syllabus, exodus of the decalogue

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OT00443B1Ethics and the Decalogue

New Brunswick Theological Seminary

Fall, 2009Term A

“The lesson of truth is not held in one consciousness. It explodes toward the other.To study well, to read well, to listen well, is already to speak: whether by asking

questions and, in so doing, touching the master who teaches you, or by teaching athird party.”

--Emmanuel Levinas “Beyond the Verse: Talmudic Readings and Lectures” (1994)

Professor: Rev. Charles M. Rix (PhD, ABD) Time: Thursday, 6:20-10:00Contact: [email protected]: 848-218-2454Class Blog: http://ethicsofthedecalogue.blogspot.com

Course Goals and Objectives

What is the Decalogue? Who are the addressees? How did it function in the society of Ancient Israel? How did it come to be included in the canonical version of the Torah includedin our Bibles? Is it useful in our lives today? If so, how might we formulate a way of understanding and applying these texts?

The purpose of this class is to explore the ethical dimensions of the Decalogue as it isunderstood and applied in a biblical setting and in contemporary communities of faith. Thecourse will cover not only theories surrounding the composition and setting of the biblicaltexts, but also ways in which Bible itself complicates any monologic understanding of thesecommandments.In exploring the Decalogue, students will be asked to consider how the Decalogue functionsas a means of buildlinga cohesive society as well as the formation as a community of faith.

As the Decalogue is a centerpiece of Hebrew scripture, the class will be asked to explorehow the events surrounding the Holocaust change how we read and understand theDecalogue. Considerable time will be devoted to understanding our ethical responsibility tothose who are “Other” to us, and how the Decalogue forms how we think about our selves in

relation to those who are “Other.” To this end, we will be looking at the ethics of EmmanuelLevinas, and the art of Samuel Bak.

In looking more deeply into the structure of the Decalogue, this course aims to createsensitivity in all students to those who are “Other” to themselves: What constitutes“Otherness,” our responsibility to the “Other,” and problems inherent in the construction of a

just society. It is hoped that this class will assist in the Seminary’s goals to address all formsof racism and discrimination.

mailto:[email protected]

http://ethicsofthedecalogue.blogspot.com/









Required Texts

Aaron, David H. Etched in Stone: The Emergence of the Decalogue. New York and London: T&T Clark, 2006.

Emmanuel Levinas, "Ethics and Infinity" ISBN 0-82-7-0178-5

Tod Linafelt, ed. "Strange Fire" ISBN 0-8147-5166-0

Highly Recommended:DVD Series: "The Decalogue" by Krzysztof Kieslowski(can be purchased used from Amazon)

Secondary Readings(to be posted on the blog or handed out in class)

Cohen, Richard A. Ethics, Exegesis and Philosophy: Interpretation after Levinas. Cambridge:Cambridge University Press, 2001.

Emil Fackenheim, TheJewish Bible after the Holocaust: A Re-reading

Ken Gibbs, “Why Remember” in Why Ethics

Emmanuel Levinas, “A Religion for Adults” in Difficult Freedom

Leonard Rosmarin, “The I-You Relationship in the Works of Emmanuel Levinas” in Angelaki ,No 6., No. 2, August 2001.

Paul Standish, “Ethics before Equality: moral education after Levinas” in Journal of MoralEducation , Vol. 30, No. 4, 2001.

Assignments

To facilitate collaboration and class learning, we will divide the class into groups of two (onegroup may have to have three). Each group will focus on one of the commandments duringthe course. You will want to comment as appropriate on your particular commandment inyour assignments as appropriate: blog posts, weekly reports and searches, and the finalterm paper and presentation.

Weekly Blog Posts

Each week there will be four questions posted on the class blog that engage one or moreethical aspects of the Decalogue.

1. Biblical texts in conversation concerning one aspect of the Decalogue2. Putting secondary readings in conversation with the biblical text3. Reflections on the Kieslowski film covering one or more aspects of the Decalogue4. Reflections on either a piece of music or art work that engages the Decalogue

You will be asked to provide a brief response to each of these postings prior to the start of class. These responses will form an integral part of the class discussion and assist us inexploring .

Weekly Reports and News Searches



The class blog contains links to major international news websites. Each week, one groupfrom the class will make a short presentation that connects their commandment intheDecalogue to a current event in some way. The purpose of this assignment is to exploreways in which current events complicate and shape our modern-day understanding andapplication of the Decalogue in building our communities of faith (and in some cases, thosenot of faith).

