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The Department of New Testament & Early Christian Literature brings
together faculty from the Divinity School and the Classics Department
to engage cooperatively in critical inquiry on: (1) the interpretation
of the range of documents produced by Christians in roughly the first
four centuries of the Common Era, and (2) the religious, cultural and
social make-up of the communities and persons within the Roman Empire
during this period who were identified (by themselves and by others) as
Christian. This interdisciplinary study requires the acquisition of a
thorough knowledge of the ancient Mediterranean world—its history,
literature, languages, philosophies, religions and social forms—as
well as the development of capacities for analyzing ancient texts as literary
documents with their own genres and characteristic forms of expression.
Students are expected to gain competence not only in the twenty-seven
documents that were later designated as the canonical New Testament, but
also in the broad stream of patristic literature up through Augustine
of Hippo (d. 430). The dual contexts of an emerging Christian literary
culture and an existing Greco-Roman world circumscribe the department’s
approach to this literature. The New Testament can also be studied in
the Divinity School’s Bible area, in which the documents of the New
Testament are examined in relation to the interpretive nexus of the biblical
canon (including the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament), as well their contextualization
in the wider Mediterranean world, and the history of biblical interpretation
up to the present.
Graduates of the NT/ECL Department have taught in such areas as New Testament
studies, early church history, early history of Western civilization,
history of religions (Hellenistic and Roman periods), and religious studies
generally. Students develop areas of specialized research, but carry out
those investigations within the framework of a broad competence in the
world of antiquity and the issues involved in tracing and comprehending
the emergence of distinct Christian communities and documents. The culmination
of doctoral study is a dissertation which makes an original contribution
to the field of early Christian studies.
This program allows students to work with a team of scholars in the department,
yet also gives them ample opportunity to study throughout the University,
in such areas and divisions as the Divinity School, Classics, History,
Social Sciences, and the Oriental Institute, as they design their course
of study in conversation with an advisor. Students meet with advisors
at least once a quarter to discuss their ideas and research interests,
and plan an individualized curriculum which includes formal coursework,
comprehensive and language examinations, and the dissertation
The Degree of Master of Arts
The department expects students to engage in at least two years of full
time study before taking the masters level comprehensive exams. Major
goals of that study include 1. the development of a compelling research
agenda for advanced study in early Christianity, 2. the cultivation of
superior linguistic, literary and historical skills, and 3. the attainment
of expert capacities for developing and presenting (in oral and written
form) original scholarly arguments.
Language Examinations: The achievement of linguistic skills is demonstrated
in the following way. By the end of their first year in the program, one
should high pass the University reading test in either French or German.
By the end of the second year, one must pass (grade of B or better) the
departmental test in one ancient language (Greek, Latin or Hebrew), and
one of the other two ancient languages by the end of the third year. The
examination in ancient Greek consists of two parts: Part I is a two hour
sight-reading test on passages chosen from anywhere in the New Testament;
Part II is a two hour translation test on a collection of Greek texts
(at least 50 Oxford pages in total) covering a range of periods, genres
and dialects (as chosen by the student and approved by the faculty member
in charge of the exam that year). The Latin and Hebrew examinations test
the student’s knowledge of a prepared set of readings representing
a diverse range of literature, chosen in consultation with the examiner,
consisting of at least 50 pages of Latin texts, and at least 30 chapters
of Biblical Hebrew.
Comprehensive Examination
The comprehensive examination may be taken in Autumn, Winter or Spring
quarter. It consists of five written examinations (taken in one week,
one exam per day), followed by an oral examination with the faculty (normally
the following week). The written exams, individualized for each student,
are as follows:
Part 1: Literature (each student completes both exams)
A: passages from two New Testament books selected by the student in
consultation with the faculty, with translation, commentary, and interpretation
(4 hours)
B: passages from one major ancient book or collection of materials (Christian
or non-Christian), selected by the student in consultation with the
faculty (2 hours)
Part 2: Context (each student completes both exams)
A: the religious and cultural history of the Mediterranean world from
the Hellenistic to the Byzantine age (2 hours)
B: the political and social history of the Roman Empire (2 hours)
Part 3: Special Topic (each student chooses one of the following, depending
upon her or his research interests):
A: the history of Greek literature
B: the history of Latin literature
C: the history of Greek and Latin philosophy
D: the history of Greek and Latin theology
E: the history of Greek, Roman and early Christian art.
Part 4: Oral Examination, covering the written exams, and a research
paper distributed in advance by the student which will be the basis for
a conversation about future research (1.5 hours).
Bibliographies and focal questions for each examination are developed
by the student in consultation with the faculty member whom they request
to administer the exam to them, at least one quarter before the examination
will be taken. The oral examination may be a course paper or a research
paper completed expressly for this purpose. It should represent the direction
of the student’s interests, and demonstrate her/his skills for advanced
research.
If the student passes the comprehensive examination at a high level,
he or she will ordinarily be permitted to proceed to the doctoral degree.
If the student does not pass at a high level, or if the student's vocational
plans have changed, a terminal master's degree may be awarded.
The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy
The department requires the student to meet its requirements for the
degree of Master of Arts and, in addition, to pass its tests in Latin
and Hebrew (see above).
Dissertation Proposal
Two quarters before taking the examination for candidacy, the student
must obtain the department's approval of a dissertation proposal at an
oral colloquium (1.5 hours) on the written document. Students will solicit
a faculty advisor and two readers as the evaluative committee. Dissertation
proposals must show a clear line of argument, and demonstrate promise
for making an original contribution to early Christian studies.
Doctoral Examinations
The dissertation proposal will serve as a point of departure for the
three parts of the doctoral candidacy examination. The two written examinations
will deal with the general areas and background related to the literary
texts upon which the proposal focuses. Part 1 will deal with religious
and cultural matters (2 hours), Part 2 with political and social aspects
(2 hours). These examinations resemble part 2 of the master's examination
but are focused specifically on the questions, issues and sources involved
in the dissertation research. The purpose of these examinations is to
ensure students are well in control of the primary source material and
essential secondary readings as they move forward toward the execution
of the dissertation project. Part 3 will be an oral examination concerned
primarily with the dissertation proposal and topics related to it.
Students will develop reading lists of primary and secondary materials
for these examinations through consultation with the faculty involved.
All three examinations will be administered by the whole department; an
outside examiner with whom the student has done class work will also take
part in the oral examination. After the successful completion of the doctoral
examinations students will be formally admitted to candidacy for the doctoral
degree.
Once the dissertation is written and the completed dissertation has received
the approval of the student's adviser and dissertation readers, there
will normally be an oral defense. It is also a Departmental tradition
to sponsor a public event at which the candidate will have an opportunity
to present the results of his or her research to a wider community of
scholars and students.
This text was last revised on 9/09/2003.
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