Reflection paper on The testament of mary by colm tibia

Reflection paper on The testament of mary by colm tibia Order Description Instructions for Reflection Papers: 1. Identify: Identify one (or two, if directly related) issues or concerns in the text that require further interpretation (exegesis). This may be: o A word or phrase that has multiple meanings o A question about the nature or intention(s) of one of the story’s characters (including the character of God) o A question about the plot; such as: • What is the central conflict in the story? • How does the story end? Is it satisfactory? Why or why not? o A question about the narrator’s point of view o Any other question that interest you, as long as it is specific and manageable to discuss in a reflection paper 2. Exegete: Discuss your own interpretation of the text and your understanding of the issue or concern raised about (draw on course readings to help you here): a. What are various ways of approaching the question raised in #1? What basic interpretive considerations are at stake (e.g. translation, dialogue, characterization, plot, metaphor, tone of voice)? b. What have other scholars said about this issue (if discussed in other class readings)? c. Would the specific issue you raised in #1 be of concern to the story’s original audience? Why? (To answer this question, you will have to step back and ask: Why do you think this story was created? How do you think the story functioned for its ancient audience? What might it have meant and/or what specific concerns did it reflect in light of the experience of exile and/or return from exile?) 3. Compare: Discuss the way in which the contemporary novelist approaches the issue you have raised (remember to be specific): o How does the novelist dramatize/address the issue you have raised about the biblical text? o Does the novelist expand upon or deviate from the original story, in your view? o If the author does not comment on a biblical story directly, in what ways do the characters in the novel reflect the concerns, interests and desires of the biblical characters? Are there biblical themes (e.g. exile, return, redemption) that the biblical story in question helps the author to explore? If so, how? 4. Evaluate: o How does the novelist’s dramatization and retelling of the story impact your understanding of the biblical text? (keeping in mind the specific issue you raised in #1). How does it impact your understanding of the interpretive question you raised? Do you read the biblical text differently now? Why or why not? 5. Write: For last page of your paper, offer a creative rewriting of the story, based on your understanding of the issue raised in #1. Be creative! You may, for example: o Rewrite the whole story, o Rewrite the ending, or o Write an alternative story that picks up where the original story leaves off.