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The Old Testament in the New Testament (thirteen sessions of 3 hours each, face-to-face)
The New Testament frequently refers to the Old Testament. In this course, students will read select examples of such references, asking first how the OT text functions in its own literary and historical context, then also how the reference functions in its own NT context. We pay a lot of attention to "secular" (non-biblical-studies) theoretical work in allusion.
Books:
- Moyise, Steve. The Old Testament in the New: An Introduction, T & T Clark Approaches to Biblical Studies. London: T & T Clark, 2001. ISBN-10: 0567081990. Price: $34.95
- Porter, Stanley E. Hearing the Old Testament in the New Testament, McMaster New Testament Studies. Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 2006. ISBN-10: 0802828469. Price: $30.00 (Amazon Kindle edition available.)
Also on Reserve:
- Hatina, Thomas R. In Search of a Context: The Function of Scripture in Mark's Narrative. Vol. 232, Journal for the Study of the New Testament. Supplement Series. London: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002. ISBN-10: 0826460674. Price: $180
- Hylen, Susan. Allusion and Meaning in John 6. Berlin; New York: W. de Gruyter, 2005. ISBN-10: 3110185776. Price: $109.
- Wagner, J. Ross. Heralds of the Good News : Isaiah and Paul "In Concert" In the Letter to the Romans, Supplements to Novum Testamentum ; V. 101. Leiden ; Boston: Brill, 2002. ISBN-10: 0391042041. Price: $196.00
Other texts: Several articles and essays, available on our courses Moodle site.
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Public Presentation. Each student will offer one presentation of a book chapter, an essay or an article that is primarily methodological. Presenters will prepare a written handout, to be distributed to the instructor and classmates the Friday before the date presenting. Presenters should plan on 45 minutes of session time, of which no more than 20 minutes is a presentation delivered from a standing position with an A/V component, with the remaining time spent facilitating a planned discussion. Ph.D. candidates and MTS students should plan a presentation that could be delivered at a professional conference.
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Book Review or Report. Each student will read one of a list of books on some aspect of allusion to the Hebrew Bible in the New Testament. Ph.D. candidates and MTS students will write a book review, such as could be submitted to the Journal of Biblical Literature, the Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, or Catholic Biblical Quarterly. Other students may plan to write an analytical report.
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Allusive Writing OR Exegesis Paper. Each student will compose an original composition that substantively uses a biblical text or texts in ways analogous to those we discover in class. This project may be written or may be voice-recorded. Accompanying the composition is an analysis, corresponding to our analysis of NT texts using the OT. Alternative: a student may instead choose to write a short exegetical thesis paper of an NT text using the OT.
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Collaboratively-Built Public Exhibition. Each student will write a thesis paper on some NT text that appears to allude to the Hebrew Bible. Students will submit a complete draft at the midterm, to be assessed by three classmates. The final draft is due near term’s end, to be graded by the instructor. See rubric.