Religion 204b
Scripture in Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam
Spring 2008 MWF 9:30-10:20
\
Instructor: Jonathan Brumberg-Kraus,
x3694, (H): 401-273-0536; e-mail: jkraus
Office Hours (Knapton 102): M
10:30-12:30, 1:30-2; W 10:30-12:00; F 10:30-12:30, and TuTh by appointment.
This course focuses on the religious
function of sacred scriptures in the three Western religious traditions:
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Attention will be paid to scripture as myth
of origins, the relative importance of sacred story, prophecy, and law in the
three traditions, authority, and the importance of interpretative traditions.
We will also investigate the ritual functions of Scripture, artistic
representations, and contemporary efforts to interpret the relevance of textual
traditions.
Texts Required for Purchase:
John Corrigan et al., Jews,
Christians, Muslims: A Comparative Introduction to Monotheistic Religions
Barry Holtz, ed., Back to the
Sources
Oxford Study Bible
Michael Sells, Approaching the
Qur'an: The Early
Revelations (book and CD)
Samuel Proctor, How Shall They
Hear?
Recommended:
William Graham, Beyond The
Written Word: Oral Aspects Of Scripture In The History Of Religion
Amina Wadud-Muhsin, QurÕan and
Woman
On Reserve:
Jo Milgrom, Handmade Midrash
N.B.: All required and
recommended texts, as well as the texts in the Reading Packet, have been placed
on 2 hr. reserve in the Library.
Asterisked (*)readings are optional, not required
Introduction: What is Scripture?
1/23 First Day of Class
Scripture from a Comparative
Perspective
Scripture as a "relational
concept"
1/25 Friday: Read William Graham,
"Scripture," Encyclopedia of Religion, ed. M. Eliade, v. 13:133-145
Unit I: Scripture in Judaism
A. The Torah: Sacred Story +
Sacred Law
Biblical Narrative
1/28 Monday: Read Genesis 1-11;
Jews, Christians, Muslims (JCM), 3-14]
1/30 Wednesday: Read Genesis 12-27
2/1 Friday: Read Holtz, BS, pp. 31-81
Biblical Law
2/4 Monday: Read Leviticus
1,6-8,9-11, 19-20; Holtz BS, pp. 83-103
2/6 Wednesday: Read Exodus 19-20;
Deuteronomy 6-7, 26-28
B. The Oral and Written
"Dual Torah" of Rabbinic Judaism
2/8 Friday Read JCM, 15-25; 282-294;
See the video The Talmud and the Scholar (about Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, spirituality of Torah
study)
2/11 Monday: See the video Half
the Kingdom
(feminist perspective on women's roles in Judaism)
Read JCM, 215-226; *Vanessa Ochs, Words
On Fire (RP Text F,
pp. 29-68)
Midrash
2/13 Wednesday: Read Holtz, BS, pp. 177-204; Lamentations,
Lamentations Rabbah (RP-Text B)
2/15 Friday: Read Exodus 1-6;
selections from Exodus Rabba; Lawrence Hoffman,"Sacred Myths: Pre-Modern Jewish
Perspectives," Beyond the Text (RP-Text C)
Kabbalah (mysticism): Torah as the Name of
God
2/18 Monday: Read JCM, 77-92; G.
Scholem, "Revelation and Tradition..."(RP Text D); Selections from Sha'arei Orah ("Gates of Light") (RP
Text E)
Midterm Study Guide
2/20 Wednesday: Read JCM, 92-104;
227-234
C. Contemporary Applications
1.Study = worship
2. Feminist appropriation of Torah;
2/22 Friday: Read Vanessa Ochs, Words
on Fire (RP Text F, pp.
101-131)
Field trip to Synagogue. Specifics
TBA.
2/25 Monday Midrash Assignment
due
Review for Midterm Exam
Unit II: Scripture in Islam
A. The Qur'an
2/27 Wednesday: Read JCM, 52-72,
134-151; Sells, Approaching the QurÕan, pp. 1-35; NY Times article by Tariq Ramadan (on
Blackboard)
2/29 Friday : Recitation of the
QurÕan: QurÕan in Ritual
Read Sells, Approaching the
QurÕan, pp.
145-183; W. Graham, Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspects of Scripture, pp. 79-115; listen to recitations of
the QurÕan on the CD in Sells.
3/3 Monday:
Midterm Exam
3/5 The Form and Style of the QurÕan
Read Sells, Approaching the
QurÕan, 42-145
(selections to be assigned to different groups of students)
B. Classical Islamic
Transformations
1.Visual Representation in Art and Architecture
3/7 Friday: Slide Presentation
Read JCM, 397-416; RP-Text U. Oleg Grabar, "The Symbolic
Appropriation of the Land," and "Islamic Attitudes Towards the
Arts," The Formation of Islamic Art
3/10-3/14 Spring Break – No Class
3/17 Monday: Calligraphy
Read the WWW site: Islamic and Arabic Arts and
Architecture - Calligraphy
Islam assignment due 1)Hand in
Basmalah calligraphy Monday 3/24
2) Make appointment to recite
Fatiha during office hours 3/24 -3/28
2. Philosophical Transformations
3/19 Wednesday: Read JCM, 195-209; RP-Text
T. Averroes, The
Decisive Treatise, Determining What the Connection is Between Religion and
Philosophy; W.
