Religion 360: New Testament Topics

Tuesday, Thursday 1.30-3.20

OM 303

C.D. Elledge, Professor

933-6295

celledge@gustavus.edu

Office Hours: MWF 1.30-4.00

This syllabus is online at:

www.gustavus.edu/~celledge/Rel-Apoc.htm

Description

The communal and social nature of earliest Christianity will be considered from a variety of perspectives. Special concern will be devoted to the earliest Christian communities, major centers of early Christianity, and the origins of Christianity within early Judaism. Students will also explore early Christian attitudes toward worship, spirituality, politics, race, gender, and sexuality. The course will explore these topics with direct reference to New Testament writings and other early Christian literature. Evaluation will be based upon presentations and the writing of a research topic. Prerequisite: One course in Biblical Studies. HIPHI / WRIT

Specialized Topic for 2007:

The Apocalyptic Heritage in Early Judaism and Christianity

Objectives

This course is designed to meet the following instructional objectives:

* To achieve basic mastery of how one historical-critical field of Biblical study, Apocalyptic Literature, can illuminate the history, literature, and theology of the Bible.

* To provide a comprehensive introduction to apocalyptic literature in its formative era from ca. 200 BCE, through the period of Christian origins, and beyond.

* To reflect upon the later history of the apocalyptic tradition in late antiquity, the early modern period, and contemporary religious culture.

* To learn new skills in Religion and Theology by developing more sophisticated writing techniques through the completion of three writing assignments (see below).

Evaluation

Letter-grade evaluation will be based upon performance in the following contexts:

* Class Participation (10%): Participants will read and be prepared to comment upon the readings listed in the syllabus. Attendance will be reflected in this category: more than two absences from the course will begin to affect grading. Strong class participation includes lively interaction with other members of the course and its instructor. The format of the course requires that each of us takes responsibility for teaching one another and learning from one another interactively.

* Writing Assignments (70%): Students will complete three writing assignments during the course. A more specific introduction to the format of each assignment is provided later in this syllabus.

a. Writing to Inquire: A brief and informal two-page reading response will be brought to every Tuesday meeting through Nov 6. In these brief reflection papers, you will first propose a question about the primary document we have read and second propose an answer to the question you have asked (10%)

b. Writing Topically: A formal five-seven page paper will trace a particular topic through a broad range of apocalyptic texts studied in the course, documenting the variety of imaginative expressions our literature gives to the topic in question. Suggested topics are listed in Part II of the class schedule. A rough draft will be submitted. This paper will undergo instructor review, be rewritten, and submitted for a final grade (20%). Important dates: Sept 11, selection of topics; Nov 6, rough draft due; Nov 27, final draft due; Nov 27, 29, 4, presentations.

c. Writing Analytically: A formal ten-fifteen page paper will present a literary, historical, and theological analysis of a particular passage in one of the apocalyptic writings studied in the course. A rough draft will be submitted. This paper will undergo instructor review, be rewritten, and submitted for a final grade (40%). Important dates: Oct 18, selecting a topic; Dec 6, rough draft due; Dec 6, 11, 13, presentations; Dec 20, final draft due.

Task	Topical Survey	Textual Analysis
Selecting a Topic	September 11	October 18
Rough Draft	November 6	December 6
Presentations	November 27, 29, 4	December 6, 11, 13
Final Draft	November 27	December 20

* Presentations (20%): Two presentations will be made in conjunction with the second and third writing assignments. Each will provide a thirty-minute discussion of the topic of the paper. The course is, thus, designed to integrate reading, writing, and speaking in the learning process.

Academic Honesty

Using the ideas and/or words of another writer and representing them as your own is plagiarism. It is your responsibility to give credit to those whose ideas and language you utilize when you write. The following statement indicates your understanding of the Gustavus Honor Code and its relationship to plagiarism; please include the statement in full and sign below it on every graded paper: "On my honor, I pledge that I have not given, received, nor tolerated others' use of unauthorized aid in completing this work."

Disability Services

“Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) work together to ensure ‘reasonable accommodation’ and non-discrimination for students with disabilities in higher education. A student who has a physical, psychiatric / emotional, medical, learning, or attentional disability that may have an effect on the student’s ability to complete assigned course work should contact the Disability Services Coordinator in the Advising Center, who will review the concerns and decide with the student what accommodations are necessary.”

What is a WRIT-D Course?

Writing courses not only help us think seriously about how to write well. They also help us learn more by writing than we would be able to without it. Writing requires us to claim ownership of our own ways of understanding and presenting ideas. It requires us to think about the relevance of our knowledge for the varied audiences to which we address our claims. Writing also teaches us to adapt our ideas to particular genres in academic disciplines. In this particular writing class, we will write in three different genres. Our earlier projects will culminate in a research paper dedicated to writing in the discipline of Biblical Studies.

