MODULE 1

Course Title: Encountering Jesus, the Word in the World

Course Code: LCENWRD
Module In-Charge: Jeff Clyde Corpuz

TOPIC/THEME: The Power of Stories

OBJECTIVES: At the end of the module, the students are able to:

✓ appreciate the role of core stories in understanding and shaping the life of an individual and a
community by relating it to their own stories
✓ interpret the scripture texts using the 3 worlds

NUMBER OF MEETINGS: 6 meetings within the 3-week period

MATERIALS/EQUIPMENT:
✓ Computer and LCD Projector for lecture-discussion and film viewing
✓ PowerPoint presentation
✓ Holy Bible
✓ Film copy:
✓ Video Clips:

STUDENTS’ INITIAL IDEAS ABOUT TOPIC/THEME:

✓ My personal story is not connected from the Bible.
✓ Our contemporary stories are entirely different from the Bible.
✓ The Bible is inspired by God and therefore inerrant and infallible.
✓ The Bible is a collection/compilation of sacred writings—written by men of faith.
✓ For more conservative believers, the Bible is an accounting book. When people
want to establish credibility of a certain thing, they compare it to the Bible.
✓ Many students do not read the Bible because it is sufficient to believe in God and
the saints.
✓ “I am a Roman Catholic, but the truth is, I have never read the Bible. But I know
it is a holy book of Christianity.”
✓ All I know is that it is a book of stories about God, about the history of the people
of God, of the early Church, but some of the stories are just hard to believe to be
taken literally. It is something that should not be taken literally as a whole.
✓ It tells us where we came from/origin of the world.
✓ The Bible contains morals: tells which deeds are good and bad; a helpful tool we
can use for the basis of our actions. It is a good guide book.
KEY POINTS FOR UNDERSTANDING:

I. The Power of Stories in the Bible

The Bible is full of stories, from Genesis to Revelation. The different books of the Bible
are dedicated to telling a specific story. Some tells about the good triumphing over evil, while
others narrate death and destruction. What is the purpose behind all of these stories? Are they
simply fairy tales? Did God supply the stories to break the monotony between genealogies and
laws? Bible stories grab our attention, grip our imaginations, and guide our wills — whether we
personally engage the written narratives or see them reenacted well. Analogies drawn from the
Biblical narratives move us on a deeper level. The Scripture is 75% story in a narrative form.

a. The Bible and story

What are the outstanding traits/characteristics of human core story and the Biblical core story?

Story has many positive connotations:

• Story is at the heart of being human.
• We organise our life experiences through re-telling of stories.
• Everyday stories are shaped by beliefs, values, intentions and decisions.
• They also feed into, and shape, our personal ‘life story’.
• Forms of story include biography, history, gossip and soap opera.
• The boundary between ‘true story’ and fiction is actually blurred. Significantly,
biblical Hebrew has no word for fiction.
• There is a significant difference between asking ‘Is the story true?’ and ‘What is the
truth in the story?’ The latter is a better approach to religious literature.
• Every story is an attempt to find meaning.
• Editorial selection and shaping of a story is undertaken in the search for meaning.
• Stories evoke stories present the world as it appears to the teller.
• Stories are useful in attempting to describe the indescribable because they often use
metaphor, simile, parable etc.
• Story, with all its limitations, is a natural medium for religious discourse and for
discussing ‘God’.

b. Three types of story associated with the Bible:

(1) Bible stories are selected narratives usually chosen at random from the Bible
without coherence and with no regard towards, or perhaps even awareness of, the
whole Bible.
(2) The story of the Bible is the process by which the Bible as a collection of books
came to be. Within this story is the story of how each book came to be, perhaps from
oral narrative or experience into defined and eventually unchangeable text.
(3) The Bible’s story pertains to its great theme: e.g. from Adam to Revelation, from
Creation and Fall to Redemption and Restoration (Christian Bible). It is a story of 8
covenant, re-call and promise (Jewish Bible). It is a story of a God who reveals
 himself and of the lives of his prophets (although for Islam the Qur’an is the ‘final
testament’, the complete and pure revelation).

c. The Literary nature of the Bible

The Bible is a literary book, a literature like any other ancient literature. It expresses
its unique message in a rich variety of literary forms since it is a collection of writings
that can be taken as one in spite of its material’s diversity. It did not come directly
from heaven.

