Final Exam Questions: Due December 15th

Please choose three of the following questions.  Write a three page essay on each that engages the biblical text, your class notes, and reading assignments.  Essays should cite verse references only (do not write out any verses), and also reference your secondary readings.  Please turn in these essays on the last night of class in hard copy form.

1.  Describe the nature and role of "the servant" in the context of Isaiah context as well as the New Testament parallel references.

2.  Describe how the overall shape of the book of Isaiah portrays the central ethical issues Israel must face as a nation.

3.  How does Psalm 1 perform as an introduction to the Psalter?

4.  Discuss the "justice of God" as it relates to the events that take place in Abraham's life (Genesis 12-25)

5.  What is the theological function of poetry in the Old Testament?

6.  How does the event of Exile shape an overarching frame of reference for reading the Old Testament?

No Class Tuesday Nov. 10

Class:  Per my email last week, there will be no class this Tuesday, Nov. 10.  We will make up the class on Tuesday, Nov. 24.  Please use this week to catch up on your reading and make your way through the book of Isaiah as we discussed last week.  Charles

Mid Term Questions - Due Nov. 3rd

Answer any 3 of the following questions for the take-home portion of your final examination.  Each answer should include scripture citations, reference class discussion and secondary readings, and be no more than three pages double spaced (each).  These essays should be handed in at the start of class on Nov 3.  Do NOT post your answers on the blog.  Turn in these papers in written form.

1.  How does the Deuteronomic History assess the effectiveness of the "Kingship" in Israel/Judah?

2.  Describe the character of YHWH in the book of Exodus.

3.  Describe the character of the legal codes in the Book of the Covenant (Exod 21-23).

4.  Describe the "Inner Logic" of the Ten Commandments

5.  Briefly discuss issues of theodicy in Genesis 1-11.

6.  How do you assess the character of Abraham in Genesis 12-25?

Blog Post No.: The Deuteronomic History (Due. Oct. 13)

From your reading in Pleins, describe the Deuteronomic History.  What scripture does it cover?  What questions does it seek to address?

Click on "comment" below to post your answer.

Blog Post No. 2: Definitions (Due Oct. 13)

Briefly define the following terms:

Tetrateuch
Pentateuch
Hexateuch

Blog Post No. 3: The Book of Judges (Due Oct. 13)

From Judges 2, describe the cycle of obedience-disobedience.  Cite scriptural references in your answer.

Click on "comment" below to post your answer.

Blog Post No. 1: Reflecting on the Book of Exodus (Due Oct. 6)

From our discussion in class last week, comment on what you believe is the overall "ethic" of the Book of the Covenant.  Cite several examples to substantiate your point.

Click on "comment" below to post your response.

Blog Post No. 2: Magonet Article on the Ten Commandments (Due Oct. 6)

Per Magonet's analysis, comment on the role of the Sabbath in the structure of the Ten Commandments.

Click on "comment" below to post your reponse.

Blog Post No. 3: Reflecting on Exodus (Due Oct 6)

Using your notes and your Bible, describe the character of Moses in the book of Exodus.

Click on "comments" below to post your comment.

ARE YOU SAVED by Magonet

According to Magonet, God has provided man after the Fall the ability to create a new Eden, one which through their own efforts they must find(p140). To me this is expressing the idea that man must have a hand in their own salvation, and that God’s presence in salvation history allows us to break the yoke of slavery(representing sin),through the concern for others, and the acceptance of God’s will for all people. God used Israel as the model of His expectation for all people, as a way of showing how man can attain the harmony in this world, that was intended with Creation. Magonet says to be saved, man must honor the Sabbath where we honor God,s directive, and acknowledge Him as our Creator, and accept His will and plan for man’s salvation. This plan is a way to provide man an opportunity to free himself from the stress of labor that became a part of our existence since the Fall. It also intended to give man the time to rest and refresh ourselves in our continuing effort to create a new Eden. God being God, really did not need a day of rest, His intent was to show man that they had to stop, look at what they have done, and see the goodness in their own creation.

