CHR 101: Exam 1 Study Guide

1. How do people read the Bible? What is the relationship between the personal, communal, and academic perspectives on the Bible? What are some of the common scholarly methods of approaching the Bible from an academic perspective?
2. Be able to describe the Documentary Hypothesis in general terms. What are J, E, D, and P? What phenomena in the text of the Pentateuch have led scholars to embrace the Documentary Hypothesis, and what criticisms have been levelled against it?
3. Compare and contrast the biblical accounts of creation and the flood with those found in other ancient near eastern cultures, especially the Enuma Elish. What do these comparisons and contrasts suggest about the faith of ancient Israel?
4. Trace the struggle of Abraham and Sarah to have an child. What obstacles did they face? How do the concepts of "covenant" and "promise" figure into this struggle?
5. Be able to trace the highlights of the lives of both Jacob and Joseph. How do these characters and their actions advance--or threaten--the promises God made to their ancestors?
6. Describe some of the questions or insights that may arise from reading the Bible from a feminine point of view. What is "feminist hermeneutics"? Give some examples from the patriarchal narratives of how one might read the Bible from a feminist perspective.
7. How do Israel's fortunes change from the end of Genesis through the first chapter of Exodus? How do the biblical writers depict the Israelites and their Egyptian overlords? What theological questions are raised by the exodus story?
8. Describe the Decalogue. How have various groups organized its contents? How is it like similar texts from Israel's neighbors, and what are the elements that make it unusual or unique?
9. Describe the place of Deuteronomy within the Pentateuch. How does it compare or contrast with other documents of Israelite law? How should it be understood in the historical and theological contexts of Israel's developing faith?
10. What are the three major models scholars use to understand the settlement of Canaan? What evidence do they appeal to and what are the weaknesses of each one?
11. Describe the cycle of apostasy and liberation in the book of Judges. How does this cycle serve as a theological "grid" through which to interpret the book?
12. Be able to outline the career of King Saul as it is depicted in the book of 1 Samuel. What were the factors contributing to his rise to prominence? Why did he ultimately fall?
    

1. Discuss the Documentary Hypothesis as popularized by Julius Wellhausen. What phenomena in the text of the Pentateuch have led many scholars to embrace this theory, and what criticisms have been levelled against it? What seems to you to be the best understanding of the authorship of the Pentateuch, and why?
2. Discuss how the themes of covenant and promise are developed in the patriarchal narratives (Abraham - Isaac - Jacob). What are the crucial turning points in the lives of the patriarchs where God's promised blessing is either threatened or assured?
3. How do the women in the patriarchal narratives shed light on the biblical story? What tools or reading strategies have feminist scholars provided to help us approach the stories of these women with understanding? Are these tools and strategies valid or invalid? For what reasons?
4. Discuss the settlement of Canaan as a biblical and historical puzzle. What major issues are involved in interpreting the biblical accounts of this era, and how have scholars attempted to make sense of the documentary and archeological evidence?
5. It was noted in class that Judges may be read through a "Deuteronomistic" framework. What does this expression mean? Describe how this framework helps interpret the book of Judges. Do you think this is a valid interpretation of Judges? Why or why not?
6. Discuss the early Israelite monarchy as it is presented in 1 Samuel and the reign of King Saul. What specific passages reveal competing attitudes toward the monarchy? How did early Israelites interpret the monarchy theologically?