CLTR 5023-91

THE BIBLE AND CLASSICAL LITERATURE

Luke as
Iconographer

Course: CLTR 5023-91 The Bible and Classical Literature Instructor: Chris Rosser, MLIS, MDiv
Delivery: 7-week, online, mostly asynchronous, gamified Contact: chris.rosser@oc.edu

Required texts:
Hey! Friend! Pause before freaking out about this
MacDonald, Dennis. (2015). Mythologizing Jesus. New York:
Roman & Littlefield. $40 Hardback. 978-0742558915 unusual syllabus and watch this intro to the class first!

Nagy, Gregory. (2020). The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours. Need to schedule a meeting with your instructor?
Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard Univ. $24.95 Paperback.
978-0674241688
Use this link to find an available time that works for you!
A NOTE ABOUT COURSE DELIVERY
7-week, online, asynchronous (mostly)
Heroic travelers, our seven-week course is designed for maximum flexibility. Course lectures are offered virtually,
but each week we’ll also have non-required opportunities to meet up (virtually) face to face. For a quick intro to our
course, take a look at this brief video!

What I mean by a “gamified” course

Gamification refers to the application of game design principles to non-game contexts, infusing education with
curiosity, imagination, and play. Moreover, gameful design enables instructors to reimagine courses that
incorporate basic game architecture, story, and aesthetic. In this gamified course, imagine that you are a hero-
traveler named Krino (if you took Intro to Biblical and Theological Research with me, then you should remember
Krino—reclaim the mantle, hero!) You are a hero-traveler named Krino embarking on a journey through texts that
make and keep us human, texts that speak to each other, mimic each other, tell sacred stories of humanity reaching
for and encountering the divine. Our journey together incorporates whole-person learning—mind, heart, body, and
spirit—mapping each aspect of learning to specific “hours” of our travels. As a fellow traveler through ancient,
Classical, and biblical texts, you’ll engage video-lectures that serve as guide for our journey. You’ll discover how
mythos (story) generates ethos (ways of being together in the world), and an important aspect of our journey is to
map sacred encounters in story to sacred experiences in our own here and now (more on this below). You’ll
engage texts as you complete tasks from each hour of our journey. And you’ll have opportunity to deepen
learning through side-quests as you follow your heart into the desire-driven learning space of Nostos
Algos (we’ll learn more about this traveler’s wayside hangout as we go!) Each week, you’ll have a non-
required opportunity to gather with other travelers for a virtual campfire, where weary travelers
discuss strange encounters, their adventures on dusty roads and raging seas. We journey together,
friends! I’m excited to embark with you—who knows what we might discover as we travel these texts,
bridging sacred story with our own here and now!
THINKING ABOUT TEACHING…
How I think about teaching…
Learning is an encounter between self (sameness) and other (difference). Whole-person learning considers body, mind, heart, and soul—aspects
captured here as thriving, understanding, desiring, and imagining. Through facilitated encounters between self and other, students enlarge capacity to
thrive, broaden understanding, clarify desire, and electrify imagination, so that love and learning transform body, mind, heart, and spirit. I’m
employing STUDIO as an acrostic, because studio calls to mind images of a workshop—scraps of wood litter and spilled paint stains the floor, creation-
in-process decorates walls and tabletops, tools all around, a space made buzzy by messy creativity, the perfect space for kitting up for adventure.

Now, you may see yourself as mage or wandering bard, paladin, elf, thief, rogue, or cleric—I want to fully own the identity librarian-as-teacher, teacher-
as-librarian; and my purpose therefore is (in)formation—to reach and transform a student’s heart, soul, mind, and strength. I recognize that the truest
path to the heart is not through the head but through the gut, and gamification enables us to bring learning to spaces of desire. Transforming the whole
person involves reorienting or clarifying desire so that students’ love (i.e., what they desire) vectors more truly toward God and neighbor. Love is
therefore both the motivation and goal of teaching. Tasks in this course reflect the body, mind, heart, and soul of whole-person learning.
 SYLLABUS CONTENTS
This syllabus is an electronic document! Why anger the Lorax with unnecessary
printing? Note links throughout the syllabus connecting you with Web resources.

Use the links below to quickly navigate the syllabus:

Expectations
Schedule
How this Class Works
Concerning Texts
Grading
Quest(ion)ing—Ambrosial Offerings
Outcomes
Our Journey
Assessing Points, Earning Badges
Red Mage Points
Catalog of Badges
Ambrosial Offerings Rubric
Heroic Tasks 1-3
Heroic Tasks 4-5
Heroic Tasks 6-8
Heroic Tasks 9-11
Policies
 DEAR HEROES…
What you can expect from me...
As an instructor, I believe that learning must be active; in other words, students learn best when they are active participants in the learning process. This is true whether
content delivery is offered virtually or in-person, traditional or gamified. My aim is to facilitate, nurture, and guide students as you critically examine, question, practice,
and are shaped by learning and experience. Because I myself am a continuous learner, I’ll strive alongside students to explore the stories around us, sharpen ears to the
resonances between biblical and other storied-worlds, and empower students with skills for lifelong learning in a world thoroughly enlivened by the Spirit and presence
of God. My purpose is to reach and transform each student’s heart; and I recognize that the truest path to the heart is not through the head but through the gut.
Therefore, I strive to bring learning to spaces of desire. Transforming the heart involves reorienting or clarifying desire so that students’ love (i.e., desire) vectors more
truly toward God and neighbor. Love is both the motivation and goal of my teaching.

