RLGN 5324—GENERAL EPISTLES
AND REVELATION
Summer Term (May 25-August 8, 2009)
Thursdays, 6:00-10:00 pm, 11550 I.H.
35 N., Rm. 115
John M. Andrewartha,
Ph.D., Instructor
30540 Bulverde
Hills Dr., Bulverde, TX 78163 Phone: (830) 980-2404 Fax: (830) 980-2405
Email Address: jmandrew@gvtc.com Website: http://satx.wbu.edu/john.andrewartha
OFFICE HOURS: Available by Appointment on Mondays 5:30-6:00
and 10:00-10:30 in Room 115
I. COURSE DESCRIPTION: An interpretation
of the epistles of Hebrews, James, Peter, John, Jude, and the book of Revelation.
II.
PREREQUISITES: RLGN 1301 & 1302. Each student must enroll in RLGN 0001 Theological Research and
Writing Lab. This is a lab designed to
help students write an acceptable research paper. The lab utilizes a Writing Manual produced by
the Division of Religion and Philosophy.
Students in this course must register and receive credit for the lab
during this term. Students
who have already received credit for the lab are not required to take the lab
in this course, but they may do so if they wish.
III. TEXTBOOKS: The New Testament (any modern study version); the Holman New Testament Commentaries on these epistles.
IV. COURSE OBJECTIVES /
OUTCOME COMPETENCIES: As a result of this study, the student will
be able to:
1.
Discuss the dates, authorship, source, destination, and
general purpose of each epistle
2.
Show familiarity with the outline and general contents of
each epistle
3.
Demonstrate understanding of the main teachings of the
General Epistles and the Book of Revelation in light of their original contexts
and how to apply them to the lives of believers and unbelievers in the 21st
century
4.
Demonstrate understanding of some of the textual and
interpretive problems involved in understanding and applying these books to
today.
5. Demonstrate understanding of the traditional
methods of interpreting the Book of Revelation as a whole and the traditional
views of the millennial kingdom of Christ.
These outcome competencies will be demonstrated by scores of 60 percent
or more on exams and reports.
V. COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1.
Class attendance according to the policies of the current
WBU catalog (see Appendix)
2.
Reading of assigned passages in the biblical texts (see
schedule of assignments below)
3.
Reading of parallel passages in the assigned commentaries
4.
Active, informed participation in class discussion
5.
Two major exams as indicated below
- Two book reports as
explained below.
7.
Written exegesis of biblical passage selected from list
below
- Copies of all written
assignments
must be sent by email to the Instructor
and each student in the class,
as well as a printed hardcopy for
the Instructor, not later than the beginning of class on the dates
assigned.
V CLASS
PARTICIPATION: Each student will
read the commentary and text materials assigned for each class and bring to the
class discussion insights gained from them.
Comparisons and contrasts will be examined, and each student will
determine his/her own interpretation of the biblical texts. (10% of the final grade)
V MAJOR
EXAMS: Two exams will be given, each complete over
the assigned materials (50% of the final grade).
V BOOK REPORTS:
Each student will present a précis
of The
Meaning of the Millennium that will demonstrate her/his understanding
of the major premises of each view, their supporting ideas, and the opposing
ideas presented in the book. Each
student will also present a critique
of The
Throne, the Lamb & the Dragon which will demonstrate his/her
understanding of the approach Spilsbury takes to the Revelation and an
evaluation of the value of his approach and the insights he derives from
it. The written reports will be typed, single spaced. (5% of the final grade.)
V EXEGESIS: Each student will select a
biblical passage, research, and exegete the passage (30% of the final grade).
BIBLICAL
PASSAGES FOR EXEGESIS:
Hebrews 1:1-14
James 1:1-12 1 Peter 1:13-25
2
Peter 1:3-11 Revelation 1:9-20
2:1-18 1:13-21 2:1-10 1:19-21;
3:3-10 2:12-17
5:4-10 2:14-26 3:1-7 3:7-13
6:1-9 3:1-12 4:12-19 1 John 1:8-2:2;
3:4-10 3:14-22
8:6-13 4:13-17 5:1-10 3:14-24 4:1-11
10:19-25 5:13-20 5:1-12
20:1-15
11:1-6 21:1-27
13:1-9,
17
q General information about the project: The project must be at least 15 pages (excluding
Title page, Contents, and Works Cited), and not more than 25 pages, in length,
typed and double-spaced. At least 15 authoritative, scholarly
books, commentaries, and/or articles must be used and cited in the notes and
Works Cited. No more than 3 Internet articles may be used. The Turabian (University of Chicago) style is
the official format adopted by the WBU Department of Religion, is used by most
religious publications, and is required
for this course. The project will be
evaluated using the attached Rubic on depth of research, coherence of
reasoning, and thoroughness of presentation.
