Dr. David Trobisch
Email:
DTrobisch@BTS.edu //
Curriculum
Vitae /
short CV
We will meet from Monday to Friday from
1 PM to 9 PM and on Saturday
from 10-12 on the Portland Campus.
This course is designed to introduce the student to the scholarly study of the New Testament.
At the end of this course every participant
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will have read the fourteen letters of Paul contained in the New Testament (quiz) |
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will be able to describe where and when each letter was written within the literary context of the collection (quiz) |
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will be able to describe significant links between the letters of Paul and the three other volumes of the New Testament (Four-Gospel-Book, Acts and General Letters, Revelation) (quiz) |
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will be able to describe historical-critical problems of one letter of his or her choice (presentation / paper) |
The course will feature three different approaches:
1. Literary approach: We will read these letters at face value. We will ask what the letters tell us about the characters (including the author and his readers), about the setting of each letter, and about the overall plot of the letter collection. This will help us reconstruct the story told by Paul, the alleged author of these letters.
2. Historical approach: We will look at the political, social, and religious conventions of the time, and we will compare the "Letters of Paul" to other publications of the time.
3. Hermeneutical approach: We will explore how Paul’s theological views and his practical counseling could be relevant for today’s Christian and non-Christian readers.
I see my role in assisting you and encouraging you and supplying you with background information that will benefit you when you re-read the text after this course is finished.
David Trobisch, Paul’s Letter Collection: Tracing the Origins (Bolivar: Quiet Waters Publications, 2001).
Barbara Aland, Kurt Aland, Greek-English New Testament (Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1994). (It is very important to me that everyone uses this scholarly edition of the New Testament. It will help reduce confusion in class.)
Graded Work
Class Presentation (30%)
You will be assigned a group and a topic the first day of class. You will prepare a short presentation for the class (10 minutes). The presentation will be critiqued by your class mates but not graded. Everyone will receive credit for participating.
Paper (30%)
After the class is over you will write an exegetical paper focusing on one Pauline letter and a question of your choice. Your assignment lies in trying to find an answer. This paper will be written in two parts. The first part will base the argument on text observations only. The second part will review scholarly literature pertinent to the question and contain a discussion of your own conclusion. Each part should consist of three to five pages.
Quiz (30%)
There is one written quiz, which will cover the essence of what was discussed during the sessions. A list of potential questions will be available to help you prepare. The quiz will be posted on the web and you will have one week, until 8/23 to submit your answers electronically.
Cooperation in Class (10%)
Your voluntary cooperation will be evaluated at my discretion.
Grade Distribution
A = 100-95%; B = 94-90%; C = 89-85%; D = 84-75%.
Class Schedule
We will meet from Monday to Friday from 1 PM-9 PM and on Saturday from 10-12 on the Portland Campus.