Important
- Required Textbook and Course Readings – Essential study material required for succeeding in the course, which should be read prior to attending each lecture to build cognitive frameworks for retention.
- Class Attendance Policy – Regular lecture attendance is mandatory, with cumulative grade deductions (scaling up to 20%) applied for absences because complex historical-critical concepts cannot be effectively self-taught.
- Comparative Video Writing Assignments – Three sequential writing tasks requiring students to summarize Dan McClellan’s videos, evaluate his evidence and methods, and draw specific connections to lecture topics or textbook pages.
- Specific Evidence Citation in Assignments – Drawing connections between external videos and course material requires precise location details, such as lecture timing context or textbook page numbers, to demonstrate authentic engagement.
- Professor’s Methodological Stance – The course operates explicitly from a naturalistic and historical-critical perspective rather than a neutral or faith-based position, reflecting standard university scholarship.
- Academic Dialogue Etiquette – Students challenging lecture points or scholarly consensus are expected to phrase inquiries constructively (e.g., expressing confusion or prior learning) rather than directly confronting the instructor.
Core concepts
- Naturalism in Academic Scholarship: The foundational presupposition in secular university disciplines that explanations for historical and natural events must come strictly from the natural world, excluding divine intervention or supernatural causes.
- Hermeneutic of Suspicion: An interpretive framework used in biblical studies that approaches ancient texts critically rather than with faith, requiring assertions to be tested against external and contextual evidence.
- Historical Criticism: The multi-faceted scholarly discipline (encompassing source, text, form, and redaction criticism) dedicated to assessing biblical texts by analyzing their origins, context, language, and historical reliability like a courtroom judge evaluating evidence.
- Diversity of Christian Views on Inerrancy: The recognition that Biblical inerrancy (the belief that scripture contains no historical, geographical, or factual errors) is predominantly held by evangelical Protestantism rather than representing a universal Christian consensus.
- Process of New Testament Canonization: The historical development wherein specific texts were selected for the canon not solely due to an absence of errors, but largely because early powerful Christian factions favored their specific depictions of Jesus over alternative texts.
- Contextualization of Miracle Claims: The method of interpreting ancient miracle narratives (such as healing stories of Vespasian or Asclepius) as reflections of early communal beliefs, cultural anxieties, and faith identity rather than literal historical events.
- Linguistic and Cultural Translation Gaps: The recognition that New Testament accounts represent Greek written transcriptions and translations of originally Aramaic oral traditions, recorded decades after events occurred by authors whose direct witnesses remain historically unverified.
Theories and Frameworks
- Naturalism vs. Supernaturalism Framework: A philosophical framework contrasting naturalism (the presupposition that explanations derive exclusively from the natural world) with supernaturalism (the belief that events can be explained through divine intervention, dreams, or revelations).
- Hermeneutic of Suspicion vs. Hermeneutic of Faith: Comparative interpretive frameworks where a hermeneutic of faith approaches text for personal spiritual guidance and instruction, whereas a hermeneutic of suspicion critically questions text origin, historical plausibility, and corroborating evidence.
- Historical Criticism Framework: An overarching academic paradigm comprising specialized methodologies (textual, source, form, and redaction criticism) used to judge and assess ancient texts strictly on available evidence.
- Epistemological Framework of Cognitive Pre-structuring: An educational model suggesting that reading assigned material prior to lectures creates an existing cognitive structure in the brain, improving information retention during instruction.
Notable Individuals
- Vespasian: Roman Emperor cited by historians for a narrative in which he allegedly cured a soldier’s hand by stepping on it.
- Asclepius: Greek god of healing associated with ancient temple incubation rituals where worshippers sought miraculous cures.
- Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama): Founder of Buddhism mentioned regarding early miraculous stories claiming he took seven strides immediately after birth.
- Suetonius: Heavyweight Roman historian who documented historical events including Emperor Vespasian’s reported healing miracle.
- Tacitus: Prominent Roman historian who, alongside Suetonius, recorded the miracle narrative of Emperor Vespasian.
- Thucydides: Ancient Greek historian who openly acknowledged constructing historical speeches based on what was likely said in context rather than direct transcripts.
- Dan McClellan: Biblical scholar whose YouTube videos form the basis of the course’s comparative writing assignments on evidence and methodology.
- Bart Ehrman: Renowned New Testament scholar and textbook author referenced as a key academic source with whom students compare lecture and video arguments.
- Apostle Paul: Early Christian leader whose letters provide early documentation of Christian communities in Rome and his legal appeals as a Roman citizen.
- Apostle Peter: Early Christian disciple mentioned in traditional Christian stories as having been crucified upside down in Rome.
- Nero: Roman Emperor who blamed early Christians in Rome for a major city fire, initiating early regional persecution.
- Jesus of Nazareth: Central historical figure of Christianity whose life, trial, teachings, and miracle accounts are evaluated through historical-critical methodology.
- Icarus: Greek mythological figure mentioned as an analogy for how narrative stories differ from verified historical evidence.