RLGN 1301 Old Testament Histry Wayland Baptist University Virtual Campus February 24 May 17, 2014 Ben D. Craver, Ph.D., Assciate Prfessr f Religin Office: Wayland Baptist University, San Antni Campus Cntact nly via email: craverb@wbu.edu Hurs: Mnday Thursday, 9:00 am 5:00 pm; Friday, 9:00 am 4:00 pm Class Time and Lcatin: Virtual Campus Curse Descriptin an intrductry survey f the histrical literature with special attentin t the institutins, religin, and natinal life f the Hebrew peple Outcme Cmpetencies Upn cmpletin f this curse, yu shuld be able t demnstrate... Demnstrate knwledge f the histrical, religius, and scial cntext f the Old Testament wrld. Demnstrate knwledge f sme f the critical methds used in Old Testament studies. Demnstrate an understanding f the basic cntent f the Old Testament and its main teachings (thelgical cntent). Demnstrate knwledge f the cannical prcess prducing a mre cmplete understanding f the Old Testament. Requirements & Grading Scheme Here's what we will d during this curse: Read the Old Testament (OT) when prmpted in the majr textbk, Explring the Old Testament; yes, there s lts f reading! Read the psted lecture ntes (majr exam questins will cme ONLY frm the lecture ntes trust me!) Respnd t Discussin Bard (DB) questins n a weekly basis; ne riginal respnse and tw respnses t yur clleagues are required fr each f the 10 DBs. Write a brief respnse related t three (3) activities n tpics identified and described in the syllabus belw. Send yur cmpleted assignments t me via email. Pass seven quizzes (available Friday Sunday f each week except the week f examinatins, see schedule); all questins will cme frm the assigned readings in Explring the Old Testament fr the week pertaining t the respective quiz (e.g., Quiz 1, EOT, chap 3-5; Quiz 2, EOT, chap 6-9; Quiz 5, EOT, chap 27-28) Pass three examinatins Required Resurce Materials Encuntering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey (EOT), by Bill T. Arnld and Bryan E. Beyer; Baker Academic (2 nd ed., 2008), ISBN-10: 0801031702. A persnal Bible f yur wn r ne t which yu have access. The NIV is the preferred translatin and will be the ne referenced in the class lecture ntes.
Schedule f Readings, Quizzes & Examinatins: PART ONE: The Fundatins f the Old Testament w/* 24 Feb Intrductin Lecture 1: Frmatin and Cann f the Bible EOT^, chap 1-2 w/ 3 Mar Lecture 2: The Early Histry f the Hebrews (Part 1) EOT, chap 3-5 Quiz #1 w/ 10 Mar SPRING BREAK w/ 17 Mar Lecture 3: The Early Histry f the Hebrews (Part 2) EOT, chap 6-9 Quiz #2 PART TWO: Gd and Old Testament Histry w/ 24 Mar Lecture 1: Deuternmic Histry EOT, chap 10-14 EXAMINATION #1 w/ 31 Mar Lecture 2: Priests, Kings and Exile EOT, chap 15-18 Quiz #3 w/ 7 Apr Lecture 3: Calamity and Sng EOT, chap 19-23 Quiz #4 PART THREE: Gd and Old Testament Hpe w/ 14 Apr Lecture 1: The Wisdm Literature EOT, chap 24-26 EXAMINATION #2 w/ 21 Apr Lecture 2: The Prphets (Part 1) EOT, chap 27-28 Quiz #5 w/ 28 Apr Lecture 3: The Prphets (Part 2) EOT, chap 29-30 Quiz #6 w/ 5 May Lecture 4: The Prphets (Part 3) EOT, chap 31-34 Quiz #7 w/ 12 May EOT, Epilgue FINAL EXAMINATION *w/ = week ff ^EOT = Encuntering the Old Testament This is REALLY a reading-intensive curse! D yur BEST! Three Activities each activity is wrth 15 pints. 1. Bill Csby n Nah Read carefully the passages in Genesis related t Nah and the Ark (Genesis 7 9) Listen t Csby s perfrmance: http://www.gdtube.cm/watch/?v=wl7yylnx Nw, write a brief paper, n mre than tw pages single-spaced, addressing: What are the biblical accuracies and inaccuracies yu discver in Csby s skit? It has been said that Csby s skit is an attempt by smene wh believes the tale [f Nah] t cme t terms with the parts f the stry that dn t make any sense t a skeptical mind. D yu agree with this statement? Why r why nt? D yu find the rutine irreverent r sacrilegius? Why r why nt? DUE DATE: Friday, 21 March, befre midnight CST 2. Jb s Wife Under the TOOLS header n the left, click n the link entitled Jb s Wife. At the tp f the page, click n a link entitled Jb s Wife Mcks Him which will pen up a jpg painting depicting the accunt fund in Jb 2:1-10. Read Jb 2:1-10, cncentrating especially n Jb s wife s cmment in v9. Nw, write a brief paper, n mre than tw pages single-spaced, and address: What exactly des she mean by her cmment? Is her cmment ne f derisin fr his faith and patience, r ne f sympathy and lve (i.e., that he wuld die and be spared grief and pain)? Why d yu think this? In Jb 19:17, Jb states: My breath is ffensive t my wife... What inferences d yu draw frm that statement? At the end f the bk, Jb s frtunes are restred and he has mre children. Presuming that the same wife is the mther f the new children, d yu think that perhaps her attitude changed? Why r why nt? DUE DATE: Friday, 11 April, befre midnight CST
3. Hank and Hsea Read Hsea 1 3. Nw, click the fllwing link: http://www.yutube.cm/watch?v=bvydqbikz0 Nw, write a brief paper, n mre than tw pages single-spaced, addressing: Hw wuld yu describe the marriage f Hsea & Gmer? What similarities d yu find between Hsea & Gmer and Hank Williams and his lve? (Lyrics fr Hank Williams sng may be fund at: http://www.asklyrics.cm/display/hank-williams/yu-win-again-lyrics.htm) Wh has the pwer in bth f these situatins? What wrds d yu find the biblical text and the sng t substantiate yur answer? What cunsel wuld yu ffer Hsea and Hank? Finally, read Isaiah 54:7-8. Des Gd s strng lve fr his peple cause any change f mind fr yu? DUE DATE: Friday, 9 May, befre midnight CST NOTE fr abve: Use yur imaginatin n these assignments. Dn t wrry abut hw I will grade it. Respnd t the questins and yu ll receive full credit. Search the web fr respnses. Fr the mst part, there are n right r wrng answers. I want t knw what yu think abut the passages and hw they impact yur understanding and feelings. Send all ACTIVITIES assignments t me via email. The fllwing penalties will be impsed fr assignments submitted after the due date: Submissins ne minute t seven days late - 5 pints Submissins eight t furteen days late - 10 pints NO SUBMISSIONS will be accepted mre than 14-days late! Seven Weekly Quizzes each quiz is wrth 10 pints. ALL the questins fr the weekly quizzes will cme frm the readings in EOT. All quizzes will cnsist f 10 questins and in the frm f T/F, multiple chice, r pssibly a fillin-the-blank; n review n these quizzes. N quiz may be made up beynd 7-days f the riginal due date! It will be clsed at that pint, nt t be repened. Three Exams each exam is wrth 50 pints. ALL exam questins will cme frm the psted lecture ntes. NOTHING will cme frm the assigned readings in EOT, s dn t wrry abut it. Lk up yur answers in the lecture ntes. Each exam will have twenty-five bjective questins, each wrth tw pints. Frmat fr the exam will be T/F, multiple chice, fill-in-the-blank, and shrt answer. It is fr all purpses an pen-bk exam. D nt cnsult with family r utilize thers in helping yu. Gd is yur prctr! N review will be given; be familiar with yur ntes and where t find infrmatin. Yu re n the hnr system; just d the wrk yurself! Yu will have a ttal f 90 minutes t cmplete the exam. Any time ver and abve 90 minutes will be penalized as fllws: 91-95 minutes --2 pints 106-110 minutes 7 pints 96-100 minutes 4 pints 111 minutes and abve 10 pints 101-105 minutes --5 pints The pint is t be familiar with the material befre yu attempt t take the exam. N exam may be made up beynd 14-days f the riginal due date! It will be clsed at that pint, nt t be repened.
