Land and Place (BA3004W)

Undergraduate, 18.0 points

Content

A study of selected texts relating to the themes of land and exile in biblical theology. The unit will bring exegetical reflections into dialogue with contemporary issues of ecology, migration, spirituality of dispossession, and the theology of hope.

Unit code: BA3004W

Unit status: Approved (New unit)

Points: 18.0

Unit level: Undergraduate Level 3

Unit discipline: Old Testament

Delivery Mode: Face to Face

Proposing College: Whitley College

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Learning outcomes

1.

Distinguish between the theologies of land in Deuteronomy and Leviticus
2.

Describe a range of responses to the exile in the Old Testament
3.

Articulate similarities and differences between prophetic theologies of hope
4.

Discuss selected exegetical issues in relation to contemporary debates about ecology, migration, the spirituality of dispossession, or hope
5.

Reflect on the tension between land promises and exile in the Old Testament

Unit sequence

Level 3 unit in Hebrew Bible / Old Testament Prohibited combination: Promised land and Exile

Pedagogy

Lectures and tutorials

Indicative Bibliography

  • = set texts recommended for purchase
  • Brett, M.G. Decolonizing God: The Bible in the Tides of Empire. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2008.
  • Chapman, C. Whose Promised Land? The Continuing Crisis over Israel and Palestine. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2002.
  • Davis, E. Scripture, Culture, Agriculture: An Agrarian Reading of the Bible. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
  • Goonan, M. A Community of Exiles: Exploring Australian Spirituality. Homebush: St Pauls Publications, 1996.
  • Habel, N. The Land is Mine: Six Biblical Land Ideologies. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1995.
  • Halvorson-Taylor, M. Enduring Exile: The Metaphorization of Exile in the Hebrew Bible. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2011.
  • Joerstad, M. The Hebrew Bible and Environmental Ethics: Humans, Nonhumans and the Living Landscape. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019.
  • Kelle, B.E. et al. (eds). Interpreting Exile: Displacement and Deportation in Biblical and Modern Contexts. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2011.
  • Smith, A.D. Chosen Peoples: Sacred Sources of National Identity. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003.
  • Smith-Christopher, D. A Biblical Theology of Exile. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2002.
  • Weinfeld, M. The Promise of the Land. Berkeley: University of California, 1992.

Assessment

Type Description Word count Weight (%)
Exegesis

One exegetical paper

 1500 30.0
Essay

One essay

2500 50.0
Tutorial Paper/Seminar Paper

One tutorial paper

1000 20.0
Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Maggie Kappelhoff on 30 Sep, 2020

Unit record last updated: 2020-09-30 17:20:00 +1000