Understanding the Hebrew Bible as Metanarrative

Bible as/in Literature
Elective Online Course Curriculum for Secondary Education

Understanding the Hebrew Bible as a
Metanarrative (The Big Picture)

Written by WilmaWJri.ttBernobwynW-FilmoraeJm. Barno,wEnd-Fuocraemtioann, SEdpueccaitaiolinstSpecialist

Course Overview:
This course starts with the Pentateuch’s (first five Books in the Hebrew Bible-

Old Testament) Creation narratives. The teaching and learning experiences will
align with the six different levels of Bloom’s taxonomy of higher order thinking
with the goal of moving from the lower to the higher levels of learning about the
Hebrew Bible. The focus will move beyond simply becoming familiar with the
most popular Hebrew narratives and literary techniques within the biblical writings
to the higher order levels of thinking about the “big picture” written in the form of
a literary metanarrative.

The purpose of this course is to provide secondary public and private school
administrators, teachers, students, and stakeholders a Constitutionally sound
Hebrew Bible as/in Literature online elective course curriculum that will
strengthen the academic and cultural literacy skills of high school students as they
study the literary and historic qualities of the Hebrew Bible and its influence on
Western culture.

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Much gratitude to God for His great mercies and graciousness for
enabling me to come to this point in the educational quest to promote biblical
literacy in public education according to our 1st Amendment rights as American
citizens. I also thank my husband, LTC. Theodore M. Foreman, Sr. for his
faithfulness in standing with me in this tremendous academic pursuit.

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Written by
Wilma Brown-Foreman, Education Specialist, AIBL Facilitator

(AIBL.INFO
E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (804) 300 6200

August 7, 2021

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Education

• I believe that a sound education (knowledge) is the key to building and
sustaining a wholesome society and that educators are vital agents that help
shape future generations.

• I believe that a classroom is a place for training students’ minds both
intellectually and ethically, not just to find employment to meet a particular
standard of living, but to teach children how to become both principled and
productive contributors to society.

• I believe that what is planted in the minds and spirits of the children today
will be the fruits that will manifest themselves tomorrow-whether these fruits
will be bitter or sweet.

• I believe that while students must take personal responsibility for their
learning, educators are significantly responsible for what is formed (created)
in the minds of our youth.

• I believe that an effective teacher does not merely share a systematic set of
lessons that are cataloged by facts, events, or rules; instead, the best
educators seek to attain, understand, and diligently plant into the minds of
students the timeless universal principles and wisdom that govern human
existence and experiences.

• I believe in a well-structured curriculum with meaningful content that will
guide students to rational and purposeful thought.

• I believe that a sound education (knowledge) is the key to building and
sustaining a wholesome society and that educators are vital agents that help
shape future generations.

pg. 5

• I believe that a classroom is a place for training students’ minds both
intellectually and ethically, not just to find employment to meet a particular
standard of living, but to teach children how to become both principled and
productive contributors to society.

• In the attempt to evaluate ideas and assumptions, I believe that it is important
to seek time-proven truths.

• I believe that quality education for all students is foundational to personal
and organizational success on all levels.

I believe that the timeless truths and principles set forth in the Hebrew Bible are
worthy of consideration in public, as well as in private, academic curricula.

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This AIBL course is a study of one of the oldest texts in Western literature,
the Hebrew Bible. The course is designed as one-semester course for high school
students in public, private, and home-schooled education. Students will examine,
read, interpret, and analyze the literary and historic qualities of the Hebrew
Scriptures (Old Testament) as translated in various cultures. The biblical text will
be studied for its contributions to other great literary and historic works written
throughout the ages. In this academic process, students will learn about literary
genres and figures of speech in that connect the Hebrew Bible to other great
classical works in Western culture.

