SYLLABUS ~ Theology 108
INTRODUCTION TO THE OLD TESTAMENT
(FALL 96)
GAR. 230;Mon.,Wed.,and Fri.:10:00 A.M. - 10:55 A.M.
Fr. Daniel P. Madden,O.P., B.S.C.,Ph.B.,S.T.D.,Ph.D.(Th.)
Office: FAR 209, (or Gar. 216)
Phone:899-3444; Home(in emergency ONLY)864-6593:5:15-7:00 P.M.
Office Hours:M.W.F.:8:30-9:00&1:55-3:00P.M.(or by arrangment).
A.Catalogue Description:
Study of the major themes of the Old Testament(TaNaK,i.e.,Jewish Bible) [with
apocrypha]in thecontext of the Ancient Near Eastern background of an
ancient Israel, with particular emphasis on how Sacred Scripture reflects the doctrine,
worship, and ethical conduct of the people of God. The Old(er) Testament(Covenant) as
the only Sacred Scripture of the Early Christian Church.N.B.The parentheseses in this
paragraph are the professors.
B.Course objectives:
1) to introduce and guide the adult student's reading of the books of the library
of ancient Israel and early Judaism which the Christian Church as recognized as
normative for its own faith and practices;
2) to introduce to and then to inform the adult students of the historical, religious
and cultural factors which affected the collection, composition, transmission and
interpretation(cf.'Her-maneutics) of this body of literature (Popular Religious
History-not Science, not strict History); and,
3) to introduce the students to the methods of critical and theological
interpretation (i.e.,Hermeneutics). This course is NOT designed to provide the
adult student with a detailed knowledge of the Bible's content; to lead to an
appreciation, in depth, of the Bible's aesthetic or spiritual merits; or to
reconstruct a synthesis of biblical theology or to present the history of Israel in a
comprehensive way,although we will attempt a whole,but not total view. The
Jewish Scriptures are an anthology written over a period of nine hundred(900)
years within Jewish history; a product of antiquity which is sometimes obscure
and difficult, but is treasured as an irreplaceable cultural legacy; and lastly,
together with many of our Jewish brethren most Christians hold the Bible to be
the WORD OF GOD
C.Required Texts:
1.Senior,Donald,C.P.(Gen.Ed.),THE CATHOLIC STUDY BIBLE(The
New American Bible),N.Y.:Oxford University Press,1990.
(Needed for assignments), 0-913573-45-0. (Any Bible published within the
past 12 years may be used, providing it contains the 'apocrypha').
2.Boadt,L.,READING THE OLD TESTAMENT,N.Y.:Paulist Press,1984
0-8091-2631;and a book of your choice on the Book you choose
to report on.ORIGINS,Jan. 1994,Biblical Commission/Interpretation
D.Supplementary Materials:
Duplicated materials will be handed out periodically.
E.Method:
Lectures, readings, slides, film strips, discussions,pre-sentations and other visual
aides will be incorporated. A trip to a local Jewish Synagogue (on a Friday evening
[after sundown,i.e. when three stars can be seen in the sky] will hopefully be arranged,if
the adult can adjust their schedule. If so, a class period will be substituted(this is subject
to class arrangement). Students will present a 10 min.(only) report(exegesis), orally(then
at the end in typewritten form) in class on a particular book of the Old Testament
which they will select before the end of the second week of class. This same report will
then be turned in to the professor by Dec. 6th(unless it is not yet delivered in class) in
typewritten form(with footnotes and bibliography). Select any of the Prophetic or
Writing Books(cf.list provided)of the O.T.,i.e., do not pick one from the Torah
(i.e.,Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers or Deuteronomy [Greek titles borrowed into
English; therefore,not the original titles]). These later books will all be covered by the
professor. The length of the report depends on the material available to you(at home
and in the library or from the professor,if you ask). Keep it short and to the point!!!
F.Bibliography(Please see following pages):
G.Tests:
Mid-term and Final(confer the schedule on the assignment page).
H.Grade Evaluation:
Mid-term #............................(30%)
Report(Presentation)..................(30%)
Class Participation *.................(10%)
Final #...............................(30%)
---------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................(100%)
* The School of Arts and Sciences policy on absences will be observed in this class,
as required, that is, more than 6 absences and the student will receive the grade of "F";
two (2) tardys are equivalent to one (1) absence.
