Proceeding canonically, The Pentateuch is a survey course in which students examine the first five books of the canon of the ancient Israelites; the Hebrew Bible. Students will attend to the patriarchs, the earliest covenants, the exodus traditions, laws, codes and ritual of the agrarian society represented in the biblical world of the Torah. Students will explore a) the socio-historical context out of which the biblical text most probably emerged, b) select methods and tools of biblical scholarship, and c) the engagement of modern users with the biblical text.
Instructor: Dr. Kimberly Russaw
Dr. Russaw is the Visiting Assistant Professor of Religion and Philosophy in the Department of Humanities. Her research lies at the intersection of narrative criticism, ideological criticism, and feminist criticism, focusing especially on women in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. Named one of “Six Black Women at the Center of Gravity in Theological Education” by NBCNews.com, Russaw is an ordained clergywoman in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and holds membership in many professional organizations including the Society of Biblical Literature and the American Academy of Religion.