5-Week Course
Overview
Job’s pleas to God have resonated with the universal human experience of suffering for centuries. This philosophically complex and poetically beautiful book refuses to insult us with easy answers to life’s hardest questions. In this course we will explore a range of interpretive approaches in order to unlock some of Job’s secrets. Can we use this text to help us make sense of tragedy in our world and foster our connection to an inscrutable God? As a venue for wrestling with the deep issues of life and faith, can we come away from the Book of Job and create something new?
This course has a required text: the Book of Job as found in a contemporary translation of the Bible.
It is strongly recommended that you use a study Bible with commentary and footnotes.
A quality standalone option is:
Kathleen M. O’Connor, New Collegeville Bible Commentary Vol. 19: Job (Liturgical Press, 2012).
Although a Bible is available online, you may also wish to have a Bible available in hard copy. For online Bibles, we recommend:
- The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops - New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE) or
- The Christian Classics Ethereal Library Study Bible - New Revised Standard Edition (NRSV)
Topics
- Week 1 - Expression of Suffering
- Week 2 - Reading More Deeply
- Week 3 - Reading Job in the Real World
- Week 4 - Job’s Message About God
- Week 5 - Making Sense through Creation
Special Features
This course includes:
- Weekly introductions to each new topic;
- Video commentaries each week;
- Transcripts of the videos;
- Weekly questions for reflection and discussion; and
- A regularly updated Resources page for further study of topics discussed in this course.
All STM Online: Crossroads courses include these features
- Participants have access 24 hours/7 days a week to the course's password-protected web site.
- Each participant belongs to a small Community for Conversation and faith sharing guided by a facilitator.
- The course site is usually available to participants at least three months after the course has ended.
- An orientation in how to navigate the web site is always available.
- Technical assistance is easy to contact and prompt in returning a message.
- A Certificate of Active Participation is awarded to those who post at least three messages of substance for each week of content.
Time Commitment
A participant can expect to spend an average of approximately 3-4 hours each week. This commitment includes both the assigned reading and interaction online.
Certificate Requirement Categories
- Sacred Scripture
Content Scholars:
Andrew R. Davis (text), associate professor of Old Testament; Angela Kim Harkins (video), associate professor of New Testament; and Franklin T. Harkins (video), professor of historical theology; Boston College School of Theology and Ministry
