RELIGIOUS STUDIES 207W
The Bible
Instructor: Dr. John K. Simmons, Professor, Chair
Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday:
Office: Morgan Hall, Room 456; Phone: 309-298-1057
Department Office: Morgan Hall, Room 456; Phone: 309-298-1057
Class meets in: Morgan Hall, Room 230, MWF: 9:00am- 9:50am
WebCT: the complete syllabus is available online by accessing the course through WesternOnline. The address is https://westernonline.wiu.edu at this site you can access the flash tutorials on the left to learn how to use WebCT Vista. You will need your Ecom ID and Password to access this site. If you have any problems go through the troubleshooting instructions or call UCSS at 298-2704.
You will be able to access all power point presentations and notes. There will be quizzes you can take for practice. Through this site I will be able to track who has been online and who has not. You will also be able to track your grades through the grade book that is located here.
E-Mail: j-simmons@wiu.edu
Stephen Harris, Understanding the Bible, 7th ed., (McGraw-Hill, 2007) ISBN: 0-07-296548-7.
The New
Course Description:
Religious Studies 207, The Bible, offers students the
opportunity to explore the Bible in an open-minded, unbiased, and doctrinally
free fashion. Can you cover the entire
Bible in a sixteen-week course? Impossible. Can you
learn, in sixteen weeks, to read the map that will potentially guide you
through a lifetime of biblical adventures?
Most certainly! Why bother? Not only has this sacred text provided the
spiritual foundation for Jews and Christians, the Bible has been instrumental
in shaping the intellectual and cultural history of Western civilization. Whether you consider yourself to be
religious or not has absolutely no bearing on the importance of becoming biblically
literate. Biblical ideas provide the
cultural underpinnings of American society, informing politics, morality, law,
and social ideals. Yet biblical
illiteracy runs rampant in the
Persons seeking power use the authority of the Bible to manipulate a given constituency and formulate public policy for good or ill. Not only is knowledge the best defense against this kind of manipulation, in general, a well-educated person should be conversant in biblical literature. A student taking this course will understand the cultural environment out of which biblical texts emerged as well as the historical context in which the texts were written. That is the “map” you will take with you upon successfully completing Religious Studies 207.
Course Objectives:
Upon completing Religious Studies 207, The Bible, students should be able to identify and understand:
1. differing approaches to the study of the Bible, particularly the difference between the academic study of biblical literature and Bible study within a given faith community.
2. the historical, cultural, and thematic map of the major sections of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) and the New Testament
a) Hebrew Bible: Torah, Prophets, the Writings
b) New Testament: the Gospels, Paul’s letters, the Catholic epistles, Revelation
3. the function and power of biblical myth in relationship to historical perspective
4. the
impact of biblical interpretation on current cultural mores in the
5. the sociological and cultural dynamics that allowed Christianity to emerge out of Judaism
Course Structure with Quizzes and Exams:
Segment 1: Mapping the Bible: An Introduction to the Bible and the Academic Approach to Studying Religion and Sacred Texts
Approximate length of segment = 3 weeks
Quiz #1 = 25 points (multiple
choice questions)
Reading assignment: Harris,
chapters 1-4
Segment 2: The Torah: Genesis - Deuteronomy
Approximate length of segment = 3 weeks
Quiz #2
= 25 points (multiple choice questions)
Reading
assignment: Harris, chapter 5
Segment 3: The Prophets
Approximate length of segment = 3 weeks
Midterm
examination = 50 points (see exam description below)
Reading
assignment: Harris, chapters 6 & 7
Segment 4: The Writings
Approximate length of segment = 2
weeks
Quiz
#3 = 25 points (multiple choice questions)
Reading
assignment: Harris, chapter 8
Segment 5: The Gospels
Approximate length of segment = 2 weeks
Quiz #4
= 25 points (multiple choice questions)
Reading
assignment: Harris, chapters 10 - 13
Segment 6: Paul’s Letters, Hebrews, the universal
epistles, and Revelations
Approximate length of segment = 3 weeks
Final
examination = 75 points (see exam description below)
Reading assignment: Harris,
chapters 14 & 15, for your own interest,
chapter 16
Examination Description/Format
Quizzes: the four
quizzes will consist of 25 multiple choice questions worth one point each for a
possible quiz total of 25 points.
