TEXTBOOK:

• The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books (3rd ed.; ISBN 0195284852)

RESERVE BOOKS (available at the library):

• Richard Elliott Friedman, Who Wrote the Bible? (New York:  Harper & Row, 1987)
• Martin Noth, A History of Pentateuchal Traditions, trans. Bernhard W. Anderson (Englewood Cliffs, NJ:  Prentice-Hall, 1972)

COURSE DESCRIPTION.  A non-doctrinal reading and literary study of plot, character, setting, and theme of the dramatic progression of Hebrew history through the Pentateuch, 1 and 2 Kings, the prophetic writings, the Book of Job, and the Gospels.  In this course, we will read and analyze the Bible as a piece of literature.  In particular, we will examine the historical and cultural background of the various books of the Bible with an eye to understanding the peculiarities of Biblical narrative, imagery, and style.  We will read as much of the Bible as a single semester allows -- from the Torah to the Gospels, from the historical books to the Second-Temple apocrypha, from the Prophets to the letters of St. Paul.  Through this course, you will become conversant in the most influential images, stories, and characters of the Judeo-Christian tradition.

GOALS.  By the end of this course, I want you

1. to have read as much of the Bible as a single semester allows,
2. to have increased your appreciation for the beauty of the ancient writings that make up the Bible,
3. to be more comfortable reading the Bible on your own,
4. to be conversant in the most influential myths and images of the Judeo-Christian tradition,
5. to understand and appreciate the peculiarities of Biblical narrative, imagery, and style, and
6. to be familiar with present-day theories about how the Bible was composed and compiled.

REQUIREMENTS.  For this course, you must complete the following graded assignments:

1. 12 two-page response papers (15 points each),
2. a mid-term exam (260 points),
3. a short paper (100 points),
4. another short paper (200 points), and
5. a comprehensive final exam (260 points).

Your final grade will be based on a 1000-point scale:  A = 930-1000 points, A- = 900-929, B+ = 870-899, B = 830-869, B- = 800-829, C+ = 770-799, C = 730-769, C- = 700-729, D+ = 670-699, D = 600-669, and F = below 600.

ATTENDANCE.  Regular attendance is a virtual necessity for successful completion of the exams and papers in this class.  Class exercises and discussion constitute important, useful preparation for the course’s graded assignments.  If you miss a class, you will essentially lose out on that day’s contribution to your preparation, since it is never really possible to reproduce or recapture the dynamics and flow of information for a missed class meeting (even if you get notes from someone).  If, however, you positively must miss a class, I expect you to find out what you missed and to come fully prepared -- without excuses -- to the next class meeting.

OFFICE HOURS.  My office is Bliss 216.  My office hours this semester will be from 9:30 to 10:50 a.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays.  If you cannot see me at this time, however, feel free as needed to call my office (771-2106) or talk to me before or after class to arrange an appointment at another time.  You may also contact me by e-mail (gsteinbe@tcnj.edu), or you may leave a message for me in my box at the English department offices in Bliss 124.  E-mail is generally the fastest way to contact me in an emergency.

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES.  I may, on occasion, want to e-mail everyone in class.  I generally only have access to your TCNJ e-mail addresses, however.  As a result, if you regularly use an e-mail address other than your TCNJ address, I recommend that you have mail from your TCNJ address forwarded to the address you use more regularly.  That way, if I e-mail your TCNJ address, my message will be forwarded to your other address automatically.  To forward mail from your TCNJ address, just go to http://managemail.tcnj.edu/  and click “Mail Forwarding Manager.”  Follow the directions there to set up the mail forwarding.

If you would like to send an e-mail message to one or more of your classmates, you can do so through SOCS.  To access SOCS, go to http://socs.tcnj.edu and, after you have logged in with your TCNJ e-mail username and password, choose this class from the list of your courses this semester.  Then, when our course page comes up, click the “Email” button.  From there, you can select individual e-mail addresses or the entire class and send a message to the addresses you’ve selected.

RESPONSE PAPERS.  In the course of the term, you are required to write 12 short, informal papers (about 2 pages each) on the readings for class.  You may choose which days and which readings you want to respond to.  I will post questions about each day’s reading assignment for you to consider as the basis of your response.

Response papers will be graded Pass/Fail.  I ask you to type them (so that they are easier for me to read), but they need not be a perfect, polished product.  Rather, response papers should be just what their name says -- a response.  Think about the question(s) that I ask you to consider for a particular day’s reading assignment; then, write a response.  Don’t worry about typos or comma splices or organization.  Don’t worry about answering every question I ask in the assignment.  In fact, focus on the one question that seems most interesting to you, and be as specific as you can, getting down as much as you can, as quickly as you can.  Treat response papers more like a journal entry than like a formal paper.  I don’t want a five-paragraph theme.  Rather, I want an exploration -- as detailed and specific as possible -- of the reading assignment for the day.

Normally, as long as you submit a response paper of suitable length, detail, and thoughtfulness (and as long as you turn it in on time in class on the assigned day), you will receive all the points that the response paper is worth.