This Biblical literature is an aesthetically beautiful interpretation of humanity’s

experience of God. It speaks about people’s faith expressed through the creativity of
their language. For this reason, it is necessary that when people read, interpret, and
seek to apply the truths of Scripture, they must be careful not to overlook the artistic
dimension, or they will miss an important part of truly benefiting from it.

Parts of this ever ancient yet ever new literature were written over 1,850 years ago.
They were not written in Filipino or English but in Hebrew and Koine Greek. It is for
this reason that, in understanding the said Bible literature, it is also necessary to know
not only the different genres common in that language but also the styles and types of
writing that were prominently used during its writing period.1

II. The word of God in human language

The main sources of the Catholic faith are the Sacred Scriptures and the Sacred Tradition.
Together they form one sacred deposit on the word of God. The Church’ s doctrines, morals and liturgy
and worship are derived from these sources. The Sacred Scriptures or the Holy Bible is the fundamental
source in proclaiming and educating in the faith because it is a record of the divinely inspired word of
God.

The Bible is the word of God. It is a collection of books, accepted by Christians as sacred and
inspired by God, providing the basis for beliefs about spiritual matters and providing guidelines for moral
living.

The Sacred Scriptures are the inspired record of how God dealt with His people, and how they
responded to, remembered, and interpreted that experience. The Scriptures arose, then, as the expression
of the people’s experience of God, and as a response to their needs.

Sacred Tradition can be taken either as the process by which divine revelation, coming from
Jesus Christ through the apostles, is communicated and unfolded in the community of the Church, or as
the content of the revelation so communicated.

1 Erlinda Bragado and A. Monera. Kaloob: Interweaving on the Christian Story (Manila: De La Salle University
Press, 1999) p. 56
 The word "Bible comes from the Egyptian word for parchment, byblos. The Greek word biblios
means books or scrolls. Later, it was translated into Latin, biblia, meaning "book." The Bible is more than
a single book. It is a library--ta biblia, which means "the books."

God is the author of Sacred Scripture. "The divinely revealed realities, which are contained and
presented in the text of Sacred Scripture, have been written down under the inspiration of the Holy
Spirit."

Many verses throughout the Bible attest to its divine origin (Genesis 6:9-13, Exodus 20:1-17, 2
Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:20-21, Revelation 1:1-2, etc.) But the Bible was not simply dictated word-for-
word by God; it is also the work of its many different human authors. The different writing skills, writing
styles, personalities, world views, and cultural backgrounds of the human authors can be seen in their
works. Many of the New Testament books were originally written as letters rather than as Scripture.
Some Bible writings include the authors' own research and recollection of historical events (Luke 1:1-4)
and their own opinions (1 Corinthians 7:12). The Bible could be considered as the best-selling book of all
times. It remains the most popular and widely read book in the world with more than one hundred million
new copies, in whole or in part, produced every year.

A. The Bible as Literature

The Bible is considered a “library of books” in the sense that it was written by many authors who
came from just about every walk of life conceivable. For the Old Testament alone it took some 1000
years to compose it; while for the NT some 50 years or more. It was originally written in several
languages: Hebrew (MT), Aramaic and Greek (LXX) for the Old Testament; and Koinē Greek for the NT.
The biblical writers employed different literary forms or types (prose, poetry, songs, prayers, history,
folklore, sagas, wisdom, letters, parables, proverbs, prophecy, etc.) into their writings. The books of the
Bible were written under varying historical contexts; hence God's eternal word and message is
conditioned and contained in a specific time in history with its own culture milieu, and is recorded by
means of 'human style' of literature.  Because the Bible is written by human authors, it should be
interpreted like any other literature. This does not mean that the Bible is just like any other book.  But the
Bible’s uniqueness and inspiration (that is, its God-centeredness and supernatural orientation) doesn't
change its literary form and style.   To understand the Bible’s literary form or style, historical
background, and the meaning of words are the tasks of Bible students. This requires us to apply the
familiar tools of literary analysis that literary critics and teachers of literature use.

B. Biblical Inspiration

The Sacred Scriptures are said to be “inspired” in a special sense not just as some artist or author
may be “inspired” to paint or compose. Rather, biblical inspiration means that the sacred and canonical
books of the Old and New Testaments, whole and entire, were written under the inspiration of the Holy
Spirit, so that we can call God their “author” and the Bible “the Word of God”. God chose certain human
authors, who as true authors made full use of their human powers and faculties, yet were so guided by the
Holy Spirit who so enlightened their minds and moved their wills, that they put down in writing what God
wanted written.

