FALL 2007 Dr. Mark Vitalis Hoffman
RATIONALE
A study of the Gospel of Mark employing a variety of interpretive approaches, especially those which highlight its character as story and narrative engaging the reader. (Prerequisite: 1.205 and knowledge of Greek) 1.5 Credits
Neglected through much of Church history, the Gospel of Mark has recently been recognized as a true work of literature that functions narratively to proclaim the "good news of Jesus, God's Son." While attending to its narrative features, this course will be attuned to how this Gospel is experienced by a variety of readers/hearers in various social locations, in order that students in the class may both appreciate the subtle power of this gospel and themselves become more effective proclaimers of this good news.
OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
STRATEGIES
In order to accomplish the stated Objectives of this course, the following Strategies will be employed:
1. CLASS SESSIONS
All sessions meet in Valentine 310. Class will be held on Thursdays, 1:30-2:45.
Students are expected to bring the NET Bible Greek/English Diglot (physical or digital) to every class.
2. CLASS PARTICIPATION
The students will be expected to attend class regularly, to have read all required readings prior to class, to accomplish all pertinent translations/exegeses, and to be prepared to discuss the topics for each class session. There will be an online forum for this class. Participation in the online forum is not required, but it will be considered as part of the overall class participation evaluation.
3. CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
Students will be expected to hand in all assignments on time. Assignments will be accepted past the due date ONLY if the reason for tardiness is commissural with a reason why a rostered leader would not be prepared to preach or teach as expected by their congregation on a given Sunday.
4. REQUIRED READING – Part 1
The following are included as the required texts for this course:
· The New Revised Standard Version Bible with Apocrypha (recommended: HarperCollins Study Edition or Zondervan’s NRSV Student Bible or The Access Bible)
· NET Bible Nestle-Aland27 Diglot (from Bible.org or as available in BibleWorks7 or Logos3)
· Rhoads, David, Joanna Dewey, and Donald Michie. Mark as Story. An Introduction to the Narrative of a Gospel. Fortress, 1999. (NOTE: I am assuming that all you have actually already read this in the 1.205 Gospels course.)
· Mark and Method: New Approaches in Biblical Studies. Edited by Janice Capel Anderson and Stephen D. Moore. Fortress, 1992.
· One book from the Required Reading List – Part 2
· One book from the Required Commentary List – Part 3
·
Note: there may also be occasional readings from
other texts that may be found on reserve in the LTSG library or on the Internet
5. REQUIRED READING - Part 2 (You are to read at least one book from this list. Books marked with arrow bullets are particularly recommended.)
· Barta, Karen A. Gospel of Mark. Glazier, 1988. Spirituality
· Cárdenas Pallares, José. A Poor Man Called Jesus: Reflections on the Gospel of Mark. Orbis, 1986. Liberation
· Clévenot, Michel. Materialist Approaches to the Bible. Orbis, 1985.
· Dowd, Sharyn Echols. Reading Mark: A Literary and Theological Commentary on the Second Gospel. Smyth & Helwys, 2000.
Ø Fowler, Robert Let the Reader Understand: Reader-Response Criticism and the Gospel of Mark. Fortress, 1991. Reader-response
Ø Horsley, Richard A. Hearing the Whole Story: The Politics of Plot in Mark's Gospel. Westminster John Knox, 2001. Socio-political, postcolonial, literary, liberation
Ø Juel, Donald H. A Master of Surprise: Mark Interpreted. Fortress, 1994. Narrative/rhetorical
Ø Kermode, Frank The Genesis of Secrecy: On the Interpretation of Narrative. Harvard, 1979. Literary, narrative (deconstruction)
· Kingsbury, Jack Dean Conflict in Mark: Jesus, Authorities, Disciples. AugsburgFortress, 1989. Literary
Ø Kinukawa, Hisako Women and Jesus in Mark: A Japanese Feminist Perspective. Wipf & Stock, 1994.
Ø Levine, Amy-Jill. A Feminist Companion to Mark. Pilgrim Press, 2004.
· Malbon, Elizabeth Struthers In the Company of Jesus: Characters in Mark's Gospel. Westminster John Knox Press, 2000. Narrative
Ø Maloney, Elliott C. Jesus' Urgent Message for Today: The Kingdom of God in Mark's Gospel. Continuum, 2004. Liberation
Ø Mitchell, Joan L. Beyond Fear and Silence: A Feminist-Literary Reading of Mark. Continuum, 2001.
· Moloney, Francis J. Mark: Storyteller, Interpreter, Evangelist. Hendrickson, 2004. Narrative
· Preaching Mark's Unsettling Messiah. Edited by Dave Bland and David Fleer. Chalice Press, 2006. Exegetical/Homiletical
Ø Robbins, Vernon K. Exploring the Texture of Texts: A Guide to Socio-Rhetorical Interpretation. Trinity Press, 1996.
