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SCHEDULE

Thursday, September 6

• Introduction to the class
• Check out FishersNet Forum
• Check out the course blog - You should be receiving an invitation to signup at Edublogs so that I can register you as an editor for the site.
• Class Notes
• Mark 1.1-4 Notes
• If you do not yet have Bible software, please note the LTSG Bible Software Sale beginning Sept. 14. In the meantime, try using The Resurgence Greek Project (Zhubert) or GreekBibleStudy.org
• Mark1.1x3 (PDF) experimental

Thursday, September 13

• Narrative Criticism
• Confirm 'second' required book that you will read
• Confirm pericope choice
• Read Mark & Method, pp. 1-22
• Focus text: Mark 1.40-45
• Exercise: Experiencing the Gospel of Mark 1.40-45
• Translation and Performance

Thursday, September 20

• Book assignments: 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. NOTE: Schedule of reports is now posted on the book assignment page.
• Pericope assignments and performance dates assigned. Cf. below.
• Read Mark & Method, pp. 23-49
• Narrative Criticism & the Gospel of Mark
• Focus text: Mark 1.21-28 (here are my study notes)
  • Mark 1:21-28 Narrative criticism exercise (done in class)

Thursday, September 27

• Social Criticism: Read M&M: pages 135-161
  • SocialDifferences.pdf
• Focal text: Mark 1.29-34

Thursday, October 4

• Focus text: Mark 2.1-12
  • Capernaum
  • Mark 2.1-3.6 (a hardcopy of this will be distributed in class) and Narrative Criticism Exercise
• Check the blog for an assignment related to your chosen text
• Oral Book Reports and Amazon reviews
  • JasonN on Kingsbury
  • JasonS on Moloney

Thursday, October 11

• Finish Social Criticism of Mark 2.1-12
• Feminist Criticism: Read M&M: 103-134
• Power & Purity Playaround PPT
• Focus text: Mark 14.3-9 - Our focus will be on this Mark text, and you should go over the Greek, but this week we will be more interested in comparing this account in Mark with its parallels in Matthew, Luke, and John from a feminist perspective.
  • Anointing in Bethany ParallelsGRK
  • Anointing in BethanyNRSV
• Oral Book Reports and Amazon reviews
  • Katie on Juel
  • Elizabeth on Levine

Thursday, October 18: NO CLASS - READING DAY

• Looking ahead: Reading Response Paper will be due November 8 THIS SHOULD BE OCT 25, but this would be a good week to work on it and turn it in early. >> Did I mess you up on due date? Let me know...

Thursday, October 25

• Finish up the Mark 14 reading...
• Liberation Approaches: Liberation Theology Intro.pdf
  • Read this article: A Concise History of Liberation Theology
  •  Other Liberation Links (Try to check out at least one of the linked articles)
• Focus text: Mark 12.1-9 - (Omit reading verses 10-12 for now!) 
  • Read this text from the perspective of the vineyard owner. Now read it from the perspective of the tenants. Whose perspective are you encouraged to support?
  • Vineyard & Tenants Parallels.pdf
• Reading Response DUE (yes, Oct 25 as the syllabus stated, not Nov 8): From the syllabus:
  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.
• Oral Book Reports and Amazon reviews
  • Mike on Malbon
  • Debbie on Maloney

Thursday, November 1

• Finish up Mark 12 reading
• Other Postcolonial Readings
• Oral Book Reports and Amazon reviews
  • Virgil on Fowler
• Looking ahead: Pericope 'performances' begin Nov 29.

Thursday, November 8

• Important: Please login to the FishersNet Forum, click on the "Course Notes" button, and complete the "Quick Survey"
• Reader-Response Criticism: Read M&M: pages 50-83
  • Finish Mark 12 as Reader-Response: Vineyard, Owner, Tenants.pdf
  • Reader Response exercise in class
• Focus text: Mark 5.1-20 - We will largely be working with this text in the English, but keep your eye on the Greek

Thursday, November 15

• Deconstructive Criticism: Read M&M pages 84-102
  • Deconstructive criticism.pdf
  • In particular, I think pages 95-97 are absolutely brilliant. Let's deconstruct it!
• Focus text: Mark 14.32-52
• Experiencing Mark Quick Survey Results

Thursday, November 22 - NO CLASS

Thursdays, November 29 and December 6

• 'Performance' Format: Each person will have a maximum of 10 minutes. You may choose to introduce your pericope in whatever way you choose, but I am hoping that there will be time following the performance for discussion with the class about what you did and how it worked. Every member of the class will be writing a response in class that will be given to you right away. If your 'performance' includes something that you want to share digitally with the rest of the class, please send it to me, and I will post it online if feasible.