C. Canonization of the Bible

The books of the Bible did not all attain their authority at one time. They were accepted as the
Scripture of the Jewish and Christian communities only after a long process that we call canonization. It
refers to the process by which a book was accepted into the official list of core scriptures (such as the
Bible) by a particular religious group.

Generally, canon is an official list or collection of writings that a particular religious group
considers as its “core scriptures” or “authorized books,” which are used by the group as the basis for its
religious beliefs, moral precepts, and communal practices. The Greek word “kanon” originally meant
“measuring rod; rule; criterion” (cf. 2 Cor 10:13-16; Gal 6:16), but later came to mean such a list of
writings that met certain criteria. A scriptural canon is usually considered " fixed" or “closed,” meaning
that no additional books will be added to it.

The Canon of Scripture

It was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned which writings are to be included in
the list of the sacred books.

This complete list is called the Canon of Scripture. It includes 46 books for the Old Testament and
27 for the New.

The Old Testament: 46

Overview of the Old Testament

The word “testament” means a covenant that God made with His people. The Old Testament is
the story of the Israelites in the light of the various covenants God made with them. It is largely a story of
the infidelity of the people, and of God’s unfailing love for humankind.
The Old Testament is the collection of sacred books of the Hebrews written over a period of 900
years. It prepares and announces the coming of a Messiah, the Redeemer. It is divided into 4 major parts.
These are the Pentateuch, Historical, Wisdom, and Prophetic Books.
Pentateuch refers to the first five books of the Scriptures. It is also called “Torah” or the “Law”.
These books express God’s love for humanity in creation, the fall and the formation of God’s people.
The Historical books are not simply about the historical events in ancient times. These books
describe how God intervened in the history of his people. After the People of God entered the Promised
Land, they started to build their own nation. These books narrate all the difficulties and failures, and
triumphs of the Israelites. These books point to God’s steadfast love for Israel amidst the people’s
infidelity and unrighteousness.
The Wisdom Books abound with proverbs and simple sayings full of wisdom. They also contain
the Psalms or prayers of praise for the greatness and goodness of God, of thanksgiving and love for God,
of trust in God’s power in times of fear and anxiety, and lamentations for one’s sins and its effects on the
person and other people.
The prophets appeared when the nation became weak and eventually fell captive to foreign
nations. Prophetic books expressed God’s sense of justice, his anger against deceit, and the oppression of
the poor and the weak. Most importantly, these books speak of the coming of the Messiah. These
prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
In summary, the Old Testament lays the foundation for, and was meant to prepare the Israelites
for, the coming of the Messiah who would sacrifice Himself for the sins of the whole world.

Pentateuch

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

 Historical Books

Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra and
Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, Esther, 1 and 2 Maccabees,

Wisdom Books

Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, the Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach
(Ecclesiasticus),

Prophetic Books

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah,
Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah and Malachi. 

The New Testament: 27

Overview of the New Testament

There are 27 books included in the New Testament.  Both Catholic and Protestants accept these same
27 books into their New Testament canon.  These 27 books are divided into the 4 Gospels, the Acts of
Apostles, the Epistles/Letters of Paul which include his letters to seven Churches [the Church of Rome,
the Church at Corinth (2), the Church of Galatia, the Church at Ephesus, the Church at Philippi, the
Church at Colossus, the Church at Thessalonica (2)]; and the letters of Paul to Timothy (2 letters), Titus,
and Philemon; as well as the letter to the Hebrews, which may have also been written by Paul.  There are
also the "Catholic Letters/Epistles" or letters to the universal Church written by Peter (2), Jude, James,
and John (3) and finally, the last book of the New Testament, the Revelation of Jesus Christ to His
servant John.   

Many scholars believe all the New Testament books were written before the destruction of the
Temple in 70AD. It has been said that the New Testament books were originally circulated to the Church
throughout Palestine, Italy and Asia Minor in the Greek language, but there is evidence in the writings of
Church Fathers Origen and Jerome that at least Matthew's Gospel was originally written in Hebrew (or
Aramaic) before it was translated into Greek. 

