Professor Information Nicholas G. Piotrowski, Ph.D. npiotrowski@indysem.org 317.966.1990 Office hours by appointment Course Information BI 501 Hermeneutics BI 501 Hermeneutics January 2017 Saturday, January 7 th, 9am 5pm Weeknights, January 9 th 20 th, 7pm 10 (except the 16 th ) Saturday, January 28 th, 9am 5pm 3 credits A survey and analysis of recent philosophical trends in reading and interpretation. Specific application to reading the Bible will be made, as well as an entrée into Old Testament and New Testament criticism. 3 credits. Course Objectives By the end of the course, the student should be able to: 1. Understand hermeneutical practices and critical methods in the history of the western church. 2. Identify and navigate developing philosophical, epistemological and literary trends. 3. Apply text-based hermeneutics to biblical genres. 4. Articulate objectives 1 3 vis-à-vis a recent scholarly work on hermeneutics. collaborating with local churches for biblical and theological training
Learning Outcomes Within the ITS Learning Outcomes, this course contributes to shaping students aptitude in Hermeneutics & Biblical Theology proficient at reading and interpreting biblical Hebrew and Greek, appreciating the rhetorical functions of the biblical books in their original social contexts, comprehending the contours of redemptive history within a covenantal framework, and possessing a very high biblical literacy and trenchant understanding of the gospel. Cultural Apologetics perceiving longstanding historical and philosophical trends that have created our cultural moment, discerning the source and interpreting the significance of contemporary events, and apologetically promoting the plausibility of the gospel. Teaching Method This course is premised on the conviction that the Bible is the inspired word of Almighty God and contains everything necessary for salvation, life, godliness and fruitful ministry. Right handling of this unique collection of texts is a matter of Christian faithfulness to our Lord. Therefore, we will examine the Bible itself for the hermeneutical approaches it calls for on its own terms. These approaches will be examined in light of current philosophical and epistemological trends. Finally, certain historical-critical issues surrounds the texts of the OT and NT that bear on interpretation will be covered. Class time will be divided between theory and praxis. Lecture/discussion and colloquium formats. Bring your Bible and the textbooks to every class. All laptop users must sit in the front of the class. The result of having anything other than a word doc open during class is to be marked absent for that class. Course Readings: Required: Brown, Jeannine K. Scripture as Communication: Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007. Carson, D. A. Approaching the Bible in The IVP New Bible Commentary. 4th ed. Downers Grove: Inter-Varsity, 1994. Culpepper, R. Alan. Mapping the Textures of New Testament Criticism: A Response to Socio-Rhetorical Criticism. Journal for the Study of the New Testament 70 (1998): 71 77. Dean, Margaret E. Textured Criticism. Journal for the Study of the New Testament 70 (1998): 79 91. ITS BI 501 Hermeneutics 2 of 8
McCartney, Dan and Charles Clayton. Let the Reader Understand: A Guide to Interpreting and Applying the Bible. 2d ed. Phillipsburg: P&R, 2002. Packer, J. I. The Only True God in Knowing God. Downers Grove: IVP, 1977. Piotrowski, Nicholas G. Introduction. Pages 1 32 in Matthew s New David at the End of Exile: A Socio-Rhetorical Study of Scriptural Quotations. Supplements to Novum Testamentum 170. Leiden: Brill, 2016. Sire, James W. The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalog. 5th ed. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 20014. No need to purchase; will be uploaded to Sycamore. ONE of the following (to be assigned the first class session): George, Timothy. Reading Scripture with the Reformers. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2011. Hall, Christopher A. Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1998. Goldsworthy, Graeme. Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics: Foundations and Principles of Evangelical Biblical Interpretation. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2006. Vanhoozer, Kevin J. and Daniel J. Treier. Theology and the Mirror of Scripture: A Mere Evangelical Account. Studies in Christian Doctrine and Scripture. Dowers Grove: InterVarsity, 2015. Recommended: Alexander, T. Desmond et al., eds. New Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2000. Balla, Peter. Challenges to New Testament Theology: An Attempt to Justify the Enterprise. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1997. Bartholomew, Craig G. Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics: A Comprehensive Framework for Hearing God in Scripture. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2015. Beale, G. K. Handbook on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament: Exegesis and Interpretation. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2012., ed. The Right Doctrine from the Wrong Texts?: Essays on the Use of the Old Testament in the New. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1994. Beale, G. K. and D. A. Carson, eds. Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007. Carson, D. A. Exegetical Fallacies. 2d ed. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1996. ITS BI 501 Hermeneutics 3 of 8