That said, I hope to foster open, generative dialogue with you individually and among your classmates. If you have questions or concerns, the best way to contact me is
via email (chris.rosser@oc.edu), and I will respond within 24 hours. (See other contact info in Course Policies below.)

What I can expect from you...

As a hero-learner in a gamified learning environment embarking upon our journey together, please keep in mind the following three guidelines:

Communicate. Communicating with your instructor (questions, concerns, late submissions, etc.) is an important habit to develop. Be sure to email me, or, if your
question is general and not too personal, feel free to submit to our Q&A (Quill and Arrow) discussion forum in Blackboard.

Participate. Engaging in class discussion—both face-to-face and virtually—by questioning, sharing ideas, offering robust feedback, and generating dialogue among your
classmates is an important way to increase learning. Be sure to join in without expectation that you must “sound like” an expert. We’re explorers!

Respect. Encountering difference is crucial for both intellectual and spiritual growth. Encounters with difference of opinion or ideology are not only likely, such
encounters are the vibrant heart of our journey together. We’ll be learning to detect ways our own presuppositions inform encounters with difference, and we’ll sharpen
skills for critical, civil, and generative dialogue. Be sure to approach every conversation guided by the Golden Rule (cf. Romans 13:10).
Course Description: CLTR 5023-91 The Bible and Classical Literature offers a study of major texts taken from the Bible and from the
literature of other ancient civilizations (Babylonian, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman). Students study the similarities of theme and
genre found among these texts and analyze the variety of responses they offer to our human condition and needs.

SCHEDULE

Week Texts and Topics Heroic Tasks

Week 1: Let’s talk about origin stories… Hour 1: Call to Adventure
In the beginnings…
Reading glasses: Sacredness; myth; intertextuality Hour 2: Assistance

TOT for readings: Primary texts: Genesis 1; Psalm 74; Enuma Elish Virtual Campfire: (day/time TBD)
3 hours Secondary text(s): Lewis, Abolition, ch. 1; Beal, Monsters, 1-34

(TOT=time on task) Ambrosial Offering: Consider seeking the sacred in feminine imagery.

Week 2: Let’s talk about companionship… Hour 3: Departure

With a little help
from my friends… Reading glasses: Feminine-masculine; homosociality and friendship Hour 4: Trials

Primary texts: Genesis 2; Gilgamesh; 2 Samuel 1:17-27; Ruth; Iliad 18 Virtual Campfire: (day/time TBD)
TOT for readings: Secondary texts: Ackerman, Heroes (selected); Nagy, 24 Hours (Hour 6)
6 hours
Ambrosial Offering: Consider seeking the sacred in portrayals of friendship.

Week 3: Let’s talk about wisdom… Hour 5: Approach

A word to the wise…
Reading glasses: Didactic and contemplative wisdom Hour 6: Crisis

TOT for readings: Primary texts: Genesis 3; Deuteronomy 27-30; Proverbs 1-9, 22:17-24:34; Virtual Campfire: (day/time TBD)
6 hours Instruction of Amenemope; Instructions of Shuruppak; Ecclesiastes 1-4;
Sirach 24; 44-50; Job 1-5; 28; 34-42; Babylonian Theodicy; Man and His Ba
Ambrosial Offering: Consider seeking the sacred in hiddenness.
NOTE: Additional supplementary readings, videos, and other resources will be available in Blackboard and at our course Readings site (via Bb).
Week Texts and Topics Heroic Tasks
Week 4: Let’s talk about death and afterlife… Hour 7: Treasure
Abandon all hope?
Reading glasses: Hellish evolution; anastasis and apokatastasis Hour 8: Result

TOT for readings: Primary texts: Job 3; Isaiah 14:1-23; [Ugaritic funerary text]; Egyptian Book Virtual Campfire: (day/time TBD)
5 hours of the Dead [excerpts]; Odyssey 11; Aeneid 6; Luke 16: 19-31; excerpts from
Gospel of Matthew, Gospel of Nicodemus, Apocalypse of Peter
Ambrosial Offering: Consider seeking the sacred in journeying into the unknown.

Week 5: Let’s talk about myth-vision… Hour 9: Return

A fine myth indeed…
Reading glasses: From mythos to ethos (story and social identity) Hour 10: New Life

TOT for readings: Primary texts: Gospel of Mark; Odyssey 9, 14-17, 21, 24; Iliad 22, 24 Virtual Campfire: (day/time TBD)
6 hours Secondary texts: MacDonald, Mythologizing Jesus (selected)

Ambrosial Offering: Consider seeking the sacred in empathy for an other.

Week 6: Let’s talk about mimesis… Hour 11: Resolution

Ear training…
Reading glasses: Mimetic criticism; literary and historic judgment Virtual Campfire: (day/time TBD)

TOT for readings: Primary texts: Acts of the Apostles; The Bacchae; Ovid’s Metamorphoses 8
6 hours Secondary texts: Hall, “Ear Training”; Bonz, Past as Legacy (selected)

Ambrosial Offering: Consider seeking the sacred in storytelling.

