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The
Dead Sea Scrolls
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Saint Martin's
College Humanities Division Department of Religious Studies David Suter homepage Return to course list Campus office: 366 Campus phone: (360) 438-4360 Office hours: MWF 2:00-2:50 PM; TR 10:00-10:50 AM Email contact here |
Description Texts Requirements Topics and Assignments |
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Everyone seems to be fascinated by accounts of the search for hidden treasure and lost secrets, and the effort to expose conspiracies, as some of the higher-numbered channels on our television sets have discovered. The story of the finding and study of the Dead Sea Scrolls carries some of that kind of interest. Discovered initially in 1947 by a Bedouin shepherd boy exploring a cave in the bluffs along the western shore of the Dead Sea, the Dead Sea Scrolls have revolutionized our understanding of Judaism in the Second Temple period and have had a significant impact on discussions of Jesus and the origins of Christianity. Their study has stirred controversy in scholarly forums and the popular press. Current battles among scholars are over the nature and identity of the group (or groups) responsible for writing and preserving the scrolls, the source of the scrolls, the reason for their deposit in the caves, and the connection between the caves where they were deposited and the nearby ruins. In this course, we will encounter the story of the discovery of the scrolls and their preservation as well as the battles amongst scholars over deciphering and interpreting them. We will learn something about the use (and misuse) of archaeology to reconstruct the past as we study them. We will also seek to determine the implications of the scrolls for understanding the Hebrew Bible (the Christian Old Testament), their impact upon historical reconstruction of Judaism in the era in which they were produced, their relation to early Christianity and its scriptures, and their place in the religious literature of the world. What you should take away from this class is some knowledge of the most significant archaeological discovery of the century that continues to be a breaking story on the front page of newspapers a half century after the first scrolls came to light. |
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Texts
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Course requirements include a midterm test, a final exam, and a term paper of eight to ten pages in length. The midterm will count 25 percent of the final grade, the final 25 percent, and the term paper 25 percent. In addition, 25 percent of the grade will be based on participation points, to be earned over the course of the semester through participation in discussion in class, making presentations in class, and participation in a class e-mail discussion list to be set up by the professor. A schedule of points to be earned will be published during the first week of the semester. Grades on written work will be based upon the ability of the student to deal with the information and ideas from reading assignments, class discussions, and the Internet list with clarity of expression and a depth of understanding. All written work must be the student's own, and quotations and ideas derived from others must be properly cited both with internal references and a list of references or bibliography. Violations of the college's rules on academic dishonesty (to be found in the college catalog) may result in failure of assignment or class, depending upon the seriousness of the offense in the judgment of the professor. |
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Schedule of Topics and Assignments Note: Students are also expected to come to class having read the assigned material, prepared to ask questions and enter into discussion. Items in boldface type below are online lectures and presentations from a class two years ago at the University of Saint Andrews conducted by scrolls scholar James Davila. The site can be reached at http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~www_sd/qumran.html#schedule. The online version of this syllabus will have links that go directly to the material at Saint Andrews. Jan. 15: Introduction. Introduction from Saint Andrews.Jan. 17: The Discoveries. Read VanderKam, pp. 1-27. It is suggested that you read through the whole of VanderKam before February 12 to gain a knowledge base for involvement in the online discussion. Jan. 22: Video: The Secrets of the Dead Sea Scrolls (Nova). Jan. 24: The Historical Background to the Period of the Scrolls. Read Vermes, pp. 50-53 and note chronology on pp. xvii-xix. Jan. 27: Who Wrote the Scrolls? Read VanderKam, pp. 71-98. Jan. 29: The Hebrew Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Read VanderKam, pp. 121-58. Jan. 31: Retelling the Bible: The Interpretation of the Bible in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Genesis Apocryphon. Read Vermes, pp. 448-59. Testaments. Read Vermes, pp. 524-36. Feb. 3: Going Online: An Introduction to Internet Discussion Lists and Using the Web for Scholarship. Feb. 5: Archaeology and the Scrolls. Feb. 7: The Controversy over the Publication of the Scrolls. Read VanderKam, pp. 187-201. Feb. 10: Video: Dead Sea Scrolls: Voices from the Desert. Feb. 12, 14, 19: The Rules for Communal Life. The Community Rule. Read Vermes, pp. 97-124. Survey of the Scrolls. Read VanderKam, pp. 29-70. The Damascus Document. Read Vermes, pp. 125-43. Feb. 21, 24: The War Rule and the Pesharim. The War Scroll. Read Vermes, pp. 161-83. Commentaries, etc. Read Vermes, pp. 466-91. Feb. 26, 28, March 3: Poetic Texts. The Thanksgiving Hymns (Hodayot). Read Vermes, pp. 243-94. March 5, 7, 10: Liturgical Texts. The Heavenly Sabbath Liturgy (The Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice). Read Vermes, pp. 321-30. Midterm exam due March 5 at 5:00 PM. March 12, 14, 24: Halakhic Texts and the Temple Scroll. Some Precepts of Torah. Read Vermes, pp. 220-28. The Temple Scroll. Read Vermes, pp. 190-219. March 26, 28, 31: Internet Lecture: James Davila: On Finding and Keeping Parallels. The Copper Scroll. Read Vermes, pp. 583-89. April 2, 4, 7: Internet Lecture: David Suter: Enoch in the Scrolls. The Book of Enoch. Read Vermes, pp. 513-17 and handout English translation of portions of the Ethiopic version of Enoch. April 9, 11: Texts from the Period of the Bar Kokhba Revolt. Assignment to be announced. April 14, 16: Jesus and the Dead Sea Scrolls. John the Baptist and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Read VanderKam, pp. 159-85. April 23, 25, 28: Paul and the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Essenes. Read VanderKam, pp. 99-119. Term paper due April 30 at 5:00 PM. April 30: The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Sadducees. The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Archives of Jerusalem. See also Rochelle Altman, THE WRITING WORLD OF THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS. At Saint Martin's College, we will be reviewing for the final. May 6: Final exam due in professor's office by 5:00 PM. |
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