This unit offers students an introduction to both the Old/First and New Testaments. It introduces students to the principles of scriptural interpretation within the Catholic tradition and provides a foundation for understanding Scripture in the context of Religious Education and the life of the Church.

Prerequisites:
none

Requirements:
intensive mode

Assessment:

• one 2,000 word essay - 50%
• short papers equivalent to 2,000 words - 50%

Bibliography:

• Brown, Raymond E. An Introduction to the New Testament. New York: Doubleday, 1997.
• Brueggemann, Walter. An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2003.
• Ceresko, Anthony R. Introduction to the Old Testament: A Liberation Perspective. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1992.
• Collins, John J.  Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2004.
• Donahue, John R., and Daniel J. Harrington. The Gospel of Mark. Sacra Pagina Series, vol. 2. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2002.
• Fitzmyer, Joseph A. The Biblical Commission’s Document “The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church”: Text and Commentary. Rome: Biblical Institute Press, 1995.
• ———. “Instruction on the Historical Truth of the Gospels.”  In A Christological Catechism, 153–162. New York: Paulist, 1991.
• Frick, Frank S. A Journey through the Hebrew Scriptures. 2nd ed. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2003.
• Hession, Anne, and Patricia Kieran. Exploring Theology: Making Sense of the Catholic Tradition. Dublin: Veritas, 2007.
• Pontifical Biblical Commission. The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church. 1993.
• Perkins, Pheme. Reading the New Testament: An Introduction. Rev. ed. New York:  Paulist, 1988.
• Senior, Donald, Paul J. Achtemeier, and Robert J. Karris. Invitation to the Gospels. Rev. ed. Mahweh, NJ: Paulist, 2002.