Dr. John Vonder Bruegge Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies; Dean of Arts and Humanities; Co-director of the Honors Program
Education:
Ph.D., Yale University
Th.M., Harvard Divinity School
M.Div., Covenant Theological Seminary
B.S., University of Missouri
712-707-7082
jvonder@nwciowa.edu
VPH 115D
Dr. Vonder Bruegge is the Marvin and Jerene DeWitt Professor of Biblical Studies and the dean of arts and humanities. His teaching interests include early Christian history and literature, the New Testament and archaeology, Johannine literature, and Josephus and ancient Judaism. He holds a doctorate from Yale University; a Master of Theology degree from Harvard University; and a Master of Divinity degree from Covenant Theological Seminary. His book, Mapping Galilee in Josephus, Luke, and John: Critical Geography and the Construction of an Ancient Space, was published in Brill's Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity series in 2016. In addition to his faculty and administrative duties, he also serves as a co-director of Northwestern's Honors Program and leads the Honors Program's summer study abroad in Greece. One of his favorite professional accomplishments came in 2019 when he was recognized as an official tour guide by the Greek Ministry of Culture.
Prior to joining Northwestern’s faculty, he served as a research assistant at Harvard and Yale and as a teaching fellow and lecturer at Yale Divinity School. Vonder Bruegge participated in an archaeological excavation in Turkey, and he has studied archaeology in Israel and Greece. He is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the American Academy of Religion.
BTS150 - Christian Story I: Biblical Tradition
(4 credits) This course presents an overview of and orientation to the Bible, focusing on its content, character, role in the Christian faith, and covenant themes of creation, fall, redemption, and new creation. This course begins the development of theological thinking for academic study in the liberal arts and equips students for the task of integrating faith and learning in their academic work. Students should complete this course by the end of their second term. Note: Does not count toward a religion major or minor.
BTS322 - Topics in New Testament Studies
(2 credits) A study of a single book or larger section of the New Testament or a current area of critical inquiry concerning the New Testament. Possible topics include the Synoptic Gospels, the Book of Acts, the Johannine Literature, the Epistolary Literature, and the Apocalypse. Prerequisite: BTS150 and sophomore class standing. Note: May be taken more than once provided a different topic is studied.
GRE101 - Elementary Biblical Greek and Culture
(4 credits, alternate years, consult department) This course will focus on learning the basics of koine Greek grammar and vocabulary as well as the cultural backgrounds of the New Testament writings. Readings and translation will focus on the Gospel and Letters of John. The New Testament writings will be examined in light of their social-historical and literary settings within Hellenistic Judaism and the broader Greco-Roman world. Note: The Greek program is offered at Northwestern College primarily as preparation for those students who plan to continue their education through seminary training. The ancient Greek taught here prepares students for biblical study in that language.
GRE102LA - Elementary Biblical Greek and Culture
(4 credits, alternate years, consult department) (NWCore option under Language and Culture) This course (a continuation of Greek 101) will focus on learning the basics of koine Greek grammar and vocabulary as well as the cultural backgrounds of the New Testament writings. Readings and translation will focus on the Gospel and Letters of John. The New Testament writings will be examined in light of their social-historical and literary settings within Hellenistic Judaism and the broader Greco-Roman world. Prerequisite: GRE101. Note: The Greek program is offered at Northwestern College primarily as preparation for those students who plan to continue their education through seminary training. The ancient Greek taught here prepares students for biblical study in that language.
GRE201 - Intermediate Biblical Greek and Culture
(1 credit; alternate years, consult department) This course is designed to facilitate the acquisition and retention of Greek grammatical, exegetical, and interpretive skills through the reading of ancient Greek texts. Primary focus will be on the Gospel of Mark and its context. Prerequisite: GRE102LA.
GRE202 - Intermediate Biblical Greek and Culture
(1 credit; alternate years, consult department) This course is designed to facilitate the acquisition and retention of Greek grammatical, exegetical, and interpretive skills through the reading of ancient Greek texts. Primary focus will be on the Letters of Paul and selections from other Greco-Roman authors. Students will also be introduced to the sub-discipline of Textual Criticism. Prerequisite: GRE201
HON240AE - The Greek Legacy
(4 credits) (NWCore option under Aesthetic Experience) Virtually every academic discipline - from art to politics, theater to athletics, science to philosophy - can trace its roots, in some fashion, back to the ancient Greeks. In this honors course, students will explore their own discipline's historic and aesthetic expression, particularly through Greece's extensive archaeological remains, and reflect upon Greece's legacy as one of the most significant and enduring cradles of western civilization. Prerequisite: Membership in the Honors Program.
