Made the Bible entertaining. Brought in his daughter to teach a class, dropped 2 lowest paper grades, was fun and had interesting views on the material--Best class I've had at Georgetown.

I think he screwed me over gradewise. I thought I was doing really well (I got 100% on some of his quizzes), and then he smacked me with a B+. Workload isn't bad. He "requires" you to read a lot, but I never did it. There are a few papers and on

Made teh material really interesting, but when I took him, he was exam obsessed...made us learn paragraphs of the bible by heart which in college strikes me as a bit pointless

Really fun class. Great guy who really brings the Bible to life. Makes things fun. Take this class!

Funny and really smart, I am not Christian at all and I ended up reading a good deal of the Bible, because he made me want to. Best teacher I have had at Gtown, do the readings and participate and he gives you the benefit of the doubt on a lot of other grades. Awesome and understanding guy.

coolass teacher. makes the bible fun. real relaxed setting. The class joked around a lot and still got a lot of work done. Know a lot about the bible after I finished

This prof makes the Bible interesting, but there's still a warning: this class involves a lot of reading to learn all he wants you to know... he isn't a tricky grader and encourages different viewpoints which is good... take this professor!

ONE NEGATIVE NOTE: YOU WILL NOT GET AN ACCURATE REPRESENTATION OF CHRISTIANITY. This is a literature class, not a theology one. I was embarrassed by how he represented Christianity. HOWEVER, Linafelt is very clear, fair, and a really funny guy. He talks to you like he's your equal rather than as a superior professor. Disagree with previous poster.

really good professor. funny, always willing to help, and well-versed in the material. insights into the bible are very thought-provoking. workload is manageable-my only complaint is he made us write in a reading journal every night and said it was going to be graded then NEVER collected it. that was a big waste of my time. aside from that, great!

Professor Linafelt is an absolutely amazing professor and expert on the study of the Bible, specifically the Old Testament (or Hebrew Bible), and more specifically the Torah. He is very distinguished in the realm of Biblical Studies and his class made me want to work hard. The topics were extremely interesting and Linafelt was a great lecturer!

Prof. Linafelt is intelligent, funny, and engaging. I came into Bib Lit with little interest in the class, and Linafelt hooked me. The readings and discussions are very interesting and the way he relates the Bible to pop culture helps even the most apathetic students engage in the material. I'm now considering further study in theology!

Professor Linafelt was an amazing professor. He teaches so that students pick up interest in the bible on their own, not through coercion. Highly recommended profesor. On the last day we had a party in the class and the professor and his 8 year old daughter danced with the students =)

With regard to expertise, clarity, helpfulness, friendliness, and the level of excitement he inspires in his students, Linafelt is surpassed only by Professor Suzie. If you get a chance to take one of his classes, DO IT. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. SERIOUSLY.

Quite possibly the smartest person I have ever known--he knows everything there is to know about the Bible. On top of that, he is very funny, very personable, and very willing to help students. There is a considerable amount of work, but Linafelt will make you want to work for it. I really can't say a bad word about the man.

What a mug shot of the legend himself.

the man. learned a lot from him.

Awesome professor, one of my favorites at Gtown. Made me wish I had minored in theology.

Absolutely the best professor ever.

The awesomeist professor ever. Total dude. His class is so useful and his teaching style is to die for. He brought his daughter in to teach once. She was so good. Made you look at the bible in a different light.

Prof. Linafelt has something of a cult following and not without reason. For Approaches to the Bible he assigned everyone to teach a day and sat with the class as a student for the semester. It was awesome. Final essay was to interpret a Biblical passage given what you've learned. He's what one might term "A Character." ;)

Go to class, participate, write 4 decent short papers, memorize the 3 Bible passages, write a good final paper. He is very good at running class, and I enjoyed him

Take him. Interesting, hilarious, and just a great guy. Must have him at least once before u leave G'town.

Tod is the man! He's funny and quirky and he likes to make his students laugh. Not to mention he's sneakily smart at what he teaches... the bible. The class is easy as it is meant for freshman, the work load is high but he grades easy. Highly recommend

Awesome. Was very unsure my first day of class, but he ended up being one of my favorite professors at Georgetown so far. If you are looking for a last minute Theo class, this is your answer. OR if you are just looking for a theo class in general. He is very approachable, his class is very interesting, and he knows his stuff.

Linafelt is an awesome guy and a great prof. Found day-to-day discussions to be really interesting, although the reading journal did get tedious late in the semester. In terms of grading, the two tests are "informational" (i.e.-- from readings), and the paper is basically your interpretation of a biblical passage. Would recommend for Bib. Lit.!!

Took as pre-req with no prior interest. Was overwhelmed by the syllabus on 1st day, but so happy I stuck with it. BEST class I have taken at GU. Linafelt is awesome professor...class flew by and was really interesting and hilarious at times. A lot of reading, but doable and worth it.

HILARIOUS. Class was always a riot. Makes the Bible pretty interesting, readings are too bad, journal does get tedious, exams are from the readings, and the final paper is a bit long but not really that difficult. Loved him, would take another class with him, and would most definitely recommend him!

Awesome guy, funny and fair. Take him!