They will examine ancient Hebrew laws and traditions that have influenced
modern-day politics and cultural experiences (e.g., examine the Mosaic Law’s
impact on modern-day laws in Western society. In addition, this course briefly
explores some of the historical, archeological, and scientific findings related to the
biblical text. Using analytical and critical thinking skills, students will complete
assigned assessments (quizzes, tests, open-ended questions, and extended research
assignments/ activities). During the course, students will write weekly responses to
opened questions related to the central theme of the biblical text metanarrative on

pg. 7

the discussion board, one full-length essay, and one research paper (1-3 pages) that
will be due at the end of the semester.

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The Hebrew Bible is the greatest Book of all times in human history. It is the
"Book of book." Translated in more than 5,000 languages across the world, the
Hebrew Bible remains an all-time best seller, the number one choice of Books. In
Jewish tradition, the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament in Christian communities)
is a complex and diverse collection of ancient books, written almost entirely in the
Hebrew language, though a few scattered passages appear in the closely related
Aramaic. In both the Old Testament of Christian Bibles and in the Jewish Hebrew
Scriptures, over 40% of the text is written in the narrative literary genre (form). If
we are to become fully literate in this great literary work, we will need to increase
our understanding of biblical narratives. Moreover, we must embrace the fact that
contained within the content of this Great Book is a bigger picture than just a series
or collection of stories that have been borrowed from or passed down from the
Jewish culture of the ancient near Middle East. In fact, the Hebrew Bible is a well-
unified sacred literary text. As a former teacher of literature, I recognize the literary
and practical value of this great text.

)

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The Hebrew Bible as a Metanarrative

Assigned Credits:

Credits to 14 hours per
be earned semester

1 credit per 3-5 hours of
semester work
(Old and weekly
New
Testaments)

Scheduled Start and End
Times:

Beginning September 1,
2021 -

Ending December 15, 2021

90–100 A 4.0
80–89 B 3.0
70–79 C 2.0
60–69 D 1.0

Less than 60 F 0

On this scale, the letter grade ‘A’ equals four points, the letter grade ‘B’ equals
three points, the letter grade ‘C’ equals two points, the letter grade ‘D’ equals one
point, and the letter grade ‘F’ equals zero points. The High School Transcript
Study (HSTS) uses this four-point grade scale to standardize each student's GPA.

Biblical Literacy in Secondary Education (An Academic Approach)

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For additional information about including this course on a high school transcript, visit
the website: High School Transcript Study. (https://www.intoxicatedonlife.com/how-to-
include-a-bible-class-on-a-high-school-transcript/ ) SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education,
Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, The 2009

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WEEK LESSON FOCUSES ASSIGNED
# READINGS: (TEXTUAL AND

Introduction (Understanding 1st EXTENDED
Amendment Guidelines for ASSIGNMENTS)/CHECK
Teaching about the Bible in QUIZZES/TESTS/OPEN
Public Education)
DISCUSSIONS
1
Understanding 1st Amendment
Guides

Check Quiz #1: Religious
Expression in Public Schools
written by the U.S. Department of
Education (1995 and 1998)
(Questions from Study Guide)

Open Discussion #1: Discussions
will be drawn from study questions
each week and posted to the
discussion board.

Biblical Literacy in Secondary Education (An Academic Approach)

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WEEK LESSON FOCUSES ASSIGNED
# READINGS: (TEXTUAL AND

EXTENDED
ASSIGNMENTS)/CHECK
QUIZZES/TESTS/OPEN

DISCUSSIONS

Weeks # 2-8: Reading and Analyzing Narratives and Metanarrative in the
Torah (Old Testament, Law, Pentateuch, or Five Books of Moses)

2 Studying Narratives & Genesis 1-4

Metanarrative in the Pentateuch Check Quiz #2
Open Discussion #2
(Genesis, Chapters 1-4 (Old

Testament, Torah, Books of Law)

-----------------------------------------

Studying Narratives & Genesis 5-11
Metanarrative in the Pentateuch

3 (Genesis 5-11 (Old Testament, Check Quiz #3: Genesis, Chapters
Torah, Books of Law) 5-11

Open Discussion #3

--------------------------------------
Studying Narratives &
Metanarrative in the Pentateuch
4&5 (Genesis 12-36 (Old Testament, Genesis 12-36
Torah, Books of Law)