Week 7: Let’s talk about nostalgia… Complete any remainder yet left undone
Homecoming…
Reading glasses: nostos, xenia, theoxenia, theomachy, theophilus Virtual Campfire: (day/time TBD)

Primary texts: Odyssey 5-9; Hebrews 11-13; Aeneid 2, 4; Antigone

TOT for readings: Secondary texts: Nagy, 24 Hours (Hours 9, 10, 12)
6 hours
Ambrosial Offering: Consider seeking the sacred in the sacredness of home.
NOTE: Additional supplementary readings, videos, and other resources will be available in Blackboard and at our course Readings site (via Bb).
HOW THIS CLASS WORKS…
Instruction takes place via video outside of class; virtual campfires
offer a non-required option for meeting up and learning more.
Ambrosial Offerings intentionally bridge the distance between ancient
texts and our own context(s)—focusing on discovering the sacred we
experience in the texts in our own here-and-now experiences, thus
shrinking the gulf between the horizon of the text in its historical
context and its capacity to speak into our current contexts.
Heroic Tasks are mapped to the hours of the Hero’s Journey as well as
the four aspects of whole-person learning. Tasks are loaded with
learning experiences that fulfill teaching aims described below.
In other words…
This is a different kind of course! Do the following:
Read your syllabus and explore Blackboard.
Each week, here’s what you’ll do:
• Engage weekly assigned video-lectures and respond to a
brief prompt for comprehension confirmation.
• Read assigned texts that make and keep us human (live
with your readings, inhabit them, enjoy them).
• Make weekly Ambrosial Offerings that identify sacredness
in ancient story and in our here and now.
• Complete required Heroic Tasks for each week.
• Join non-required Virtual Campfires (if you are able)
• And adventure in Nostos Algos for sweet Nostalgia Points.
Pay attention to required benchmarks (due dates).
Clever Odysseus attacks the wrong cyclops...
CONCERNING TEXTS
Because excellent translations of both Classical and biblical literature are
readily and freely available, our course does not require the purchase of any
ancient texts, which will be made available electronically at our course
readings site. However, we highly recommend that students acquire a good
study Bible, like the HarperCollins Study Bible (NRSV) or the NIV Study
Bible, which will serve them throughout their studies. For those who want to
purchase personal copies of Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid, we recommend
translations by Robert Fagles, or the Aeneid translation by Sarah Ruden.
Grading
Grade Scale: Participation 10%
A         93-100                      Tasks 40%
B         83-92                        Offerings 40%
C         73-81                         Nostos Algos 10%
F          below 73 Total 100%
However...
Grading in Bible and Classical Literature is a bit more interesting than a
wooden grading scale. As described below in the syllabus, our class
progresses through the Hero’s Journey, and grades correspond to exercises
and tasks accomplished, assessed via rubrics (see below). The brave
acquisition of all badges corresponds to an “A”; point values for
assignments (awarded via grading rubrics) determine grades of B, C, and F.
Grades for all assignments, along with instructor
feedback, will be available in the “My Grades” section
of Blackboard for our course.
See below for a description of exercises, tasks, and
badges, along with corresponding values.
 Quest(ion)ing: Our Ambrosial Offering
Concerning Ambrosial Offerings...
With the catchword quest(ion)ing as dynamo powering our hero’s journey, students and instructors employ inquiry as the primary mode
for engaging biblical and Classical texts. 

As you engage assigned readings, be intentional about seeking the sacred. Sacredness itself is a bit fuzzy, resisting capture by easy
description. We’ll talk more about sacredness as we begin class together, but for now, note: you will encounter sacredness in sacred story,
and you’ll be asked to reflect on where you encounter similar sacredness in your own here-and-now experiences. Each week, you’ll
compose and post in the appropriate discussion forum a single ambrosial offering—your encounters with sacredness, reflective of your
own insight, and evidential of thoughtful engagement. Each ambrosial offering is a personal contribution to “feed” class conversation
(ambrosia is divine food, of course, and student offerings help us savor and nourish ourselves through deep engagement with timeless
texts). Instructors provide feedback and flavor student offerings, and we’ll have opportunity weekly to chew on ambrosial offerings around
our non-required virtual campfire.

Our quest itself is sustained by old, powerful verbiage: fides quaerens intellectum, faith seeking understanding. When we hear Saint
Anselm’s famous phrase faith seeking understanding, we may be tempted to focus on faith, the strength of our convictions and beliefs; or,
we might focus on understanding, the proud goal we have reached when our wondering becomes certainty. Yet seeking implies that we are
embarked on a quest, full of danger, excitement, and wonderment, with surprises at every turn. When emphasis is put on the verb(al
noun), faith seeking understanding becomes a dynamo propelling us deeper into the mysteries of faith, because faith is formed as we
grow in understanding; deepened faith then shapes how we understand the world to be. 

Ambrosial Offerings set the table for a feast of class conversation, fragrant offerings that deeply
satisfy, nourishing blood, bone, hearts, and minds. As the Prophet invites, 

Come, buy wine and milk

   without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
   and your labour for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
   and delight yourselves in rich food. (Isaiah 55)

Ambrosial Offerings becomes sustenance for our quest, enlarging souls as we satisfyingly engage
texts that make and keep us human.
 BADGING OUR HEROES
Outcomes and Assessment for Bible and Classical Literature
Explanation and outcomes
Through learning experiences in Bible and Classical Literature, students will:
1. Identify and articulate continuity and discontinuity among ancient and classical texts, biblical literature, and own perspective(s)
2. Demonstrate critical engagement of assigned texts, familiarity with themes, and apprehension of questions the stories raise
3. Demonstrate reflection on how engaging ancient texts informs understanding of the Bible and (potentially) enriches faith
4. Demonstrate ability to question texts as partners in dialogue and to put texts in conversation with each other
5. Demonstrate recognition of various textual genres, including and especially the nature of myth
6. Identify resonance between experiences of sacredness in ancient texts with experiences of the sacred in our here and now

Daunting tasks, undaunted spirits

Throughout our journey this semester, students will complete Ambrosial Offering exercises and Heroic Tasks that serve to demonstrate
comprehension of the texts we engage and competency with the thought-tools we’re working to sharpen. These exercises involve responses
to assigned readings and participation in classroom or virtual discussion. Heroic Tasks often incorporate personal reflection about learning.
This course is not project heavy; but it is reading heavy. Our aim is to both inhabit and to be inhabited by the texts we engage.
Successful completion of tasks is assessed via rubric, as described below.

