R E L103 A: Introduction to the

Term: Spring, 2013 Classroom: Rankin 204B Meeting Period: Mon., Tues., Thurs., and Fri., 1:00-1:50 PM

Instructor: Scott Celsor Office Phone: 951-3170 E-M ail Address: [email protected]

Office: Shattuck B37 Office Hours: Monday and Thursday, 11:00 to Noon, or by Appointment

Course Format Being an introductory course, one might think that this course would be and Objectives: primarily lecture. After all, an introductory course presents a great deal of information and the best way to present a large amount of material is through lecture. The lecture format also has great medicinal value for insomnia. Thus, I think a better way to present this material is through a combination of lecture, dramatic reading, ³JDPH-VKRZV´VPDOO-group discussion, in-class library research projects, videos, writing, and debate. This involves you in your learning, hopefully causing you to see the connections between Scripture, religion, spirituality, and your life. I intend to keep the class as lively and interesting as I can.

Because Introduction to the New Testament falls under DUHDVHYHQRI&DUUROO¶Vold Liberal Studies Program, there is still an overall, developmental purpose in this course to foster an understanding of the meaning of human spirituality in order to foster the developPHQWRIRQH¶V own religious identity. But, as a philosophy/ethics/ UHOLJLRQOHYHORQHGLVWULEXWLRQFRXUVHRI&DUUROO¶VQHZGeneral Education Program, this course will also investigate multiple religious perspectives/cultures, so as to allow the student to enter conversations about ethics, values, and meanings. As both a Liberal Studies Program and General Education Program course, there are two broad categories of goals which this course seeks to achieve; skills and contents. Concerning skills, which the well-educated person should display, this course will introduce you to new critical reading and research methods, and will allow you to develop critical reasoning, oral communication, and writing skills. Most of these will be assessed through your particular research essay, the essay sections of the two exams, and course participation. Concerning content, which one should know in RUGHUWREH³OLEHUDOO\HGXFDWHG´you should know the following by the end of the course:

x Understand what the Christian New Testament (NT) is and key terms in talking intelligently about it; x have a fundamental understanding of the Jewish and Greco-Roman historical background of the NT; x have a fundamental understanding of the basic Christian narrative; x understand some of the basic hermeneutical concerns in reading the ; x and have a fundamental understanding about how the NT has shaped Western culture, and how it continues to do so.

The first three of these goals will be assessed by quizzes and exams, and the fourth goal by final exam and your research essay. The last goal will not be assessed at all.

1

Course Requirements: There are four FRPSRQHQWVWRRQH¶VILQDOJUDGHworth a total of 400 points.

x There will be two quizzes and two exams worth a total of 250 points. The quizzes and exams account for a little over 60% of your final grade. The quizzes are not comprehensive, while the two exams are comprehensive. Both the quizzes and exams will be divided into two sections--multiple choice and matching²while the exams will add a third, short essay section. The multiple choice and matching questions for the quizzes and exams will examine your mastery of the contents of the NT and key terms related to it, the Old Testament (OT) background to the NT, the historical/sociological environment of the NT, and the basic Christian narrative. This information is found in your note packet, course text, and Bible. The essay sections in the exams will either assess your ability to narratively analyze a given passage or your ability to critique a short argument.

x There will be one research paper, worth 50 points, which is worth a little over 10% of your final grade. The topic will be of your choice, but it must be related to Christian Scripture, Old or New Testaments, in some way and approved by the instructor. The paper must be from 5 -7 pages in length. It must cite at least two primary texts and three secondary texts, but only three of these texts may come from the internet. We will cover how to go about doing research in Scripture and theology topics in class. You are to use proper grammar and spelling, standard margins, and an academically acceptable font of 10 or 12 points. It is due on Thursday, April 25, but be prepared to discuss your research in class on Friday, April 19.

x There will be a total of ten short preparation exercises, which will be worth a total of 50 points. This component is worth a little over 10% of your course grade. Each due date is mentioned in the course reading schedule below. These H[HUFLVHVFDQEHIRXQGRQWKHFRXUVHZHEVLWHXQGHU³&RXUVH'RFXPHQWV Handouts´

x Class participation will be worth 50 points, which is a little over 10% of your final grade. Half the points will be awarded at mid-term, half at the end of the course. Class participation involves asking questions in class, making comments, getting involved in debate, and dialoguing with students who have differing theologies. Both the quantity and quality of the participation will be assessed. The metric for awarding points FDQEHIRXQGRQWKH³0\&RXUVH´ZHE VLWHIRUWKLVFODVVXQGHU³0HWULFV´ I will also accept written questions, turned in to me by the end of the day, as evidence of class participation.

