Thursdays 10-12 Noon
January 15 through March 4, 2004
Howe Library
Do the prophetic, poetic oracles of Israel resonate in our own times of crisis as the impassioned speech of spiritual spokespeople? Who are they? What is their legacy? We'll look at prophecy in the books of Amos, Hosea and Isaiah against the background of their times. We'll reflect on the ways they do and don't transcend their particular, pivotal times.
The basic readings are from the books of Amos, Hosea and Isaiah in the Bible, and selections from the manuscript of a book to be published in the spring of 2004: The Old Testament: An Introduction by John Collins, Professor of Religion at Yale University, President of the Society of Biblical Literature, as well as other texts. Requirements: The Bible. Highly recommended: The New Oxford Study Bible. Its introductory articles are helpful in understanding the historical and literary background of passages.
The course's format is lively discussion with some introductory matters presented by the teacher. The readings are about 2-3 hours per session.
Class is limited to 20 participants
Sara Drew Reeves delights in learning and teaching on subjects that pertain to the human spirit in religious, spiritual and philosophical matters. She received a BA in religion from Smith College and continued her studies at Union Theological Seminary, Philipps Universitaet in Marburg, Germany, and Harvard Divinity School, leading to a Master of Divinity Degree. She did post-graduate work in the history of the early modern, late medieval, pre-reformation period at the University of Tuebingen. As a pastor in the United Church of Christ, she worked with churches in the inner city of Chicago and in the Upper Valley. She also has a Master of Arts in Landscape Design and is a landscape designer. She has taught courses for ILEAD and Adventures in Learning at Colby-Sawyer.