Undertaking a hero’s journey

As a framework for conceptualizing our movement towards course completion, we are employing The Hero’s Journey (see below) as a map
to guide our undertaking. Heroic Tasks correspond to various hours on the journey; badges are awarded along the way, culminating in the
Hero’s Badge, which signifies an “A” in the course. Grading rubrics and task descriptions can be found below.

The Hero’s Badge

 Status Quo

11. resolution 1. Call to adventure

10. new life 2. assistance

Ordinary
World

9. return 3. Departure

Special
8. Result
World 4. Trials

7. treasure 5. Approach

6. Crisis

MAPPING THE HERO’S JOURNEY

Points for Ambrosial Offerings, Heroic Tasks, and Badges
In Bible and Classical Literature, students complete exercises and tasks to
earn badges, by which they earn their grade and complete the course.
Ambrosial Offerings: Each week, students identify resonance between
sacredness encountered in story and the sacred experienced in their own here
and now (see description above). These exercises also help confirm reading
comprehension and generate class discussion. See rubric below. Discussion
Board forums can be accessed in Blackboard, and threads for each period are
clearly marked (e.g., Ambrosial Offering, Week 1). Exercises completed at
90% will receive the Quest(ion)ing Badge.
Heroic Tasks: As described below, Heroic Tasks correspond to various hours
on the Hero’s Journey. Tasks are graded via rubrics (see below), and
corresponding badges are awarded for students who receive 85 points or
better. Heroic Tasks signify transitional movement as we progress throughout
the course and offer opportunity for reflection on both learning and personal
experience. Heroic Tasks are also mapped to an aspect of whole-person
learning (see STUDIO explanation above). See schedule above for due dates
and descriptions below for details.
Nostos Algos and Participation: Participation refers to student responses to
weekly video-lecture content (note: participation in virtual campfires is NOT
required and is therefore not graded). Nostos Algos is a forum for desire-
driven learning—more on this (and earning sweet Nostalgia Points!) will be
revealed later during class.
Badges: Badging offers a means for gamifying learning in this course. The
Hero’s Journey (which will be described in class) offers an interesting way of
conceptualizing our movement through the various texts we engage. Badges
are acquired as Tasks and Exercises are successfully completed, and
accumulation of all badges signifies an “A” in the course. See below for
details regarding specific badges.
All Badges = “A” final grade
Quest(ion)ing Badge
RED MAGE TOKEN
We know it’s not always possible to complete
readings and make posts; life happens! So, for
every five (5) occasions that you continue the
conversation by offering a substantial
comment on a peer’s Ambrosial Offering, you
get one Red Mage Token. The Red Mage is a
source of healing or a weapon of destruction!
Healing Potion: The Red Mage Token can be
used to heal 10 points on any Heroic Task!
Fireball: The Red Made Token can obliterate
one missed Ambrosial Offering (but this
power can only be used once!)
Participation 10%
Tasks 40%
Offerings 40%
Nostos Algos 10%
Total 100%
Nota Bene:
In using the phrase “Hero’s Journey,” we are not
Don’t freak out!
oblivious to the gendered implications of the language.
Take a breath! It will be
The “Hero’s Journey” is a literary “thing” which we will
much better than it
seems on paper!!! discuss in class, and although masculine in aspect the
journey is undertaken by heroic women and men alike.
The “Heroine’s Journey” is also a literary “thing,” and
we will distinguish the two in our discussions.
 CATALOG OF BADGES
Badge Maps to STUDIO: Icon Badge Maps to STUDIO: Icon

Call to Adventure UNDERSTAND Hero’s Challenge Earned for

(mind) HOURS 6-8

Assistance THRIVE Return UNDERSTAND

(body) (mind)

Departure DESIRE New Life THRIVE

(heart) (body)

Adventure Begins Earned for

Resolution IMAGINE
HOURS 1-3 (spirit)

Trials IMAGINE Hero’s Boon Earned for

(spirit) HOURS 9-11

Approach UNDERSTAND NOSTOS ALGOS DESIRE

(mind) (heart)

Brave New World Earned for

HOURS 4-5 Quest(ion)ing Earned for
Badge AMBROSIAL
OFFERINGS
Crisis DESIRE
(heart)
The Hero’s Badge Earned for acquiring

Treasure THRIVE ALL BADGES

(body)

Result IMAGINE
(spirit)
 QUEST(ION)ING RUBRIC
Quest(ion)ing Exercises Capstone Milestones Benchmark
(25 pt) (18 pt) (10 pt)

Use this rubric to guide your
Ambrosial Offerings, by which
you encounter sacredness in
ancient texts and in our here
and now.
Reflect: Offerings are of the
highest level and reveal a
depth of introspection;
questions put texts in
conversation with here-and-
now contexts.
Create: Offerings yield new
insights and/or provide new
ways for thinking about texts;
observations provoke
thought, potentially eliciting
robust class discussion
Adapt: Offerings exhibit
critical thinking and skillfully
draw out insight regarding
themes, characterizations,
issues, etc.
Model: Offerings do not
evidence engagement with
assigned readings. (Note: no
points awarded to plagiarized
questions; encounter with
instructor imminent...)

Comments and Points:

Total Points: (minimum 90 percent required for badge)

Nota bene: Typically, ambrosial offerings are assessed as either attempted or not attempted (i.e., this rubric is not necessary for evaluating
all student questions submitted). However, the above rubric should guide students as they construct capstone-level offerings and will be
used to evaluate all offerings that are deemed deficient or less-than-compelling (i.e., they only meet adapt or model rubric levels).

