Scriptures and Cultural Traditions: Text & Traditions

3 units

When we think of the word scripture in antiquity, we might think of the texts that have been compiled in the different holy books that we currently have today. Yet the function of scriptures within a community, and the status given to different texts treated as scriptural, has changed in different times and places. In this course, we will consider texts that would eventually come to be part of the Hebrew Bible, New Testament, and the Qu'ran as well as several of the exegetes and reading communities that shaped their various interpretations. We will explore how non-canonical sources played a role in the formation of the various canons we have today, comparing the authoritative status given to these texts to that given to other works from antiquity, such as the epics of Homer. Special attention will be played to the role of the receiving community in the development of scripture, and the variety of the contexts in which scripture can function in the construction of and opposition to religious authority.