Carson, D. A. and Douglas J. Moo. An Introduction to the New Testament. 2d ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. Currid, John D. Against the Gods: The Polemical Theology of the Old Testament. Wheaton: Crossway, 2013. Currid, John D. and David P. Barrett. Crossway ESV Bible Atlas. Wheaton: Crossway, 2010. Chilton, B. D. Judaism and the New Testament. Pages 603 16 in Dictionary of New Testament Background. Eds. C. A. Evans and S. E. Porter. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2000. Davis, Ellen F. and Richard B. Hays. The Art of Reading Scripture. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003. Doriani, Daniel M. Getting the Message: A Plan for Interpreting and Applying the Bible. Phillipsburg: P&R, 1996. Eco, Umberto. The Role of the Reader: Explorations in the Semiotics of Texts. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1979.. The Limits of Interpretation. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1990. Ferguson, Everett. Backgrounds of Early Christianity. 3d ed. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003. France, R. T. Jesus and the Old Testament: His Application of Old Testament Passages to Himself and His Mission. Vancouver: Regent College Publishing, 1998. Green, Joel B. and Lee Martin McDonald, eds. The World of the New Testament: Cultural, Social, and Historical Contexts. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013. Goldsworthy, Graham. Gospel and Kingdom (sold in The Goldsworthy Trilogy ). Carlisle, UK/Waynesboro, GA: Paternoster, 1981; 2000.. Christ-Centered Biblical Theology: Hermeneutical Foundations and Principles. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2012. Gorman, Michael J. Elements of Biblical Exegesis: A Basic Guide for Students and Ministers. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2001. Kim, Donald K., ed. Dictionary of Major Biblical Interpreters. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2007. Kistler, Don, ed. Sola Scriptura: The Protestant Position on the Bible. Orlando: Reformation Trust, 2009. Leithart, Peter J. Deep Exegesis: The Mystery of Reading Scripture. Waco: Baylor University Press, 2009. Longman, Tremper III and Raymond B. Dillard. An Introduction to the Old Testament. 2d ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006. Lundin, Roger, Clarence Walhout and Anthony C. Thiselton. The Promise of Hermeneutics. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans; Cambridge: Paternoster, 1999. Metzger, Bruce M. The Canon of the New Testament: Its Origin, Development, and Significance. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987. ITS BI 501 Hermeneutics 4 of 8
Morgan, Robert with John Barton. Biblical Interpretation. The Oxford Bible Studies. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Porter, Stanley E. and D. A. Carson. Discourse Analysis and Other Topics in Biblical Greek. JSNTSS 113. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1995. Porter, Stanley E. and Beth M. Stovell, eds. Biblical Hermeneutics: Five Views. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2012. Poythress, Vern S. Reading the Word of God in the Presence of God: A Handbook for Biblical Interpretation. Wheaton: Crossway, 2016. Provan, Iain, V. Philips Long, and Tremper Longman III. A Biblical History of Israel. 2d ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2015. Ridderbos, Herman N. Redemptive History and the New Testametn Scriptures. 2d ed. Phillipsburg: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1988. Ryken, Leland et al., eds. Dictionary of Biblical Imagery: An Encyclopedic Exploration of the Images, Symbols, Motifs, Metaphors, Figures of Speech and Literary Patterns of the Bible. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 1998. Starling, David I. Hermeneutics as Apprenticeship: How the Bible Shapes Our Interpretive Habits and Practices. Grand Rapids: Backer Academic, 2016. Thiselton, Anthony C. The Two Horizons: New Testament Hermeneutics and Philosophical Description. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980.. New Horizons in Hermeneutics: The Theory and Practice of Transforming Biblical Reading. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992.. Hermeneutics: An Introduction. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009. Vanhoozer, Kevin J. Is There a Meaning in This Text?: The Bible, the Reader, and the Morality of Literary Knowledge. Landmarks in Christian Scholarship. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1998; 2009.. From Speech Acts to Scripture Acts. Pages 159 203 in First Theology. God Scripture and Hermeneutics. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2002 Walton, John H. Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006., ed. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary: Old Testament. 5 volumes. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009. Warnke, Georgia. Gadamer: Hermeneutics, Tradition and Reason. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1987. Wenham, John. Christ and the Bible. 3d ed. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1994. Westerholm, Stephen and Martin Westerholm. Reading Sacred Scripture: Voices from the History of Biblical Interpretation. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2016. Wilkins, Michael J. et al., eds. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary. 4 vols. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011. Yarchin, William. History of Biblical Interpretation: A Reader. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2011. ITS BI 501 Hermeneutics 5 of 8
