Knox College: Fall term 2014 - Draft

Biblical Hermeneutics (KNB 3930)

Instructor B. H. McLean (bhm.mclean@utoronto.ca)

Lectures Thursdays, 9:10-11:00 a.m.

Phone 416-978-2788

René Magritte, The False Mirror (1935)

1. COURSE DESCRIPTION

An exploration of contemporary hermeneutical theories, including those of Heidegger,

Gadamer, Habermas, Ricoeur and Levinas. This is an interdisciplinary course, which

integrates aspects of biblical studies with philosophy, semiology and theology. Journals;

assignment; major essay.

Prerequisites: Before taking this course, MDiv students must have passed both Greek

Exegesis (KNB 2131HF) and successfully completed the Second Year Interview.

This is an integrative course. It is one of the few courses that can only be taken after the

second year interview. As such, it requires a high level of critical thinking and the ability to

apply theory to real situations. Since this is a one of the few designated final integrative

courses, most of the class time will be dedicated to exploring the implications of these

concepts for hermeneutic praxis. I also encourage you to make full use of scholarly internet

resources and U of T library resources between classes. In other words, please try to take

responsibility for your own learning in this course. This is the best way to ensure your

satisfactory progress and completion of it.

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2. LEARNING OUTCOMES AND COMPETENCIES

Upon the completion of this course, students should be able to:

Capacity for Ministry

1) Demonstrate, at an intermediate level, the ability to identify one’s own social

location, starting assumptions, and interpretive principles in reading New Testament

texts.

2) Demonstrate at an ability to discuss interpretive issues arising from contemporary

reading the Bible in the contemporary era.

3) Identify the complexities involved in interpretive questions and discuss how such

complexities may change one’s own interpretive position.

Cultural Context

4) Discuss the interactions between contemporary cultural contexts and the

interpretation of Scripture.

Personal and Spiritual Formation

5) Apply one’s understanding of Scripture to contemporary ethical and justice issues

in the world today.

Competencies

1. Ability in oral and written forms of communication in English sufficient to be

consistently understandable to diverse audiences and populations.

2. Ability and willingness to learn and demonstrate competence in the various

Theological disciplines

3. Ability to think, problem solve, and make decisions at a critical level of operation.

4. Ability to read, gather and select information.

5. The ability and willingness to self-assess and act to improve.

6. Demonstrate ethical behaviour by taking responsibility for the expectations of the

course and being willing to participate in class discussions and tutorial groups.

7. The ability and willingness to give and take constructive criticism and, if necessary,

act on that criticism.

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3. COURSE EVALUATION

10% Question & Observation papers

10% Journal submission Due: Oct. 9, 9:10 a.m.

40% Heidegger assignment Due: Oct. 30, 9:10 a.m.

40% Major final essay Due: Dec. 4, 9:10 a.m.

4. REQUIRED TEXTS & UNITLY READINGS

B. H. McLean, Biblical Interpretation and Philosophical Hermeneutics. New York:

Cambridge University Press, 2012. (available at Crux Bookstore and from

Amazon.ca)

All other assigned readings will also be provided through Blackboard.

Optional

William B. Badke, Beyond the Answer Sheet: A Cultural Guide to Students who Come

from Outside North America. Academic Success for International Students. New York:

Universe Inc., 2003.

5. LOGGING ONTO YOUR BLACKBOARD COURSE

1. Go to portal.utoronto.ca and click on the Log-in to the Portal button.

2. Enter your UTORid and password1

3. After logging in, you we see a panel on the right side of the screen labeled My

Courses. If you have properly registered, this course should appear in the list.

6. SCHEDULE OF TOPICS COVERED AND ASSIGNED READINGS

All readings should be completed before coming to class (excepting the reading for Unit 1)

Week 1 (Sept. 11)

McLean, "Introduction"

Week 2: The Meaning of Meaning (Sept. 18)

McLean, chap. 1

1 If you encounter any problems, contact portal.help@utoronto.ca

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Week 3. Romanticism (Sept. 25)

McLean, chap. 2

Friedrich Schleiermacher, “The Hermeneutics: Outline of the 1819 Lectures,” In

Ormiston, Gayle L. and Alan D. Schrift (eds), The Hermeneutic Tradition from

Ast to Ricoeur, (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1990), 85-100.

