TEOL4153 – The Biblical Body
Course content
The body is changing, or rather the discourse on and perception of bodies are evolving with lightning speed in contemporary societies, and therefore bodies are, in fact, changing.
Bodies are physical tangible objects, but bodies are also social and cultural constructs, and religious and theological traditions have been eager to define, monitor and tame bodies and to make them conform. In this course, the current focus on bodies in society is the starting point for an investigation of collective, individual, and symbolic bodies in the Bible.
The body is the medium through which human beings experience and interact with the world, and the body a person has, the body a person is, is a crucial determining factor to the ways in which people construct identities – their own identity as well as that of the people around them. The Bible is packed full of presentations of bodies that in various ways way still influence our views on humanity, divinity, gender, sexuality, beauty, and our place and status as a species in the world.
This course will investigate the concept of the body in the Bible from several different perspectives. We will work with biblical texts that describe ideal bodies, ritually and socially disqualified bodies, gendered bodies, human bodies, angelic bodies, non-human bodies and God’s bodies. The starting point for the discussion will be selected biblical texts from the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament translated into English. Important concepts in biblical Hebrew and Greek will be translated and explained to students with no prior knowledge of these languages. The course has a strong focus on applying recent theories on embodiment, materiality, the senses, gender, eco-theology and disability to the biblical texts, and an equally strong focus on method and a continued reflection on how this application can be done in a critical and sensitive way.
Learning outcome
By the end of this course students will:
- be able to address current debates on the body in light of the impact and reception of the Bible
- develop good knowledge and understanding of the Bible as a historical collection of texts in their own context and time and of the Bible as a collection of authoritative texts that have impacted societies historically and continues to have an impact today
- develop the ability to deal critically and sensitively with the challenges raised by ‘old’ texts being authoritative in a contemporary context
- become well acquainted with the most pertinent biblical texts and themes that revolve around the topic of the body, and with the most significant scholarly debates on these texts and themes
- be able to present these texts and debates in a fair, balanced, critical and sensitive manner, and they will begin to be able to make their own independent contributions to these debates
- become acquainted with recent theories and methods in Biblical studies that are particularly relevant to the study of the body in the Bible
Admission
Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.
Students enrolled in other Master's Degree Programmes can, on application, be admitted to the course if this is cleared by their own study programme.
If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.
Students on the Theology Programme and Teacher Education Programme must be on the master’s level (i.e. completed the first three years of the programme). They may apply to the course by sending an email to info@teologi.uio.no by the same deadlines as for course registration for bachelor courses at TF.
Teaching
Teaching will be a combination of brief lectures, text analysis and case-studies, and joint discussions. Students will be expected to read a combination of biblical texts in translation and a selection of secondary literature in preparation for the lecture every week.
Mandatory activities:
During the semester, the lecturers will publish ten sets of work questions to selected parts of the curriculum. The work questions will be made available in Canvas one week before the relevant lecture.
Students must submit minimum 8 written responses to work questions. Each written response must be between 200 and 300 words. In order to do the exam for this course, students must have minimum 8 approved written responses. If a response is not approved by the lecturer after the first submission, students will have the opportunity to rework the response and resubmit. Written responses that are not submitted on time, cannot be approved.
Examination
Three days home exam of 2500-3000 words (excluding texts from the Bible). A selection of 4-6 exam questions based on the course curriculum will be published in Inspera. Students will choose one question and write a paper answering this question.
Submit assignments in Inspera
You submit your assignment in the digital examination system Inspera. Read about how to submit your assignment.
Use of sources and citation
You should familiarize yourself with the rules that apply to the use of sources and citations. If you violate the rules, you may be suspected of cheating/attempted cheating.
Language of examination
The examination text is given in English.You may submit your response in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or English.
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.
Explanations and appeals
Resit an examination
Withdrawal from an examination
It is possible to take the exam up to 3 times. If you withdraw from the exam after the deadline or during the exam, this will be counted as an examination attempt.
Special examination arrangements
Application form, deadline and requirements for special examination arrangements.