Ø Shiner, Whitney. Proclaiming the Gospel: First-Century Performance of Mark. Trinity, 2003.
· Smith, Stephen H. A Lion with Wings. Sheffield, 1996. Narrative-critical
6. REQUIRED – Part 3 – Commentaries – You are required to have at least one good commentary to accompany your reading of Mark.
· Donahue, John and Daniel Harrington. Mark. Sacra Pagina. Glazier/Liturgical Press. 2002.
· Juel, Donald H. The Gospel of Mark. Interpreting Biblical Texts. Abingdon. 1999.
· Juel, Donald H. Mark. Augsburg Commentary on the New Testament. Augsburg. 1990.
· Marcus, Joel. Mark 1-8. Anchor Bible. Doubleday. 2000.
· [Marcus, Joel. Mark 9-16. Anchor Bible. Doubleday. >> Forthcoming]
· Moloney, Francis J. The Gospel of Mark: A Commentary. Hendrickson. 2002.
· Williamson, LaMar. Mark. Interpretation. Westminster/John Knox. 1983.
7. OPTIONAL – Interpreted Readings – Reading and reporting on these books is possible for extra credit. (Maximum two-page, double-spaced report)
· Ross, Steve. Marked. Seabury, 2005
· Walters, Carl. I, Mark: A Personal Encounter: Explorations in the Earliest Gospel. John Knox Press, 1980.
8. REQUIRED ASSIGNMENTS
A. Complete readings from required books per schedule
B. Read the whole Gospel of Mark (out loud, if possible) in one sitting using The Message (In addition to print versions, it is available online or in Logos Gold or as a Logos Addon Module)
C. Read the whole Gospel of Mark (using NRSV or NET) from the perspective of both 1) a character in the Gospel and 2) a modern, social location. Following this reading, each student will write a maximum two page paper (one inch margins, double-spaced, 12 point font) reflecting on the reading experience. This paper will be due Oct. 25.
D. A five minute maximum, in-class, oral report on the book you chose from the recommended reading list. These will be scheduled throughout the semester. A concise review of the book will also be posted on Amazon.com.
E. Each student will choose one pericope in Mark at the second class session to be a focal text for the semester. Using this text, each student will:
· ‘Perform’ the text for the class: More details will be given in class, but this will involve memorizing (maybe) and presenting the pericope. Students may use any translation, including their own, and may change narrative perspective. (Staging, backdrop, props, etc. may be used but are not necessary.)
· Write a 5-7 page paper (one inch margins, double-spaced, 12 point font) that pays close attention to narrative aspects of the pericope and discusses it from one other critical perspective.
F. POSSIBLE OPTION: If the class should decide to do so, other assigned elements may be reduced and replaced by a class project. Specifically, the class may decide to do a podcast of the Gospel of Mark. Aspects of such an assignment would include choosing a translation and how we might want to adapt it, deciding how the Gospel should be broken into podcast units, creating a ‘script’ and choosing ‘voices,’ determining whether any background sounds should be used, determining technical needs, etc.
EVALUATION
Evaluation of students will be as follows:
o 1-2 page Reflection Paper on reading experience---------------- 10%
o Recommended reading report------------------------------------ 10%
o Pericope ‘performance’------------------------------------------- 20%
o 5-7 page Pericope Paper------------------------------------------ 40%
o Classroom preparedness and participation----------------------- 20%
o Extra Credit: 1-2 page Optional Book Review------------------ up to + 3%
To receive a passing grade for the course students will need to attain at least 70% total
For those taking the course for a grade: 70-79 = C; 80-92 = B; 93-100 = A
SCHEDULE
M&M = Mark & Method
|
DATE |
FOCUS |
ASSIGNMENT |
MARK TEXT |
|
Sept 6 |
Introductory Matters |
|
1.1-4 |
|
Sept 13 |
Narrative Criticism 1 |
M&M: 1-49 |
1.40-45 |
|
Sept 20 |
Narrative Criticism 2 |
|
|
|
Sept 27 |
Social Criticism 1 |
M&M: 135-161 |
|
|
Oct 4 |
Social Criticism 2 |
|
2.1-12 |
|
Oct 11 |
Feminist Criticism |
M&M: 103-134 |
14.3-9 |
|
Oct 18 |
NO CLASS |
|
|
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Oct 25 |
Liberation Approaches |
Reading Response paper due |
|
|
Nov 1 |
Other Postcolonial Readings |
|
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Nov 8 |
Reader-Response Criticism |
M&M: 50-83 |
5.1-20 |
|
Nov 15 |
Deconstructive Criticism |
M&M: 84-102 |
14.32-52 |
|
Nov 22 |
NO CLASS |
|
|
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Nov 29 |
Pericope ‘performances’ |
|
|
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Dec 6 |
Pericope ‘performances’ |
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Dec 13 |
|
Pericope Papers Due |
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