Week 4. The Crisis of History (Oct. 2)

McLean, chaps 3-4

Week 5. Martin Heidegger: Existentialism and Interpretation (Oct. 9)

McLean, chap. 5, pp. 99-124 (Being and Time, Division I)

John D. Caputo, Radical Hermeneutics: Repetition, Deconstruction, and the Hermeneutic

Project (Bloomington/Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1987), 60-92. (optional)

Week 6. Martin Heidegger: Time and Significance (Oct. 16)

McLean, chap. 5, pp. 124-142 (Being and Time, Division II)

Reading Week (Oct 20-25)

Week 7. Bultmann & Barth / The Linguistic Turn (Oct. 30)

McLean, chaps 6, 7

Rudolph Bultmann, “The Problem of Hermeneutics [1950],” In Robert A. Johnson

(ed.), Rudolph Bultmann: Interpreting Faith for the Modern Era (Collins, 1987),

137-57.

Lera Boroditsky, “How Does Our Language Shape the Way We Think?” In What’s

Next: Dispatches on the Future of Science: Original Essays from A New Generation

of Scientists, ed. Max Brockman (New York, NY: Vintage Books, 2009), 116-129.

Week 8. Hans-Georg Gadamer: Interpretation as Dialogue (Nov. 6)

McLean, chap. 8

Hans-Georg Gadamer, Truth and Method, 2nd

rev. edition, trans. by Joel

Weinsheimer and Donald G. Marshall (London/New York: Continuum, 1994), 336-

371.

Week 9. Jürgen Habermas and his Debate with Gadamer (Nov. 13)*

McLean, chap. 9

Jürgen Habermas, “A Review of Gadamer’s Truth and Method” [1967/1971] in

Gayle L. Ormiston and Alan D. Schrift (eds), The Hermeneutic Tradition from Ast

to Ricoeur. (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1990), 220-41.

Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, But She Said: Feminist Practices of Biblical

Interpretation (Boston: Beacon Press, 1992), 52-68.

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Week 10. Paul Ricoeur: The Hermeneutics of Hope and Suspicion (Nov. 20)

McLean, chap. 10

Paul Ricoeur, “Hermeneutics and the Critique of Ideology,” Hermeneutics and the

Human Sciences: Essays on Language, Action and Interpretation, Ed. and Trans. by

John B. Thompson (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981), 63-100.

Week 11. Emmanuel Levinas: Hermeneutics before the Eyes of the Other (Nov. 27)

McLean, chap. 11

Richard Cohen, Ethics, Exegesis and Philosophy: Interpretation after Levinas

(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), 216-65.

Week 12. Summing up (Dec. 4)

McLean, “Conclusion”

7. WEEKLY ‘QUESTIONS & OBSERVATIONS’ PAPERS

Part of your mark will be based on your ‘Question & Observation’ papers. The purpose of

these Q&O papers is to:

1. attempt to clarify a key idea and or term;

2. seek to relate new knowledge to previously studied ideas and concepts;

3. attempt to compare and contrast concepts or hermeneutic theories

4. speculate about implications of a particular theory for textual interpretation.

Each ‘question & observation’ paper should include the following:

1. One significant question you have about the assigned readings;

2. One (brief) significant observation that you have about the assigned readings;

3. A list of significant terminology and vocabulary you do not understand.

You are expect to submit ten Question &Observation papers over the next eleven weeks. In

other words, you are allowed to pass one week. If you do choose to pass, please submit a

Blackboard posting anyway with the message: “I choose to pass this week.”

How to submit your ‘Question & Observation’ paper

You may either:

1) Submit your Q&O paper by Blackboard by 12:00 noon the Wednesday before class.

Post your Q&O in the ‘Discussion Board’ area, in the appropriate folder (e.g., Unit

1, Unit 2, etc.).

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2) Or, you may present your Q&O paper orally in class on Thursday, and then hand in

a printed version the same day. (I prefer students enrolled in KNB 6930 to present

their papers orally).

Your Q&O paper is a public document. If you submit your Q&O paper by

Blackboard, I may read your submission in class the following day for discussion

purposes. Therefore, do not you include in your Q&O postings any personal

information or content that you do not want to be shared with the class.

If you do not present your Q&O paper in class, then do not hand in a printed

version afterwards.

You will automatically be given a mark of 1% for each Q&O paper, as long as it meets the

above guidelines. If you submit no Q&O papers by Blackboard and present no Q&O papers

in class you will receive 0% for this part of the course (0/10).