Grammar, spelling, and style are expected to be flawless as befits
Masters level work. For additional
information, see class handouts which are considered part of this syllabus.
q Academic dishonesty,
such as having someone else write your reports, cheating on tests, or
plagiarism, will not be tolerated. Plagiarism (the use of the words or ideas of others without giving
credit, thus silently pretending they are your own) is intellectual theft, will
result in no credit for the report,
and is grounds for more severe penalties, up to and including dismissal from
the university.
VI. GRADING: Students will be
graded on their knowledge of the contents of the epistles as demonstrated by
their performance on major tests, along with their class participation
demonstrated by attendance and informed participation in class discussion, and
on the quality of their written exegesis.
EVALUATION: WBU GRADING SCALE:
|
Major
Exams |
50 % |
|
A
= |
90-100 |
|
Research
Report |
30 % |
|
B
= |
80-89 |
|
Class
Participation |
10 % |
|
C
= |
70-79 |
|
Assigned
|
10 % |
|
D
= |
60-69 |
|
|
|
|
F
= |
Below 60 |
VII. CLASS ASSIGNMENTS: Students are
expected to have read the text materials prior to the class meeting dates
assigned for discussion and to be prepared to enter into meaningful discussion
of the topics covered. (10% of the final grade)
|
DATES: |
ASSIGNMENTS: (in Bible and Related Passages in
Commentaries} |
|
Wk.
1--May 28 |
Heb. 1-4 |
|
Wk.
2--June 4 |
Heb. 5-13 |
|
Wk.
3--June 11 |
James |
|
Wk.
4--June 18 |
1 & 2 Peter, Jude |
|
Wk.
5--June 25 |
MID-TERM EXAM Over Hebrews, James,
Peter, & Jude; Outline of Exegesis due |
|
Wk.
6--July 2 |
1, 2, & 3 John |
|
Wk.
7--July 9 |
Rev. 1-5; Grad
Students: PRECIS DUE on The Meaning of the Millennium |
|
Wk.
8--July 16 |
Rev. 6-10; Draft
of Exegesis Reports due; Grad Students: CRITIQUE DUE on The
Throne, the Lamb & the Dragon |
|
Wk.
9--July 23 |
Rev. 11-17 |
|
Wk.
10--July 30 |
Rev. 18-22;
EXEGESIS REPORTS DUE; Grad Students Oral
Reports given |
|
Wk.
11--Aug 6 |
FINAL EXAM Over John 1, 2, 3 &
Rev.; Course & Instructor Evaluation |
|
This syllabus is only a plan, not a contract. Though there is no current expectation to
do so, the instructor may modify the plan during the course. The requirements for the course,
assignments, their due dates, criteria for measuring student progress and
performance, and other aspects of the syllabus may be changed by the Instructor if, in his professional judgment, it becomes
necessary. Please do not call, write, or email me or the office to ask for
your grades. University policy forbids
us from giving out grades from the office in any manner that could
violate the Federal Privacy Act. Grades are posted on IQ Web as soon as possible, not later than
August 10th. It is university policy that no otherwise qualified disabled
person be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be
subject to discrimination under any educational program or activity in the
university. Any student who needs special arrangements to meet the course
requirements should inform the Instructor immediately upon entering the course. |
VIII. CLASS PROCEDURE: The major class
activities will be exegesis of the biblical material, informed by student
outside reading of the assigned commentaries, with lecture and discussion
guided by the instructor. The class will
meet for four hours each Thursday for eleven weeks.
|
Use
E-mail and the Blackboard for Class Information: Students
must check often at <http://wbu.edu>
[note: not a www] / Blackboard to receive the latest posts for the class. Announcements and lecture notes will be
posted each week, so the more often you check, the sooner you will get the
information. Go there at least every Monday night. Your User Name is your WBU ID #; your default password, until you
change it, is the 1st three letters of your first
and last names (i.e. for me “johand”).
