Bible

The Jewish Background of the New Testament

Bible

This course is an exploration of the use of extra-Biblical Jewish sources in scholarship on the New Testament. Students will gain a sense of the criteria of profitable and proper handling of Jewish sources; the ability to use them in their own study of the Bible; and the joy that comes from solutions to exegetical puzzles, resulting in a better understanding of Scripture. The course does not require knowledge of the ancient languages, although those who know the languages will benefit from them. Taught by Dr. Matthew Colvin. Runs 7/5-8/27/21.

Description

This Bible course will be taught by Dr. Matthew Colvin, and will run from July 5 through August 27th. The syllabus is available here.

This course is an exploration of the use of extra-Biblical Jewish sources in scholarship on the New Testament. After the first week’s orientation to the sources and the history of scholarship, each subsequent class focuses on one particular topic for which Jewish background is especially illuminating: politics, sexual and social norms, government, sacraments, eschatology, and linguistic influences. Special attention is given to areas of Jewish life that are less familiar to Christian readers of the NT, especially the field of law. Students will gain a sense of the criteria of profitable and proper handling of Jewish sources; the ability to use them in their own study of the Bible; and the joy that comes from solutions to exegetical puzzles, resulting in a better understanding of Scripture. The course does not require knowledge of the ancient languages, although those who know the languages will benefit from them. All readings, both ancient texts and modern scholarship, will be provided in English.

Dr. Matthew Colvin is a presbyter in the Reformed Episcopal Church. From 2012-2017, he served as a missionary teaching ministerial students in the Philippines and Indonesia. He holds a PhD in ancient Greek literature from Cornell University (2004). His published works include articles on Heraclitus (Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy 2005 and The Classical Quarterly 2006), a translation from Latin of the 1550 Magdeburg Confession (2011), and The Lost Supper, a study of the Passover and Eucharistic origins (Fortress Academic, 2019). He is currently working on a book on women’s ordination and the origins of ordained office in the early church. He lives on Vancouver Island.

Online only, runs 8 weeks, meeting 2.5 hr./wk. via Zoom. Students will also have the option to participate in a class discussion board. Register now to reserve your spot. The course will proceed contingent on sufficient enrollment; on rare occasions, a class has to be cancelled due to insufficient interest. Once the registration period closes, the class meeting time will be set on the basis of a poll of availability from registrants. In case of cancellation or scheduling conflicts, students will be eligible for a refund or a transfer to another course. Note: all classes are offered dependent on demand and require a minimum of four participating students. This is a graduate-level seminar. Although a Bachelor’s degree is not a necessary pre-requisite for this course, students should come prepared to do graduate-level work.