# The mid-term and the final together will count for 60% of the final grade. After
the mid-term and before the final(on a page provided on the day of the final) the individual
student may select anywhere from 10-50 % to assign to either the mid-term or final, as
long as together they equal 60% and each exam receives at least a minimum of 10 %[and the student also receives at
least a 70% on the Mid-Term and the Final Exam].
The examination and presentations must be the results of the students sole effort,any variance from this will result in an
automatic failure in that product. Cheating on any exam will automatically result in an
"F" in the entire course, subject to the decesion of the professor alone and in agreement
with the requirements in this regard and others(e.g. disruption of class, tardiness,
etc.)found in the student handbook. *Class participation-if a student misses more than
one scheduled class and no acceptable excuse is offered(before or the class immediately
following),then the student will automatically loose this 10%. Students who are absent
do not contribute actively or receptively to the class. Opportunities will be given in class
for the students to ask questions, discuss, listen in silence(intelligently), etc. to contribute
to this evaluation, as well as, class attendance. Quizes every two weeks on reading
assignments will also contri-bute to the 10%(i.e. a total 50-100 questions will be
asked,and each one that is wrong will detract from the 10%(if all are correct, the 10%
remains intact,except for the absences, as mentioned).
"A".........................92 - 100 %;
"B".........................86 - 91 %;
"C".........................70 - 85 %;
"D".........................65 - 69 %;
"F".........................below 65 %
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Commentaries:
Tanak Series
The Jerome Commentary
The Jewish Encyclopedia
Collegeville Press Bible Series Commentaries
The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible,Nashville:Abingdon, 1976.
Ancient Near Eastern Tests Relating to the Old Testament (ANET), Princeton,
N.J. : Princeton University Press, 1955.
Books:
Abbot,W.The Documents of Vatican II,(Dogmatic
Constitution on Divine Revelation),N. Y.:Guild
Press,1966.L.C.66-20201
Achtemeier,Paul J.,Harper's Bible Commentary,San
Francisco:Harper & Row,Publishers,1988 ISBN
0-06-069862-4.
Albright,William F. and Freedman,David Noel,The
Anchor Bible,N.Y.:Doubleday & Company,Inc.1961-89
ISBN 0-385-00515-6.
Anderson,Bernhard W.,Understanding the Old Testament,
Englewood Cliffs,N.J.:Prentice-Hall,Inc,1986,4thEd.,
ISBN 0-13-935925-7-01.
Bailey,Lloyd R.,The Pentateuch,Nashville:Abingdon,1981.
Ben-Sasson,H.H.,A History of the Jewish
People,Cambridge,Ma.:Harvard University Press,1976,
ISBN 0-674-39730-4.
Bergant,C.S.A.,Dianne and Karris,O.F.M.(Eds.),Robert,The
Collegeville Bible Commentary,Collegeville,Mn.:The
Liturgical Press,1988,ISBN 0-8140-1484-1.
Carmondy,John,Carmody,Denise L.,Cohn,Robert L.,Exploring
the Hebrew Bible,Englewood Cliffs,N.J.:Prentice-
Hall,1988,ISBN 0-13-297003-1-01.
Drane,John,The Old Testament Story,San Francisco: Harper
Row,1983.
Flanders,H.J.,Crapps,R.W. and Smith,D.A.(Eds.),People of
the Covenant, N.Y.:Oxford University Press,1988,
ISBN 0-19-504438-X.
Flannder,O.P.,Austin (Gen.Ed.),Vaican II,Northport:
Costello Publishing Company,1988,ISBN 0-918344-15-
Freedman,D.N.,"The Chronicler's Purpose,"Catholic
Biblical Quarterly 23(1961),pp.436-442
Gaster,Theodor H.,The Dead Sea Scriptures,N.Y.:Double-
day & Company,Inc. 1964,L.C. 64-11039.
Gilles,Anthony E.,The People of the Book,Cincinnati,
Ohio:St. Anthony Messenger Press,1983,ISBN
0-08-716-026-8
Gordon,Dan. R.,The Old Testament (a Beginning Sur-
vey),Englewood Cliffs,N.J.:Prentice-Hall,Inc.,
1985,ISBN 0-13-634031-8.
