Introduction to the New Testament

RELIGION 1400 Subject & Catalog Number

Description

This course will provide a basic historical introduction to critical issues in the study of the New Testament. What are the contents of these texts that make up the second portion of the Christian Bible? In what ways do they reflect the major issues, concerns, and struggles that were taking place among the earliest Christ-followers? How did they get to be grouped together in a single book called the "New Testament"? In addition to these historical questions, we will also attend to the New Testament's ongoing role as Christian scripture to consider the following: what does it mean to study a religious text critically? How might the study of the New Testament's social and historical context relate to its ongoing role as sacred and/or authoritative in the Christian tradition? And what are some of the diverse ways that contemporary readers bridge the gap between the New Testament's ancient Greco-Roman context and their own interpretation and application? We will explore these questions through careful study of the New Testament texts themselves, while also attending to issues of historical context, methodology, and hermeneutics. No previous study in religion or ancient history is assumed, and there are no prerequisites for enrolling in the course. For a final assignment, students will have the option of choosing between a final exam and a research paper.