Blog Post 1: "Are You Saved" by Jonathan Magonet, Due Sept. 29

According to Jonathan Magonet, in the context of Exodus, what does it mean "to be saved?"

The Ancient Near Eastern World

Review the Power Point of  maps and other information about the culture and empires of the Ancient Near Eastern World.  This information will be on your quiz for next week in addition to the first three chapters in your Miller/Hayes textbook.

Ancient Near East World

The Hebrew Bible and Commentary

Review the highlighted Power Point presentation to learn about the composition of the Hebrew Bible and its related commentaries.  This material will be on next week's quiz.

Hebrew Bible and Commentary

Blog Post No. 1 for September 22

Click on the link below "A Religion for Adults" and then read the article by Emmanuel Levinas.   Blog your understanding of what Levinas means by a "religion for adults."

NOTE:  To respond to this post, please click on "COMMENT" belong and write your answer in the white box provided.

 A Religion for Adults

Documentary Hypothesis

According to my research, the documentary hypothesis suggests that the five books of Moses (the Pentateuch or the Torah) originally existed as complete narratives that were independent of each other and which where combined into their current forms through the process of redaction criticism. Scholars of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries using the process of source criticism were able to piece together a theory that suggests that the combined records came together from four main sources – Jahwist (J); Elohist (E); Deuteronomist (D) and Priestly (P). The J source, considered to be the oldest narrative, is said to covers half of Genesis and Exodus and some portion of Numbers. Again, my research point to the J source as a description of the human side of God referred to in that time as Yahweh (YHWH) and was rooted in the kingdom of Judah. The E source is said to be more of a duplication of the narratives making up another third of Genesis, half of Exodus and still a small portion of Numbers. This source suggest also the human like God referred to as Yahweh that was subsequently called Elohim after the burning bush episode with Moses. The E source is concerned with the kingdom of Israel and the priesthood of Shiloh. The D source points specifically to the book of Deuteronomy with some run over into Joshua, Judges and Kings and uses the distinctive reference of YHWH Elohainu as its Hebrew name for God which translates into English as “The Lord our God”. The P source is more interested in the enumerating the dates, numbers, laws and genealogies of the story. In this context, God is suggested to be distant and merciless and is given the name Elohim. The P source suggests more of a concern with the priesthood and keeping the law than being interested in mercy and relationship that YHWH represents.

Blog Post 1 for Week of September 15

From your reading of Fewell and Gunn, briefly reflect on issues that we must deal with in analysing the character of YHWH in the Hebrew Bible.

Blog Post 2 for Week of September 15

Briefly describe the Documentary Hypothesis.  Include in your answer the purpose of the Documentary Hypothesis and a brief description of the four sources, J, E, P, D.

Characteristics of YHWH

My reading of Gunn and Fewell and the changing characters that can be found in a biblical narrative forced me to think critically about how "on the surface" I have read and even studied many a story in the Bible. Reading the bible in this way, I now realized, has made me to view God and his work in the world as always aiming for goodness. However, in reading the text, I was able to see how God, uses disasters and other situations in our lives as a means of bringing us in line with his will. How often in reading the stories that as Christians we allow ourselves to focus on the sad part of the stories without seeing how YHWH used these situations for his own purpose. In the story of Joseph, instead of looking on the horrific way in which the brothers treated Joseph, the authors suggest that the reader look at how YHWH used this situation as a way to cultivate in the brothers, and to us, an understanding of YHWH's power of salvation and redemption (p. 83). In the story of Ruth and Naomi, YHWH displays serveral characteristics - punisher, provider and savior. In the story Naomi loses her husband and sons and is mourning which might be seen as punishment for going to Moab in the first place but YHWH does not just through her to the wolves. Provision is made for her through the love and compassion that YHWh puts in the heart of her daughter-in-law Ruth who returns to Bethlehem with her. Inspite of being a foreigner in the land, Ruth who is not used to worshipping YHWH learns by the example of Naomi and is willing to learn how to worship YHWH and pledges that not even death will come between her and her mother-in-law. Finally, Ruth encounters Boaz by which YHWH shows his characteristic as savior. My take-away from the assigned chapters in Narrative in the Hebrew Bible, forced me to recognize the importance of accepting YHWH's as complex, multi-faceted and challenging. Recognizing that all stories, even biblical one, are laiden with plots and twists with the characters in the story motivated by one or more things is a great way to look forward to what comes next in this interesting text.

