St. Francis in the Foothills United Methodist Church's adult education program will offer a course next month exploring the Hebrew scriptures from a modern, scholarly perspective.
The four-session course, "Reading the Hebrew Scriptures Again - For the First Time," will be led by Jerry Gill, an adjunct professor of philosophy and religious studies at Pima Community College.
Gill, who received his doctorate from Duke University, has taught biblical and religious studies courses at colleges around the country.
The classes will all begin at 11 a.m. They are free and open to the public.
The course, which will begin Sunday, is designed to parallel the Advent season, Gill wrote in a press release.
It will begin with an overview of the Hebrew scriptures, focusing especially on the historical and geographical background behind the story of the Hebrew people and a consideration of the first 11 chapters of the Book of Genesis, Gill wrote.
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"There has always been a good deal of controversy concerning how to interpret these chapters - whether they are to be read as historical, scientific or mythological," Gill wrote. He'll offer a "fresh and hopefully satisfactory way to approach this controversy."
The second session, on Dec. 9, will deal with the stories of Abraham and Isaac, Jacob and Esau, and Joseph and his brothers.
The third session, on Dec. 16, will cover the three kings of Israel: Saul, David and Solomon. The final session, on Dec. 23, will take up the prophets, such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos and Hosea, during the period of the captivities and exile. The focus of this part of the course will be the interpersonal dynamics between them.
Gill encourages participants to read Marcus Borg's book "Reading the Bible Again for the First Time."
St. Francis in the Foothills is at 4625 E. River Road, at North Swan Road. For more information call the church office at 299-9063.
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