Badge awarded? Yes or No

Additional comments:

Reviewer name(s):

Student name:
 HEROIC TASKS AND RUBRICS
Hours 1 - 3
Complete tasks for each hour and
gain all badges to also receive this superfluous badge!
Hour and explanation
Hour 1: Call to Adventure
We begin our journey by paying attention to
origin stories, primal myths whose truth-telling
stirs imagination, shapes identity, situates
power, and suggests a relationship between
humanity, divinity, and the cosmos. Status quo
is established but disrupted; disaster summons
response, and adventure begins.
Hour 2: Assistance
The sage, a character type we encounter on our
journey, offers a boon, wise advice for living
well. From the sages we learn skills for
observation and for questioning; we acquire
“just so” stories for making sense of the world,
yet we also encounter disruption, fissures in the
status quo to which we must attend.
Hour 3: Departure
Darkening sky, brewing storm, and crumbling
“just so” stories signify departure from the
status quo into strange landscapes. Will the
sage’s boon sustain us? Will we find new
wisdom, or will we be undone by whirlwinds
and weird, loathsome, unnamed things lurking
in the liminal spaces of new experience?
ADVENTURE BEGINS!
Tasks and outcomes Icon
For this hour, students will compose a reflection piece (300-500
words) that describes three or more points of continuity and three or
more points of discontinuity among Enuma Elish, biblical creation
texts, modern origin stories, and personal beliefs. Students will also
articulate three critical questions that help drive thinking into these
texts. See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 1, 2, 4, and 5. FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE,
CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING—Understand
For this hour, students will demonstrate ability to find scholarly
resources of various types in various media that help to make sense
of conversation about and among the texts we are engaging.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 4. INFORMATION LITERACY—Thrive
For this hour, students compose a reflection piece (300-500 words)
that maps the Hero’s Journey to their own life. Specifically, the piece
should focus on departure, an experience of disrupted status quo,
forcing movement into new and strange landscapes. Literal
departure (like moving to a new town, etc.) should not overshadow
internal landscapes, i.e., the affect of departure on the soul. Tell us a
story about your own experience of departure.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcome 3. CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING—Desire
 Hours 1-3: Capstone
Adventure Begins (100 pt)
Hour 1: Call to Adventure Reflect: Questions and
observations are of the highest
level and reveal a depth of
introspection as
presuppositions are mulled
Comments and Points:
Hour 2: Assistance Reflect: Discovered resources
are excellent and critical
reflection on their use is of the
highest quality.
Comments and Points:
Hour 3: Departure Reflect: Piece is an exemplar of
good storytelling, applying
class discussion and texts to
personal experience
Comments and Points:
NOTE: A minimum of 85 points are required for badge to be awarded
Badge awarded? Hour 1: Yes or No Hour 2: Yes or No
Additional comments:
Reviewer name(s):
Student name:
Milestones
(85 pt)
Create: Questions yield new Adapt: Questions exhibit
insights and/or provide new critical thinking and skillfully
ways for thinking about texts; put texts into conversation;
observations provoke thought observations incorporate yet
and elicit robust discussion move beyond class discussion
Create: Discovered resources Adapt: Discovered resources
are helpful and scholarly but are potentially helpful but do
critical insight into how they not reflect an adequate level of
might be used is lacking scholarship
Create: Piece is effective Adapt: Piece moves beyond
storytelling that elicits pathos, mere description (What?);
raises questions, and/or captures and portrays
challenges perspectives departure’s impact (So what?)
Hour 3: Yes or No
Benchmark
(50 pt)
Model: Questions and
observations are incomplete or
do not move beyond instructor
comments and suggestions
Model: Resource discovery is
inadequate or incomplete
Model: Piece is adequate, but
exhibits grammatical and/or
clarity issues; thoughtfulness is
difficult to discern
Hours 4 - 5
Complete tasks for each hour and
gain all badges to also receive this superfluous badge!
Hour and explanation
Hour 4: Trials
Darkness deepens, yet we discover light for our
journey. Encounters with weird others threaten
to undo interior worlds, forcing us to discover
new strength, to harden muscles, sharpen
minds, and soften hearts. Will trials mark our
undoing, or will those we encounter mark us as
heroes? This dark hour we tremble, yet with
iron resignation break down forest gates, walk
through cavernous night, face monsters, and
embrace trial, knowing that heroes and learners
are born of struggle.
Hour 5: Approach
Fatigue is overwhelming, yet we have
discovered new sources of courage. Before us
looms our greatest challenge; now we prepare
ourselves to confront an unnamed horror
threatening to shatter our comfortable worlds;
but there is no other choice, and we resign
ourselves to a hero’s doom.
BRAVE NEW WORLD
Tasks and outcomes Icon
For this hour, students will identify a contemporary social issue that
resonates with one or more episodes from any of the stories we have
engaged. Write a discussion post that describes the social issue;
explain how your selected episode(s) informs, illustrates, or
problematizes the issue; conclude with an assertion of truth to take
with you into “the real world,” where social injustices are truly
encountered. Use two scholarly sources (monographs or articles) to
support your observations, sharpen your thinking, or help frame your
discussion (citation style: Turabian).
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 2, 3, and 4. INFORMATION LITERACY,
PERSONAL…GLOBAL STEWARDSHIP—Imagine
For this hour, students will compose a reflection piece (300-500
words) that describes three or more points of continuity and three or
more points of discontinuity among Egyptian, Mesopotamian,
Hebrew wisdom, and personal beliefs. Students will also articulate
three critical questions that help drive thinking into these texts. See
full assignment details in Blackboard.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 1, 2, and 4. FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE,
CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING—Understand
 Hours 4-5: Capstone Milestones Benchmark
Brave New World (100 pt) (85 pt) (50 pt)