HON240HP - The Greek Legacy
(4 credits) (NWCore option under Historical Perspectives) Virtually every academic discipline - from art to politics, theater to athletics, science to philosophy - can trace its roots, in some fashion, back to the ancient Greeks. In this honors course, students will explore their own discipline's historic and aesthetic expression, particularly through Greece's extensive archaeological remains, and reflect upon Greece's legacy as one of the most significant and enduring cradles of western civilization. Prerequisite: Membership in the Honors Program.
HON498 - Honors Scholarship Methods
(1 credit) Scholarship takes many forms. Research is often associated with the sciences and humanities. Creative activities are often associated with the arts. But scholarship is a unifying standard underlying all forms of academic inquiry. This course is designed so students can explore what qualifies as scholarship in several disciplines, including their own. At the end of this course, students will have synthesized a proposal for their Honors Scholarship. Prerequisites: Students must be members of the Honors Program and have a minimum of junior standing at the time of course completion.
Mapping Galilee in Josephus, Luke, and John: Critical Geography and the Construction of an Ancient Space (AJEC 93; Brill, 2016).
“The Quest for the Geographical Luke: How Luke’s narrative construction of Palestine makes him a better geographer than you might think,” SBL Annual Meeting 2015 (Atlanta, GA), Gospel of Luke Section.
“‘From Infancy Inured to War’: Josephus’ geographical excursus on Galilee (War 3.35-44) in light of Soja’s ‘Thirdspace’,” SBL Annual Meeting 2015 (Atlanta, GA), Space, Place, and Lived Experience in Antiquity Section.
“Luke Never Consulted the Map in the Back of Your Bible, Part II: Implications of Edward Said’s ‘imaginative geography’ for the portrayal of 1st c. Palestine in the book of Acts,” SBL Central States Regional Meeting 2013 (St. Louis, MO), New Testament Narrative Literature Section.
Response to Ellen B. Aitken, “The Body of Jesus Outside the Eternal City: Mapping and Ritual Space in the Epistle to the Hebrews,” SBL Annual Meeting 2012 (Chicago, IL), Hebrews Section.
“Luke Never Consulted the Map in the Back of Your Bible: Conzelmann, Said, and an Outsider’s View of Galilee,” SBL Central States Regional Meeting 2012 (St. Louis, MO), New Testament Narrative Literature Section.
“Luke’s ‘Imaginative Geography’: Revisiting Edward Said’s Orientalism and its implications for Luke’s Galilee,” SBL Annual Meeting 2008 (San Diego, CA), Reading, Theory, and Bible Unit.
“‘Mapping’ Galilee: reconciling spatial theory with a historical discipline,” SBL Upper Midwest Regional Meeting 2005 (St. Paul, MN), Jesus in Galilee Section.
“Geography Bending in the Fourth Gospel,” SBL New England Regional Meeting 2004 (Cambridge, MA), New Testament, Early Christians, and Gnostics Section.
“Re-grounding John’s Galilee,” SBL International Meeting 2003 (Cambridge, UK), Archaeology Program Unit.
“The ‘God-Fearer’ Inscriptions of Aphrodisias: New Light on Theories Come of Age,” SBL Annual Meeting 2000 (Nashville, TN), Papyrology and Early Christian Backgrounds Consultation.
Associate Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies, Northwestern College
Honors Program Co-Director, Northwestern College
Lecturer in New Testament Greek, Yale Divinity School
Graduate Teaching Center Consultant, Yale University
Research Assistant, Yale University
Research Assistant, Harvard University
Tiberias Archaeological Excavations, Tiberias, Israel
Sardis Archaeological Expedition, Salihli, Turkey
Director of College Ministries, Central Presbyterian Church, St. Louis, MO
Society of Biblical Literature
American Academy of Religion
Northwestern Scholarship Grant, Northwestern College, 2020
Portz Grant for Curriculum Development, National Collegiate Honors Council, 2018
Global Education Exploratory Travel Grant, Northwestern College, 2013
Teaching Excellence Award, Northwestern College, 2009
Yale University Dissertation Fellowship, 2003-04
Yale University Fellowship, 1998-2002
John Perry Miller Fund Award, Yale University, 2001
Robert G. Rayburn Homiletics Award, Covenant Theological Seminary, 1994