What is a HIPHI Course?

Historical and Philosophical studies courses require us to think about ideas, events, and their significance as measured through the progress of time. They place us in moments of time that are often “formative” for understanding our world today, they equip us with tools for studying those moments, they encourage us to think of new possibilities for understanding relationships between the present and the past. In this particular course, we will study the history, theology, and literature of a religious tradition that flourished from ca. 200 BCE in ancient Judaea and into the present. By studying this tradition, we will come to a deeper understanding of the relationships and divergences between the past, present, and future. We will also explore what this tradition may teach us about the Bible, Second Temple Judaism, and the landscape of Christian origins. We will also develop tools of analysis and research that help us to accomplish these goals.

Required Texts

John J. Collins. The Apocalyptic Imagination: An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature. Biblical Resource Series. 2^nd ed. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1998. [A survey of the most significant apocalyptic writings of early Judaism, their origins, motifs, literary, and theological character]. = Imagination

Bernard McGinn. Apocalyptic Spirituality: Treatises and Letters of Lactantius, Adso of Montier-en-Der, Joachim of Fiore, the Franciscan Spirituals, Savonarola. Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist, 1980. [Readings from the apocalyptic tradition in late antiquity and the early modern era]. = Spirituality

Mitchell G. Reddish, ed. Apocalyptic Literature: A Reader. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1995. [One volume which contains the most important extra-biblical apocalyptic literature, including 1 Enoch, Sibylline Oracles, 4 Ezra, 2 Baruch, and a few Dead Sea Scrolls] = Reader.

C.D. Elledge. The Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature Press, 2005. [A short, essential guide to the Scrolls and the world of the Bible]. = BDSS

Geza Vermes. The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English. New York: Penguin, 1998. [The translation of the Scrolls that will be used in the class.] = CDSS

**** You will also need a Bible, with Apocrypha, which must be brought to every regular meeting of the class.

Manuals of Style

The Chicago Manual of Style. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. [A guide to writing finished works of research; REF Z253.U69 2003]

The SBL Handbook of Style for Ancient Near Eastern, Biblical, and Early Christian Studies. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1999. [A more specific guide for documentation of Resources like the Scrolls, Josephus, and other ancient sources; REF PN147.S25 1999]

Schedule

Individual sessions are dedicated to the following texts and topics. Readings will be completed prior to individual class meetings.

Sept 4

Introduction

Getting the Most out of a Writing Course

Getting the Most out of a Historical and Philosophical Studies Course

Readings: Reader, 19-32; Imagination, 1-23

Writing Workshop: Writing for Inquiry

Sept 6

Getting Started

What is an Apocalypse?

What is Apocalyptic Thought?

What is an Apocalyptic Movement?

Where, When, and How did Apocalypticism Originate?

Readings: Reader, 33-38; Imagination, 23-42

I. Apocalyptic Literature: A Survey

Sept 11

1 Enoch

The Book of Watchers (1-36)

The Epistle of Enoch and the Apocalypse of Weeks (91-105)

Readings: Genesis 5-9; Reader, 143-163, 54-58; Imagination, 43-59, 62-67; CDSS, 513-

517

Writing Workshop: Writing Topically [selection of topics]

Sept 13

1 Enoch

The Dream Visions / Beast Apocalypse (83-90)

The Similitudes of Enoch (37-71)

Readings: Reader, 41-53, 163-187; Imagination, 67-84, 177-193; BDSS, 97-114

Sept 18

Daniel

Readings: Imagination, 85-115

Sept 20

Daniel

Sept 25

Dead Sea Scrolls

Rule of the Community

Pesharim (or “Commentaries”)

War Scroll

Readings: CDSS, 97-118, 157-184, 448-506; BDSS, 33-86, review 97-102, 105-114

Sept 27

Dead Sea Scrolls

Messianic Apocalypse

Aramaic Apocalypse

Sapiential Work A (4QInstruction)

Second Ezekiel (Pseudo-Ezekiel)

Readings: Reader, 224-242; Imagination, 145-176; CDSS, 387-394, 395-428, 568-578

Oct 2-3

Nobel Conference of Science

Oct 4

Jesus, the Gospels, and Apocalyptic Thought

Readings: Mark; Imagination, 256-264; BDSS, 115-130

Oct 9

Paul, his Letters, and Apocalyptic Thought

Readings: 1 Thessalonians; 1 Corinthians, esp. ch. 15; Imagination, 264-268

Oct 11

4 Ezra

Readings: Ezra 7; Reader, 58-96; Imagination, 194-212

Oct 16

2 Baruch

Readings: Jeremiah 36:1-10; Reader, 97-142; Imagination, 212-225

Oct 18

Apocalypse of John

Readings: Imagination, 269-279

Writing Workshop: Writing Analytically (selection of topics)