Check Quiz #4:
Open Discussion #4

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WEEK LESSON FOCUSES ASSIGNED
# READINGS: (TEXTUAL AND

EXTENDED
ASSIGNMENTS)/CHECK
QUIZZES/TESTS/OPEN

DISCUSSIONS

Studying Narratives &
Metanarrative in the Pentateuch Genesis 37-50

6 (Genesis 37-50 (Old Testament, Test# 1 (Genesis, Chapters 1-50)
Torah, Books of Law)
NO OPEN DISCUSSION

----------------------------------------

Studying Narratives & Exodus 1-15:21
Exodus 15:22-40:38

7 Metanarrative in the Pentateuch Check Quiz #5
(Exodus, Chapters 1-40)

Open Discussion #5

8 Studying Narratives & the Leviticus 26:3-46

MetaBniablrircaaltiLviteeriancytihneSePceonndtaartyeEudcuhcation N(AunmAcbaederms ic1A0p:p1r1oa-c1h4):45; 20:1-13

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WEEK LESSON FOCUSES ASSIGNED
# READINGS: (TEXTUAL AND

EXTENDED
ASSIGNMENTS)/CHECK
QUIZZES/TESTS/OPEN

DISCUSSIONS

Deuteronomy 1:1-4:40

(Old Testament Books: Leviticus,

Numbers, and Deuteronomy) Test #2-Genesis-Deuteronomy

NO OPEN DISCUSSION

9 Studying Narratives & the 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel
Metanarrative in Hebrew 1 Kings and 2 Kings
Historical Writings (Old
Testament Books: I and II Check Quiz #6
Samuel) Open Discussion #6

Weeks #10 & 11- The Metanarrative in OT Wisdom & Poetic Literature

Old Testament Books: Job, Job 1-14; 32-42

10 & 11 Psalms, Proverbs,

Ecclesiastes, Check Quiz #7

& Song of Songs Two Open Discussions #7 & 8

Weeks # 12 & 13 The Metanarrative in OT Prophetic Literature

12 & 13 Old Testament Books Isaiah 1-12; 14; 19; 24-27; 36-39
(Major Prophets: Isaiah,
Jeremiah, Ezekiel, & Two Open Discussions #9 &10
Daniel) Extended Research/
Old Testament Books Documented Essay
(Minor Prophets): Hosea, (1-3 Pages =Quiz Grade #8)
Jonah, and Malachi)

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WEEK LESSON FOCUSES ASSIGNED
# READINGS: (TEXTUAL AND

Week# 14 EXTENDED
ASSIGNMENTS)/CHECK
QUIZZES/TESTS/OPEN

DISCUSSIONS

Extended Research Final Examination

NOTE: Open discussions will be drawn from study questions assigned each week beginning
on week #1 and ending on week #13. Total open discussion topics =12.

NOTE: Check quizzes will be given weekly except for weeks #5-6 and week # 14.

Number of Quizzes + Documented Essay=8 (40%) (5 points each)
Number of Unit Tests=2 (20%) (10 points each)
Number of Open Discussion Topics= 10 (10%) (1 point each)
Final Examination=1(20%) (20 points)
Extended Readings=5 (20%) (4 points each)

Biblical Literacy in Secondary Education (An Academic Approach)

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Course Materials/ Computer Requirements
To be prepared for this course, you will need:

A computer with Office suite and an updated browser /High-speed Internet
connection.
The capacity to create, upload, and download a variety of document types.
The ability to communicate via email, discussion boards, and ZOOM.
The capability to conduct research on the Internet.
An editing capability for writing (e.g., spell check, grammar check.
punctuation, dictionary, thesaurus, (etc.).
E-mail address.
A five-section notebook.
Pencil and/or pen.