Linafelt is the BEST. Hilarious guy keeps you on your toes for the next laugh. Makes the Bible interesting and clear. Not too much work, but KEEP UP WITH THE JOURNAL from class to class. One of my favorite professors, would recommend every time!

Professor Linafelt is one of the most engaging professors I've ever had the pleasure of taking a class with. The guy is absolutely hilarious, and completely turned the "typical" interpretation of the bible on its head, which was unexpected for a theology class. If you can take any class with him, DO IT.

Super funny, super nice, and super interactive within the classroom. He loves to talk, but encourages us to contribute the class. He is very well learned about the bible and you can tell he loves what he is teaching and knows he's good at it! TAKE HIM! You wont regret it. 3 short papers and a final 10 pg paper. Great man, great class.

Great guy. Very funny. Always willing to help student out and really helps students access the material.

Linafelt is a boss. Very cool guy who likes to joke around, but sometimes the jokes may be a tad odd or gross. Easy class though. One test on a book that was very clear and easy, a couple of memorization tests from the bible, and the final. There is a reading journal but it is so simple to do. Highly recommend to fulfill the first THEO requirement.

Professor Linafelt has a fantastic sense of humor, and we loved him for it. Easy to get along with and very understanding, Linafelt's specialty is in Biblical Poetry. Be ready to dissect poetic verses from the Song of Songs and other books of the Bible. Great if you're interested in the Bible. Be ready to hit the books. Also 2 tests on memorization

Professor Linafelt is hilarious and a very interesting lecturer. The class can be a little bit of work (expect an hour or two of homework after every class) but it's mostly just busy work and isn't too difficult. Overall, a really funny and engaging professor, I would highly recommend him.

Professor Linafelt provides an intellectual challenge in analyzing the bible as literature, not theology. Extremely informative, fun and worthwhile.

GREAT fit to fulfill the theology requirement for 2 reasons: first, he's hilarious (I am cold person, so it was good to finally laugh again). Second, he imparts both a lot of knowledge and a passion for the subject. THE SECRET to class is regular participationattendance. Also, be sure to visit him during office hours before a paper for feedback.

Professor Linafelt is one of my favorite professors at GU. He makes the bible accessible to all, his approach to it as literature is refreshing, informative and fun!

This was a great class! Whether you are familiar with the bible or not, you will definitely learn something in this class. Professor Linafelt is very accessible, fun and friendly but you have to write well and make a clear argument.

This was my favorite class at Georgetown. You really dissect the Book of Genesis and learn about biblical literature and other ancient literature (e.g., Gilgamesh). The focus is on the stories and the art of biblical prose. This is informative, fun, and you get out of this class what you put in. I would take every class with Professor Linafelt

Great and engaging lecturer, and hilarious too. Learning about the book of Genesis was my favorite class this semester, and I'm in the SFS. A bit of a tough grader, its not too hard to get a B or B+, but anything above has to be really special. As he put it "truly outstanding". Still, would recommend..

I took two classes with Prof. Linafelt and can't recommend him highly enough. He was one of my favorite, if not my favorite, professors at Georgetown. He is very accomplished but very down to earth and accessible. And his lectures are hilarious. He also remembers his students after they graduate -- he helped me get into law school!

10/10 would recommend. Top notch professor, dedicated to his students, his course, and to Georgetown. Papers are short, clear, and easy to write. You will become genuinely interested in this class. Prof. Linafelt is hilarious and lighthearted - the class is always lit and fun. Great upper level THEO course. Amazing!

Great professor! His lectures are interesting and foster group discussion. Definitely worth taking!

Professor Linafelt was a stellar teacher and tried to bring life into our morning class. His passion for the class material was obvious and was showcased in his lectures. Solid choice for anyone trying to fulfill their theology credit. 1 straightforward test, 1 Essay, 1 Final Exam, and a collection of Bible Journals to to decide on final grade.

Linafelt is a great, funny professor, but it's unnecessarily difficult to get an A. It helps to already know the Bible inside and out. If I had to redo Bib Lit, I'd look for an easier class.

Prof. Linafelt is absolutely amazing. His lectures are engaging and I learned so much in his class. However it is really hard to tell what he wants on the paper, which is difficult since it is worth 30% of your grade. Overall I really enjoyed this class and I would take it again.

As others say, he's a funny dude, but he also takes the class and the material seriously. Not an easy grader maybe, but fair and seems very willing to talk with students and help them do better. I met with him several times and he always gave me good feedback. Take him if you have the chance!

Tod is a great professor. I took this class to fulfill the theology requirement and ended up absolutely loving it. He has clear requirements and is a straightforward grader. Additionally, he does a great job making sure everybody understands the material. Really top notch guy. Signs his emails, "your pal Tod"

Best professor I had at Georgetown

I took two classes with him, and wish I could take more. One of my favorite professors I've ever had at Georgetown, he has very engaging lectures and is very knowledgable in his subject. Grading is tough but fair, and if you do the reading and participate in class, an A is very achievable.

He's a funny guy definitely. Lectures could get dry because he talks A LOT. But overall a solid choice for bib lit. A's are fairly hard to get, but do the work diligently and don't fall behind and you should be fine

Very good, would definitely take again.