Hour 4: Trials Reflect: Post compellingly
synthesizes selected episode(s)
and discovered scholarly
resources, offering provocative
insight into the social issue in
light of readings; discussion is
clear, concise, and compelling;
“So what?” conclusion offers
clear challenge; sources are
robust and Turabian is excellent
Create: Post displays creative
interplay between text and
identified issues (i.e., the way
selected episode(s) inform or
challenge the contemporary
issue are insightful and
provocative; presentation is
clear, concise, compelling,
culminates in a powerful “So
what?” take-away; sources and
Turabian are appropriate
Adapt: Post shows strong
interplay between identified
issue and selected episode(s);
discussion is clear but needs
better concision; culminates in
a “So what?” take-away; sources
are appropriate but do not
clearly inform thinking and
discussion; Turabian requires
some attention.
Model: Post identifies a social
issue, but connection to
episode(s) is weak and needs
strengthening; take-away
offered by not compellingly
articulated (i.e., does not
provide a resounding “So
what?” response; informed by
sources, but of questionable
scholarship; Turabian
formatting requires attention

Comments and Points:

Hour 5: Approach Reflect: Group works together
to select a text and articulate a
teaching point with clear “So
what?” implications; teaching
plan exhibits thoughtfulness
regarding pedagogy and
proposes a creative, doable
presentation
Create: Group work is excellent;
team clearly works together to
select a text and articulate a
provocative teaching point;
facilitation plan is creative,
appropriate in scope, and
exhibits some thought about
pedagogy
Adapt: Group works well
together and exhibits strong
participation by members;
teaching point is clear and
clearly emerges from selected
text; proposed plan for
facilitation is over-ambitious,
distracting, or off-point
Model: Group work is adequate,
but primarily reflects input
from one or two team members;
text is selected, but teaching
point is unclear; proposed plan
for facilitation is “wooden” and
lacks pizazz

Comments and Points:

NOTE: A minimum of 85 points are required for badge to be awarded

Badge awarded? Hour 4: Yes or No. Hour 5: Yes or No

Additional comments:

Reviewer name(s):

Student name:
Hours 6 - 8
Complete tasks for each hour and
gain all badges to also receive this superfluous badge!
Hour and explanation
Hour 6: Crisis
Now it comes to it: no turning back. Hearts
thundering, we enter darkness, shadow realms
where mortal souls are unwelcome except as
unlucky consumables...
Courage!
Hour 7: Treasure
Unbearably fatigued, we nevertheless emerge
victorious, boon in hand! What have we
discovered, and what help has been ours along
the way? These are the treasures with which we
emerge from darkness...
Hour 8: Result
Sweaty work has paid in full; we are prepared
for the task at hand. Muscles are hardened,
minds sharpened, souls enlarged. We are now
equipped to lead those who will follow, to
challenge and teach those who will listen.
HERO’S CHALLENGE
Tasks and outcomes Icon
For this hour, students journey into the dark to put theodicy-oriented
texts into conversation with select film, television, and or other
media from our own here and now.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 2, 3, and 4. INFORMATION LITERACY,
CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING—Desire
For this hour, students will compose a letter to a someone in grief
(real or imagined), offering words of consolation that incorporate or
are informed by sacred story we’ve engaged.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 2, 3, and 6. ACTIVE FAITH, CRITICAL AND
CREATIVE THINKING—Thrive
For this hour, students will contemplate the icon Anastasis for
reflection about resurrection and (re)creation, choosing from a
selection of creative activities to fulfill this task.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 2, 3, 5, and 6. ACTIVE FAITH, CRITICAL AND
CREATIVE THINKING—Imagine
 Hours 6-8: Capstone
Heroes’ Project (100 pt)
Hour 6: Crisis Reflect: Response is exemplary
of thoughtful, critical
engagement, where questions
drive thinking into texts and
media, slice like Krino to reveal
new insights.
Comments and Points:
Hour 7: Treasure Reflect: From the instructors‘
perspective, letter is exemplary,
expresses compassion and help
while also creatively engaging
with assigned texts
Comments and Points:
Hour 8: Result Reflect: Submission is exemplar
of creative theological thinking;
reflection opens possibility for
new, perhaps unseen, insights
between text and icon
Comments and Points:
NOTE: A minimum of 85 points are required for badge to be awarded
Badge awarded? Hour 6: Yes or No Hour 7: Yes or No
Additional comments:
Reviewer name(s):
Student name:
Milestones
(85 pt)
Create: Theological questioning
reveals clear connections
between themes in assigned
texts and selected film (or other
media)
Create: From the instructors‘
perspective, letter is well
written, well conceived, and
evidences compassionate
engagement with grief in texts
Create: Submission creatively
captures and conveys
significant aspects of the
theological story portrayed by
the Anastasis icon
Hour 8: Yes or No
Adapt: Response reflects
adequate engagement with
readings, but theological
questioning fails to make
connections between texts, film,
and our here and now.
Adapt: From the instructors‘
perspective, letter is clear and
evidences thoughtful intent, but
does not meet expectations for
connecting with assigned texts
Adapt: Submission evidences
some engagement of texts, but
reflection is inadequate or
creative work seems to have
evoked little effort
Benchmark
(50 pt)
Model: Response reflects
inadequate engagement with
assigned readings; theological
questioning does not meet
expectations.
Model: From the instructors‘
perspective, letter inadequately
connects experiences of grief
with assigned texts; letter is
messy with distracting typos
Model: Submission evidences
principle of “least effort”