Course Schedule Date: Jan 7am Jan 7pm Jan 9 Jan 10 Jan 11 Jan 12 Jan 13 Jan 17 Jan 18 Jan 19 Jan 20 Jan 28am Jan 28pm Topics: Syllabus; History of Hermeneutics: 100 1800 AD (Post)Modern Hermeneutics: Authors, Texts, Readers and the Hermeneutical Spiral (Existentialism, Deconstructionism; Lit. Trends) Innertextures Cultural Intertextures Oral-Scribal Intertextures Allegory, Typology, and Genre Ideological Textures Colloquium History of Biblical Scholarship: 100 1800 AD OT Historical Backgrounds; Contemporary OT Scholarship NT Historical Backgrounds; Contemporary NT Scholarship Reading Reports: the Fathers & the Reformers Reading Reports: Goldsworthy & Vanhoozer/Treier ITS BI 501 Hermeneutics 6 of 8
Course Assignments Attendance: Attendance at every session is mandatory. Grades will be reduced by 5% for every class session missed (Saturdays count as 2 class sessions). [objectives 1 3] Reading: Students are required to complete all of the following reading assignments before January 28 th and provide a reading report indicating how much of the reading was completed (emailed to professor on January 28 th or before). I recommend reading them in this order, and getting through as much as possible before the first class. 40% of the final grade. [objective 2] Sire, Universe Next Door chapters 1, 4 6, 8 9 (166 pages) McCartney/Clayton, Let the Reader Understand chapters 1 6, Appendix A & B (195 pages) Packer, Only True God (9 pages) Brown, Scripture as Communication (290 pages) Culpepper & Dean in JSNT 70 (21 pages). Piotrowski, Introduction to New David pages 1 4, 19 31 (17 pages) Carson, Approaching the Bible (18 pages) Colloquium: Students will prepare a review (max 800 words 3 pages) of one or two chapters in the Reading section. No more than ½ of the review should summarize the chapter, while the other ½ offers a trenchant critique/reflection/application. Assignments will be given on the first day of class. Reviews to be uploaded to the dropbox in Sycamore, and enough copies for everyone brought to the colloquium on January 17 th. 10% of the final grade. [objective 2] Report: Students will read one of the following and prepare a 45-minute presentation, to be delivered to the class on January 28 th. Books and partners will be assigned the first day of class. The presentation should clearly and accurately represent the book s thesis/theses and engage the material vis-à-vis the course s content. Illustrative examples should be used as well as any didactic aids. All partners must read the entire book and share the labor of preparation and delivery. Outline and notes to be given to the professor. 50% of the final grade. [objective 4] Hall, Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers (223 pages) George, Reading Scripture with the Reformers (270 pages) Goldsworthy, Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics (301 pages) Vanhoozer/Treier, Theology and the Mirror of Scripture (263 pages) Advice: Students should read all of the assignments listed under the Reading section before the first day of class. Then they should read their assigned Report between January 20 th and 27 th at which time they will also prepare their report for the 28 th. ITS BI 501 Hermeneutics 7 of 8
Grading Scale Letter Percent Points A 96 100 4.00 A- 92 95 3.67 B+ 88 91 3.33 B 84 87 3.00 B- 80 83 2.67 C+ 77 79 2.33 C 74 76 2.00 C- 71 73 1.67 D+ 69 70 1.33 D 67 68 1.00 D- 65 66 0.66 F < 65 0.00 I Incomplete 0.00 Course Policies Attendance in class is critical for learning the necessary material. Students are, therefore, expected to attend every class session. ITS understands, however, that unexpected and unavoidable emergencies do occur in the course of study. Two absences in one course will not result in a lower grade. Three or four absence, however, will result in lowering the student s grade by one letter. Five absences will result in an automatic F. Incompletes can be granted at the professor s discretion based on the likelihood that the student can complete the necessary coursework with no more than one month of extra time, and given that the student is currently passing the course at the time of the request. The regular attendance policy still applies. Students are, therefore, encouraged to withdraw if more than four classes will need to be missed. Plagiarism and cheating will be grounds for an immediate F in any given course. A second occurrence will result in expulsion from the school. ITS BI 501 Hermeneutics 8 of 8