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Biblical Literacy in Secondary Education (An Academic Approach)

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Additional Requirements:
AIBL requires that all academic work be entirely the product of the

indicated individual on record. Collaboration is only acceptable when it is
explicitly stated by the facilitator/teacher. Ethical conduct is the obligation of every
enrollee and breaches of academic integrity are unacceptable. A lack of integrity
hinders the student’s academic development, and violations include but are not
limited to cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, and interfering with the ability of
others to access information or material.

Main Texts for the Course:

KJV (King James Version) (1611) Dramatized Bible
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=kjvdrama.dramatizedaudio.bibledram
atized&hl=en_US&gl=US

Bible in Basic English:

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(1965)
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=bible.basic.english&hl=en_US&gl=
US
(This translation of the Bible was developed to help readers with limited education
or for those speaking English as a second language.)

• Basic English Audio Bible (https://basicenglishaudiobible.com/ )
• Exploring the Hebrew Bible https://www.digitalbibleplatform.com/ (for

the deaf, by permission) https://publicdomainaudiobibles.com/BBEM.html\
• The Blue Bible (https://www.blueletterbible.org/)
• Online Document Analysis Worksheets (Forms for Documentation of

Assignments)

Note: This course requires reading, examining, analyzing, and viewing
additional scholarly materials related to the Hebrew Bible. Excerpts from
fiction and nonfiction texts will be read and analyzed, along with plays,
essays, short stories, videos, and poetry in Western literature and culture.

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Orienting to the Online Learning

As your AIBL facilitator, I understand that your transition from traditional
classroom learning to distance learning – online and blended – can be both
challenging and rewarding. To support you in the development of your learning

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skills. Please read the tips for online learning success that will help with your
online learning experience. Your AIBL online orientation experience will
introduce you to many opportunities that are available to both distance and
traditional learners. Learning at a distance is very different from attending
traditional classes on campus. Several study skills will help you take advantage of
the freedom afforded by distance learning:

Online Learning-Tips for Success

• Time management: I will give you guidelines, but you will be expected to
plan your time to keep pace with assignments and activities. Please review
the course overview (14 weeks) to see how much time you should plan to
devote to your studies.

Independence: Distance courses are student-centered. This means that you
engage directly with textual content and activities. The instructor is a guide.
You should feel comfortable and con dent in taking initiative in exploring
materials and completing required assignments.
Reading and writing: Most of your online experience will be through
written communication. You will be required to participate in discussion

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posts, emails, reflections, essays, and other written assignments in response
to assigned readings, scholarly articles, websites, and books.
For Reflection:
What did Gallup mean when he stated, “We revere the Bible, but
we don’t read it”?

What happens to a biblically illiterate society in Western
civilization?

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Give three examples of recent biblical illiteracy and the effect that
this can have on the individual who made the blunder or on
society in general.

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The AIBL Approach to Teaching and Learning:

The AIBL approach to teaching about the Hebrew Bible is ecumenical, in
that it seeks not to impose any doctrine or theological persuasion on anyone but
aims to provide academic studies about the Hebrew Scriptures in an objective
educational manner that will improve overall literacy skills.

Focusing on the narrative components of the Hebrew Scriptures, this
course engages students in a search for a deeper understanding of the literary
aspects of the text as seen through the lens of one who examines this sacred text
in a search for a deeper meaning and purpose. After learning about the most
familiar biblical narratives, this course will challenge the students to go beyond
the surface of the passages of Scripture and grasp the not so obvious concepts
written on the pages of this sacred text.

By focusing on the Bible as a metanarrative, students learn to “think about
how they are thinking” (metacognition), a higher form of learning, rather than
simply memorizing facts, pronouncing names, reciting quotations, stating dates,
etc., because simple recollection or casting one’s mind upon facts does not
guarantee that one really understands what he or she has read in a text. The
course focuses on higher order learning skills through assigned readings,

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extended research, scaffolding lessons, and using the Socratic method of
questioning.