Term Paper

Part I

Each group willbe required to write an 8-10 page paper on one of the commandments in theDecalogue. The purpose of the paper is to explore how we might understand the applicationof the commandmentin some aspect of our contemporary life. The paper should include athorough understand of the commandment in the biblical setting (including ways in which itis repeated or emphasized in other legal texts within the Torah), and ways in which thebiblical understanding informs how we might think about and apply the ethics of thecommandment today in building our communities of faith. The paper should be doublespaced, footnoted, and contain a bibliography of at least six sources in addition to classmaterials. Papers are due on October 15 th .

Part II

Based on this paper, each group will make a short (fifteen minute) presentation on theirresearch at the end of class on October 15 th .

NOTES : _ __________________________________________________________________________________ _



Course Schedule

September 3Introduction

Introduction• Class Introductions• Course Objectives• Syllabus• Blog: ethicsofthedecalogue.blogspot.com

Opening QuestionsWhat is the Decalogue?Where is the Decalogue found in the Bible?Who are the addressees?How did the Decaloguefunction in the society of Ancient Israel?In what time period did the Decalogue develop?

How did it come to be included in the canonical version of the Torah included in ourBibles?Is it useful in our lives today?If so, how might we formulate a way of understanding and applying these texts inbuilding communities of faith (and those not of faith)?

Overview of Primary Biblical ReferencesExodus 20:1-17 (NRSV) Hebrew Bible: Exodus 20:1-14Deuteronomy 5 :6-21Leviticus 19 :1-18Matthew 19 :16-22, Mark 10 :17-22, Luke 18 :18-30Romans 13 :8-10

Biblical IntertextsExodus 21 :1 – 23 :33 and Exodus 32-34Leviticus 19-26Deuteronomy 8-31

Framework for Approaching the Decalogue• The historical context of the Decalogue• How does the reality of the Holocaust impact our reading of the Bible and the

Decalogue in particular?○ Emil Fackenheim○ Samuel Bak

Film: The Decalogue, Film 8

Krysztof Kieslowski

September 10Ethical Framework for the Decalogue

Thou Shall Not Kill

Due: Blog Post



Group presentation

Preparatory Readings• David Aaron, “Authorship Theories” and “Non-Penteteuchal Historical Retrospectives”

in Etched in Stone , pp. 13-40 and 67-103• Richard Cohen, “Introduction” in ethics, Exegesis and Philosophy: Interpretation after

Levinas, pp. 1-24.• Katharina von Kellenbach, “Am I a Murderer? Judges 19-21 as a parable of

Meaningless Suffering” in Strange Fire, pp. 176-191.• Barry Levy, “Rabbinic bible Interpretation after the Holocaust” in Strange Fire, pp. 52-

61.

Biblical Texts (in addition to Decalogue texts and Intertexts notes above)• Judges 11-12, 19• Isaiah 1-4• Amos 5

Introduction to “Ethics as First Philosophy:” The Ethics after Emmanuel LevinasWho is the Other?What is the Levinasian understanding of the “face” of the Other?What is our responsibility to the Other?

Film: The Decalogue, Film 5Krysztof Kieslowski



September 24Remember the Sabbath

Due: Blog Post

Group presentation

Preparatory Readings• David Aaron, Etched in Stone , pp. 145-189.• O.E. Ajzenstat, “Beyond Totality: the shoah and the Biblical ethics of Emmanuel

Levinas,” in Strange Fire , pp. 106-120.• Robert Gibbs, “Why Remember,” in Why Ethics , pp. 354-383.• Emmanuel Levinas, Ethics and Infinity , pp. 85-110

Discussion: Remember the SabbathPower point presentation on the Sabbath

Biblical Texts (in addition to Decalogue texts and Intertexts notes above)• Exodus 21-23, 31:18• Isaiah 58• Proverbs 1-7

Film: The Decalogue, Film 6Krysztof Kieslowski

October 1 You Shall Not Make Graven Images and Thou Shall Not Covet

Due: Blog Post

Group presentation

Preparatory Readings• David Aaron, Etched in Stone , 190-281.• Henri Bergson, On-Laughter , E-book version.• Leonard Rosmarin, “The I-You Relationship in the Works of Emmanuel Levinas” in

Angelaki , No 6., No. 2, August 2001.

Biblical Texts (in addition to Decalogue texts and Intertexts notes above)• Read Exodus 20-40 in one sitting.• Contrast Exodus 32:1-25 to Deuteronomy 9:7-10:5.

Discussion: Comedy and LawFilm: The Decalogue, Film 10Krysztof Kieslowski

October 8NO CLASS: Work on Final Term Paper

October 15Final Term Presentations

syllabus, exodus of the decalogue

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