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The module explores what the Old Testament contributes to the idea of human flourishing.It examines important themes related to this topic by close attention to texts drawn from the major canonical divisions of Torah, Prophets and Writings. It sits within the discipline of Old Testament Theology, and thus broadly reflects a Christian reading of the Hebrew Scriptures, but attention is also paid to Jewish readings of the Scripture as Hebrew Bible.

The principal texts to be studied are Genesis, Exodus, Psalms and selected prophetic texts. In Genesis are unfolded elemental relationships between men and women, human communities, humans and God, and humans and the earth, as well as the effects of sin and evil, the pervasive theme of justice, and the counterpoint of human hostility and reconciliation. Through Exodus the dominant biblical themes of liberation from oppression into service and worship of God, and a vision for society based on justice and compassion, are introduced. Related aspects are atonement, salvation, community, memory and joy. In the Psalms, attention will be paid to their portrait of the life of the human person before God, in community, facing adversity, maturing, and finding freedom and joy through worship and Torah. Finally, in the prophets, themes of renewal, faith, hope, justice and mission will be pursued.

On completion of the module students should:

• demonstrate mastery of methods used in the theological interpretation of Scripture;
• how an advanced awareness of hermeneutical issues involved in eliciting theological themes from texts;
• be able to engage critically with a broad range of Old Testament texts;
• have a sophisticated understanding of what the Old Testament has to contribute to human flourishing;
• be able to communicate their knowledge and ideas persuasively in more than one medium.

200 hours consisting of Staff/student contact time of 20 hours (study day 5 hours; online discussion and tutorials 15 hours) plus 180 hours of student directed learning.

The module will be delivered primarily by means of online mini-lectures using iMindMap 5 and Camtasia Studio 7.  There will also be one face-to-face study day and provision of various online interactive documents, digitised material and ongoing discussion including two weeks dedicated to online Q&A sessions with staff.  All online material will be delivered via the VLE.

The Library Catalogue contains full details of the current reading list for this module. Further details may also be found in the Module Guide.