Introduction to the Bible : New testament

Teacher(s)

Burnet Régis;

Language

French

Main themes

To achieve its objectives, the course will address the following themes:
- the historical and religious context of the New Testament;
- the figure of Jesus in the New Testament;
- introduction to the Pauline literature, the Gospels and the Apocalypse and insight into the Apocrypha of the New Testament;
- a brief history of the canon of the New Testament;
- relationship between history, literature and theology for reading the Bible.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	- describe the historical and religious context of the New Testament and situate the figure of Jesus;
2	- master a basic knowledge of the New Testament writings (content, main characteristics);
3	- describe the history of the formation of the New Testament canon.

Content

Introduction to the New Testament

This course provides a general introduction to the New Testament (NT). It begins by addressing the principal questions traditionally associated with the study of the New Testament writings: their literary and theological characteristics, purpose, authorship, dating, and structure. Particular attention is devoted to the Gospels.
The course then examines the historical, religious, and cultural context in which the New Testament writings emerged, with particular emphasis on Second Temple Judaism and Greco-Roman culture.
In order to enable students to better understand contemporary approaches to New Testament texts, the course includes a theoretical and practical introduction to the principal methods of exegesis: textual criticism, source criticism, form criticism, redaction criticism, and narrative criticism.
Overall, the course aims to introduce students to a critical and methodologically informed reading of New Testament texts. It thus provides a foundation for more in-depth study of the individual books and corpora that comprise the New Testament.

Teaching methods

Classroom-based course.

Evaluation methods

Examination Format

The assessment takes the form of an oral examination. The student draws a passage from the New Testament at random and is given a period of preparation in order to provide a structured analysis of the passage.
First, the student is expected to situate the passage within its literary, historical, and theological context, identify its literary genre, and briefly present the main relevant information concerning the book in which it occurs and its author.
The student then provides a brief exegetical commentary on the passage, highlighting its main features and interpretative issues. For this purpose, the student may consult the notes of a study Bible of their choice, which they are permitted to bring to the examination.
The examination is structured as follows:

• 20 minutes of preparation;
• 20 minutes of oral examination.

Online resources

The course notes are available in Moodle.

Faculty or entity

> TEBI