Hermeneutics FD6312A

Dr. Daniel Fletcher

Internet based instruction, assignments and tests

1200 Taylor Road ● Montgomery, AL 36117 334.387.3877 ● 800.351.4040 ● FAX 334.387.3878

www.Amridgeuniversity.edu

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Catalog Course Description FD6312 – Hermeneutics (3 Semester Hours)

An advanced course in the principles, methods, and history of biblical interpretation.

Instructor Contact Information

Telephone Numbers: Amridge University 334.387.7808 Toll Free 800.351.4040, Voicemail ext. 7808

Fax 334.387.3878 (put instructor’s name on fax cover sheet)

Email danielfletcher@amridgeuniversity.edu Course Objective and Assessment of Learning

Outcomes Course Objective: Demonstrate the ability to critically reflect on one’s own interpretive approach to Scripture and apply insights from the history of biblical interpretation to one’s reading of the Bible in the 21st century.

Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to:

! Identify the major personalities and developments in the history of biblical interpretation, including translation

o This outcome will be assessed by means of an exam

! Critically assess the manuscript tradition and translation philosophy of the KJV in comparison to other English translations of the Bible.

o This outcome will be assessed by means of a book digest

! Comprehend the story of Scripture in the context of the history of biblical interpretation

o This outcome will be assessed by means of a book digest

! Interpret the Old Testament as a witness to Jesus Christ

o This outcome will be assessed through writing a response paper

! Apply the “Interpretive Journey” to various genres of the Bible to develop biblical literacy

o Assessed through four interpretive journey exercises

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! Apply interpretive tools to case studies involving issues in the contemporary church

o This outcome will be assessed by means of the discussion board

! Perform scholarly research on an aspect of biblical hermeneutics

o This outcome will be assessed by means of a research paper and maintaining a library research log

Required Textbooks

Duguid, Iain. Is Jesus in the Old Testament? Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2014.

Klein, William, Craig Blomberg, and Robert Hubbard, Jr. Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. Rev. ed. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2004.

White, James White. The King James Only Controversy: Can You Trust Modern Translations? Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2009.

Wright, N. T. Scripture and the Authority of God: How to Read the Bible Today. San Francisco: HarperOne, 2013.

Select Course Bibliography Bartholomew, Craig and Michael Goheen. The Drama of Scripture: Finding Our

Place in the Biblical Story. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2004.

Barton, John, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Biblical Interpretation. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998.

Carson, D. A. Exegetical Fallacies. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1996.

Clowney, Edmund. The Unfolding Mystery: Discovering Christ in the Old Testament. 2nd ed. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2013.

Jasper, David. A Short Introduction to Hermeneutics. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2004.

Köstenberger, Andreas, and Richard Patterson. Invitation to Biblical Interpretation: Exploring the Hermeneutical Triad of History, Literature, and Theology. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2011.

Marshall, I. Howard. Biblical Inspiration. Waynesboro, GA: Paternoster, 2005.

Moyise, Steve. Evoking Scripture: Seeing the Old Testament in the New. London: T&T Clark, 2008.

Newland, Wayne I. Book, Chapter, and Paragraph: Restoring Context. Falmouth, ME: Heritage21Books, 2010.

Osborne, Grant. The Hermeneutical Spiral: A Comprehensive Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. Rev. ed. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2006.

Porter, Stanley, and Beth M. Stovall, eds. Biblical Hermeneutics: Five Views. Downers Grove: Intervarsity, 2012.

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VanGemeren, Willem. The Progress of Redemption: The Story of Salvation from Creation to New Jerusalem. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1988.

Virkler, Henry A., and Karelynne Gerber Ayayo. Hermeneutics: Principles and Processes. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 2007.

Westfal, Merold. Whose Community? Which Interpretation?: Philosophical Hermeneutics for the Church. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2009.

Weekly Schedule (An academic week is Monday-Sunday except the last week of the semester

which ends at 5:00pm Central Time on Friday.) Week 1 Syllabus review and course overview. Read: Introducing Biblical Interpretation (IBI), chapter 4.

Read through the ppt slides entitled “The Ten Commandments of Writing a Research Paper” (supplemental handouts). Email the professor indicating you have read and understand its contents.

Read the course syllabus and email the professor indicating you have read it in its entirety.

Week 2 Introductory assumptions and questions. Read: IBI, chapters 1, 5-6, pp. 503-504; Daniel Wallace, “The Holy Spirit in Hermeneutics.”

Week 3 Jewish hermeneutics in the 1st century. Read: IBI, pp. 23-31; Sabbath excerpt from Mishnah. Week 4 Apostolic hermeneutics I: methods. Read: IBI, pp. 31-34; Dan McCartney, “Should We Employ the Hermeneutics of the New Testament Writers?”

