Spring 2016/Pasadena

OT850

Lee

OT850: HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE OLD TESTAMENT (6 units: 385 hours). Kyong-Jin Lee.

DESCRIPTION: This PhD seminar constitutes an inquiry into the Old Testament’s view of human rights. The course will reflect on the mechanisms and degree to which the Biblical material may have influenced ideas of human rights. The question of whether human rights proceed primarily from secular humanist moral principles or a Biblical doctrine will be explored through a comparative study of the ancient Israelite creation theology and modern intellectual discourse.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students who pass the course will have demonstrated that they have (1) read a number of select Old Testament passages and reflected on their theological relevance to the question of human rights; (2) considered key questions concerning human rights in the Old Testament; (3) reflected on Old Testament political theology and secular doctrine of human rights; and (4) the capacity to produce sound research reflecting critical abilities.

COURSE FORMAT: This seminar meets once per week for three hour sessions for a total of 33 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion plus 7 hours of weekly posting on Moodle (of critical response to other participants’ class presentations) for a total of 40 instructional hours. The instructor will comment on the material to open seminar discussions. Students will take turns in giving 20-minute presentations of well-formulated questions for class.

REQUIRED READING: 2,000 total pp. required.

NRSV, TNIV or CEB Bible.

Elliger, K., and W. Rudolph. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. 5th ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1997. ISBN: 9783438052223, Pub. Price $39.99.

Brown, Francis, S.R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs. The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon. Hendrickson Publishers, 1994. ISBN: 9781565632066, Pub. Price $34.95.

Cronin, Kieran. Rights and Christian Ethics.  Cambridge University Press, 1992. ISBN: 9780521092944, Pub. Price $49.99 [300 pages assigned].

Moltmann, Jurgen. On Human Dignity: Political Theology and Ethics. Fortress Press, 1984. ISBN: 9780800662448, Pub. Price $19.00 [200 pages assigned].

Witte Jr., John, and Frank S. Alexander, eds.Christianity and Human Rights: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press, 2010. ISBN: 9780521194419, Pub. Price $34.99 [300 pages assigned].

ADDITIONAL READING:

See course Moodle.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. Attendance and participation in all seminar meetings. [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4]. [33 hours].

  2. 250 pp. of weekly assigned readings in the Old Testament and secondary literature. [This assignment relates to learning outcomes #1, 2, and 3]. [170 hours].

  3. Hebrew text translation preparation. [This assignment is related to learning outcome #2]. [9 texts, 5 hours each, 45 hours].

  4. Weekly postings on Moodle of critical response to class presentations. [This assignment relates to learning outcomes #1, 2, and 3]. [7 hours].

  5. Two seminar presentations to the class and 2,000-word papers (25% each). [This assignment relates to learning outcomes #1, 2, and 3]. [20 hours each, 40 hours].

  6. 8,000-10,000 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 (50%). [This assignment relates to learning outcomes #1, 2, and 3]. [90 hours]

PREREQUISITES:

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Elective. Option to meet Christian Ethics Emphasis requirement.

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.