Old Testament Exegesis I (narrative literature)

Teacher(s)

SOMEBODY; Wénin André;

Language

French

Prerequisites

Introduction to the narrative analysis of Biblical stories (LTHEO 1110A). Failing this: during the first month, reading a book explaining the basic procedures of this method.   Students who have not been initiated into the narrative analysis of biblical texts should read carefully one of the following four works (ranked from the most basic to the most elaborate): Jean-Louis Ska, Jean-Pierre Sonnet, André Wénin, L'analyse narrative des récits de l'A.T. (Cahiers Évangile 107), Paris, 1999.
Jean-Louis Ska, "Nos pères nous ont raconté". Introduction à l'analyse des récits de l'Ancien Testament (Cahiers Évangile 155), Paris, 2011.
Daniel Marguerat, Yvan Bourquin, Pour lire les récits bibliques, Paris - Genève, 4^e éd., 2009.
Jean-Pierre Sonnet, « L'analyse narrative des récits bibliques », dans M. Bauks, C. Nihan (éds), Manuel d'exégèse de l'Ancien Testament (Le Monde de la Bible 61), Genève, 2008, p. 47-94.

Main themes

In order to achieve this end, - some significant text from Old Testament narrative literature will be studied, with an explanation of the exegetical method and an illustration of the interest of exegetical basic tools; - some scientific literature about the texts will be read; - anthropological and theological aspects of the analysed texts will be developed, and their particular contribution in the context of biblical thought enlightened.

Aims

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	At the end of this course, the student will be able to - understand the main procedures of biblical exegesis and apply them on a narrative text of the Old Testament ; - situate the anthropological and theological contribution of significant texts of the Old Testament narrative literature ; - understand and criticise scientific works in Old Testament exegesis.

The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.

Content

2017-2018 : Jacob et Laban (Gn 28,10-32,3)
The central section of Jacob's cycle (Gn 25:19-35:29) is occupied by the story of the Patriarch's stay at Paddan Aram, with his uncle and soon father-in-law, Laban. There, under difficult circumstances, Jacob formed a family and acquired a large number of cattle.
It is to the synchronic reading of this long narrative sequence that the course will be consecrated. It will be introduced by a quick reminder of the beginning of Jacob's story.
A bibliography on Genesis and Jacob's cycle will be given to the students in due time.

Evaluation methods

To be admitted to the exam, all students must have submitted the report of two scientific papers or parts of selected books in a list proposed by the professor. The examination will take place in written form in an aula. It will consist in the exegesis of a text analyzed durong the classes. For the only students whose knowledge of biblical Hebrew is sufficient, a suitable formula will be proposed

Bibliography

Les étudiant(e)s qui souhaitent élargir leur approche de la méthode trouveront de quoi le faire avec les quelques ouvrages que voici :
Shimon Bar-Efrat, Narrative Art in the Hebrew Bible, Sheffield, 1989 (original hébreu 1979).
Robert Alter, L'art du récit biblique (Le livre et le rouleau 4), Bruxelles, 1999 (original anglais 1981).
Yairah Amit, Reading Biblical Narratives. Literary Criticism and the Hebrew Bible, Minneapolis, 2001.
Jan P. Fokkelman, Comment lire le récit biblique. Une introduction pratique (Le livre et le rouleau 13), Bruxelles, 2002 (original néerlandais 1995).

Faculty or entity

TEBI