UMS : Unit: BS9051T

Content

In these units, students will investigate the cultural, political, religious and geographical environment of intertestamental Judaism and early Christianity, in order to better understand the Old and New Testaments in their contexts. In addition, students will also experience the modern political and religious tensions in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, places that will be visited during the study tour. As a result, students will also explore the biblical and historical roots of this modern political/religious conflict. The unit is comprised of two elements: a study tour of the Holy Land (which offers no credit points) and an assessment unit which prepares the students for the experience, offers opportunity to reflect upon the experience, with application to interpretation of texts in light of the tour experience.

Unit code: BS9051T

Unit status: Approved (Major revision)

Points: 24.0

Unit level: Postgraduate Elective

Unit discipline: Biblical Studies

Delivery Mode: Blended

Proposing College: Trinity College Theological School

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Learning outcomes

1.	Reflect upon the impact of the context on their understanding and interpretation of biblical texts;
2.	Analyse their own responses to the experience of the land in which the Bible stories are grounded;
3.	Apply their experience of a particular place, custom, practice, or sociological insight to the discipline of biblical studies.
4.	Reflect theologically on sites and texts included in the journey of the tour and integrate with other theological and social disciplines
5.	Reflect biblically and historically upon the modern political conflict between Israel and Palestinian Territories.

Unit sequence

A Foundation Unit in Field B

Pedagogy

Students will travel to the Holy Land together. Preparation for the tour will include reading and outlining an investigative project for the tour, as well as information about the sites to be visited. During the tour there will be engagement at particular sites with experts in the field and seminars with participants.

Indicative Bibliography

Bible with the Apocrypha (*New Revised Standard Version)
Raymond Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1997.
Walter Brueggemann, Chosen? Reading the Bible Amid the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2015.
Walter Brueggeman, The Land: Place as Gift, Promise and Challenge in Biblical Faith (2nd ed.). Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2002.
John Collins, Introduction to the Hebrew Bible (3rd ed.). Minneapolis: Fortress, 2018.
Everett Ferguson, Backgrounds of Early Christianity (3rd ed.). Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. 2003
Lamontte M. Luker, An Illustrated Guide to the Holy Land. Nashville, TN: Abingdon. 2013
Jerome Murphy-O’Connor, The Holy Land: An Oxford Archaeological Guide (5th ed.); Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2008.
N. T. Wright, The Way of the Lord: Christian Pilgrimage Today. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2014.

Assessment

Type	Description	Word count	Weight (%)
Essay	Essay 4000 words	4000	60.0
Journal	Journal 1500 words	1500	20.0
Investigation	Investigation 1500 words	1500	20.0

Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Prof Albert Haddad on 11 Sep, 2024

Unit record last updated: 2024-09-11 09:46:38 +1000