Religion 178 - Christian Scriptures

This course is a critical introduction to the literature of the earliest Christians, including the New Testament and so-called Christian apocrypha, and to the academic approaches to this literature. The distinctive concerns and literary features of individual texts will be studied in the contexts of the historical development of early Christian communities and the surrounding cultures of the Roman Mediterranean. Our focus throughout will be on the variety of interpretations of Christian scriptures as Christians encountered new social circumstances and theological developments. The course emphasizes careful reading of ancient Christian texts using a variety of methods of scholarly analysis.

Spring semester. Professor Stephens Falcasantos.

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Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: emphasis on close reading; class discussion; writing; oral presentation; group work