Hours 9 - 11
Complete tasks for each hour and
gain all badges to also receive this superfluous badge!
Hour and explanation
Hour 9: Return
The ascent begins. Are we ready for reentry, to
once again encounter familiar worlds? And will
we be recognizable to those at home? Will we
be accepted, or have we been undone by these
experiences, reshaped so that we no longer fit
the world we once inhabited?
Hour 10: New Life
Landscapes become known; we imagine all that
awaits just beyond the next rise. Excitement is
tinged with ambiguity; we are changed by our
experiences. What will it mean to begin new life
with old familiars?
Hour 11: Resolution
We’ve settled in. This Hour is Bilbo mapping
his quest and detailing his adventures; this is a
quiet hour for reflection on all that has
happened, how we are changed: who we were,
who we are, and who we are becoming.
Heroic Tasks
HERO’S BOON
Tasks and outcomes Icon
For this hour, students will compose a reflection piece (300-500
words) describing how myth (as defined and discussed in class)
functions in their own lives and learning.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcome 5. ACTIVE FAITH, FOUNDATIONAL
KNOWLEDGE, CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING—Thrive
For this hour, students will begin mapping their own experiences to
the hours of the Hero’s Journey. For each hour, identify a life
experience or learning experience resonates with that aspect of the
journey; for as many hours as possible, briefly describe aspects of
readings and/or class discussions that inform your understanding of
each particular stage.
See full assignment details in Blackboard.
Maps to outcomes 1, 2, 3, and 6. ACTIVE FAITH, CRITICAL AND
CREATIVE THINKING—Imagine
For this hour, students should complete desire-driven learning
threads in the Nostos Algos forum to earn at least 25 points.
See Nostos Algos forum details in Blackboard.
Maps to all outcomes, 1 through 6; ACTIVE FAITH,
FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE, INFORMATION LITERACY,
CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING, PERSONAL…GLOBAL
STEWARDSHIP—Desire
 Hours 9-11: Capstone Milestones Benchmark
Heroes’ Boon (25 pt) (18 pt) (10 pt)

Hour 9: Return Reflect: Piece is exemplar of
reflection; explicates the role of
myth in personal life, draws out
challenging takeaways with
clear, compelling writing
Create: Reflection creatively
evidences mythic elements in
personal life and draws out
implications; writing is clear,
concise, and compelling
Adapt: Reflection evidences
strong understanding of myth
and offers a clear, concise,
compelling description of the
mythic in personal life
Model: Reflection shows
adequate understanding of
myth, per class discussion, and
discerns mythic presence in
personal life

Comments and Points:

Hour 10: New Life Reflect: Outline serves as an
exemplar of reflection;
demonstrates thoughtful
understanding of self upon a
Hero’s Journey; robustly
engages content; concludes
with a challenging “So what?”
Create: Outline clearly and
creatively demonstrates
resonance between self, the
Hero’s Journey, course texts,
and discussions; offers a clear
“So what?” conclusion
Adapt: Outline is well-written,
shows good movement between
self and aspects of the Hero’s
Journey, interacts with course
content, and offers a takeaway
Model: Outline is clear, shows
how aspects of the Hero’s
Journey map to personal
experiences, and evidences
interaction with course texts
and discussions

Comments and Points:

Hour 11: Resolution
Reflect: Student’s work in the
Nostos Algos forum is
exemplary, going above and
beyond expectation, reveling
the student as a desire-driven
learner motivated by faith
seeking understanding
Create: Student earns 25 or
more points, and work in the
Nostos Algos is robust and
seems personally formative
Adapt: Student earns 25
Nostalgia Points but work in the
Nostos Algos forum often
seems to reflect a principle of
“least effort”
Model: Student did not earn 25
Nostalgia Points, wether
through missed or inadequate
work in the Nostos Algos forum

Comments and Points:

NOTE: A minimum of 85 points are required for badge to be awarded

Badge awarded? Hour 9: Yes or No Hour 10: Yes or No Hour 11: Yes or No

Additional comments:

Reviewer name(s):

Student name:
 POLICIES
Class Participation and Absences
Because this course is primarily a readings seminar, students are expected to contribute thoughts to enrich discussion in virtual forums or in face-to-face virtual meetings.
Accordingly, grades will be awarded for participation and will consider quality of contribution. Though a student may occasionally have a "quiet week,” persistent silence
will result in reduction of the participation portion of the grade. Absence from the discussion, interaction, and exchange is irretrievable, but absences may be excused for
illness, family emergency or other compelling reason, though excusing absence and finding a work-around for making up absence is at the discretion of the instructor.

Email and Phone

To contact your professors, you may call, email, or come by or make an appointment.

The best way to contact your instructor is by email. Whenever possible, your instructor will respond within 24 hrs. of receiving an email message. Do not wait until the "last
minute" (e.g. just before class time) to send an email and expect an immediate answer or that the instructor even received the message. Clearly mark all e-mail messages to
the professor on the subject line as shown below:

Subject line:      CLTR 5023-91    Last Name, First Name        Assignment Name      

Students may call the instructor on his office phone (405-425-5323). If unavailable, you are encouraged to leave a voicemail message including your name and the reason for
your call. NOTE AGAIN: The best way to reach me is by email (chris.rosser@oc.edu). I encourage private appointments to discuss the class or anything else. We can meet
virtually or face-to-face, depending on student preferences.