Graham chapter on tafsir, Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspects of
Scripture, pp.?
Thursday Night 3/20 Field trip to Temple
Emanuel in Providence, RI for Purim Services/Purimspiel. Specifics TBA.
C. Contemporary transformations:
Modern Tafsir
3/21 Friday: Read Wadud Muhsin, Qur'an
and Woman; Sells,
pp.183-208
3/24 Monday: Read Wadud Muhsin, Qur'an
and Woman
Visit to Islamic Center of New
England Sunday morning TBA
Unit III: Scripture in
Christianity
3/26 Wednesday: Read JCM, 26-35,
105-112; Gospel of John 1-6
3/28 Friday: Read Gospel of Mark
Early Christian Attitudes toward the
Jewish Bible: Christian Scripture as "Midrash" of the "OT"
3/31 Monday: Read Hebrews, Mt 1-3;
Luke 23-24; RP-Text K. Rowan Greer, "Christian Transformations of the Hebrew
Scriptures," Early Biblical Interpretation
Sunday Morning – Field Trip to
Trinitarian Church, Norton TBA
Going "beyond the written
word"
Early Christian Prophecy
Christian Antinomianism
4/2 Wednesday: Read Galatians,
Eugene Boring, "The Prophet as Hermeneut," The Continuing Voice of
Jesus (RP-Text G)
4/4 Friday: Read I Corinthians
Classical Transformations of
Christian Scripture
1. Allegory and Typology
4/7 Monday: Read JCM, 35-51; RP-Text
L. Origen,
"The Prologue to the Commentary on the Song of Songs"
2.Transformations of Christian
Scripture in Other Media
Visual Representations of Christian
Scripture
Christ as nursing Mother, as Food
4/9 Wednesday: Read JCM, 368-396;
View slides of Chartres
Cathedral
Image of Christ
as nursing mother
4/11 Friday: Read RP-Text M. Caroline W. Bynum, "Ô...And
Woman His HumanityÕ: Female Imagery in the Religious Writing of the Later
Middle Ages," Gender and Religion
Scripture in Christian worship and
ritual
Musical Representations of Christian
Scripture
4/14 Monday: Read W. Graham, Chapter
on Martin Luther, Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspects of Scripture
4/16 Wednesday: Read Samuel Proctor
- How Shall They Hear?
Guest Speaker: Susan Mansfield?
4/18 Friday: Listen to selections
from Bach's St. John Passion; read JCM, 235-255; RP text N. Jaroslav Pelikan, "ÔMeditation
on Human RedemptionÕ in the St. Matthew Passion," Bach Among the
Theologians
4/21 2nd Day of Passover –
No Class
Read Samuel Proctor - How Shall They
Hear?
19th -20th Century American
Transformations of Christian Scripture
4/23 Wednesday Discuss
"preaching assignment", Read Samuel Proctor - How Shall They Hear?
4/25 Friday
4/28-5/2
8:30-9:20 AM sessions in the
Chapel to hear student preaching assignments
Modern Interpretation of
Christian Scripture; Conclusion
4/28 Monday Read RP-Text P. David T. Shannon, "ÔAn Ante-bellum
SermonÕ: A Resource for an African American Hermeneutic," Stony the
Road We Trod (Ed.
by C.H. Felder); Wednesday RP-Text Q. Richard J. Mouw, "The Bible in Twentieth-Century
Protestantism: A Preliminary Taxonomy," The Bible in America (Ed. by N. Hatch and M. Noll)
4/30 Wednesday: Conclusion -
Scripture compared in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
5/1 Friday Final Review Session
Course Requirements
1. Preparation of Readings. Each student is expected to read
the assignments.
2. Class participation. There will be class discussions
each session based on the readings.
3. Web Blog: Short reflection writing
assignments to be posted on individual blogs set up specifically for this
class. See instructions on Blackboard. Students will "log" what they
are learning throughout the term, and be able to comment on one anotherÕs
questions and insights. At the end of each class session, I'll ask you to jot
down at least one brief comment summarizing the gist of the day's class, and one question
prompted by the day's discussion - and any other questions or comments you want
to add. Likewise, for each reading assignment, jot down at least one brief comment summarizing the gist of the
reading, and any other questions or comments prompted by it. By the Thursday of
each week, post a digest of your comments and questions on the readings and
class discussions on your blog - not more than 1 page, single-spaced for each
weekÕs posting. I'll ask you to do the same for each of our field trips. You
should make at least 12 weekly posts. Finally, you must contribute at least ten
comments to any of your fellow studentsÕ blog posts during the course of the
term. These are both for your own benefit - to get you to begin to think
analytically, to focus your thoughts on what you're learning, and for the class
as a whole - to stimulate class discussions.