NAME	Mark Text	Pericope 'Performance'
JasonN	Mark 1.9-13	Nov 29	PDF
Mike	Mark 1.16-20	Nov 29	PDF
Katie	Mark 1.35-38/9	Nov 29	PDF
Virgil	Mark 2.13-17	Dec 6	PDF
Elizabeth	Mark 4.35-41	Dec 6	PDF
Debbie	Mark 15.1-5	Dec 6	PDF
JasonS	Mark 15.33-39	Dec 6

Thursday, December 13

• Pericope Paper DUE at class time: 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.
• Some things to check if you want to share your PPTs online:
  • If you were in chapel on Friday, you saw the PPT I made for the Bridesmaid parable. (Okay, the bridesmaid parable is in Matthew and not in Mark which is the topic of this class, but ...) I created all the graphics from scratch using an old Serif DrawPlus program. (More info here.) To share this on the web, I've tried a few things. (Please forgive the lousy narration and background audio. I was doing this quickly and I threw together the audio using a free music program that is designed to generate copyright free midis.)
    • HERE is a version done using the free Microsoft Producer program. It's pretty easy. You import your finished slideshow and add audio. I used music but no narration for this one, but you can do both. (BTW, you will need IE to view this, not Firefox. It's about a 5Mb download, so give it a little time.) I didn't bother to set the timings on the slides...
    • HERE is a version using a screen recorder, a free version of Camtasia Studio. (Info here.) Its a FLV file with narration. What's nice about this one is how fast it loads. Since I basically just ran my PPT, the timings are pretty good.
    • Check out this Christmas 'video.' Note that it is really only a bunch of pictures with the "Ken Burns" pan/zoom effect used. This effect is accomplished using the free Microsoft PhotoStory program. As an example, HERE is one I did using my PPT slides and adding audio and narration. (5Mb) No animations, but it could work well for some PPTs.
    • Check HERE to see Jason's PPT.
    • My point? Each of these options is basically free to do. You do have to learn a bit about how they work, but they really are geared for a popular market so that anyone can do them.
• Discussion of papers in class
• Deconstruction exercise: Mark 16.1-8
  • You want deconstruction? I'll give you deconstruction. Go to this page and watch the movie: Le Grand Content.

Advance Preparation:

Technically, there is no advance preparation needed for this class before the first session on Sept.6. You may be able to help yourself and make the semester easier by considering the following.

• Look over the (still tentative) Syllabus. One of the assignments is: "Read the whole Gospel of Mark (out loud, if possible) in one sitting using The Message translation." This could certainly be done any time.
• Look at the Bibliography and Resources page and be sure to read the "Note" at the top of the page. I'm trying a little experiment by linking directly to Amazon. I certainly do not want to take business away from the seminary bookstore, but some books are out of print, and others are hard to find, and you may want to order them in advance. (Be sure to note anticipated shipping times!)
• This is also your chance to claim first rights to a book from the "Course Required Books - Part 2." You will only need to read one book from this list, and I want everyone in the class to read a different book. So, before ordering one of those books, contact me to confirm that are the first one to request that book. Here's the list of books. You will need to finalize a decision by Sept 13.
• Mark Text Choices - and Pericope Performances >> You will be choosing a text in Mark as your focal text for the semester. This choice needs to be finalized by Sept 13. I will say more in class, but I would recommend that you look for a short pericope between 4 and 10 verses long.
• If you have not already done so, get your computer ready to go with Unicode Greek.
  • Greek Tools Proficiencies Part 1A - Setting up your system
  • Greek Tools Proficiencies Part 1B – Keyboard Exercise (DOC file - download / open in your word processor)
• Bible Software and other Digital Resources - We will be doing a lot with BibleWorks7, Logos, and other digital resources. If you already have BibleWorks or Logos, please go to this Bible Software page and follow the directions there to get everything set. If you do not have software and are interested in getting it, that page has some recommendations. LTSG will be offering a special 'buying window' for LTSG students in September to get BW or Logos at significant price reductions.