Gospels

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John,

Acts of the Apostles

Letters of St. Paul

Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2

Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon,

Letter to the Hebrews

Letters of James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 John, and Jude
Revelation (the Apocalypse)
 E. Translations of the Bible

The Bible was not written in English. Most of the books of the Old Testament were originally
composed in Hebrew (with a few portions in Aramaic), while the entire New Testament was originally
written in Greek. Thus, what most people today read is not the original text, but other people's
translations of the Bible.

 Translations and Editions of the Bible

1. Itala, or Old Latin - Christians in the Western Roman Empire began translating the
Christian scriptures (both OT & NT) into their own native language, Latin, during the 3rd and
4th centuries. The OT books were usually translated from the LXX (Greek), while the NT
books were translated from the original Greek texts.

2. Vulgate - a Latin version of both the Old and New Testaments, translated in the late 4th and
early 5th centuries by St. Jerome at the request of Pope Damascus; it became the "official"
Latin version of the Catholic Church for many centuries (i.e., the one used for the readings
proclaimed during the Mass, as found in the official "Lectionaries"), intended to replace the
various different "Old Latin" versions.

3. Medieval Translations - Since the Vulgate was the dominant edition of the Christian Bible
in the West from the 5th century onward, the earliest translations of the Bible into Anglo-
Saxon, German, English, and other European languages were all translations of the Latin
Vulgate, rather than being produced from the original languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek
for the various books of the OT; Greek for the books of the NT). In other words, they were
translations of translations!

4. Modern Translations - From the time of the Reformation onward (16th century), scholars
have stressed the need to translate each biblical book from its original language, as far as
possible. That is, rather than translating the book of Isaiah from its version in the Latin
Vulgate or the Greek Septuagint, one should use the original Hebrew version of Isaiah. One
serious difficulty still remains, however, when there are several significantly different
Hebrew versions of certain books, as is the case with Isaiah. There is not only the "Masoretic
text" (medieval Jewish text), but several different Hebrew versions were discovered in the
20th century among the Dead Sea Scrolls.

An update on the revision of some English translations of the Bible:

Older Translations: Updated Translations:

(some revisions 1749 and 1941, but no recent

Douay-Rheims (no abbrev. - 1582 NT; 1609-10 revision)
OT)
King James Version (KJV - 1611) New King James Version (NKJV - 1979-82)

Revised Standard Version (RSV - 1946 NT; 1952

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV - 1989)
OT)

(combined edition reprinted in 1987, but not

Amplified Bible (AB - 1958 NT; 1964-65 OT) 
revised)

New English Bible (NEB - 1961) Revised English Bible (REB - 1992)

Today's English Version (TEV - 1966) Contemporary English Version (CEV - 1996)

Jerusalem Bible (JB - 1966) New Jerusalem Bible (NJB - 1985)

New American Bible (NAB - 1970) (only the NT & Psalms revised so far - 1987)

New International Version (NIV - 1973 NT; 1978

(not yet revised)
OT)

 Translations Sponsored/Approved by various Churches:

"Catholic" translations:  Douay-Rheims, JB/NJB, NAB, CCB

"Protestant" translations:  KJV/NKJV, TEV/CEV, NIV

"Ecumenical" translations (approved and used by both Catholics and Protestants): 

NEB/REB, RSV/NRSV

Other Biblical FAQs:

 What does the word "Testament" mean?

The word "testament," as used here, does not mean "last will and testament," a legal document
whereby a person disposes of earthly goods. The word "testament" is from the Latin word testamentum.
which translates the Hebrew word for "covenant," berith. A covenant is a pact or agreement between two
parties, God and the people of God. "Covenant" is one of the major themes in both the Old and New
Testaments. It tells of the pact which God made through Moses with the people of Israel (the "old"
covenant), and that which was fulfilled in Jesus (the "new" covenant). The word "old," in regard to
Testament, does not mean that it is no longer useful. For Christians, it simply means the First Testament,
or the Hebrew Scriptures.
 IV. summary chart of the relationship among the different worlds.

World of the Author World of the Text World of the Reader

Author’s Worldview, The Text Itself, Its Reader’s Worldview,

Presuppositions, Structure, Grammar, Presuppositions,
language, culture, Form, Coherence, language, culture,
values, self- Style values, self-
understanding understanding
Message
Sender Receiver

Two Worlds Interact in the Text to Produce Meaning

Below is a summary chart of the relationship among the different Biblical Criticism tools.