Oct 20-23

Reading Days

***** Midterm grades assigned Oct 24 *****

Oct 25

Apocalypse of John

Writing Workshop: Writing Analytically (setting a literary context; describing literary forms and structural units; appreciating genre; uses of imagery, rhetorical techniques)

Oct 30

Apocalypse of Peter

Readings: Reader, 243-253; Spirituality, 1-16

Nov 1

Lactantius

Readings: Spirituality, 17-80, esp. 55-80

Writing Workshop: Writing Analytically (addressing historical questions and contexts)

Nov 6

Adso

Readings: Spirituality, 81-96

Writing Topically: Rough draft due

Nov 8

Joachim of Fiore

Readings: Spirituality, 97-119, 135-148

Writing Workshop: Writing Analytically (addressing theological / religious concepts, problems, and questions)

Nov 13

Film, “Anti-Christ” Location TBA

Nov 15

Film, “Anti-Christ” Location TBA

Writing Workshop: Writing Topically (surveying literatures; noting similarity and difference in tracing recurrent motifs)

Nov 16-20 [C.D. Elledge will attend the Annual Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature in San Diego, California, where he will lecture on the topic, “Rewriting the Sacred: Some Problems of Textual Authority in Light of the Rewritten Scriptures from Qumran.”]

Nov 21-25

Thanksgiving Break

II. Topics in Apocalyptic Literature and Thought

Resurrection, Immortality, and Life after Death in Some Apocalypses

The “Schematization of History” in Some Apocalyptic Texts

The Greeks and Romans in Apocalyptic Writings

Messiahs and Deliverers in Apocalyptic Literature

The Reinterpretation of Israel’s Prophets in Apocalyptic Literature

Demonology in Some Apocalyptic Writings

Angelology in Some Apocalyptic Writings

Jerusalem: Its Fate and Destiny in Apocalyptic Literature

The Origins of Evil in Apocalyptic Thought

Explorations of Suffering in Apocalyptic Literature

Apocalyptic Tours of the Cosmos

Nov 27

Andrew, “The Greeks and Romans in Apocalyptic Writings”

*Readings: Daniel 7, 8, 11; Apocalypse of John 13, 17; 4 Ezra 3, 11, 12

Laura, “Resurrection, Immortality, and Life after Death”

*Readings: Daniel 12:1-3, 1 Cor 15, 1 Thess 4, 4 Ezra 7:78-105, 2 Baruch 49-51, Apoc Peter 6-13

Writing Topically: final papers due

Nov 29

Delphine: “Angelology in Some Apocalyptic Writings”

*Readings: 1 Enoch 60:1-2; 40:9-10; 71; 52-53; Dan 10:5-14; 4 Ezra 7:1-2; Rule of the Community IX 20-25, XI 5-8; War Scroll I 1-5; Apocalypse of Peter 6-9

Connor: “Jerusalem: Its Fate and Destiny in Apocalyptic Literature”

*Readings: 1 Enoch, Apocalypse of Weeks (pages 54-57); Daniel 7, 8, 11; War Scroll (Reddish 229-36); New Jerusalem (Reddish); Mark 13; Apocalypse of John 11, 17, 21, 22; 2 Baruch 1-13

Dec 4

John: “The Origins of Evil in Apocalyptic Thought”

*Readings: 1 Enoch 7-8, 16, 86; Rule of the Community III-IV; 4 Ezra 7

Kayla: “Explorations of Suffering in Apocalyptic Literature”

*Readings: 1 Enoch 7, 89, and Reddish page 165; Daniel 9; 2 Baruch (Reddish 98); 4 Ezra 7; Apocalypse of Peter (Reddish 244); McGinn pages 9, 14.

III. Research Workshops on Apocalyptic Texts

Dec 6

Andrew

*Readings: 1 Thessalonians 4.13-5.11

Laura

*Readings: 2 Baruch 44-46

Writing Analytically: rough draft due

Dec 11

Delphine

*Readings: 1 Enoch 85-89.35

Connor

*Readings: ?

Dec 13

John

*Readings: Daniel 7, 9

Kayla

*Readings: Mark 4:1-20

Final examination hour:

The final paper for the course will be due in OM 303, Thursday, December 20^th at 8am.