the Letters of Peter and Jude

The course will introduce students to the text of the letters of Peter and Jude and to issues surrounding their interpretation. A range of scholarly approaches to interpreting the letters of Peter and Jude will be introduced, and issues explored will include authorship, literary relationships between the letters, literary relationships with other early Christian and Jewish texts, and the social and ecclesial contexts of the first readers. Careful attention will be paid to the theological perspectives and convictions expressed in the letters, with particular concern for (i) questions of Christology, (ii) the relationship of the churches with Greco-Roman society, and (iii) conflicts within the churches. The identity of Christ and the nature of the church, its common life and divisions, and its relationship with Greco-Roman society, will provide the principal foci of the course. This course also aims to assist students in apprehending the relevance of the letters of Peter and Jude in contemporary contexts.