Purpose:
• To empower secondary public-school administrators, teachers, students, and
stakeholders to exercise their 1 Amendment rights in public education as
afforded by the U.S. Constitution (U.S. Supreme Court, Abington v. Schempp,
1963}.
To equip secondary teachers of Western literature to connect instruction about
Hebrew scriptures to relevant classroom lessons.
To improve students’ academic literacy skills by reading, analyzing,
critiquing, and connecting Hebrew Scripture to Western literature and to their
own cultural experiences.
To help students gain an understanding of various kinds of literary
forms/genres present in the Hebrew scriptures, including short stories, epics,
apocalypses, battle odes, epigrams, biographies, sermons, parables, epistles,
gospels, love lyrics, laws, laments, tragedies, and proverbs, oracles, acrostics,
orations, pastoral elegies, psalms, poetry, satire, and puns.

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• To expand students’ reading comprehension and vocabulary skills by referring
to various online academic resources/references, such as online Bible
dictionaries, thesauruses, concordances, lexicons, audio Bibles, commentaries,
and other relevant academic biblical literacy tools/videos/programs related to
particular assignments (e.g., STEP Bible to help students understand the
scriptural text by reading and comparing different versions of the Hebrew Bible
and by relating universal themes as they unfold in particular works of classical
literature.)
To help students gain and demonstrate an understanding of biblical figures of
speech, such as symbolism, simile, oxymoron, metonymy, antithesis, satire,
personification, hyperbole, metaphors, apostrophe, alliteration, ellipsis,
anaphora, parallelism, hyperbole, and irony.

• To increase students’ understanding and uses of biblical idioms and
quotations common to Western culture in reading, speaking, and writing.

• To help students generally understand various historical periods and
background events represented in assigned biblical selections.

• To increase students’ awareness of ancient Hebrew manners and customs as
reflected in biblical and Western literature.

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• To engage students in written and oral discussions of various literary themes,
sub-themes, settings, events, characters, manners, customs, expressions, and
historical periods that provide unity to the Bible as a complete literary work.

• To relate universal literary themes in Hebrew literature to universal themes
found in Western literature.

• To compare characters in biblical and Western literature.
• To help students become familiar with the influences of the Hebrew Bible on

various cultures, including Jewish, Christian, and Islamic.
• To make students aware of how the Hebrew Bible has helped shape Western

political and justice systems.
• To improve students’ written deliveries of assigned lessons to follow standard

conventions of the English language.
• To align all lessons and assignments with the Common Core Learning

Objectives and the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs).

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A Focus on “Literacy"

One of the main focuses of the course is on “literacy.” Exactly what is
literacy” According to E.D. Hirsch, Jr., the author of Cultural Literacy: What Every
American Needs to Know, “To be culturally literate is to possess the basic
information needed to thrive in the modern world.” William J. Bennett clearly
explains the term as “a matter of building up a body of knowledge enabling us to
make sense of the facts, names, and allusions cited by an author.” Making sense of
the facts, names, and content written in a text requires critical and effective literacy
functionality. Literacy skills, including biblical literacy, will help eradicate
misinformation, demagoguery, deceptions, and the dangers of outright ignorance
that can erode any society.

The Importance of Biblical and Cultural Literacy:

On a higher order of learning, a fully literate person can explain the meaning of
what is read, rather than simply repeating facts from memory. Additionally, on the
higher levels of learning, literacy entails having sufficient knowledge and skills to
use resources that will enable one to discern or come to know the basic meaning of
the text. True biblical literacy, therefore, includes the ability to understand and use

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the discerned meaning or wisdom attained from the Scriptures. The masterful
Bible scholar can synthesize or connect concept within the text, take a position,
and be ready to defend his or her point of view regardless to whether others agree
or not. In Western cultures, Bible literacy improve academic and social
functionality, and earns one the respect given to fully literate people. Genuine
literacy involves learning about “all of human history,” including the literary and
historic qualities represented so skillfully in the greatest Book of all times, the
Hebrew Bible.

