Onward to the Next Semester!
My Fall 2024 PhD Schedule
Greetings, dear readers!
Thank you for sitting with me in my corner. What a delight it has been to engage with you all in and through my posts. Your encouragement has been a refreshment to me—likely more than I’ll ever be able to express.
This has been the first week of my Fall 2024 PhD semester! I figured it would be nice to give an update on the courses I’m taking, some information about what I will learning, and maybe tip my hat toward some potential Substack post topics related to my classes. I’m taking the following: (1) New Testament (NT) Theology seminar and (2) Old Testament (OT) Interpretation and Theology reading seminar.
New Testament Theology Seminar
What are some things I’ll be learning?
The NT theology seminar is a weekly seminar where two professors facilitate student discussion on a multitude of topics. For example, we’ll be debating the nature of NT theology, the appropriate method(s) for pursuing it, and various issues and debates within the field.
Throughout the course we’ll be writing a few different papers. We already wrote a paper reflecting on a few different summer reading books and analyzing some pre-course presuppositions and ideas regarding the endeavor of NT theology. The next assignment is a background research paper where we delve into our research topic, discuss the debates and discussions related to it, and illustrate familiarity with the field. We’ll write a more robust research paper, defend it in class, have a fellow student review and critique it (we’ll also do the same for someone else’s paper in the class), and thereafter turn in a revised version based on those critiques. Lastly, we’ll write an annotated bibliography of sorts, evaluating key works of NT theology from different approaches.
Any writing projects that might end up as Substack posts?
Indeed! I love seeing parallels within the OT and NT. I have been noticing parallels between OT concepts and teachings and 2 Timothy that I would like to explore. For example, the importance of teaching the next generation with the Word, setting examples, the sincerity of one’s faith, the guiding hand of the Lord, the call to “guard the deposit,” and more!
Old Testament Interpretation and Theology Reading Seminar
What distinguishes a reading seminar from a regular seminar?
A reading seminar focuses on what its nomenclature implies: reading > writing. This will be my first reading seminar, so I might have to revise my statements here. However, from my understanding, the reading seminars focus primarily on reading a large amount of material. (In fact, the syllabus accounts for something like 4,752 pages worth of material—yup, you read that right.)
What are some things I’ll be learning?
According to the syllabus, we will be looking at OT interpretation and theology through four overarching categories:
(1) Intertextuality and Hermeneutics
(2) OT Theology Outside of Evangelicalism
(3) Evangelical Approaches to OT Theology
(4) Reading the Bible as the Revelation of the Triune God
Any research topics that might end up making their way into Substack posts?
I’m certain the material we read and discuss will make its way into Substack posts somehow. I’ve thought about writing summaries of the four categories above, diving into applications, or including devotional thoughts derived from the reading. More to come! Let me know down in the comments if something strikes your fancy that you would like to learn more about through the means of this Substack.
Looking Forward
Please pray as I continue to develop as a scholar of the Word. I want to dig deep into Scripture and come out proclaiming the excellencies of the Savior. Moreover, I want to bring those deep dives into this Substack in digestible ways for you. I have quite a few posts in rough draft form currently. Keep your eyes open for more coming soon!
Ever a pleasure, in Christ,
Kyle