| Unit name | The Scriptures and the Scrolls |
|---|---|
| Unit code | THRS30105 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | Department of Religion and Theology |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
After considering the Dead Sea Scrolls in general, this unit will focus on the state and status of the Jewish scriptures in the late Second Temple period of Judaism (circa 250 BCE - 70 CE), both within the Qumran community and elsewhere. It will also consider the related issue of the interpretation of those scriptures in the so-called sectarian Dead Sea Scrolls against the background of roughly contemporary exegetical literature (e.g. Philo, New Testament). Each week the tutor will give a one-hour lecture on a relevant key theme (e.g. whether there was a scriptural canon in this period), while a second hour will be a seminar in which students discuss in small groups an aspect of that theme including a weekly student presentation on a key primary text. All ancient sources will be used through the medium of English translation.
By the end of the unit, students will be expected to have gained an in-depth critical understanding of:
(1) the overall nature of the Dead Sea Scrolls;
(2) the significance of the scriptural manuscripts among the Scrolls;
(3) the variety of scriptural interpretation found among the so-called sectarian Scrolls.
They will also be expected to have acquired:
(4) general skills in critical thinking and in written and oral communication appropriate to level H.
By the end of the unit, students will be expected to have gained an in-depth critical understanding of:
(1) the overall nature of the Dead Sea Scrolls;
(2) the significance of the scriptural manuscripts among the Scrolls;
(3) the variety of scriptural interpretation found among the so-called sectarian Scrolls.
They will also be expected to have acquired:
(4) general skills in critical thinking and in written and oral communication appropriate to level H.
1 Lecture and 1 seminar per week. The tutor will give a one-hour lecture on a relevant theme and this will be followed up by a one-hour seminar in which students discuss an aspect or aspects of that theme in small groups, having listened to a student presentation on a core primary text, and then report back to the class in the final fifteen minutes.
Summative: 1 essay of 2,500 words
Formative: 1 class presentation per student on key source materials throughout the TB.
Dead Sea Discoveries;