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Literacy: A Life-long Process
The full acquisition of biblical literacy is a lifelong process because scholars,
historians, scientists, archeologists, psychologists, philosophers, theologians, and
other experts are continuously gaining and sharing new and meaningful insight
directly and indirectly connected to this ancient Hebrew Bible and other related
texts. Meaningful and true biblical literacy is the kind of learning that contributes to
societies all over the world. (Read more at: The Plurality of Literacy and Its
Implications for Policies and Programmes, UNESCO (2004)(
Many recognize there are issues around literacy, but do not see it as the massive,
systemic, and generational problem that plagues our society as these children grow
and enter adulthood. Read more at: https://www.rif.org/literacy-network/the-issue

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Child Illiteracy and Dropout Rates

• Illiteracy is a major factor in whether adolescents graduate from high school.
One in 6 high school students — or about 1.2 million teens — drop out each
year, according to ProLiteracy.

• Some 4.5 million young adults (aged 16 to 24) are “disconnected” —
meaning they are not in school or working, according to Measure of America.
These individuals often lack a high school diploma or GED.

• Students who are behind when they start kindergarten make up the largest
portion of school dropouts. These students have a less than 12% chance of
attending college, according to the Children’s Reading Foundation.

(Read more at: https://online.regiscollege.edu/blog/child-
illiteracy/#:~:text=About%2027%25%20of%20eighth%20grade%20students%20ar
e%20below,%E2%80%94%20drop%20out%20each%20year%2C%20according%
20to%20ProLiteracy.)

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(Reference: https://www.rif.org/literacy-network/the-issue)

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Types of Questions in the AIBL Curriculum
(Aligned with Bloom’s Taxonomy of Higher Order Learning)

Students will move from the lower to high order thinking and learning
practices. They will engage in the following types of reading comprehension,
study, and assessment lessons/activities/ questions that align to Bloom’s taxonomy
of teaching and learning (beginning with the lower order of learning and thinking,
and then, moving on to the higher levels):

1.
Remembering (lowest level of learning)- For differentiating instructional purposes,
the students will be asked to remember, recall, recite, name. identify, describe, and
memorize, locate, or de ne the basic facts of what has been taught. In studying
Hebrew narratives, this AIBL course will begin at this level, but as the course
progresses the academic goal is to move on to the higher levels on Bloom’s

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hierarchy of learning by studying the individual narratives in the Hebrew Bible
before studying the text as a metanarrative.

2. Understanding-On Bloom’s hierarchy of learning, students are encouraged to
demonstrate understanding by putting facts into their own words. Assignments will
require students to interpret, paraphrase, summarize, explain, infer, paraphrase, and
discuss biblical facts and concepts contained in Hebrew narratives.
3. Application-Students will be taught lessons that will apply prior
knowledge/learning. For instance, they will be asked to use information from the
Hebrew text to solve moral dilemmas or make decisions when presented with given
situations. They will apply actions and decisions in biblical text to similar behavior
in Western literature, as well as in personal experiences and observations. Using
Lawrence Kohlberg’s theory of moral reasoning, students will discuss various
stages involved in making ethical decisions. They will apply examples of ethical
decisions that are made and resulting consequences that occur when someone
transgresses a moral principle. In addition, students will discuss literary elements

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commonly found in narratives and metanarratives such as internal and external
conflicts, as well as confrontations.

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4.Analysis-The course requires students to examine literary texts from
different cultures (e.g., the Jewish Torah Creation narratives compared to
the Creation narratives in the Christian Bibles’ Old Testament). Students
will categorize biblical writings based on literary genres/forms and
writing techniques and discuss how the forms and devices add to the
aesthetic value of the text. They will connect Hebrew narratives to a
common theme: the self- revelation of God as He unfolds His character
and plans for the world in His relationship with humanity.
5. Evaluating- Students will examine the accuracy of historical and
contemporary literary and historical works, including movies and films,
media, sermons, speeches, jokes, quotations, and books in Western
culture in relation to the content of the Hebrew Bible. They will be given
opportunities to evaluate online scholarly writings about Hebrew
Scriptures and the treatment of the sacred text as a metanarrative.
6. Creating-. Students will make judgments in a written essay/research
paper about the seriousness of allowing misinformation and illiteracy to
prevail in any society, especially when failing to address biblical
illiteracy in American cultures. Students will defend their presented
position statement/thesis in the documented persuasive essay/research
paper. They will create and publish the final researched production in an
online blog or other social media format.

