Bible Teaching
From 1985 to 1989 I studied for a theology degree, followed by an MA in Biblical Interpretation, at what is now the London School of Theology. Since then I have taught in a variety of college and church-based contexts, including a small amount of lecturing in both Serbia and Brazil! I have taught Biblical Studies to hundreds of students from a wide range of cultural and educational backgrounds, but alongside this I have always done some Biblical teaching in local churches around the Gloucester area. I would be very happy to talk with any church (within a reasonable travelling distance) who might be interested in making use of a visiting speaker, either for ‘one-off’ sessions, a series, or all-day workshops.
As an example of the kind of things I have done, two of the larger projects that I have taught in church contexts are:
‘I think the course was 101% excellent and even though I couldn’t take it all in I would like to do the same course over again.’ – Joan
‘Congratulations on the easiest to understand explanation I have heard.’ - Vaughan
‘I thoroughly enjoyed the course and would gladly do it again.’ – Isabel
‘Richard was very funny and clear in his way of telling us all about the overall view. It was pitched at a point which was understandable.’ - anon
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Over the past 5 years I have taught a number of all-day workshops at Cotswold Farm, near Cirencester, on different aspects of the Bible, including:
An overview of the Old Testament (2 days) An overview of the New Testament Easy-to-use literary tools for understanding the Bible better Wealth and Poverty in the Bible Three responses to the Fall of Jerusalem: Habakkuk, Lamentations and Obadiah Rebuilding community: Learning from the post-exilic prophets a day each on: Genesis, Judges, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Amos and Hosea, the Gospels, Mark, Acts, the Pauline Epistles, Revelation
Of course I have also taught a wide range of Biblical topics in a college context, which could easily be adapted to church contexts. This includes courses along the lines of ‘How to Read the Bible’ – including ‘Bible Study Methods’, ‘Biblical Interpretation’, and ‘Reading Biblical Narrative’. I have also taught overviews of the whole Bible, of particular sections within the Bible, in-depth studies on particular books, and overviews of particular topics, such as ‘Wealth and Poverty’, and ‘Gender Issues’ – including the role of women. In another area completely I have taught an MA module on ‘Mission and Narrative’ – looking at the relationship between the two. For an article I wrote looking at one aspect of this, see ‘Fictional Mission’ on the extracts page.
If you are interested in discussing whether I can help you in any way,
please contact me at richard@qohelethresources.co.uk |