CHARACTER OF YHWH

The stories of the Hebrew Bible shows YHWH as a mysterious God and the author warns of the propensity of characters to shift in and out of focus(p76). At times in the bible YHWH has a single trait and is considered predictable(flat character) and at times He displays a multiple of traits, even contradictory behaviors(p75). This lends to that mysterious persona because the authors of the Biblical Stories did n't truly understand, why God reacted in certain circumstances, why God does things the way He does. At times he was a God of mercy, of retribution, a God that gives, a God that takes away, a God that is present, and a God missing in action. All of these characterizations are clues, that helps the reader to draw a picture of God, even though it maybe an imperfect picture. It underlines the complexity of our relationship with God, and I believe the authors infers that we have made it more complex than it should be.

Reading Ethically

When reading the Bible, people can and will put there own interpretation on the passages they are reading. They will relate to those passages based on their life experiences. The two examples used in the text: the Czech Jews and the Bible class, shows that if you read the Bible "as if" your life depended on it, you might be a more critical reader of the Bible. As stated in the text, "competent reading has to di with more than the application of knowledge because the stakes can be high - with consequences for life and limb". As much as we try to take into account the time and context in which the Scriptures in the Bible were written, I believe that we must look at 2 Peter 1: 20-21: "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" When reading the Bible, we must remember that it is inspired by God and it is through the Holy Spirit that we can truly understand the Scriptures. When we put our own personal "spins" on the Bible, are we truly getting the meaning that God wants us to get from his Words? The woman stated that Matthew 5:38-39, "has killed more women than any of us here would care to count". It wasn't those Scriptures that killed women, it was the interpretation that could have gotten the women killed. So when we ethically read the Bible, we should do it with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Enuma Elish On-Line

Class:  here is the link to the Enuma Elish for this evening's class.  Click on Enuma Elish On-line and you will go right to the link.  We will use this in class this evening.

God's Sense of Humor

Over the years, I have come to the point of acknowledging God's sense of humor; however, it was long and hard in coming. As I recall my days as a child attending church with my family and how it was the norm to wipe the smile and joy you just shared with others outside the church door from your face once you entered the sanctuary. Laughter in the presence of God was disturbing because God was serious and he needed us to be serious in order for us to know that he loved us. I imagine the feeling was that for us to be grateful for God's love we needed to distort our faces (like the Pharisees when they fasted). Being somewhat of a jokester, it was interesting for me to read that Hyers And God Created Laughter and recognize that the fact that "laughter is fundamentally an act of celebrating existence. Laughter is an expression both of enjoyment and thanksgiving" (p14). Since I have decided to celebrate God's creative process in my life and since I want to continue saying "yes to life", I am grateful for this text that reminds me that to be comedic in the presence of God is to "see myself from the outside" without all the stresses and tensions that my life includes. For me to enjoy the "good life" that God promised, it is important for me to remember not to kill and bury the child I once was but to use the innocence of children to garner the courage to ask those "whys" of God that I would not ask when my adult mind is engaged. This text reminded me to use my childlike mind in ways that helps bring playfulness and laughter into my relationships and encounters with the people I encounter so that the image and face of God is never far away from me or them.