You may submit more than 12 response papers in the course of the semester (to make up for any response papers that do not receive a grade of “Pass”), but no matter how many extra response papers you turn in, you will not receive more than 180 points total for all the response papers you write.  You may not submit more than one response paper on a single day, nor may you submit a response paper for a day that you are absent from class -- absolutely no exceptions.  (NOTE:  Even if you do not submit a response paper on a particular day, you should still come to class prepared to discuss the assigned questions for that day, since we will focus on those questions in the in-class discussion of the reading assignment.)

PAPER 1.  Analyze the doublet of Exodus 16 and Numbers 11.  As you think about your paper, consider the following questions:

1. How are the stories in Exodus and Numbers similar?  What elements do they share?
2. How are the stories in Exodus and Numbers different?  What elements do they not share?
3. How do the differences add to the story?  What do we learn about the characters in the story from the two different versions?
4. How does each version characterize God, the people, and Moses?  From whose perspective is each story told?  Where do your sympathies lie in each version?
5. What seem to be the main themes and concerns in each version of the story?
6. From which strand (J, E, P, or D) does each story seem to come?  Exodus 16 has been attributed to P (by Martin Noth and Richard Elliott Friedman), and Numbers 11 has been attributed to J (by Noth) and to E (by Friedman).  Do you find these attributions persuasive?  Why or why not?

Once you have thought about these questions, write a short paper (5-7 pages) in which you argue a clear, focused thesis about the doublet.  How would you characterize the two stories?  How do they relate to one another?  Note:  You need not use outside sources for this paper (that is, sources in addition to the texts of Exodus and Numbers); in fact, I would encourage you not to use outside sources, although Noth and Friedman are on reserve at the library (if you want to consult them).  You will submit this paper to me electronically in the “dropbox” in SOCS (not in hard copy or in class), but you must submit it in the “dropbox” before coming to class on February 2.  Keep in mind the goals of this course; show me in your paper that you are making suitable progress toward those goals.

PAPER 2.  Read the Gospel of Luke.  Choose one pericope from Luke that has a parallel in one or more of the other three Gospels.  From the pericope you have chosen, what can you conclude about the unique characteristics and concerns of the Gospel of Luke?  Write a paper (5-7 pages) in which you argue a clear, focused thesis about the uniqueness of Luke’s perspective or style in relation to one or more of the other Gospels.

This assignment requires you to do a number of things.  Your grade for the paper will depend upon how well you fulfill all the implied tasks of the assignment:

1. you must read all of Luke and come to some conclusions about what the unique characteristics and concerns of Luke’s Gospel are (in contrast to the other Gospels);
2. you must choose a pericope from Luke with interesting or revealing parallels in at least one of the other Gospels in order to illustrate your conclusions about Luke’s unique perspective effectively;
3. you must analyze the pericope you have chosen from Luke closely in relation to the parallels in the other Gospel(s), noting even the smallest similarities and differences between the parallel passages;
4. you must explore and focus on the significance of those similarities and differences insofar as they reveal Luke’s unique perspective or style; and
5. you must organize your thoughts into a concise, logical argument with a clear, focused thesis supported by lots of concrete textual evidence.

Note:  You need not use outside sources for this paper (that is, sources in addition to the texts of the Gospels); in fact, I would encourage you not to use outside sources.  You will submit this paper to me electronically in the “dropbox” in SOCS (not in hard copy or in class), but you must submit it in the “dropbox” before coming to class on April 19.  Keep in mind the goals of this course; show me in your paper that you are making suitable progress toward those goals.

COURSE SCHEDULE.  This schedule is subject to revision at the discretion of the professor.  Changes in the schedule will be shown in red.

Date	Assignment
M Jan 19	Introductions Click here for a PowerPoint presentation on Hebrew History.  Click here for the same presentation in web format.  For a map of the Biblical world, go to “resources” in SOCS.
R Jan 22	Genesis 1-23 Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Jan 26	Genesis 24-50 Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Jan 29	Exodus 1-25, 32-35, 40 Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Feb 2	Numbers 9-11; PAPER 1 DUE (submit your paper into the “dropbox” in SOCS before coming to class)
R Feb 5	Numbers 12-25, 31-33; Deuteronomy 31-34; Joshua 1-11 Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Feb 9	Judges and Ruth Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Feb 12	1 Samuel Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Feb 16	2 Samuel Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Feb 19	1 Kings Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Feb 23	2 Kings Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Feb 26	Psalms 1-42 & 107-150 and Ecclesiastes Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Mar 1	Job Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Mar 4	MID-TERM EXAM
M Mar 8	NO CLASS (Spring Break)
R Mar 11	NO CLASS (Spring Break)
M Mar 15	Amos, Hosea, and Jonah Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Mar 18	Isaiah 1-39 Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Mar 22	Isaiah 40-66 Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Mar 25	Jeremiah 1-27 Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Mar 29	Jeremiah 28-52 Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Apr 1	Ezekiel 1-24 Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Apr 5	Ezekiel 25-48 Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Apr 8	Daniel and Judith Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Apr 12	Mark Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Apr 15	Matthew  Click here for the response paper assignment.
M Apr 19	John Click here for the response paper assignment.
R Apr 22	Luke; PAPER 2 DUE (submit your paper into the “dropbox” in SOCS before coming to class)
M Apr 26	1 Corinthians, Philemon, and Revelation Click here for the response paper assignment.
R May 6	FINAL EXAM (11:00 a.m. in our regularly scheduled room)

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