Content

Building on skills in historical-critical and narrative criticism, this unit will introduce recent developments in biblical exegesis and hermeneutics which apply visual and oral material from the ancient world to the interpretation of New Testament texts. The associated methods will be applied to particular texts providing opportunities to consider various aspects of the New Testament in its cultural milieu. Consideration will be given to the way in which an understanding of the social context and communal practices of the ancient world assists in examination of early Christian communities. The support and challenges that these methods present to mainstream methods of text-focused exegesis will be explored in light of their assumptions and limitations. Implications of this hermeneutic for proclamation of the Gospel in the contemporary world will also be considered.

Unit code: BN9798B

Unit status: Archived (Major revision)

Points: 24.0

Unit level: Postgraduate Elective

Unit discipline: New Testament

Delivery Mode: Online

Proposing College: Eva Burrows College

Show when this unit is running

Learning outcomes

1.

Critically assess the importance of cultural artefacts and performance traditions for understanding New Testament texts

2.

Demonstrate the importance of cultural artefacts and performance traditions through the writing of an extended hermeneutical/exegetical essay using visual and oral approaches.

3.

Appraise strengths and weaknesses of visual and oral methodological approaches for interpreting the New Testament

4.

Critically apply visual and oral methodological approaches to the exegesis of specific New Testament texts.

5.

Formulate liturgical material from the hermeneutical results of visual and/or oral methodological approaches for use in contemporary ministry contexts.

6.

Independently select and employ various methods appropriate to literary, rhetorical and socio-political features of a text.

Unit sequence

Postgraduate Foundational - Methodological unit in NT (e.g. Interpreting the NT)

Pedagogy

Lectures, group work, online forums, videos

Indicative Bibliography

  • Anderson, R.Dean. Ancient Rhetorical Theory and Paul. Biblical Exegesis and Theology 18. Revised ed.: Peeters, 1999.
  • Briggs, Richard S. Words in Action: Speech Act Theory and Biblical Interpretation: Towards a Hermeneutic of Self-Involvement. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 2001.
  • Eve, Eric. Behind the Gospels: Understanding the Oral Tradition. London: SPCK, 2013
  • Horsley, Richard A, Jonathan A Draper, and John M Foley, eds. Performing the Gospel: Orality, Memory and Mark. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2011.
  • Kahl, Brigitte. Galatians Re-Imagined: Reading with the Eyes of the Vanquished. Paul in Critical Contexts. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2010.
  • Mack, Burton L. Rhetoric and the New Testament. Guides to Biblical Scholarship 5. edited by Dan O Via Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, Publishers, 1990.
  • Maier, Harry O. Picturing Paul in Empire: Imperial Image, Text and Persuasion in Colossians, Ephesians and the Pastoral Epistles. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2013
  • Robbins, Vernon K. Exploring the Texture of Texts: A Guide to Socio-Rhetorical Interpretation. Harrisburg: Trinity Press, 1996.
  • ———. The Tapestry of Early Christian Discourse: Rhetoric, Society and Ideology. London: Routledge, 1996.
  • Ward, Richard F, and David J Trobisch. Bringing the Word to Life: Engaging the New Testament through Performing It. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2013.
  • Weissenrieder, Annette, Friederike Wendt, and Petra von Gemünden, eds. Picturing the New Testament, WUNT2 193. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2005.
  • Wire, Antoinette Clarke. The Case for Mark Composed in Performance. Biblical Performance Criticism 3. edited by David Rhoads. Eugene: Cascade Books, 2011.
  • Witherington III, Ben. New Testament Rhetoric: An Introductory Guide to the Art of Persuasion in and of the New Testament. Eugene: Cascade Books, 2009.
  • Zanker, Paul. The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus. Michigan: University of Michigan Press, 2000.

Assessment

Type Description Word count Weight (%)
Exegetical Essay

3,500 word Critical/Exegetical Essay

3500 50.0
Oral Presentation

3,500 word online presentation

3500 50.0
Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by John Capper on 27 Jul, 2017

Unit record last updated: 2022-10-05 15:56:51 +1100