ONLINE COURSE
CLASS DATES: JAN 7 - MAR 15, 2019
3 CREDIT HOURS

Christians read. The Bible is Scripture, the authoritative word of God, orientating and guiding Christians of all times and places in their thinking, living, and being. However, reading the Bible requires care as one (1) explores the great expanse of the world of Scripture, and (2) brings narrative, poetry, parable, history, wisdom and apocalypse through many centuries into contemporary society. This course, therefore, relying on the Holy Spirit as well as church tradition and Christian communities, attempts to understand and apply the Bible as sacred Scripture for today.

This course is a hands-on experience in exegesis and hermeneutics. Through case studies, students will familiarize themselves with the basic steps, tools, principles and methods necessary to study, interpret, and appropriate Scripture from its historical, literary and theological contexts.

Through case studies (investigating biblical passages in the Christian Scriptures), this course attempts to provide students the necessary framework (tools and methods) to read, understand and apply the Bible today. Through online participation and discussion, research, and writing students will have the opportunity to gain hermeneutical expertise in the following ways:

1. To use resources available for understanding the Christian Bible (concordances, lexicons, atlases, encyclopaedias, dictionaries and commentaries).
2. Situate passages in the Christian Bible and determine its cultural, geographical, and historical context.
3. Identify different genres of Christian Bible and comprehend its rhetorical and poetical features and literary structure.In addition, identify grammatical and literary structural elements to determine meaning.
4. Use various ancient and modern methodological approaches in biblical studies so that students can approach any passage of Scripture and determine its meaning and contemporary significance.
5. Apply sound principles of interpretation to verses, paragraphs, and longer units to the various genres of Scripture. Also, be able to appropriate this course into life, devotion, and service as well as develop an appreciation and love for the Bible.

Kyung Baek