What the Famous Said about the Hebrew Bible:

George Washington, first U.S. President, said,
"It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible."

John Quincy Adams, sixth U.S. President, said,
"The first and almost only book deserving of universal attention is the Bible...I have
for many years made it a practice to read through the Bible once a year."

Confronting Rampant Illiteracy in America's Public Schools

Several years ago, the Bible Literacy Report II sponsored by the John
Templeton Foundation found that English professors in America’s leading
universities readily agree that students should be biblically literate regardless
of whether they have religious persuasions or not. One of the responses from
a professor who completed the survey was: “[Without the Bible] it’s like
using a dictionary with one-third of the words removed.” (Dr. George P.
Landow, Brown University).

In general, much of Western history and culture reflect the influence of
narratives and concepts taken for the Hebrew Bible. For instance, Western
literature, jurisprudence, and philosophy mirror the influence of the Hebrew Bible.
The 2006 report concluded that: “Overwhelmingly, professors in this survey

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indicated that a lack of basic Bible literacy hampers students’ ability to understand
both classics and contemporary work.”

In education, public high school and college students who have not been
exposed to the most familiar biblical narratives, cannot fully engage in written and
oral discussions or interpretations of other classical readings. This Academic
Initiative for Biblical Literacy (AIBL) course curriculum aims to combat this void
in public education.” (Read more at: https://irpcdn.multiscreensite.com/09ffa3b8/
les/uploaded/BLR2ExecutiveSummary.pdf). Despite the inarguable impact that the
Hebrew Bible has made on Western society, experts have reported that the decline
in biblical literacy in our society is increasingly alarming. (Read article: Christian
Post (2014) by Lillian Kwon at: https://www.christianpost.com/news/biblical-
illiteracy-in-us-at-crisis-point-saysbible-expert.html).
When biblical literacy declines in the culture, people no longer recognize,
understand, appreciate, or apply the rich wisdom found in this great Book. They
fail to see the “big picture”- that the lack of biblical literacy makes a negative
impact on literacy in general. This, in turn, impacts Western society and culture. In

any society, a literacy gap can weaken the efficacy of its social, political, academic
and economic functions.(Read more at:
http://ijariie.com/AdminUploadPdf/The_Economic_and_Social_Cost_of_Illiteracy
__An_Overview_ijariie1493.pdf#:~:te Should not we literature teachers address
biblical and cultural illiteracy issues and help close this learning gap? Is not the
Hebrew Bible "worthy of study"? Let’s begin with the most common literary
form in Hebrew Scriptures, the narratives, and to understand the fuller picture, we
move into studying about the central theme of the entire Book-the metanarrative.

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Sample Reading Assignments: Bible Commentaries (excerpts) (Genesis, Chapter
1)

Biblical commentaries contain a sequence of methodically written explanations
and interpretations of Hebrew Scripture. These valuable Bible study tools were
written by some of the most scholarly theologians in church history. Through a
personal narrative, they provide extensive insight into the Hebrew Bible and can be
useful for both personal and academic biblical studies.

Assignment: Read chapters 1-3 of the Book of Genesis from various English
translations (e.g., The King James Version, 1611). Following are passages taken
from several Bible commentaries written by various renown theologians. Write all
underlined words in your notebook. Use an online source to define the terms. Study
them nightly for the end-of-week check quiz. After reading each passage, respond
to the questions that follow.
Passage 1

One of the most respected interdenominational commentaries ever written was
authored by the British theologian and Methodist preacher Adam Clarke (1762).
His writings reflect his reverence for Hebrew scripture as well as his willingness to
give his opinion on many difficult and controversial questions that other
commentaries often avoid (e.g., the question of the immorality of human slavery).
His teachings had a considerable influence on Methodism.

