New Testament & Patristics

Individual Scripture-study is highly beneficial, but often in the past, it was a communal undertaking to read and understand Scripture. This introduction to the New Testament and Patristic writers takes a unique approach in order to recover this vision of communal participation in the Word and study of early Church history. Throughout the school year, we will meet twice a week to read and talk through the texts. Students will be able to ask questions as they come up, and each reading will begin with context and explanation of difficult concepts or words. While the writings of the early Church fathers are not part of the Scriptural canon, they pick up the story of the New Testament where the book of Acts leaves off, filling in our often truncated picture of how the Holy Spirit guided his new Church after the first generation of apostles was gone.

Course Objectives:

1. To give students an overview of the content, structure, and language of the New Testament.
2. To equip students to read the New Testament on their own for understanding, enjoyment, and worship.
3. To instill a love for Scripture in students by shared experience and discovery.
4. To introduce students to the writings of the early Church Fathers, and give them an understanding for the context and historical developments that shaped the early Church.

Texts:

• A copy of the Bible, any translation (no paraphrases such as The Message)
• How to Read the Bible for All its Worth by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart
• When the Church Was Young by Marcellino D'Ambrosio
• The Apostolic Fathers in English, 3rd ed. by Michael W. Holmes