Any indulgence you receive in class for participation can be converted into bonus points and added to your final point total.

Moreover, in order to illustrate issues in Scriptural interpretation and critical UHIOHFWLRQXSRQ6FULSWXUHZHZLOOFRQGXFWD³SURJUHVVLYH´GHbate. On Tuesday, April 9, two students will present an argument trying to justify some doctrinal or ethical position that is grounded upon Scripture. The rest of the class period will then be devoted to a class-wide critique of the argument, searching for its weak- nesses. Then, on the following Thursday, April 18, two other students will present WKHEHVWRIWKHVHREMHFWLRQVWRWKHSUHYLRXVZHHN¶VDUJXPHQWDQGVKRZWKHFODVVZK\ they were right to lodge these objections against the argument. The rest of the class period will then be devoted to a class-wide critique of these objections, searching for their weaknesses. The final Tuesday devoted to this project, April 23, will then be devoted to determining which team has the better argument.

2 Four volunteers will be needed for this project; two debaters for each team. People will be selected based upon their abilities in oral communication, critical thinking, and, if necessary, the order of their request. Each debater will receive 10 bonus points for their additional work.

Course G rading and Since this course is based upon discussion and student involvement, class attendance Attendance Policies: is expected. I may penalize your final course grade one-half letter grade for each absence over six, whether that absence be considered excused (illness, death in family, or school sponsored activity) or unexcused$Q³H[FXVHG´DEVHQFHLVUHOH- vant, only if you miss a quiz, presentation, or homework due date, due to a school approved reason. If so, then I will allow you to make-up the work. Otherwise, it is at my discretion as to whether you will be allowed to make it up. It is your responsibility to let me know if you are late.

This course will use the following grading scale: A is 93-100%; AB is 89-92.99; B is 83-88.99; BC is 79-82.99; C is 70-78.99; D is 60-69.99; F is 59.99 and lower.

Miscellaneous: Appropriate sanctions will be applied to those students in violation of Car- UROO¶V academic policy. Please see the college catalog and the Student Hand- book for college policies and procedures on student academic integrity.

Students with documented disabilities who may need accommodations, or any student considering obtaining documentation, should make an appointment with Ms. Andrea Broman, our disabilities coordinator, no later than the first week of class. She may be reached by calling 524-7335.

The Instructor and the College reserve the right to modify, amend, or change the syllabus (course requirements, grading policy, etc.) as the curriculum and/or program require.

Required Text: Powell, Mark Allan. Introducing the New Testament. A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-8010- 2868-7.

Recommended Text: The New Oxford Annotated Bible with : New . (NRSV) 4th Edition. Ed. by Michael D. Coogan. Oxford and New York: , 2010. ISBN: 0195289609.

You may use your own translation if you wish, but if you do not own a Bible, I would suggest purchasing the above Bible, which is available in the bookstore, or the The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha: Revised Standard Version (RSV). Both are widely used within ecumenical circles, especially the RSV version, which means that they are used by Orthodox, Catholics, and Protestants alike. Both of these versions are of the (KJV) heritage. If you do choose to use your own Bible, however, you must have it approved by me.

3 Course Reading Schedule

Scripture readings are denoted by the book of the Bible and chapters to be read. Introductory readings in our course text, Introducing the New TestamentDUHGHQRWHGE\³3RZHOO´DQGFKDSWHUQXPEHUVReadings in the course notes DUHGHQRWHGE\³1RWHV´DQGSDJHQXPEers. 2WKHUUHDGLQJVFDQEHIRXQGRQWKHFRXUVHZHEVLWHXQGHU³Course Documents/5HDGLQJV´Quizzes, exams, essays, and preparation exercises are noted in bold text on the date that they are due.