Week 5 Apostolic hermeneutics II: tendencies in the NT use of the OT. Read: Daniel Fletcher, “Nicodemus and LXX Numbers”; Peter Enns, “The Moveable Well.”

Week 6 Patristics and the schools of Alexandria and Antioch. Read: IBI, pp. 34-42; “Reading the Bible with the Reformers.”

Week 7 From the Middle Ages to the Reformation. Read: IBI, 42-52.

Week 8 Enlightenment/Modernity/Rationalism; scientific/scholarly approaches to Scripture (19th century). Read: IBI, pp. 52-62.

Week 9 Postmodernism (20th-21st centuries). Read: IBI, chapter 3; Daniel Fletcher, “Interpretive Communities and Constraining Meaning.” Week 10 KJV and Modern Translations. Grammatical historical exegesis: Grammar & History. Read: IBI, chapter 7; Vern Poythress, “What Does God Say Through Human Authors?”

Week 11 Biblical genre analysis and exegetical tools I: OT law, narrative, theological history; the Interpretive Journey. Read: IBI, pp. 323-51. Week 12 Biblical genre analysis and exegetical tools II: poetry, wisdom, prophecy. Read: IBI, pp. 273-319, 351-98. Week 13 Biblical genre analysis and exegetical tools III: Gospels, Acts, apocalyptic,

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epistles. Read: IBI, chapter 10. Week 14 Unity of the Bible; Where do we go from here? Read: Daniel Fletcher, “Alexander Campbell’s Dispensational Hermeneutic and Adult Baptism”; Lunenberg Letter. Week 15 Final exam. 100 multiple choice, T/F, fill in the blank questions covering the lecture slides.

Assignments in Detail

Readings reflection essay. Write a personal reflection essay on the content covered in the course readings. The essay is composed of two parts. The first is a “readings report” on the percentage of course readings you completed. You will answer a question indicating the percentage of the readings that you read in a meaningful way. The question will be something like, “What percentage of the course readings did you read in a focused and intentional way?” The second part of the essay is a two paragraph written reflection on a single chapter of the textbook that you found most helpful to you. You will discuss the chapter from which you benefitted the most (summarize the chapter in one paragraph) and give a thoughtful rationale for your choice (the second paragraph). For the second paragraph, think in terms of what you found challenging, fresh, insightful, etc.

Book digests. Summarize and evaluate a book’s contents. A book digest should be 6-8 pages where you summarize the book chapter-by-chapter and a final conclusion that serves an evaluation of the book as a whole as well as an endorsement of whether or not you would recommend the book, and to what audience you would recommend it to. There are two digests required for this course: N. T. Wright, Scripture and the Authority of God and James White, The King James Only Controversy.

Response essay. Reflect on the proposal of Iain Duguid’s Is Jesus in the Old Testament? Summarize the contents of essay (1-2 pages) and critically reflect on its main idea (2 pages). How have you read the OT in the past? How did the essay challenge your thinking? How can you incorporate Duguid’s thesis into your own preaching/teaching ministry, or do you reject his proposal? Be sure to defend your position. Major research paper. Write a 15-20 page research paper on a topic of your choosing covered in the course readings and/or lecture slides (see possible list below). It should include a title page, main body, conclusion, and bibliography. Rubric: Grammar/spelling: 25pts; Content: 100pts; Style guide adherence: 25pts; Research/bibliography: 50pts. Please read the slides entitled, “The Ten Commandments of Writing a Research Paper under instructional materials (week 1). The style guides for the Turner School of Theology is the Chicago Manual of Style and the SBL Handbook of Style. Discussion board. There are five Db questions based on contemporary case studies of various aspects of biblical interpretation. “Interpretive Journey” exercises. After discussing the “interpretive journey” in the lecture slides, there will be four exegetical exercises taken from various passages in the Bible where the student will apply the “interpretive journey.” This is a five-step process beginning with original context and concluding with application. Each “step” of the journey should be a paragraph of meaningful interaction. One-sentence answers will not do. I will

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provide a sample for you to see the depth of engagement I am looking for. Final exam. Composed of 100 objective questions taken directly from the lecture slides. Instructions will be at the link. It is a two-hour timed test; you may not use notes of any kind, but you may use a Bible. Research log. Based on the bibliography used for the research paper, the student will enter these sources—and any additional sources consulted that are relevant to the course—in the library research log database. Each entry is worth a maximum of 10 pts, and there should be a minimum of 20 sources. Each entry must be briefly annotated, indicating its usefulness for the research paper. Most websites should be avoided as well as personal blogs. Anyone can put anything on the web regardless of expertise or lack thereof. Prefer books and academic journal articles (see ATLA database on the Amridge library website). If you have a question about a website and its acceptability for graduate level research, please contact me first before consulting it.