Historical Criticism Literary Criticism Audience Criticism

Author, Historical situations Analysis of the text as it Contemporary receiver of the

and theological concerns stands text and/or process of
reading
 Writer of
the text

Sub-layers Addressee of
Historical
of the text the text
Redaction Criticism
Criticism Circumstances that
Personal brought about the
World
contribution of text
the editor of the
Sources of
Textual History of the Author the text
Source
Criticism text/ Criticism
Duplications and
interpolations in
dislocations
the text
Stylistic, historical, theological
inconsistencies dislocations
Content of the plot Narrative
Criticism
Form World
Criticism Characters, beginning,
Sitz-im-laben of the climax, suspense,
Text ending, narrative theme

Internal coherence Literary

Literary
Rhetorical and the line of Criticism
genre
Criticism thought of the text
Linguistic and
symantic analysis
Reader
Response
The persuasive
World of effect of the
Criticism

The
the text on the
implied reader
message of Reader today
Hermeneutics
the text
today
Influence of the
Patriarchal society
in the
Feminist
interpretation
Criticism
Source:

Erlinda Bragado and Arnold Monera, Kaloob: Interweaving on the Christian Story (Manila: De
La Salle University Press, 1999), 35-52.
 PROCEDURES/
ACTIVITIES DISCUSSION/PROCESSING QUESTIONS OUTPUT(S)

WEEK 1 1. The teacher explains the content of the Course Views/

Syllabus and clarifies the students’ questions on the Distribution
course policies and requirements. of the Course
Orientation on the TRED Vocation Exposure syllabus
Meeting 1:
Program (TVEP)
The Power of Stories Feedbacks
in the Bible

Issue: How do core 2. Assess the students’ understanding of the Questions and
stories affect people’s Biblical text by posing some guide questions: answers
lives? - “What can you say about the Bible?”

2. Human Core Stories and Biblical Core Stories Assignment:

Reading:
Bragado,
Activities:
How do you relate your core story in the core story Erlinda and
of the Bible? Monera,
✓ Introduction and
Arnold.
Course Orientation
Kaloob:
Interweaving
✓ Discussion
on the
3. Conclude the meeting by synthesizing afterwards Christian
✓ Diad Sharing
the themes of this lesson by highlighting the Story
following key concepts. (The main content of these
concepts are found in the KEY POINTS FOR
UNDERSTANDING section)

Meeting 2:
Views/
The Power of Stories
1. The instructor recalls what has transpired during Feedbacks
in the Bible Shared during
the previous meeting.
the
2. Fourth Hour: Let them watch the film Discussion
“Freedom Writers”. (The discussion about the
film will take place next meeting)
Activity:

✓ Film Viewing 3. Assignment: Write a reaction paper about the

 general theme of the film. Discuss the rubrics
found in this module.

WEEK 2

Meeting 1: 1. The instructor recalls what has transpired during Views/

The word of God in the previous meeting as a link to the discussion of Feedbacks
human language the day. Shared during
the
2. Collect the reaction paper assignment. Discussion

3. Make a substantial discussion and sharing on the

lessons that were drawn from the film.

Synthesize Lesson of the Film:

“Freedom Writers” is about a dedicated teacher
Activities: (Hilary Swank) in a racially divided Los Angeles
school receives a class of at-risk teenagers the
✓ Discussion system deems incapable of learning. Instead of
giving up, she inspires her students to take an
interest in their education and planning their
✓ Group Sharing and futures. She assigns reading material that the
Reflection paper. youths can relate to and encourages them to keep
journals of their daily lives. Based on the true story
of Erin Gruwell.

CENTRAL THEMES Discrimination, racism,

intolerance moves to finding commonality, rising
above the issues, and commitment of and to
change.

In very broad and general terms, the film opens up

questions about human being, community and
sinfulness. Outside of the film, discussion can
focus on the nature of the groups and communities
found in the film and how they might be related
theologically to the groups and communities of
which we are a part.

After a substantial discussion and sharing of the

film, it is now time to focus their attention on
Hope: How does God instill hope in each of us?
Where have we seen division and isolation
resulting in people being treated differently? Do
 you know someone who has lost hope? As God’s
people, how are we to respond to others whose
hope is lost? Is there a difference in your mind
between knowing what you are supposed to do and
what you are willing to do? Why?

Love: What does it mean to have agape love? How

does that form of love fit in with “The Freedom
Writers?” Do we turn away from others? How?
What would Christ say of that?