Office Hours
Students should feel free to stop by the instructor’s office for consultation. It is best to email or call in advance to make an appointment to ensure that the instructor will be
available. Feel free to visit with me during class, stop by my office in the library, or email for an appointment. I don’t hold regular office hours because of library
responsibilities, but you are welcome to email me if you’d like to set up an appointment. My office is located on the first floor of the library, LC 105. Here’s my weekly
schedule. Also, feel free to schedule a research session with me here.

Late Work
All required tasks should be submitted by times designated in the syllabus or by the instructors.  This is for the student’s own good, so that work does not pile up and
become overwhelming. I will accept late work without point reduction, except in situations where the student’s absence affects participation in class discussion (see above).
When work will be submitted late, it is in the student’s interest to inform instructors of the situation as soon as possible. 

Closings and Emergencies

In the case that inclement weather or emergencies impact our online course work, students will be notified via email and Blackboard announcement. The professor will
later give any instructions regarding make up of missed work.  Follow the syllabus for weekly class assignments.

In case of an emergency, faculty, staff, and students who have signed up for OC Campus Messenger (oc.edu/notify) will be notified by text, email, or Twitter.   
Oklahoma Christian University Policy on Academic Honesty

Cheating: Cheating on an examination, assignment, roll sheet or other course related work or activities undermines the ethics of the academy and the specific Christian
purposes of Oklahoma Christian University. Accordingly, students who cheat on examinations, assignments or other course related work or activities will face serious
consequences, as outlined in this policy.

Plagiarism: One particular form of cheating is plagiarism. Plagiarism is the transmission of another’s ideas, words, or materials as one’s own and/or the failure to credit
accurately the ideas, words, or materials of another. Plagiarism also includes passing off another’s work (a friend, a parent, a website) as one’s own. Plagiarism undermines
the ethics of the academy and the specific Christian purposes of Oklahoma Christian University. Accordingly, students who engage in plagiarism in assignments submitted
will face serious consequences, as outlined in this policy.

Penalties for Academic Dishonesty

1. On the first offense, the student will receive zero (0) credit for the examination or assignment. For forms of cheating or dishonesty other than on examinations or
assignments, the Professor shall have the discretion to impose an appropriate penalty. Professors must send documentation of the first offense to the appropriate chair,
the dean of the appropriate college, the Chief Academic Officer, and the Dean of Students.
2. On the second offense in the same course, the student will receive an F in the course. Professors must send documentation of the second offense to the appropriate
chair, the dean of the appropriate college, the Chief Academic Officer, and the Dean of Students.
3. At either the first offense or second offense, the student may appeal using the process described in both the OC Student Handbook and the OC Academic Policy
Manual covering Grade Appeals.
4. If the student commits offenses in two or more courses, the Academic Appeals Committee, described in the OC Student Handbook and in the OC Academic Policy
Manual, may assign penalties for academic dishonesty in addition to the penalties assigned by the professors in the courses. The Academic Appeals Committee may
impose penalties up to and including suspension from the University in instances where a student has engaged in cheating or plagiarism in two or more courses. The
Academic Appeals Committee will inform the Chief Academic Officer and the Dean of Students in writing of any penalties imposed by it and will report annually on
its activities to the University’s Academic Affairs Committee.
5. Professors should maintain the highest standards of academic honesty both in and out of the classroom. Professors must report and apply the rules regarding
cheating/plagiarism to the appropriate channels. The student should be referred to the Oklahoma Christian University Covenant for principles which should guide
conduct in these matters.

Oklahoma Christian University is a higher learning community that

transforms lives for Christian faith, scholarship and service.
Americans with Disabilities Act
If you have a diagnosed disability and need special accommodations, please notify Ms. Katy Roybal (425-1876) before or immediately after your first scheduled class
meeting. After your disability has been verified, your instructor will work with you, with Ms. Roybal, and with the Office of the Vice President of Academic Affairs to provide
reasonable accommodations to ensure that you have a fair opportunity to perform in this course.

Sexual Misconduct Policy (Title IX)

Oklahoma Christian University is a Christian community unequivocally committed to ensuring a working and learning environment in which the dignity of every
individual is respected and providing a campus environment that is free of unlawful discrimination, which includes sexual harassment, sexual assault, or sexual
misconduct. OC’s Sexual Misconduct Policy (see the OC Student Handbook) is compliant with Title IX, which states, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of
sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial
assistance.” Sexual harassment is a breach of community, which expresses disrespect, exploits and undermines relationships based on trusts, and interferes with learning
and productive work.

Students are encouraged to immediately seek available assistance and report incidents of sexual misconduct as defined by the Sexual Misconduct Policy to either the Title
IX Coordinator or one of the Title IX Deputy Coordinators listed below:

Title IX Coordinator: Mrs. Lisa Herndon, 405.425.1820 (lisa.herndon@oc.edu)

Students have access to confidential services through OC’s Counseling Center and the Spiritual Life office. Let your instructor
know if you have
OC Counseling Center: 405.425.5250 any questions!

Spiritual Life
Jeff McMillon, Dean of Spiritual Life, 405.425.5919
Summer Lashley, Ethos Director, 405.425.5908

Copyright © 2021–2022 by Oklahoma Christian University.

Course materials provided or made available to students in class, online or via email are the property of Oklahoma Christian University, the instructor and
other copyright holders and are made available for the sole use of students enrolled in this class during the semester in which the student is enrolled. Students may keep
one copy (print or digital) for personal use only and may not distribute the materials in any media format to any person without the express permission of the Oklahoma
Christian University and the instructor. Original materials posted and authored by students may not be distributed under any circumstances.