Postgraduate Course: Science and Scripture (THET11038)
Course Outline
| School | School of Divinity |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The course will explore important points of contact between the science-religion debate and the Christian Bible, including trends in fundamentalist belief such as Creationism. The aim is to develop a critical awareness of methods of scriptural interpretation, and of how they have been influenced by modern science. |
| Course description |
Academic Description:
This course is an option within the MSc in Science and Religion, but is also available to other postgraduate students. Scientific explanations for the big miracle stories of the Bible exert a powerful pull on the popular imagination, as is easily demonstrated by googling 'Noah science or 'Moses Red Sea', and seeing the wide diversity of articles, blogs and discussion threads which are retrieved, many of which involve a great deal of scientific and historical speculation. Moreover, the rise of science has gone hand-in-hand with an increase in fundamentalist readings. The debate about young-earth creationism takes place largely on scientific terms, about issues such as the age of the earth and the rightness or wrongness of Darwin's theory of evolution, but the underlying issue is really the theological status of Scripture, and how we ought to read it. In all of this, the development of modern science has been a crucial influence on how the biblical text is read. This course explores some of the ways in which the core biblical texts of creation and miracle have been understood and interpreted by fundamentalists, scientists and biblical scholars in modern times.
Syllabus/Outline Content:
Religious understandings of creation form the central subject of interest in this course, but other key narratives of faith which have been examined by scientists - Noah's flood, the Exodus, and the Resurrection - will also feature. An important aim of the course will be to develop an appreciation of hermeneutics - the science of interpretation - and to this end the widespread phenomenon known as Creationism will also feature in the course, especially in the guise of 'flood geology'.
Student Learning Experience Information:
The course is taught by means of eleven classes, each of which includes core content presented by one of the course teachers, a student presentation, and opportunity for class discussion. Except for the very first class, each class will require a schedule of reading to be carried out in advance. Students are expected to engage critically and creatively with the reading, and to contribute to class discussion.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | This is a graduate-level course. Please confirm subject prerequisites with the Course Manager. |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2019/20, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 22,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
174 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
80 %,
Practical Exam
20 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
A 3000 word essay on a topic arising from one of the sessions (80%);
a 1000-word presentation to one of the classes (20%)
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| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Established a sound awareness of how the science and religion dialogue has impacted upon biblical interpretation
- Have a deeper understanding of the scriptural texts underlying much of the current science-religion dialogue, and will have surveyed the scope of biblical scholarship on key scriptural texts, and will have engaged critically with those texts
- Developed a thorough working knowledge of the available hermeneutical tools in biblical studies, especially those which seek in some way to reveal 'what really happened' behind the text, and including creationism and fundamentalism
- Demonstrated the ability to deliver a presentation for a seminar and to engage in constructive dialogue across a range of disciplinary backgrounds
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | ScScrip |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Mark Harris
Tel: (0131 6)50 8914
Email: Mark.Harris@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Katrina Munro
Tel: (0131 6)50 8900
Email: Kate.Munro@ed.ac.uk |
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