Second eight weeks.  Is the God of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament)
vengeful and retributive?  Does “an eye for an eye” sum up a
primitive, biblical notion of justice?  This course will explore
biblical ideas of justice from a variety of angles.  We will examine
the biblical law codes in a cross-cultural perspective; analyze the
crime-and-punishment motifs in the Bible’s epic myths and narratives—
stories such as Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and the rise and
fall of King David; investigate the “natural law” which operates in
biblical “wisdom,” or philosophical, writings; and evaluate the
nature of divine justice in the fire-and-brimstone warnings of the
great prophets.  Throughout the course, we will compare these
notions of justice to our own sense of fairness and equity,
evaluating whether and how biblical justice has any relevance to us
today.