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from Adam Clarke’s Commentary (Genesis 1:1)

Directions: Read the following passage excerpted from the Adam Clarke
Commentary. Indicate whether the following statements are (A) TRUE or (B)
FALSE?

Many attempts have been made to define the term GOD: as to the word
itself, it is pure Anglo-Saxon, and among our ancestors signified, not only the
Divine Being, now commonly designated by the word, but also good; as in
their apprehensions it appeared that God and good were correlative terms; and
when they thought or spoke of him, they were doubtless led from the word
itself to consider him as THE GOOD BEING, a fountain of infinite
benevolence and beneficence towards his creatures.

A general definition of this great First Cause, as far as human words
dare attempt one, may be thus given: The eternal, independent, and self-

existent Being: the Being whose purposes and actions spring from himself,
without foreign motive or influence: he who is absolute in dominion; the most
pure, the most simple, and most spiritual of all essences; infinitely
benevolent, beneficent, true, and holy: the cause of all being, the upholder of
all things; infinitely happy, because infinitely perfect; and eternally self-
sufficient, needing nothing that he has made: illimitable in his immensity,
inconceivable in his mode of existence, and indescribable in his essence;
known fully only to himself, because an infinite mind can be fully
apprehended only by itself. In a word, a Being who, from his infinite wisdom,
cannot err or be deceived; and who, from his infinite goodness, can do
nothing but what is eternally just, right, and kind. Reader, such is the God of
the Bible, but how widely different from the God of most human creeds and
apprehensions!

(A) TRUE or (B) FALSE? (Aligned with Bloom’s taxonomy of higher order
thinking)

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1. The writer states that the word “God” has an Anglo-Saxon origin. (Reading
for details)

2. From reading this chapter, one can infer that the writer has an Anglo-Saxon
heritage. (Making an inference)

3. Based on the passage, the term “God” is connected to both expressions:
“Divine Being” and “Good.” (Reading for details)

4. “Non-existence” is the opposite of a “Being” as used in this passage.
(Vocabulary development)

5. Clarke concludes that God is unlimited in His goodness toward His creation.
(Reading Comprehension/Reading for details)

6. The writer proposes that no outside power caused God to exist or act.
(Reading comprehension)

7. Clarke notes that God is happy forever because He has all the required or
desirable elements, qualities, or characteristics that make Him as good as it is
possible to be. (Reading comprehension)

8. From reading this passage, one can conclude that the writer views God’s
inherent nature to be easy to describe. (Drawing conclusions)

9. The word infinitely probably means without limits. (Expanding vocabulary)

10. The expression illimitable in his immensity probably means no end to
His greatness. (Expanding vocabulary)

11. The statement:” … an infinite mind can be fully apprehended only by
itself” implies that God’s mind is too large to be comprehended by humans.
(Making an inference)

12. One can infer that the writer is an admirer of people’s beliefs about the
nature of God.

13. The writer connects human creeds, or religious beliefs, to their fear of
God. (Reading comprehension)

14. Clarke implies that many Christians have an adequate perception of the
character of God. (Reading comprehension)

15. From this passage, one can infer that God is self-created. (Making
inferences/Drawing conclusions)

Passage 2

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Directions: Write all underlined words in your notebook. Use an online source to
define the terms. Study them nightly for the end-of-week check quiz. After reading
the following passage, indicate whether the statements are (A) TRUE or (B)
FALSE.

Barnes' Notes (Genesis 1:2)

The first day's work is the calling of light into being. Here the design is
evidently to remove one of the defects mentioned in the preceding verse, -
"and darkness was upon the face of the deep." The scene of this creative act is
therefore coincident with that of the darkness it is intended to displace. The
interference of supernatural power to cause the presence of light in this
region, intimates that the powers of nature were inadequate to this effect. But
it does not determine whether light had already existed elsewhere and had
even at one time penetrated this now darkened region and was still prevailing
in the other realms of space beyond the face of the deep. Nor does it
determine whether by a change of the polar axis, by the rarefaction of the
gaseous medium above, or by what other means, light was made to visit this
region of the globe with its agreeable and quickening influences. We only