Last modified: 12 Aug 2025 09:46
This course will examine various ways that Israel’s Scriptures were used and transmitted by other ancient religious texts - Jewish and/or Christian - around the turn of common era. In doing so, this course will engage areas of scholarly debate, such as ancient interpretative practices, conceptions of ""intertextuality," dynamics of conventionality and innovation, and the linguistic contexts of developing traditions. The particular topic of the course will vary year on year.
| Study Type | Postgraduate | Level | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | First Term | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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This course will examine various ways that Israel’s Scriptures were used and transmitted by other ancient religious texts around the turn of common era, including early Jewish literature, the New Testament, Christian apocrypha, and/or patristic writings. In doing so, this course will engage areas of scholarly debate, such as ancient interpretative practices, conceptions of "intertextuality," dynamics of conventionality and innovation, the emergence of canon, and the linguistic contexts of developing traditions. The particular topic of the course will vary year on year, ranging from a focus on the uses of one scriptural text, such as Isaiah, to a focus on a particular interpretative phenomenon evidenced across the uses and transmission of a number of scriptural texts. In exploring these issues, the student will develop an awareness of debates and methodological questions pertinent to the topic along with advanced skills in analyzing textual influences and appropriations.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 50 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 17 | Feedback Weeks | 20 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback provided. |
Word Count | 3500 | |
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Analyse | Demonstrate competency in analysing various scholarly positions on the reception and interpretation of scriptures in the communities under consideration in their capacity to explain the relevant data. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Awareness and significance of various approaches to scriptural interpretation, including those commonly labelled with the term “intertextuality” and those associated with “inner-biblical exegesis.” |
| Conceptual | Understand | A critical awareness of developing paradigms in scholarship on the topic, & of the evidence that these seek to accommodate, including literacy levels, material culture, scribal cultures, oral cultures |
| Conceptual | Understand | An advanced knowledge of the factors at work in the developing interpretative cultures of Jewish, Christian, and ‘other’ communities in the centuries around the turn of the common era. |
| Procedural | Apply | A competency both in the application of particular skills associated with these methodologies and paradigms and in the critical evaluation of their deployment by others. |
| Procedural | Create | Advanced, subject-specific research-writing skills, through designing essay topics, locating relevant literature, and writing an original essay to meet standard expectations of the discipline(s). |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 30 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 11 | Feedback Weeks | 13 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback provided. |
Word Count | 1500 | |
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Awareness and significance of various approaches to scriptural interpretation, including those commonly labelled with the term “intertextuality” and those associated with “inner-biblical exegesis.” |
| Conceptual | Understand | An advanced knowledge of the factors at work in the developing interpretative cultures of Jewish, Christian, and ‘other’ communities in the centuries around the turn of the common era. |
| Conceptual | Understand | A critical awareness of developing paradigms in scholarship on the topic, & of the evidence that these seek to accommodate, including literacy levels, material culture, scribal cultures, oral cultures |
| Procedural | Apply | A competency both in the application of particular skills associated with these methodologies and paradigms and in the critical evaluation of their deployment by others. |
| Procedural | Create | Advanced, subject-specific research-writing skills, through designing essay topics, locating relevant literature, and writing an original essay to meet standard expectations of the discipline(s). |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17 | Feedback Weeks | 12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback provided. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Awareness and significance of various approaches to scriptural interpretation, including those commonly labelled with the term “intertextuality” and those associated with “inner-biblical exegesis.” |
| Conceptual | Understand | An advanced knowledge of the factors at work in the developing interpretative cultures of Jewish, Christian, and ‘other’ communities in the centuries around the turn of the common era. |
| Conceptual | Understand | A critical awareness of developing paradigms in scholarship on the topic, & of the evidence that these seek to accommodate, including literacy levels, material culture, scribal cultures, oral cultures |
| Procedural | Create | Discipline-specific presentational skills, with opportunities to lead discussion and present findings in formats comparable to research conferences. |
There are no assessments for this course.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 100 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback | Word Count | 5000 | ||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
|
|
||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Procedural | Create | Advanced, subject-specific research-writing skills, through designing essay topics, locating relevant literature, and writing an original essay to meet standard expectations of the discipline(s). |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Awareness and significance of various approaches to scriptural interpretation, including those commonly labelled with the term “intertextuality” and those associated with “inner-biblical exegesis.” |
| Procedural | Apply | A competency both in the application of particular skills associated with these methodologies and paradigms and in the critical evaluation of their deployment by others. |
| Conceptual | Understand | An advanced knowledge of the factors at work in the developing interpretative cultures of Jewish, Christian, and ‘other’ communities in the centuries around the turn of the common era. |
| Conceptual | Analyse | Demonstrate competency in analysing various scholarly positions on the reception and interpretation of scriptures in the communities under consideration in their capacity to explain the relevant data. |
| Conceptual | Understand | A critical awareness of developing paradigms in scholarship on the topic, & of the evidence that these seek to accommodate, including literacy levels, material culture, scribal cultures, oral cultures |
| Procedural | Create | Discipline-specific presentational skills, with opportunities to lead discussion and present findings in formats comparable to research conferences. |
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