Description    Learning Objectives     Textbooks     Requirements     Grading Basis     Schedule

Course Description:  A detailed examination of the life of Jesus Christ as found in the four New Testament Gospels. The course will study background information, then each book, focusing on the individual characteristics, content, and themes of each Gospel author. Prerequisite: BNT101.

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Learning Objectives:  As a result of completing BNT102 in an attentive and disciplined manner, students will:

1.  be aware of, and able to discuss, the history of the tradition, reception and canonization of the Fourfold Gospel.

2.  be able to describe and discuss the Synoptic Problem and its proposed solutions.

3.  be able to describe and discuss the unique perspective of each individual Gospel, including how the evangelists differ in their perspective on, and use of, the same or similar incident.

4.  be able to rehearse the broad outline and main emphases of each individual gospel.

5.  be able to articulate a synthesis of the Gospels' message to humanity in the 21st century.

6.  have created and presented an artistic rendering of a significant episode from the Gospels.

Textbooks:  Required texts are:

Murphy, Frederick J.  An Introduction to Jesus and the Gospels.  Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2005.

An English Bible in any respectable committee translation.  For academic study, I recommend and will use (but do not require) the New Revised Standard Version with Apocrypha.

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1.  Constructive engagement in the learning experience inside and outside of the classroom.  This will be assessed by:

a.  Consistent and punctual class attendance with textbooks, notebook, and a positive attitude (10% of class grade): genuine emergency is the only excuse for absence, which adversely affects your learning, Every unexcused absence after the first will lower your grade by twenty points. Chronic lateness will also lower your grade.

b.  Close reading and study of the sections in the required text or handouts relevant to each day’s discussion, evidenced by informed dialogue in class (10% of class grade). Every student is expected to participate in discussion. Each exam will include a statement about required reading. Failure to read and discuss will lower your final grade.

2.  Three exams, each of which will focus on the portion of the course just completed, i.e. the Introduction or one of the Gospels, with some comparison to other Gospels included:

a.  First Exam: Introduction, 2/13/06 (15% of class grade).

b.  Second Exam: Mark and Matthew, 3/24/06 (15% of class grade).

c.  Third Exam: Luke and John, 5/3/06 (15% of class grade).

3.  An 800-1000 page research paper on an episode from Mark’s Gospel, 12pt Times New Roman, 1” margins, Face and Works Cited pages, Word Count, all in MLA format (15% of class grade). Consult me for clarification before you finalize your episode. Episode selection due beginning of class, Friday, 3/10/06; outline due, Wednesday, 3/22/06; completed paper due, Wednesday, 4/12/06. Late papers lose one letter grade per 24 hours or part thereof.

4.  An artistic interpretation of the Gospel episode you studied or a theme drawn from it (20% of class grade): may be done as a group or individual project. For group projects, no less than two and no more than five may participate for credit (others may be drafted as extras/helpers if necessary). Examples are: a drawing / painting / collage / sculpture; a song; a poem or prose piece; a monologue; a dramatic presentation, either live or on video media; choreography; combinations of these. Consult me for other ideas, and before you finalize your project. You will also be responsible for giving feedback on other's presentations .

Final Examination: Due to the nature of this course and the material to be covered, the weight of examination will be somewhat distributed, as noted above and below, between three lesser examinations, each testing a specific portion of the material, and, except for some comparison, limited to that.

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Grading Basis Explanation: The grading scale and grading formula used to determine your final grade are as follows:

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Incompletes are discouraged. They are intended for use only in emergency situations, not simply to cover failure to submit assigned material on time. Where a genuine emergency exists, the student must prepare a petition for an incomplete on the appropriate form available from the academic office, and present it to the instructor before the last class date. If the petition is approved, the student has six weeks from the last class date to complete course requirements.

Adjustments to Syllabus/Schedule: The instructor reserves the right to modify this syllabus or the requirements of the course throughout the semester.

Special Needs: In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), all qualified students enrolled in this course are entitled to ‘reasonable accommodations.’ It is the student’s responsibility to inform the instructor of any special needs before the end of the second week of class.

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Course Schedule:

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Bibliography

Print Resources:

Aland, Kurt, ed.  Synopsis of the Four Gospels.  New York: United Bible Societies, 1979.

Barnett, Paul.  The Birth of Christianity: the First Twenty Years.  Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005.

Bartholomew, Craig, and Michael W. Goheen. The drama of Scripture: Finding Our Place in the Biblical Story.  Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2004.

Blomberg, Craig L.  Jesus and the Gospels.  Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1997.

________.  The Historical Reliability of John's Gospel: Issues and Commentary.  Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001.

Brown, Raymond E.  An Introduction to the New Testament.  The Anchor Bible Reference Library.  New York: Doubleday, 1997.

________.  The Birth of the Messiah: a Commentary on the Infancy Narratives in Matthew and Luke. Garden City: Doubleday, 1977.

________.  The Death of the Messiah: from Gethsemane to Grave: a Commentary on the Passion Narratives in the Four Gospels. 2 Vols.  Garden City: Doubleday, 1994.

Burridge, Richard A.  Four Gospels, One Jesus?  A Symbolic Reading.  Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2004.

Burridge, Richard A., and Graham Gould.  Jesus Now and Then.  2nd ed.  Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005.

Bruce, F. F.  The Hard Sayings of Jesus.  Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1984.

Colquhoun, Frank.  Four Portraits of Jesus: Christ in the Gospels. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1984.

Foster, R. C.  Studies in the Life of Christ.  Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1962.

Green, Joel B., Scot McKnight and I. Howard Marshall, eds.  Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels.  Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1992.

Guthrie, Donald.  New Testament Introduction.  Downers Grove, IL, 1970.

Hansen, Michael, SJ.  The Gospels for Prayer.  Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria Press, 2003.

Henry, Carl F. H.  The Identity of Jesus of Nazareth.  Nashville: Broadman, 1992.

Meier, John P.  A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus. Volume One: the Roots of the Problem and the Person.  New York: Doubleday, 1991.

________.  A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus. Volume Two: Mentor, Message and Miracles.  New York: Doubleday, 1994.

________.  A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus. Volume Three: Companions and Competitors.  New York: Doubleday, 2001.

Pelikan, Jaroslav.  Jesus through the Centuries: His Place in the History of Culture. New York: Harper & Row, 1985.

Rhoads, David, Joanna Dewie and Donald Michie.  Mark as Story: An Introduction to the Narrative of a Gospel. 2nd ed.  Minneapolis: Fortress, 1999.

Stanton, Graham.  The Gospels and Jesus.  2nd ed.  Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.

Wright, N. T.  Christian Origins and the Question of God.  Volume One: the New Testament and the People of God.  Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992.

________.  Christian Origins and the Question of God.  Volume Two: Jesus and the Victory of God.  Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992.

________.  Christian Origins and the Question of God.  Volume Three: the Resurrection of the Son of God.  Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992.

________.  The Challenge of Jesus: Rediscovering Who Jesus Was and Is.  Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1999.