Midterm examination:
1. In-class
part of the exam: on the day of the exam, we will have 20 computer-graded
multiple choice questions worth 1 point each and 8 short answer identifications
(you pick 5) worth 2 points each for an in-class exam total of 30
possible points (please bring a #2 pencil to the
exams). A review sheet will be handed
out at least one week before the exam.
2.
Take home essay: included in
the review sheet to be handed out a week before the exam will be an essay
question. You can write the essay – open
book, open notes – on your own, then bring the essay to the exam. It will probably take 3 to 4 pages to answer
the essay question, roughly 7 to 8 paragraphs, 500-600
words. You are always welcome to expand
further should you be so moved! The
essays may be typed or handwritten, though double-spaced typing is
preferred. Each exam will be worth 20
points for an exam total of 50 possible points.
Please
note! The take home essay must be turned in to me at the exam on the
day of the exam. A 2.5 point
penalty will be assigned to any essay turned in after the class period ends on
the date of the examination.
Final examination: the final
exam will follow the same format as the midterm, including an in-class portion
of the exam and a take home essay that must be handed in at the final. However, for the final exam, you will have 35
multiple choice questions (worth one point each)
and 20 short answer identifications, you choose any 10 (worth 2 points each).
With the addition of the take home essay (worth 20 points), the
point total for the final exam is 75 points.
Total Possible Course Points Breakdown:
4 quizzes X 25 points = 100 points
Midterm exam = 50 points
Final
exam = 75
points
225 possible points
Course Grading Scale:
202.5 - 225 points = A
180 – 202.25 points = B
157.5 – 179.75 points = C
135 – 157.25 points = D
0 – 134.75 points = F
Attendance Policy:
There will be no attendance policy. However, a sign in sheet will be passed at each class. Out of those I will pick 5 bonus days. If you are in attendance on that day you will be given 1 bonus point. These will be factored into your final grade. These will not be announced days but they will show on your grade book sheet. Often times 5 points will make a difference in your letter grade.
Civility means behaving
respectfully towards everyone during our class sessions, including other
students, the occasional guest, and your instructor. Questions and comments,
relevant to the topic of the day, are heartily welcomed. However,
private conversations that disturb other class members are unacceptable and
will not be tolerated. Please do not “chatter” during lectures or presentation
of visual materials; raise your hand if you have a question or would like to
discuss the topic of the day. Please
come to class ready to focus on the Bible.
Take care of any business you might have with a classmate before or
after class. Repeat offenders will be
asked to leave the class, permanently,
resulting in a grade of F for the course.
Try to arrive on time, and, if you must leave before the end of the class session, it is appropriate to let the instructor know. Wandering in and out of class is highly distracting to other students and the instructor. Try to resist the urge to shuffle books and papers at the conclusion of class. It is often during the last minutes of class that important concluding points are made. This is a "self-policing" classroom. If someone is disturbing your concentration by talking during lecture and discussion, you have every right to politely tell them to be quiet.
The three keys to success in this class (and all college classes, for that matter) are:
a) attend class regularly;
b) read the assigned material carefully, and take some time to reflect on it;
c) come to the exams well prepared.
Most of the material on the exams is drawn from the PowerPoint graphics, so please be familiar with the major class themes summarized and covered in our PowerPoint presentations. I don’t offer “extra credit,” so make the most of the exam opportunities.
Please be civil and caring towards your classmates. We’re here, together, to learn and explore one of the most powerful texts in all of human history.
Welcome, one and
all!