(Preparation of the readings and
class participation will be evaluated primarily on the basis of your
contributions to your blogs, and count for 25% of the course grade)
4. 3 Scriptural Interpretation
projects (each 10%) Each unit will culminate with a project engaging students
in a type of scriptural interpretation typical of the Jewish, Christian, and
Muslim religious traditions. These assignments are intended to allow students
to "get inside" the three traditions, to think about Scripture as if
they were experiencing it from within Judaism, Christianity, or Islam. It is a
chance for you to use your creative imagination; I hope you have fun with them!
It is not meant to try to convert you to any of the traditions. It is only an
exercise that approximates what it is like to think and feel like a religious
Jew, Christian, and Muslim, to help you understand what academic scholars of
religion call the phenomenology of religious experience in these 3 traditions.
Therefore each project requires an
additional 1-3 page reflection paper on what you learned and experienced as you
did the project, as well as the actual product you composed. You will have to
hand in both the composition and the reflection paper for each to get full
credit. Your compositions will be evaluated on how well you executed your work
according to the conventions of the genre.
a. Compose your own Midrash (Jewish)
i. Students will be given the a
scriptural selection from the
Bible, Exodus 18-20. Students may choose which verse(s) from this passage to hang their midrash on,
nor are you restricted to these
verses. You can use any other Scriptural verse from the entire Hebrew Bible (the"Old Testament"),
provided that you use at least one
from Ex 18-20
ii. Use the assigned readings from
Back to the Sources as resources
- for examples of midrash as formal
models
- for hints about what features,
ambiguities, gaps, etc. in the Biblical passage itself might be a good starting
point for your midrash
iii. Alternatively, use Jo Milgrom's
book Handmade Midrash (on reserve in the Library) as a guide for a midrashic art project
iv. The midrash (if written) should
be no longer than 1-2 pages, typed double-spaced.
v. 1-3 page reflection paper
DUE MONDAY FEBRUARY 25 - IN MY
OFFICE
b. Memorize
short passage from the Qur'an and Arabic calligraphy assignment (Muslim)
i. Use the Al-FatiHa pronunciation
free software program to memorize
the 1st Surah of the Qur'an
ii. Read the Islamic and Arabic Arts and
Architecture - Calligraphy Web
Site for overview, as resource information on Arabic Calligraphy
iii. Copy the letters of the Arabic
alphabet and their names from a
chart to be provided
iv. Copy by hand, as best as you
can, the basmalah phrase (=the
first verse of the Fatiha) in Arabic script. You may choose one of the scripts demonstrated on the
above mentioned Web Site. You may
also embellish it artistically - using the designs we've studied as models
v. Hand in your copy of the
basmalah.
vi. 1-3 page reflection paper on
both your memorization and copying
of the Arabic Qur'an passages.
DUE MAR 24 -MAR 28: Make
appointment to recite al-Fatiha during office hours, hand in basmalah,
reflection paper
c. Compose and preach your own 10
minute sermon (Christian)
i. Use the guidelines spelled out in
Samuel Proctor's How Shall They
Hear? to compose your sermon. Your sermon should include each of the four points he says a good sermon should have.
ii. You may choose any Scriptural
passages you want from the Old
and/or New Testament to preach on.
iii. Time yourself so that speaking
your sermon aloud lasts no longer
than 10 minutes
iv. Do sermon aloud during
additional early morning (8:30-9:20)
sessions
v. Hand in a written text of your
sermon
vi. 1-3 page reflection paper
DUE Apr 28-May 2: ORAL PRESENTATIONS
(8:30-9:20 AM SESSIONS)
Written text of your sermon DUE
DAY OF FINAL EXAM
5. Midterm Exam (20%) Objective and
essay
6. Final exam (25%) Objective and
essay
Attendance Policy: For every 2 unexcused absences
after the 1st week of class, you will be penalized 1/3 grade (e.g., from A- to
B+ for 2 absences; A- to B for 4 absences, etc.) off your final course grade.
Additional class meetings:
1. There will be three local field
trips to visit a local synagogue, mosque, and church to observe the use of
scripture in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim ritual (Sunday mornings, and Jewish
evening Purim services as noted).
Also, class will be invited for a meal at my home.
2. 4-5 early morning sessions Dec
4-8, 8:30-9:20 AM to hear, give final oral presentations.
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES ARE
INVITED TO DISCUSS WITH ME ACCOMMODATIONS TO MEET YOUR SPECIAL NEEDS