Learning to Study the Bible Leader Guide

Description

Learning to Study the Bible is an eight-week curriculum designed for tweens to help them learn the basics of biblical interpretation. The Leader Guide includes easy-to-use instructions to guide students as they explore topics like genre, historical context, biblical geography and more. Sessions are: 1. Who? * Learn to identify the original author and audience * Understand your own social location and biases * Practice reading a text with the author and original audience in mind 2. What? * Understand the significance of genre * Practice identifying genre in biblical texts 3. When? * Understand the significance of historical context * Learn about the major social contexts of biblical texts * Practice reading Scripture contextually 4. Where? * Learn how to utilize biblical maps * Understand the significance of geography and shifting national borders for biblical interpretation * Practice interpreting a biblical text with a geographical lens 5. Why? * Learn about the formation of the canon * Understand the significance of a text’s changing meaning over time * Practice reading a text with multiple layers of meaning 6. How? Close reading * Learn the value of reading texts slowly and carefully * Understand how to use study bibles and commentaries * Practice reading a short text carefully 7. How? Side-by-side reading * Learn about the Revised Common Lectionary and its purpose * Understand how to use a concordance to cross-reference texts * Practice reading a text intra-canonically 8. How? Lectio Divina * Learn about the ancient practice of Lectio Divina * Understand the significance of a spiritual reading of Scripture * Practice Lectio Divina individually and as a group