The purpose of prepring a bibliography is to expose students to the full range of scholarly tools in the field of biblical study. The first five books of the Old Testament constitute the Torah, the essence of God's revelation to the people of Israel, and also of great significance for Christians. These themes are also related to other parts of the Bible, and their relevance to modern questions is discussed. A lesser amount of time is spent on the ritual and sacrificial prescriptions of Leviticus and on the Books of Numbers and Deuteronomy. The classes combine lecture and a pro-seminar atmosphere.
Students normally do a paper and share the results with the class.
There will be a mid-semester and a final examination. The fifteen books of the Old Testament called prophetic books have a special significance for theology. They record the messages communicated by God through this unusual group to the people of Israel. At the same time, as an essential part of sacred scripture, their messages are directed to the believing community today. This course studies the biblical prophets over against the political, social and religious crises of their times, highlighting both their words of judgement and the great images of divine salvation they hold out to a people willing to change.