8. CRITICAL READING JOURNAL

Objectives:

To help students critically reflect on, and respond, to the assigned readings;

To facilitate class discussion;

To help students create a set of notes for future reflection, for both the Heidegger

assignment and Major Paper.

Maximum length: 12 pages. Papers longer than 12 pages will be returned to students.

Journals submitted late will have marks deducted as per the late policy.

A central component of this course is critical reading and patient re-reading of

hermeneutical texts. Every student is expected to keep a reading journal that will

incorporate their notes on the assigned readings. Your journal should include:

your observations

questions, which arise in your mind while reading

your responses

Your journal should not include:

summaries of the main ideas or concepts in the assigned reading

quotations from the textbook

In writing your journals, take care to identify and discuss key terms and concepts. Please

bear in mind that you are not being asked to react emotionally to the readings, but to

demonstrate that you understand the fundamental ideas, and that you are able to enter into

constructive dialogue with them.

Suggestions for preparing your journal

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1. Read the assigned readings prior to the lecture. Take detailed notes when you read

the assigned readings, including quotations and page references;

2. Include in your journal entries your own comments, questions, as well as

explanations of, or questions about, key terms and concepts;

3. Next supplement and revise our journal entries with your further insights,

clarifications, and new questions arising from the class lecture and discussions;

4. Type up your journal notes prior to handing them in (double-spaced with numbered

pages);

5. When typing your journal notes, be careful to give a title to each Unit’s entry (e.g.,

“Unit 1,” “Unit 2,” etc.);

6. Subdivide your journal entries with underlined sub-headings that are meaningful to

you, and paginate the pages of your journal;

7. For direct quotations, employ quotation marks and correctly cite the source in the

footnotes or endnotes. Also, carefully footnote your use of all secondary sources

(see warning on plagiarism below).

If you follow the method, as outlined above, you will have a better understanding of the

course material, and you will write a better final essay.

Grading Rubric for Journal Submissions

Your journal grade will be based on the following criteria:

20% familiarity with content of all of the required readings; your journal should treat the

readings comprehensively

20% regularity of thoughtful, relevant contributions (i.e., you should make meaningful

entries several times per Unit)

20% appropriate use of relevant vocabulary

40% clarity and reasonableness of contributions; i.e., your statements should demonstrate

a basic comprehension of the key points; your critical comments should be

supported by explicit reasoning, and sometimes by textual citation

9. HEIDEGGER ASSIGNMENT

Length: 12 pages maximum, exclusive of title page and bibliography (KNB 3930); 15 pages

maximum (KNB 6930).

Heidegger problematized the humanist concept of the interpreting ‘subject’ with his term ‘Da-

sein.’ If you, as an interpreter of the Bible, are Da-sein, what implications does this have your

reading and interpreting of biblical texts? In your essay, be sure to make appropriate use of

terminology and concepts. Do not simply reiterate course content. Your answer to this question

should be divided into three parts:

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Part 1: Identify your own ‘thrownness’ (e.g., social location, religious heritage, and cultural

context), attunement and moods, understanding and interpretation, and your fore-structure (e.g.,

starting assumptions, pre-understandings). (If you have a sense that Heidegger’s hermeneutic

circle does not provide adequate protection from ‘false’ interpretations of biblical texts,

consider that this very suspicion arises phenomenologically from your ‘mood’ of anxiety or

fear.) If you are having difficulty accounting for your fore-structure, refer back to your

description of your thrownness. How has your thrownness shaped your fore-structure?

Remember that consciously held commitments (e.g., believing Westminster Confession) and

belief are not part of your fore-structure. However, if you hold the view that all biblical texts

are historically accurate, or that meaning is ‘in’ the text, consider the possibility that these

might be part of your preunderstanding.

Also note that this is not a ‘family of origins’ assignment. A simple narrative of how you have

been formed as a person by your past is an historicist interpretation of your life. Instead, try to

think in phenomenological terms.

Part 2: Discuss concretely the role of the above in your own hermeneutic circle, citing at least

one real example of your interpretation of Scripture. Explain how you revised your fore-

structure after moving through the circle one or more times.

Part 3: Explore and discuss your own ‘authenticity’ and ‘inauthenticity,’ ‘care,’ ‘being toward

death,’ ‘temporality’ (the three ek-stases) and ‘resoluteness.’ Your discussion of temporality

should related your discussion of ‘thrownness.’

One way to write this assignment is to pretend you are about to prepare a sermon based on a

particular text. Chronicle the issues you must address in this process.