Click on the courses you are
taking, Announcements, and Lecture Notes. In order to receive emails from the Instructor (as well as official information from the
University), it is mandatory
that students activate and check regularly their free Wayland.WBU email account. That is the only way to receive these
communications. It is free and yours
to use for life. See the related
brochure for instructions to activate your account. Do
this before the second class meeting and send the Instructor an email at <john.andrewartha@wayland.wbu.edu>
from your WBU account informing him that you have done so. |
|
Wayland Mission Statement: Wayland Baptist University exists to educate
students in an academically challenging, learning-focused, and distinctively
Christian environment for professional success, lifelong learning, and
service to God and humankind. |
APPENDIX
Class
Attendance—External Campuses:
Students enrolled at one of the University’s external campuses should
make every effort to attend all class meetings.
All absences must be explained to the instructor, who will then
determine whether the omitted work may be made up. When a student reaches that number of
absences considered by the instructor to be excessive, the instructor will so
advise the student and file an Unsatisfactory Progress Report with the campus
dean. Any student who misses 25 percent or more of the regularly scheduled
class meetings may receive a grade of F in the course. Additional attendance policies for each
course, as defined by the instructor in the course syllabus, are considered a
part of the University’s attendance policy.
A student may petition the Academic Counsel for exceptions to the above stated
policies by filing a written request for an appeal to the provost/academic
vice-president.
Wayland Baptist University Catalog, 2008-2009, pg. 83.
·
If the instructor fails to appear or fails to send
notification of his arrival within the first ten minutes of a class period,
students may leave without incurring an absence. (If I am not in class at 6:00 pm, call my
cell phone to see what is up. Please do
not call my cell phone at other times for other reasons; use the home phone instead.)
·
Please do not call
me to tell me you will not be in class unless you will be absent two or more
weeks.
Addendum
and Comments:
Please do not assume that you can miss
almost 25% of the class
meetings with no penalty at all. Very
few students can be absent that much and still pass the course. Almost inevitably, students who miss class
perform less well than they expect, and their grades are lower.
NOTE THAT THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN
EXCUSED ABSENCE FROM ANY CLASS. IF YOU ARE
NOT IN CLASS, YOU ARE ABSENT. If you are
obviously ill, especially if your illness may be contagious, please stay home
until you have recovered. Anyone who is
ill 25% of the time probably needs to drop the course and rest to get
well. If your situation is special,
discuss it with the instructor. He will
make every effort to be reasonable and helpful.
The
philosophy behind this policy is twofold: we believe that attendance in class
indicates that you are serious about getting a quality education and that such
attendance greatly increases your chances to succeed. On the other hand, tuition covers only about
three-fourths of the cost of delivering a course to you. Since we have to find the other fourth from
the gifts and offerings of the Baptist people of Texas and friends of the university,
we
have a large investment in you.
We want to see you succeed!
So
there will be no doubt, 3 weeks of a
course lasting 11 weeks is more than 25%, and attendance in a class means being present from the time it is called to order until it is dismissed by
the instructor. Being tardy means arriving after the class has been called to
order. Leaving before class is
dismissed counts as a “tardy” also.
Three tardies equal one absence. Leaving at break time means being absent
for half the class. Two
half-absences equal one week of absence. Exactly 2.75 weeks is 25% of the course. Two
absences and a tardy are 2.66 weeks—all you can afford to miss!
PRINCIPLES THAT
APPLY IN THIS CLASS (AND MOST OTHERS):
This is a University. It will be harder and require more commitment
of time and effort from you than high school, technical school, or most
community colleges. We are a Christian University.
That does not mean we require less; it means we expect more. The average university course expects you to
put in two hours of outside work—homework,
study, research, writing projects, etc.—for
every hour of class time. A class
that meets four hours a week thus will require about eight additional hours of
preparation time—a total of twelve hours a week! Some students need more time than others to read
and comprehend the course materials. If
you cannot give this much time, you probably will not do well in university
level courses.
We will do
everything academically and ethically permissible to help you reach the
standards of excellence we set, but the ultimate
responsibility is yours. We cannot—must not—lower the standards for
anyone’s “special circumstances.” That
would reduce the value of a university education for everyone.
Decide
upfront that you are here to get an education,
not just a diploma, and that you will do whatever it takes to succeed.
“It is no use saying, ‘We are
doing our best.’ You have got to succeed
in doing what is necessary”—Winston Churchill.