Gottwald,Norman K.,The Hebrew Bible, Philadelphia:
Fortress,1985.
Greenshaw,James L.Old Testament Wisdom,Atlanta:John
Knox Press,1981,ISBN 0-8042-0142-0.
Hanson,Paul D.,The People Called,San Francisco:Harper
& Row,Publishers,1987,ISBN 0-06-063701-3.
Haught,JohnF.,The Revelation of God in History,Wilming-
ton,Del.:Michael Glazier,Inc.(Zacchaeus Studies),
1988,ISBN 0-89453-682-6.
Harrington,S.J.,Daniel, Interpreting the Old Testament,
Wilmington: Michael Glazier,Inc., 1981.
-----------------------,The Maccabean Revolt, Wilmington:
Michael Glazier,Inc.1988,ISBN 0-89453-655-9.
Hayes,John H. and Prussner,Frederick,Old Testament
Theology(its History and Development),Atlanta:John
Knox Press,1985,ISBN 0-8042-0140-3.
Heschel,Abraham J.,The Prophets,N.Y.:Harper & Row,1962.
Klenicki,Leon and Wigoder,Geoffrey,A Dictionary of the
Jewish Christian Dialogue,N.Y.:Paulist Press(a
Stimulus Book),1984,ISBN 0-8091-2590-0.
Link,S.J.,Mark,The Psalms Today,Valencia,Ca.:Tabor
Publishing Co.,1989,ISBN 0-895-05-758-1.
Ludwig,Theodore M.,The Sacred Paths,Understanding the
Religions of the World,N.Y.:Macmillan Publishing
Company,1989.ISBN 0-02-372170-7.
Mays,James L.(Gen.Ed.)Harper's Bible Commentary,San
Francisco:Harper & Row,Publishers,1988,ISBN 0-06-
065541-0.
McBrien,Richard P.,"Catholicism as an Integrationist
Perspective," in Greenspahn,ed.,Scripture in the
Jewish and Christian Traditions,Nashville:Abing-
don,1982.
Murphy,O.Carm.Roland,Wisdom Literature and Psalms,
Nashville:Abingdon, 1983.
Neusner,Jacob,Invitation to the Talmud,San Francisco:
Harper & Row Publishers,1989,ISBN 0-06-066112-7.
Rohr,Richard and Martos,Joseph,The Great Themes of
Scripture(Old Testament),Cincinnati:St.Anthony
Messinger Press,1987.ISBN 0-86716-085-3.
Stuhlmueller,C.P.,Carroll and McNamara,M.S.C.,Martin,
Old Testament Commentary,23 vols.,1985,ISBN
0-89453-235-0.
Stuhlmueller,C.P.,Carroll,Psalms I(Vol.21)and Psalms II
(Vol.22)in Old Testament Commentary,1985,ISBN
0-89453-255-3.
Thompson,Leonard,L.,Introducing Biblical Literature,
Englewood Cliffs,N.J.:Prentice-Hall,Inc,1978,ISBN
0-13-498824-8.
Tullock,John H.,The Old Testament Story,Englewood
Cliffs,N.J.:Prentice-Hall,Inc.(2nd Ed.),1987,ISBN
0-13-633892-5-01.
Weiser,Arthur,The Psalms,Philadelphia:The Westminster
Press,1962,L.C. 62-16760.
Vawter,C.M.,Bruce,"The Bible in the Roman Catholic
Church" in Greenspahn,ed.,Scripture in the
Jewish and Christian Traditions,Nashville:Abing-
don,1982.
Wharton,James A.,A plausible Tale,"Interpretation,
35/4 October 1981.
Magazines:
The Bible Today,Collegeville Press.
Biblical Archeology Review.
Schreiter,C.PP.S.,John,New Theology Review, Wilmington,
Del.:Michael Glazier,Inc.,1988.
Chicago Studies
WEB Sites and CD ROMS:Make sure that the versions contain the 'Apocrypha', also
known as the 'Deuterocanonical Books.'
Fr. Madden / August-96