10. MAJOR ESSAY

Length: 15 pages in total maximum, exclusive of title page and bibliography (KNB 3930);

20 pages maximum, exclusive of title page and bibliography (KNB 6930)

Requirements:

1. Your work should be typed, double-spaced, with 12 point font size and reasonable (1")

margins.

2. Be sure to work specifically with the assigned readings themselves. Do not simply

reiterate course content. For example, it is not enough to explain Gadamer’s concept of the

‘historically effected consciousness’ or ‘fusion of horizons.’ You must illustrate these

concepts with your chosen passage.

Essay Topic

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1. Select a biblical passage, either from the New Testament or Tanakh, whose history

of interpretation has been, or could be, connected with an important ethical issue, or

justice issue, either negatively or positively (e.g., issues of oppression, persecution,

exploitation of some persons or group, whether connected with religious belief,

gender, economics, etc.).2

2. Using the biblical passage you have chosen as a case study, work through the

debate between Gadamer, Habermas, including the perspectives of Ricoeur and

Levinas. Summarize the interpretive issues arising from these hermeneutic theories,

as they related to your chosen biblical text. In your treatment of Gadamer, illustrate

a fusion of horizons, and discuss your new perspective that results form this fusion.

In your treatment of Habermas, identify a possible hidden ideology or illocutionary

force.

3. Identify the complexities involved in the interpretive questions they raise, and

discuss how such complexities may change your own interpretive position.

4. Discuss the interactions between our own contemporary cultural contexts and the

interpretation of Scripture.

5. Apply your resulting interpretation of your passage to one contemporary ethical

and/or justice issue. In your discussion avoid as much as possible explaining the

theory of these philosophers. Instead focus on applying their theory to your chosen

text. If you feel you must explain an aspect of a theory, make you that you always

return to a discussion of your text.

In your research paper, do not forget to:

1. Analyze your chosen biblical text on the basis of your informed understanding of

these hermeneutic theories. In other words, you are not being asked simply to

exegete a biblical text, or to react negatively, or positively, to these hermeneutic

perspectives.

2. Make appropriate use of key terminology and concepts (e.g., historically-effected

consciousness, universal pragmatics, hermeneutics of suspicion). Use direct quotes

from the assigned readings wherever possible.

3. Before handing in your paper, re-read it in order to assure that you have used your

biblical text throughout the essay. Your essay should not simply repeat course

lecture material. To receive a passing mark you must integrate these theories with

your chosen biblical text.

2 E.g., yourself, women, persons of colour, women of colour, Jews and/or Moslems, Roma

people, Palestinians, persons living in former British, French, Dutch, or Spanish colonies,

gays and lesbians, etc.)

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11. GRADING RUBRIC FOR HEIDEGGER ASSIGNMENT AND MAJOR ESSAY

Evaluation Levels Grade/Mark

1. Prestructural: unsupported claims, essay

is irrelevant, misses the point, or is

inappropriate to the assigned essay topic.

below 50%

2. Unistructural: only one relevant aspect is

picked up, or the argument is incomplete

argument. The student can’t fit pieces

together.

50-59%

3. Multi-structural: several relevant aspects

of the assigned topic are acquired but they

not connected. Student can enumerate,

describe, list, and combine.

“There are bricks, but no blueprint for a

building.”

60-69

Understanding below a passing level, but

salvageable. Student can make a

preconstructed claim, but cannot provide

reasons or evidence.

4. Relational: the learning is integrated, so

that a case is made and the entire essay

topic is understood and explained. Student

can compare and contrast, situate, explain

causes, analyze, relate and apply.

“The bricks become a building.”

70-79%

From satisfactory to very satisfactory

learning with understanding.

5. Extended Abstract: the learning becomes

transferable to other domains; hypotheses

are constructed and alternatives suggested.

Student can theorize, generalize,

hypothesize, and reflect.

80-100%

The highest understanding that could

reasonably be expected.

11. COURSE POLICIES

1. Cell Phones: Cell phones can be disruptive to the classroom experience. Students,

therefore, should turn off or set their phones to silent and refrain from using them

while in class. Cell phone use is permitted only for medical professionals who are

on call and for students who need to be in constant contact with ill family members

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or minors. Students who meet either of these requirements should inform the

professor prior to class.

