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Courses 2004-2007 



THRS 303 The Gospel of Jesus Christ
    
Introduces students to the New Testament by focusing upon its central character, Jesus.  Emphasis is placed upon: 1) the Jewish matrix of Jesus and early Christian thought; 2) the historical origins and theological structure of the New Testament; 3) the central critical questions regarding the relationship of New Testament literature to Jesus; and 4) the difficulty and religious importance of connecting Jesus to our contemporary world.


THRS 304 The Message of Paul

Acquaints the student with the life and teachings of the apostle Paul in the context of first century Judaism and Greco-Roman thought, and in the context of contemporary New Testament scholarship.  Some of the classic issues  explored are: 1) Where does one find the “real” Paul?  In the book of Acts, the thirteen letters that have Paul’s name on them, or in a more narrow collection of seven letters?  2) Is Paul’s thinking primarily indebted to the Jewish world or the Greek world?  3) What kind of letters did Paul write?  Spontaneous, “off the cuff letters,” or carefully thought out, argumentative letters?  4) How should one understand Paul’s thinking on human nature, sexuality, and the role of women in the church?  Should Paul’s opinion still count today?


THRS 305 John: A Different Gospel

Highlights the unusual historical, social, theological, and literary characteristics of the Gospel of John in the New Testament.  Emphasis is placed upon how this Gospel differs from the first three (Synoptic) Gospels in its view of Jesus, its plot, its theology, and its use of symbols.  Explores expressions of Johannine thought in popular culture through the use of contemporary films and personal reflection.


THRS 391 Hollywood Jesus

Explores the gospels of the New Testament, their historical setting, and their theologies, using the past one hundred years of Jesus films as the point of entrance to the subject. The course combines 1) an understanding of the content of the New Testament gospels and a critical evaluation of their ancient historical situations; with 2) a critical evaluation of Hollywood Jesus films in terms of their use of the Bible (content), and as expressions of popular North American religious experience (family, race, and gender), politics, and capitalism.

 

THRS 393 Apocalypse Today

From the time of the Maccabean revolt in 167 BCE to the September 11 attacks, Jewish and Christian “end of the world” scenarios have challenged and encouraged people who have felt marginalized and oppressed by powers beyond their control.  Beginning with the Book of Daniel and ending about the time the book of Revelation was written, this course critically investigates and critically evaluates ancient Jewish and Christian apocalyptic traditions along with popular, contemporary interpretations and science fiction in order to describe the purpose, the communities that stood behind the traditions, and the theological value of apocalyptic for the Christian world today.



full panoramic retouched
In July 1970, shortly before I left for my freshman year at Wheaton College, I walked up on a mesa 1/4 mile north of Immanuel Mission on the Navajo Indian reservation in northeastern Arizona where I grew up, and took this eight picture panoramic shot with a little "Instamatic" camera (these cameras had no light meter or focus mechanism).
Northeast is at the extreme left of the picture.  West is at the extreme right.  South is in the center.  Immanuel Mission is visible just beyond the red X.  My brother Greg still lives in the area, just beyond the butte in the center of the panoramic shot. You can read about his years on the Rez in a 2007 Arizona Highways Magazine extra.
 I graduated from Shiprock High School, sixty miles to the east in New Mexico, in 1969.




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