Ten Discussin Bards each DB is wrth 5 pints. DBs will be psted every week except fr the week f the final exam. They are the nly means f recrding attendance in class. Yu will be graded n a week t week basis. If the instructr senses that yu are nt participating substantively, yu will be cntacted via email. As nted n page 1, yu are t respnd each week with an riginal psting and cmment n tw f yur clleague s psts. It is NOT necessary t respnd t everyne. Reading f Textbk and Old Testament wrth 30 pints. Estimate hw much f the ttal assignment yu were able t read during the curse; this includes bth the textbk and the OT when prmpted. This is ttally n the hnr system; ne f the questins n the final exam will ask yu fr hnest estimate. Estimate f 85%-100% f all reading Estimate f 65%-84% f all reading Estimate f 50%-64% f all reading Less than 50% f all reading 26-30 pints 20-25 pints 15-19 pints 0 pints COURSE EVALUATION Methd f Determining Final Curse Grade) Of a TOTAL f 350 pssible pints: A 350-315 pints I INCOMPLETE** B 314-280 pints WP WITHDRAWAL PASSING C 279-245 pints WF WITHDRAWAL FAILING D 244-210 pints W WITHDRAWAL F BELOW 210 pints **A grade f incmplete is changed if the deficiency is made up by midterm f the next regular semester; therwise, it becmes "F". This grade is given nly if circumstances beynd the student's cntrl prevented cmpletin f wrk during the semester enrlled and attendance requirements have been met. A grade f "CR" indicates that credit in semester hurs was granted but n grade r grade pints were recrded. Tips fr Better Grades Here are a few pinters fr earning gd grades in this class. Fr the DISCUSSION BOARDS, keep yur fcus n the tpic. I welcme discussins f mral r ethical issues, but make sure that yu give attentin t the matter at hand. Check yur grades nline abut a week after yu cmplete the assignments. If yu dn't have a grade, send me an email. This is especially critical as final exam time appraches. Keep me psted n absences f a week r mre, ideally befre yu have t be absent. Check the ANNOUNCEMENTS regularly; read and act n all f the annuncements. Dn t wait until the last minute t submit assignments and/r take tests. Always allw fr the pssibility f sme emergency. Please let me knw whether yu understand the subject matter. Just reading the textbk and lecture ntes, desn t necessarily mean yu really cmprehend it. When yu dn t understand, ask questins, by psting them in the Questins item in the DISCUSSION BOARD (maybe thers are wndering the same thing).
Academic Hnesty University students are expected t cnduct themselves accrding t the highest standards f academic hnesty. Academic miscnduct fr which a student is subject t penalty includes all frms f cheating, such as illicit pssessin f examinatins r examinatin materials, frgery, r plagiarism. (Plagiarism is the presentatin f smene else s wrk as ne s wn wrk. See current Wayland Baptist University Catalg, fr penalties that may be applied t individual cases f academic dishnesty.) It is University plicy that n therwise qualified disabled persn be excluded frm participatin in, be denied the benefits f, r be subject t discriminatin under any educatinal prgram r activity in the university. One last thing; yu ll enjy this class better... if yu value: Questins mre than answers... Humr mre than whatever its ppsite is, and... Hard wrk with ur readings and biblical texts... Did I mentin this is a reading-intensive curse?