Module THEO3291: ISSUES IN OLD TESTAMENT STUDY

Department: Theology and Religion

THEO3291: ISSUES IN OLD TESTAMENT STUDY

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To introduce students to new evidence and methods which have made an important impact on the study of ancient Israel in recent decades, and to explore these with particular reference to topics such as biblical history, Palestinian archaeology, worship, and selected biblical texts.
• To evaluate critically the new approaches involved, and to estimate their wider significance for Hebrew Bible/Old Testament study.
• (For students taking the Hebrew option:) To develop skills in the reading of advanced Hebrew texts.
• (For students taking the English option:) To develop skills in the close reading of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament texts in English translation.

Content

• Specific issues, chosen each year for their topicality, will be discussed in blocks of a number of weeks. The issues will be in areas such as archaeology and epigraphy, history and historicity, ritual and worship, and literature and literacy. Within each topic, students will be introduced to the particular questions currently under discussion, and guided through the evidence and arguments which have been presented. Students will be encouraged to understand the different intellectual and religious influences which continue to shape the discipline.
• For students with a knowledge of Hebrew, classes will be available, during which a text, chosen after discussion with the students, will be studied in the original.
• For students with no background in the study of biblical Hebrew, classes will be available to read biblical texts in English translation.

Learning Outcomes

• A systematic understanding of key aspects, and a coherent and detailed knowledge of issues currently under discussion in the field, with a specific focus upon the most recent research and methodologies.

• An ability to assess critically the new evidence and approaches presented, and to confront and engage with current scholarly debate.
• An ability to read and understand the issues surrounding a difficult set text, either in English translation or in Hebrew.

• Skills in the acquisition of information through reading and research, and in the structured presentation of information in written form.
• (For students taking the Hebrew option:) Generic linguistic skills.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Lectures convey information and exemplify an approach to the subject-matter, enabling students to develop a clear understanding of the subject and to improve their skills in listening and in evaluating information.
• Workshops held during some of the lecture periods enhance students’ skills in the close reading of texts.
• Formative essays develop subject-specific knowledge and understanding, along with student skills in the acquisition of information through reading and research, and in the structured presentation of information in written form.
• Examinations assess subject-specific knowledge and understanding, along with student skills in the structured presentation of information in written form.
• Gobbets assess the skills that students have developed in regard to the close reading and analysis of biblical texts (and of translation for the students in the Hebrew option).

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Class work in close reading and analysis of texts (and in translation for Hebrew students).

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University