TOPICS: THE BIBLE in Spring 2020 (CL3091B)

The Bible has been one of the foremost influences of world culture for the past three thousand years. Its stories and teachings have been sources of inspiration for religious believers, literary writers, sculptors, artists and architects; of contemplation not only for monastics and theologians but for scholars in all fields of thought; of ethics in jurisprudence; of contention and division, and of unity and tolerance, for believers and non-believers alike. To recognize biblical references, and to comprehend their role historically, is to understand the past and present role of humanity in the world. This course intends to serve as an introduction to the Bible for university students while also allowing those with an in-depth knowledge of the work to gain a better understanding of the biblical world through a first- and second-hand approach: reading the Bible (The New Oxford Annotated Bible) alongside the history during which it was written (Understanding the Bible). While respecting individual belief structures, this course shall not be taught from a religious perspective. The readings shall move more or less chronologically forward while also respecting the order of the books of the Bible. In the first half of the course (through the midterm), we shall concentrate on the Hebrew Bible as well as other Jewish writings included in what Christians call the Old Testament. Readings shall include the story of the Creation, the Fall of humanity, the Flood and Noah’s Ark, the story of the sacrifice Abraham (Genesis), the Crossing of the Read Sea, the Building of the Ark of the Covenant, the Ten Commandments (Exodus), the death of Moses before the Promised Land (Deuteronomy), the Tribes of Israel (Joshua), the battle between David and Goliath and the friendship between David and Jonathan (I Samuel), the kings of Israel (I Samuel, II Samuel, Kings), the book of God’s servant Job, as well as a selection of Psalms and Proverbs, the poetic works (Ecclesiastes, Song