| CODE | SHG1104 | ||||||
| TITLE | The New Testament in its Historical and Geographical Environment | ||||||
| UM LEVEL | 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Sacred Scripture, Hebrew and Greek | ||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit presents a historical geography of the land of the Bible, bringing together research and archaeological exploration that has been done as regards the biblical land and its environs from its earliest beginnings to the onset of the New Testament period. This will be done by examining briefly Historical Sources (The Bible, Epigraphical Documents), the Geography of the Land (A Land of Geographical contrasts, Roads, Boundaries and Names) and its Toponomy, the Biblical Land during the different ages right up to the latter days of the Judean Kingdom. With this background special emphasis will then be given to the turbulent history preceding New Testament times, Hellenistic culture, Roman sovereignty and Jewish beliefs, practice and movements in the times of Jesus Christ and the Early Church in order to cultivate the historical, intellectual and cultural background necessary to read and understand the books of the New Testament. Study-unit Aims: This study-unit aims at introducing students to the historical-geography of the Land of the Bible, presenting the appropriate instruments for a critical understanding of this land of contrasts and for a more concrete understanding of the historical and geographical context of the different Books of the Bible. Special emphasis on the New Testament will guide the students to understand the historicity of its narratives and literature and its peculiar historical, cultural, political and religious background. The study-unit will also prepare students for a future visit to the Land of the Bible. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Delineate the general historical-geographical development as indicated in the historical-theological narratives of the Biblical Books; - Have a basic overview of the different toponomastical developments; - Discover progressively the contribution of archaeological research in the Holy Land; - Evaluate better the Sitz-im-Leben of the New Testament narratives and literature. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Read critically historical-geographical maps of the Bible; - Understand better the wider physical and vital contexts of particular biblical texts; - Interpret the theological significance given to specific places and areas in the Bible; - Determine the existential background of New Testament literature. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: - AHARONI YOHANAN, The Land of the Bible, a Historical Geography, Burns and Oates, London 1979. - AVI-YONAH MICHAEL, The Holy Land, A Historical Geography from the Persian to the Arab Conquest, 536 BC to AD 640, Carta, Jerusalem 2002. - AHARONI YOHANAN - AVI-YONAH MICHAEL, The Macmillan Bible Atlas. Revised Edition, Carta, New York - London, 1977. - BRUCE F.F.., New Testament History, Doubleday - Galilee Edition, New York. - CONNOLLY P., Living in the time of Jesus of Nazareth, Steimatzky Ltd, Tel Aviv 1988. - KASWALDER PIETRO A., Onomastica Biblica, Franciscan Printing Press, Jerusalem 2002. - LOHSE E., The New Testament Environment, SCM Press, London 1989. - NEGEV AVRAHAM (Ed.), The Archaeological Encylopedia of the Holy Land, Revised Edition, Jerusalem 1986. - SCHURER E., The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ, Vol I - III, A New English Version revised and edited by Geza Vermes and Fergus Millar, T & S Clark Ltd, Edinburgh 1973. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Marcello Ghirlando |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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