Meeting/Day/Date Lecture/Activity Readings/Assignments

1. Tu, 1/22 Introduction to the Course 2. Th, 1/24 Personal Interest Exercise 3. F, 1/25 What is the Bible?

4. M, 1/28 :KDWLVWKH%LEOH"FRQ¶W Powell, ch. 2 5. Tu, 1/29 OT Background Gen. 1-3, 12; Ex 1-2, 12, 19-20, 24, 34 6. Th, 1/31 OT BackgroundFRQ¶W Deut 6, 8, 28; 1 Sam 1-2; Is 40, 42, 53 7. F, 2/1 Historical/Sociological Powell, ch. 1 Environment of the NT

8. M, 2/4 Who is Jesus Christ? Powell, ch. 3, Assignment 1 9. Tu, 2/5 Introduction to the Gospels Powell, ch. 4 Introduction to Narrative Notes, pp. 36-38. 10. Th, 2/7 Dramatic Reading, Lk 1-2 Luke 1-5 11. F, 2/8 Narrative Reading, Lk 1 Luke 6-9

12. M, 2/11 Narrative Reading, Lk 2 Luke 10-14 13. Tu, 2/12 Dramatic Reading, Lk 3-4, 22 Luke 15-21 14. Th, 2/14 Dramatic Reading, Lk 23-24 Luke 22-24 15. F, 2/15 Luke in Review Powell, ch. 7, Assignment 2 Quiz Review

16. M, 2/18 Jeopardy! 17. Tu. 2/19 Quiz 1 Open Discussion 18. Th, 2/21 Library Research 19. F, 2/22 /LEUDU\5HVHDUFKFRQ¶W

20. M, 2/25 Matthew Research Matt 1-10 21. Tu, 2/26 Matthew ResHDUFKFRQ¶W Matt 11-17 22. Th, 2/28 Matthew Debrief Matt 18-22 23. F, 3/1 0DWWKHZ'HEULHIFRQ¶W Matt 23-28

24. M, 3/4 Matthew in Review Powell, ch. 5, Assignment 3 25. Tu, 3/5 Readings in John John 1-3, 18-21 Mid-Term Review 26. Th, 3/7 John in Review Powell, ch. 8 27. F, 3/8 Gospel Debriefing Assignment 4 Acts 1-7

28. M, 3/11 Reading in Acts Acts 8- 13 29. Tu, 3/12 Jeopardy! Acts 14-20 30. Th, 3/14 Acts in Review Acts 21-28 Powell, ch. 9, Assignment 5 31. F, 3/15 Mid-Term Exam

4 32. M, 3/18 Introduction to Biblical Catechism, ¶ 84-100, 105-119 Interpretation Christian Dogmatics, 129-137 Hagen, 129-137 33. Tu, 3/19 Introduction to Biblical Notes, 47-56 ,QWHUSUHWDWLRQFRQ¶W Introduction to Debate 34. Th, 3/20 Open Discussion 35. F, 3/21 Introduction to New Powell, ch. 10-11, Assignment 6 Testament Letters Introduction to Paul

36. M, 3/25 Spring Break (Class Dismissed) 37. Tu, 3/26 Spring Break (Class Dismissed) 38. Th, 3/28 Spring Break (Class Dismissed) 39. F, 3/29 Spring Break (Class Dismissed)

40. M, 4/1 Readings in 1 Corinthians 1 Cor 1-3, 8-10 41. Tu, 4/2 Readings in 1 Corinthians, cont. 1 Cor 12-13 42. Th, 4/5 1 Corinthians in Review Powell, ch. 13, Assignment 7 43. F, 4/5 Readings in Romans Rom 1-8, Assignment 8

44. M, 4/8 Romans in Review Powell, ch. 12 Quiz Review 45. Tu, 4/9 Debate 1 46. Th, 4/11 Press Your Luck! 47. F, 4/12 Quiz 2 Open Discussion

48. M, 4/15 Justification by Faith Notes, pp. 41-46 49. Tu, 4/16 Romans and Doctrine James 1-5 50. Th, 4/18 Debate 2 51. F, 4/19 Research Presentations

52. M, 4/22 Hebrews in Review Heb 1-3, 6-11 Powell, ch. 23, Assignment 9 53. Tu, 4/23 Debate 3 54. Th, 4/25 Video: Apocalypse! Research Paper Rev 1-6 55. F, 4/26 9LGHR$SRFDO\SVHFRQ¶W Rev 12-13, 17-22

56. M, 4/29 Revelation in Review Powell, ch. 29, Assignment 10 57. Tu, 4/30 Concluding Comments Final Exam Review Open Discussion

58. Tu, 5/7 Final Exam Here, 1PM

5