February 20-26: Daniel and Apocalyptic

Apocalyptic! Daniel, with its court legends and apocalypses. Hellenism. Institutional settings and functions of apocalyptic literature in the ancient Near East.

Resources

Readings:

Read Bandstra’s Chapter 16, Daniel: From History to Apocalypse. If you haven’t already, read too is Prologue to the Writings. Or, in your Introduction of choice, read on the Book of Daniel, Apocalyptic, and Hellenism.

Recommended Reading:

“L.B.: A Less Graphic Experience”
“Who Were the Apocalypses Written For?”
“9/11 in Prophecy and Pictures” I hesitate to include this, because students sometimes think that I'm endorsing it by including it. Hint: Read Dan 8:20-22.
For more like this last item, you might do a Google search for "9/11" "book of daniel" "twin towers". Again, this is not an endorsement of the search results! The point is to give you an idea of what’s out there and what some folks expect of apocalyptic works like Daniel.

Lectures:

View or listen to the two-part lecture, “Daniel and Apocalyptic”:

“Make” of the Week

Pick one of the following options for this week’s “make,” sharing it on your blog, remembering to tag your post with our tag, “ootle17.” (Garrett students: Remember that your work is assessed according to the course rubric. You may need to add analysis or other elements that will allow you to include each element of the rubric. Remember too that you must comment, thoughtfully and substantively, to at least three [3] other OOTLE-ers, by Tuesday morning. You may comment to their Wisdom posts or Daniel/apocalyptic posts.)

Make Option 01: (Based on Exercise 118 in Stanley.) Read Daniel 7:1-28; 10:1-14; 11:1-12:13. Using our course materials as a resource and citing these where appropriate, make a list of all of the elements of apocalyptic literature that you find in these passages, noting (chapter and verses) where you find each element. Use the lecture and your textbook of choice to learn what "elements of apocalyptic literature" to look for. For the sake of your reader, do not format this post as a bulleted or numbered list. Instead, write in sentences and paragraphs.

Make Option 02: (Based on Exercise 119 in Stanley.) In about 1000 words, imagine that you are a member of a Christian or Jewish group, in modern times, where people like you face serious abuse and repression. Do you think that your group may find a piece of ancient apocalyptic literature helpful in that situation? Why or why not? (Or better yet: Why AND why not?) Be specific about the circumstances you presuppose. Also, cite course materials and biblical or ancient non-biblical apocalyptic texts where appropriate.

Make Option 03: “Son of Man.” In about 1000 words, write up the results of your research into the phrase “son of man” (Hebrew ben-adam) in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, including Daniel 7:13 (Aramaic bar enosh). Note that translations might include “son of man,” “mortal,” “human being,” and others. Texts include not only Daniel, but Ezekiel, Psalms, Proverbs, and several other books. (Just be sure to cover its use in Daniel, since this is our week on Daniel!) A comparative term to investigate is “son(s) of god(s)” (Hebrew bene-elohim and similar); cf. Daniel 3:25 Aramaic bar-elohin. Use course materials, resources from our Resources page, and any other academic (non-sectarian) resources available to you.

Activity of the Week: Build an OER bibliography for Daniel

This week, we’re plundering our Resources page and the rest of the Web to construct a bibliography of “Open Academic Resources” (OER) on Daniel, apocalyptic, and Hellenism. Hopefully, we’ll all walk away with a shared resource that we can use and share in our future ministries and careers, whatever those may be.

We will create the bibliography on this shared Google Doc. As a group, you will decide how to order and organize your finds, what headers to use, etc. (I recommend the Comment feature as a way to discuss edits. Please do not delete the work of others without their permission.)

You may work on this Activity throughout the week, but be aware that folks working later may need to dig deeper in order to avoid duplicating the prior entries of their peers.

Fireside Chat/Office Hours

According to our student poll, the best times for Fireside Chat/Office Hours are Tuesdays 12:00-1:00pm (noon hour) and Tuesday evenings 7:00-8:00 pm. (All times are Central Time.) This week, I will host a meeting for both times. In the future, I will likely alternate weeks: noon one week, evening the next.

I will invite every student to each meeting. We use Zoom. You do not have to have any kind of account to join the meeting. You may join via web page, or using the Zoom app (desktop or mobile), or by phone (audio only). I recommend that participants use ear buds or headphones to minimize background noise and echo.

These are not required! But we will try to make them worth while. Topics may include the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament & its study, or strategies for succeeding in this course, or current events and other topics as they relate to our course and its enduring understandings and essential questions.