2. Use of Technology: Laptops and other computing devices may be used in the

classroom for note taking purposes only. The use of the internet is not permitted

while class is in session unless it is part of a specific class activity. Students wishing

to text message, search for images, fact check etc. should do so during the break or

outside of class. Much of the learning that goes on in the classroom is founded upon

mutual disclosure that takes place between the instructor and the student and

between students. Parties outside of that learning community have not committed

themselves to this relationship of trust. For this and other reasons, permission to

record lectures in audio format is granted for use by registered students only. Video

recording is not permitted without the written permission of the instructor.

Recordings and notes of class lectures may not be electronically reproduced, posted

or distributed without the written permission of the instructor.

3. Penalties: course work which is handed in late will be penalized according to the

following schedule: 2% off per day, up to 3 days (i.e., up to 6%) and thereafter, an

additional 1% per day, cumulatively.

4. Completion of BD Course work: All course work (including any late work) must be

completed by the end of term, the last day of exams. Only in the case of illness

(with a note from a doctor), bereavement or other unusual circumstances will an

extension be considered and this must be authorized by the Basic Degree

Committee and the Faculty.

5. Completion of AD Course work: Extensions for outstanding advanced degreework

are given at the discretion of the professor. However, extensions have an absolute

deadline of the next trimester. Individual extensions cannot be granted beyond the

end of the academic year (i.e., beyond the end of August).

6. Beware of plagiarism: Students who are unfamiliar with university standards may

inadvertently plagiarize in their assignments and essays. It is important that alls

students familiarize themselves with the definition of plagiarism. Plagiarism, by

definition, is the use of the work of another person without proper

acknowledgement. It is very easy to commit plagiarism if you are careless in taking

notes from your readings, and especially if you cut and paste excerpts from internet

articles. Plagiarism could involve copying a single sentence, or even part of a

sentence, from a book or article, without correctly citing the source. It could even

involve rephrasing someone else’s words or idea, without giving credit to the author.

In my experience, plagiarism is usually easily detected by the marker. Do not

present someone else’s idea as if it were your own.

7. Plagiarism is a serious crime. The penalties for plagiarism are severe and can

include expulsion form the university. I am required by university law to expose all

cases of plagiarism. Moreover, any assignment which shows evidence of plagiarism

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will be given a grade of zero (0). Do take every effort to avoid this academic crime.

Students should read carefully the academic discipline policy on, and severe

penalties for, plagiarism and cheating. These are set out in the University of

Toronto’s Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters available through the Office of

the TST Director (cf. TST Basic Degree Handbook, p. 18).

8. A minimum attendance of 80% is required by Knox Basic Degree Knox students

for a passing grade. Class attendance will be taken. Habitual lateness for class will

be counted as absence.

9. Students who receive a final mark between 65-69 (FZ) may petition in writing within

30 days to the instructor in consultation with Knox’s Director of Academic Programs

(or the Basic Degree Director of the student’s college of registration) to do a

supplemental. Supplemental work must be finished no later than six months after the

date on which the original grade was submitted. If the supplemental is passed with a

grade of 70% or more, the course grade will be changed to 70% (B-). Students who

receive a mark of less than 70% on their supplemental work will fail the course, but

retain their original failing grade. A student who fails the supplemental work will not

be permitted to do additional supplemental work. (TST Handbook 10.5)

10. It is a requirement of Knox College, TST, and the broader academic world, to employ

inclusive language in academic writing. Please review the college policy.

11. All students must set up and activate a UTOR email address. It is every student’s

responsibility to check his or her UTOR email regularly. The college takes no

responsibility for breaches of security because a student forwards their UTOR email

to another account. Delivery failure for email forwarded to another account is not

the responsibility of the college.

12. All term work must be completed by the end of term, i.e., the last day of TST

exams. Only in the case of illness (with a note from a doctor), bereavement or other

unusual circumstances will an extension be considered. Extensions can only be

authorized by the Basic Degree Committee and the Faculty.

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13. GRADING SCHEME The grading scheme for this course, as with all TST and U of T courses, is as follows:

A+ 90-100 profound and creative

A 85-89 outstanding

A- 80-84 excellent

B+ 77-79 very good

B 73-76 good

B- 70-72 satisfactory at a post-baccalaureate level

FZ 0-69 failure

Please note that a grade of 73-76% is defines as “good.” Therefore, if you do “good” work,

you will receive a mark of 73-76%. If you expect a grade of 80% or higher, then you

should aim at doing “excellent” or “outstanding” work.