UCBP 101: Biblical Perspectives

Samford University, Department of Religion, Spring 2006

Mon., Wed., Fri.  10:30 to 11:35am, 318 Chapman Hall

 

David R. Bains, Associate Professor
Office:
  325 Chapman Hall, phone: 726-2879, email: drbains@samford.edu
Office Hours:  TBA.

 

Course Description & Objectives:

This Course examines the historical context and religious teachings of the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures.  It seeks to cultivate the critical competencies necessary for the academic study of traditional religious texts, while at the same time considering the application of those texts to human life.  This course builds upon Cultural Perspectives I & II and is typically taken in the second year.

Students will :

·        develop an understanding of the historical context in which the Bible took shape

·        appreciate the development of religious thought within the biblical period

·        examine how biblical teachings have been and are interpreted and applied

·        use a variety of modern critical methods for studying the Bible, including Historical Criticism, Social-Scientific Criticism, and Cultural Criticism (such as Feminist, African-American or Post-Colonial Criticism).

Required Textbooks: (available at the Samford University Bookstore)

Aland, Kurt, ed. Synopsis of the Four Gospels: Fortress Press, 1983. ISBN 0826705006

Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Discipleship. Translated by Barbara Green and Reinhard Krauss. Vol. 4, Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2003.  ISBN 0800683242

Chance, J. Bradley, and Milton P. Horne. Rereading the Bible: An Introduction to the Biblical Story. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2000.  ISBN 013674276-9

Harrelson, Walter J., ed. The New Interpreter's Study Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003. ISBN 068727832-5

Powell, Mark Allan. Fortress Introduction to the Gospels. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1998. ISBN 0800630750

Roberts, J. Deotis. Bonhoeffer and King: Speaking Truth to Power. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press, 2005.  ISBN 0664226523

Readings packet