Come to class prepared to learn and
participate. Have your assigned
readings, papers, etc., done before class begins. Listen,
read, and take notes. A short pencil
will beat a long memory every time!
Focus your thoughts, not just on the facts, but on what the facts
mean. Grasp the “Big Picture,” and the facts will be more easily remembered. Learn and understand the concepts, not just memorize the facts. The details will change, or you can look them
up.
Class attendance is expected,
encouraged, and greatly desired.
Students who miss class always have a more difficult time with the
material and fare less well than they would otherwise (see Appendix Comments).
Please keep in mind that this is
a Christian institution. We endeavor to
hold high standards of character, conduct, and appearance. Therefore, please dress appropriately for class and remove hats and caps
when entering the room. This will show
your respect for the school, the course, the instructor, and the other students
in the class as well. To avoid
disturbing the class, turn off all cell
phones, pagers, and PDA timers. If
you absolutely
must be on call, place your cell phone on silent ring/vibrator, and if
you receive an emergency call, please step outside the classroom
before answering.
Academic honesty is expected
of all students. All forms of cheating, such as illicit possession of exam
materials, forgery, or plagiarism (presenting the work of others as one’s own
work) are subject to penalties ranging from written reprimand to dismissal
from the university. See your student
handbook for details.
At any time
you have a question, ASK IT. The only “dumb question” is the one you have
but do not ask. We are all ignorant
about something. Being ignorant is no shame; staying
ignorant is!
Like every
other class, this is a course in communicating—orally
and in writing. Your arguments need to
be logical, make sense, and be clearly understandable. Most of us use language loosely in everyday
life. Theology (and other subjects) uses
language very precisely. Learn to speak (and thus to think) with precision. Take your English classes first,
not last! Make friends with the
dictionary and an English handbook. The
textbooks for ENGL 1301 and RSWR 3345 have what you need, as does www.dianahacker.com/ref. You can check your writing—it is free, so
there is no excuse for faulty grammar and punctuation.
The course content you learn in most
courses will probably be obsolete by the time you graduate, if it is not
already! The real value of a college education is in the discipline,
dedication, and commitment you gain; in learning how to learn and keep on
learning; in finding out how to find out what you need to know when you need to
know it (we call that “research”); in
learning how to read and listen critically and with understanding; and in
practicing and perfecting your “people skills,” cooperating and getting along
with others. These are some of the
skills people expect of a college graduate, and they will help you in whatever
career or endeavor you choose to enter!
..Thank you!..
SCORING RUBRIC FOR RESEARCH PAPER
RLGN
4324/5324—GENERAL EPISTLES AND REVELATION
John
Andrewartha, Ph.D., Instructor
IDEAS AND CONTENT:
1. Thesis statement:
c Clear, strong thesis stated (5) c Positive statement (4) c Position taken (3) c Thesis statement unclear (2) c Thesis statement attempted (1) c No thesis statement (0) |
5 |
4 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
|
2. Development and Support of Thesis: c All points thoroughly
developed and supported c Most points well developed
and supported c Points generally developed
and supported c Some points developed and
supported c Little or no development or
support |
50-41 |
40-31 |
30-21 |
20-11 |
10-0 |
|
3.
Organization: c
Logical organization and presentation of ideas
c Introduction, Exegesis,
Application, Conclusion |
5 |
4 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
|
4. Voice
of the writer: c Voice of the writer is
obvious and clear c Excessive use of borrowed
material |
5 |
4 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
STANDARD USE OF LANGUAGE:
c Use of complete sentence
structures: no sentence fragments c Use of complete sentence
structures: no run-on sentences c Standard use of English: no
slang or jargon c Subject-verb agreement c Correct verb tense and form c Correct use of pronouns c Correct use of adjectives
and adverbs c Correct punctuation: commas,
apostrophes, quotations, periods, etc. c Correct capitalization c Correct spelling |
20-17 |
16-13 |
12-9 |
8-5 |
4-0 |
Format of
Documentation:
c Ten/Fifteen scholarly source and four bible
versions used and cited (5)
c
Credit
given for all borrowed information
c Correct form for all
borrowed information (signal phrase, quotes/ block) c Correct form for all
footnotes, Turabian style c Correct form for
Bibliography, Turabian style c Correct format for numbering
pages, title page, etc |
15-13 |
12-10 |
9-7 |
6-4 |
3-0 |
Comments: