp.].

Gorman, Michael. Apostle of the Crucified Lord. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2004. ISBN: 978-0802839343, Pub. Price $44.00 [610 pp.].

Green, Joel B. Seized by Truth: Reading the Bible as Scripture. Abingdon, 2007. ISBN: 978-0687023554, Pub. Price $25.00 [185 pp.].

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. 880 total pages of books and articles required, plus reading the entire NT [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1 and 4] [84 hours, including 25 hours of reading the entire NT].

  2. Participation in online and in-class discussions (10%).

  3. Two interpretive exercises on selected passages (2 pages each) (30%) [This assignment is related to learning outcome #2] [10 hours].

  4. A critical review of Green, Seized by Truth (2 pages each) (20%) [This assignment is related to learning outcome #2] [5 hours].

  5. Research essay on an assigned NT text (ca. 10 pages) (40%) [This assignment is related to learning outcome #3] [25 hours].

PREREQUISITES: None.

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

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.