Part I: A Description of the Historical Context of the Author
Part I should identify and explain the socio-historical context in which the author wrote. Part I should describe the time period in which the author lived and in which the text was written. It should include relevant biographical data about the author, focus on any major theological or religious issues which the Church faced, and any major economic, social, or political problems within society, particularly those that affected the life of the Church. Part I, the socio-historical context, should be addressed in no more than three pages.
Questions to assist you in writing this section of the paper:
1. Where and when was the author born?
2. What were the influences, religious or otherwise, which shaped him or her?
3. What was going on politically, economically, or socially at the time in which the author wrote?
4. Were there particular issues, events, or circumstances which might give rise to such a text?
Part II: A Discussion of the Content of the Assigned Text
Part II should demonstrate that you grasp and understand the author's key points, including important themes and issues which the author raises - in particular, religious or theological themes. Lay out the key points important to the author of the text in your own words, using quotations strategically to show how you know these points are important to the author. Also, identify the kind of text the author has written (e.g., treatise, letter, novel, poem, etc.). Where available, indicate the sources to which the author appeals for his or her argumentation, authority, or theological reflection in relation to the themes (e.g., Scripture, Church tradition, philosophy, reason, religious experience, literature). Part II of the essay should be three or four pages, constituting the bulk of the paper.
Questions to assist you in writing this section of the paper:
1. What kind of text is this?
2. Who is the audience?
3. What is the topic of discussion in the text (e.g., God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, the Church, etc.)?
4. Is the author trying to inform, influence, or criticize the audience?
5. What are the important themes or issues which the author addresses?
6. Is the author attacking prevailing teachings of the Church or a movement, or defending them? If so, from whom, and how?
7. Why is the author writing this text?
8. What is the main point of the text, the "take-away"?
Part III: A Discussion of the Meaning of the Text within the Historical Context
Part III shows the connections between Parts I and II as it situates the text within its context. Part III should explain clearly how the text relates to the issues, problems, and themes which the Church and/or society faced in the author's context. The paper should explain how the text is a text of the author's time. It should establish how the text is responsive to the concerns of the Church and/or society of the author's time. It should establish how the text is responsive to the concerns of the Church and/or society of the author's day. Additionally, wherever possible, students should note the impact of the text on the Church and society at large in the author's day. Part III should be addressed in one or two final pages of the paper.
Questions to assist you in writing this section of the paper:
1. How does this text represent a response to a particular problem or issue which the Church and/or society faced in the author's day?
2. How was this text an attempt to address the religious theme or issues which the Church of the author's day faced?
3. If the author highlighted a particular problem, how did the text seek to resolve that issue?