Church: Why is it that most churches today are

segregated? Are these examples of the same groups
we see in the movie? Like the students who moved
their desks around, have we built barriers around
us? Living into the life of Christ, how should we
respond?
Broken Human Condition: In the discussion phase,
list all of the brokenness found in the film. Note
who is broken and how are they broken.

4. After the group sharing, the instructor will also

highlight the meaning of all these marks using
the explanations found in the KEY POINTS
FOR UNDERSTANDING section.

Meeting 2:

The word of God in 1. The instructor recalls what transpired during the Views/
human language previous meeting as a link to the activity. He/ she Feedbacks
then introduces the Havruta. Shared during
the
Discussion
Activities: 2. After the Havruta, let the class share the core
story of the selected scriptural text and ask what
✓ Havruta/Sharing of they have understand about it. Then point out the
Family Experiences core story of the Israelites.

✓ Discussion 3 Make a synthesis of the topic “The word of God

in Human Language” by highlighting the following
✓ Video Clips key concepts: (The main content of these key
 Viewing: concepts are found in the KEY POINTS FOR
UNDERSTANDING section.)

5. For their assignment, let them choose any core

stories of the Israelites in the Old Testament. This
will be the topic of the next meeting.

WEEK 3

Meeting 1: 1. The instructor recalls what transpired during the A well

previous meeting as a link to the activity for the organized
The story of the call day. Biblio drama
and response of Israel: activity
Exploring the great 2. The instructor then will show the video clip
stories of the OT “The Israelites”. This clip basically shows the
through the experiences history of the Israelites. He/she then asks the class
of God’s people in their their own realization after watching the clip. Views/
faith journey, liberation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xrxm9QnPr0 Feedbacks
from oppression, and Shared during
formation as people in 3. Bibliodrama Activity (See activity Guide below) the
the dynamics of God’s Discussion
call/invitation and 4. Point out in your own discussion (The main
response to the call of content of these key concepts are found in the KEY
God. POINTS FOR UNDERSTANDING section)

✓ Discussion

✓ Video Clips
Viewing:

✓ Bibliodrama activity

Meeting 2: 1. The instructor recalls what transpired during the

The Five Worlds of previous meeting as a link to the bibliodrama Views/
Interpreting the activity for the day. He/ she then explains the Feedbacks
Scriptures mechanics of the activity. As discussed previously, Shared during
each group will be assigned to interpret a biblical the
text. Each member of the group will present their Discussion
✓ Discussion own bibliodrama.
 2. After the activity, process it in relation to the
lesson on Biblical interpretation. (5 worlds)

3. Discuss the Biblical interpretation of the

scriptures (See Key Points for Understanding
section).

4. The instructor concludes by saying: “As

Christians, we deepen our self-knowledge, our
relationship with others and with God. In the
process, we transform our lives through biblical
stories.”

ASSESSMENT:

Reflection on the Film “Freedom Writers”

Reading/studying with a partner the biblical passage (c/o Havruta- a Jewish method of studying
the Bible passage)

PROCEDURE/ACTIVITIES: DISCUSSION/PROCESSING Output

QUESTIONS:

ACTIVITY 1: Havruta activity Activity 1: Havruta activity Sharing the core

Most commonly, Jews study Jewish
texts in pairs, a method known as
havruta (“fellowship”). In havruta,
the pair struggles to understand the
meaning of each passage and
discusses how to apply it to the
larger issues addressed and even to
their own lives.
story from the
* Havruta learning or paired study scriptural passage
is a traditional mode of Jewish text
study. The term itself captures two
simultaneous learning activities in
which the Havruta partners engage:
the study of a text and learning
with a partner.

Objective: The students will read

any passage from the scriptures and
draw out inspiration from it.
Fourth Hour: Film Viewing
Prince of Egypt and Reading Genesis with Ancient Eyes by John Walton, Ph.D.

REFERENCES:

Catechism of the Catholic Church. Second Edition. Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2000.

Bragado, Erlinda and Monera, Arnold.  Kaloob: Interweaving on the Christian Story

Cabrido, John Aranda, Hanep, Biblia!

Ceresko, Anthony, Introduction to the Old Testament: A Liberation Perspective

Copley, T. and Savini, H. (Autumn 1998). The state of the Bible in state schools. The
Bible in TransMission (Bible Society).

Pabillo,B., The Bible:100% Divine 100% Human

Pabillo, B., Thus  says Yahweh: Understanding the Old Testament Prophets