How to read ethically

To read ethically, one must decide not to allow presuppositions, culture, experience and other characteristics and stereotypes to dictate what is taken away from what is being studied or read. Additionally, in order for the reader to reader ethically, it would be important to recognize that the characters being read about are (were) real and so not gloss over the material as though their contributors to the story did not have real lives. Based on the material read in Reading as if, eithical reading suggests caution against being overly critical about what one reads because such an approach can lead to maligning and denegrading a culture and its people. In my opinion, reading ethically is a way to allow for fresh perspectives to be brought on a piece of material. Many clergypersons believe that the interpretation of a particular scripture in the nineteen century continues to be applicable in the twenty-first century. Here is where I believe that reading the text ethically allows for interpretation that will bring the hearer/reader to a place where the text speaks to their current situation. For example, in the story of the woman at the well, the explanation has always been that the woman "slept around"; however, reading this story ethically may allow for an interpretation that suggests that all "her husbands" had walked away from her and that because she was poor she kept getting into these relationships as a way to survive.

God's Joy Brings Us laughter

I believe the author tells us that the humor of God is found in all those things he has done for us to bring us joy, and from joy comes laughter. This joy is a result of hope and knowing God will deliver for us, and because God will seemingly do the impossible for us. Abraham and Sarah felt the joy of God delivery, Hannah also felt the joy when the seemingly impossible occurred for them through the intervention of God. Christians are called to be fools for Christ like the court jester who brings joy into people lives, Christians through the Message of Christ bring joy to those who hear the message. Like the comedian who appears to be foolish, but exposes the self righteous, the pretentious and pompous. I know someone who called God a Jokester, who keeps pulling the rug out from under them, because of things that kept occurring in their life. As I look back at the issue, as this person got close to something they wanted, the rug was pulled from under them. This is similar to the statement made by the author"the self righteous are turned away from the gate"(p3) . This is like the person who does not get the punch line of the joke, like the person who does not receive the message of God; the rug will be pulled out from under them. If you receive the message there will be joy in your life and laughter comes with joy.

WHAT IS ETHICS OF READING

Ethics of reading is basically an understanding that we must be aware and obligated to know how our thinking is shaped by what we read, how our actions maybe influenced by what we read, and the possible consquences to others in terms of how our thinking may attempt to influence others. It is inferred that ethical reading is strengthened by an informed understanding of the world we live, and being part of the real world where situations exists and changes constantly. We have an obligation to be aware of what is at stake, e.g the Bible can be used as a tool, when it is the source of comfort to someone grieving, or it can be used as a weapon to subjugate other people. We must read the Bible according to the author, as if lives depend on it, and this points to the fact that there is an obligation that exists to be mindful of how what we read, may adversely influence us and subsequently impact others. Ethical reading involves not only exposing what maybe said, but what is unsaid; understanding the period of time, the culture, the society that exists that influences how things are written. It involves understanding who was being addressed, who the target reader is and what inspired the story, such as the Jewish anxiety because of their homelessness and exile. It involves being aware of our own limitations ,our own background, our own expectations, to insure we read as if other lives are at stake.

Blog Response 1 for 9/8 class: "Reading as If..."

Based on your reading of the article "Reading As If," describe briefly what it means to "read ethically."

Blog Response 2 for 9/8 class: The Humor of God

How did Conrad Hyers' chapter on "The Humor of God," prompt you to begin thinking about the presence of comedy in the Bible?

Welcome to the Class Blog

Welcome to the our class blog!

We will use the blog to interact with each other as we explore the text, language, culture, history, ethics, and social visions of the Hebrew Bible.

You will be able to post comments to readings, chat with fellow classmates, review results of class polls, explore news links to current events, and even look at some humorous videos!

Take a few minutes to explore the blog!  I will be updating it each week, so log-on daily for updates!

I am looking forward to interacting with you this semester as we explore the Hebrew Bible together.

Any questions, send me an email at CharlesRix@gmail.com

Shalom!

Class Poll No. 1 9/1/2009

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Presentation 1: Introduction 9/1/2009

Introduction to the Old Testament Presentation 1

Course Syllabus

Intro to OT St. John 2009

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