Courses

The gospels have made the eschatology of Micah a prominent feature in their presentation of Jesus. This course will provide an exposition of Micah and develop his theology of justice and hope. The course will begin by contextualizing the book within the canon and its historical setting in the eighth century. The message of Micah will be presented in outline; within the outline passages will be selected for detailed literary analysis and exegesis. The work of exegesis will include lexical, grammatical, and form critical analysis.

Knowing

• History of the first temple period of Israel and Judah in the eighth century
• Prophetic placement of Micah in the book of the twelve
• Message of Micah among the eighth century prophets
• Importance of Micah to contemporary theologies of justice and hope in the church

Being

• Being aware of justice within society as a critical aspect of living a spiritual life
• Learning how to represent God as his image in a violent world
• Learning to live courageously in a world of conflict
• Living with hope especially when temporal situations create despair

Doing

• Teach the message of Micah to those that take this book seriously as a prophetic word
• Determine and address issues of justice within individual life circumstances
• Find ways to address issues of injustice at various levels of society engagement
• Inspire hope to those who feel that human life has become meaningless desperate