Tod's a cool guy, even if he's got a supreme sense of dad humor. Attendance is expected for every class, but doing the readings isn't totally necessary, and there's only a midterm and a final paper plus two small assignments for the entire semester.

Great professor. Makes theology relevant and interesting! Cannot recommend highly enough. He's the GOAT

Bib lit with Prof Linafelt was super fun and interesting. He's a funny guy, and I learned a ton. He really expects a lot from his students and challenges you without being too overbearing. The paper is tough, but if you talk to him in office hours, he'll help you out. I feel like I really got a new perspective on the Bible.

Don't get me wrong, Linafelt is tough, but he's a solid guy and his class definitely will make you think about the Bible more critically. His class emphasizes the Bible as literature and tries to separate it from the dogmatic lense people look at it and it was definitely enjoyable. Plus, his dad jokes are amusing. Would take again.

Prof. Linafelt was great and made a required class engaging. I really appreciated his jokes! You read a lot of the Bible which can sometimes get a little overwhelming. Only test was 30% of your grade and was a little tricky so make sure you study. Overall great professor!

Took his upper-level Bible as Lit class after taking Intro to Bib Lit in the Spring and honestly, it didn't disappoint. Three short papers plus a final paper, most of it really focused on a close reading of the texts. I definitely learned a lot in the class, and if you're looking for a good class to take, this is it.

A true gem of a professor with a great sense of humor. I had no idea how cool the Bible really was until I took his class last spring. Bib Lit with Professor Linafelt is an absolute must!!

He is awesome. His class is challenging but he really takes his material seriously and cares about your input on bib-lit. There is a lot of reading but it is apposite for a literature class to emphasise reading. Pro-tip go to his office hours and ask for feedback, he gives excellent feedback.

Intro to Biblical Literature has been my favourite course at Georgetown. It forces you to look at the Bible in ways you'd never expect. There's a lot of reading and writing and you definitely have to work for an A but he's very accessible outside of class and gives amazing feedback. He's also hilarious and he makes class so fun. 10/10 recommend.

Very good. Among the best at Georgetown.

Professor Linafelt was pretty good at making the content accessible. The lectures could be a bit all over the place, but when it was an interesting topic, Linafelt is very engaging (and funny). The short essay final wasn't bad and we got the questions ahead of time. For someone not interested in Theology, I learned a lot.

He's great. My roomate and I were both in his course, in different sections, and we often talked about what we were reading in the course. We both thought it was the best theology course you could take. Linafelt makes you think, and makes the Bible much more interesting than you expect!

I graduated 15 years ago. Bib Lit with Linafelt still paying dividends. The practice of exegesis that I was introduced to in that class was like "wax on, wax off" for media literacy. More than ever, with how stuff is non-stop chopped & edited, and everything's fandom. Good times. (Also learned about the bible.)

Professor Linafelt is a great guy and a passionate teacher. The readings can get overwhelming, but you will learn a lot about the Bible. The major downside of taking his courses is that even in smaller classes, he lectures for 90% of the class, so don't be afraid to try to get his attention to hit the participation requirement.

Prof. Linafelt somehow made me enjoy a class I was convinced I'd hate. He's funny, insightful, and incredibly knowledgable about the course material. I would, without hesitation, call him the best choice to fulfill a Theology Core requirement.

Professor Linafelt is the man. Super nice guy, fair grader, and would highly recommend to anybody.

Professor Linafelt is great, funny, and super smart. The Bible and secondary readings felt pretty long as well as the reading journal entires that are required, so expect spending a lot of time on homework. There is one challenging test, a paper, and a final exam that he prepares students for.

I had to give him a 5 because Linafelt is such a great guy, but no, I would NEVER take this class again. Linafelt is really a legend. His class? Painful. Epitome of Friere's banking model of education, if you're familiar; limited discussion and cooperative inquiry and a LOT of him droning on about whatever he wants to talk about. So much reading...

I am in his class now, it's not as hard as some people say. Overall, a great class and a great prof.

Loved this class. Linafelt is so knowledgeable and takes an unbiased and historically grounded perspective which is focused around the Bible as a literary text but not necessarily religion. Will probably challenge what you think you know about the origin of the Bible. Also he's so funny, a fair grader, and tries very hard to reach students.

Tod is a great professor, very intelligent man, and cares about his students. The amount and difficulty of the work assigned is extremely disproportional to an intro theo class. But you emerge with new perspectives from analysing the religion in its historical and literary contexts.

His course is a fair amount of work compared to other intro courses I guess, but it's all interesting and Linafelt is passionate about the material. I did a tour of duty in the armed services before coming to Georgetown, so maybe I am used to working more than other students here. Overall, a great professor and made the the material interesting.

The Bible as Literature was great. I had little familiarity with the Bible going in and I learned so much. It's like an English class with the Bible as the book and it was super interesting. Prof. Linafelt is also a really funny guy, I laughed more than I expected to for a Bible class. The workload is a bit heavy with readings but it's worth it imo

I really liked Professor Linafelt and this class—he makes the content super interesting. However, it's a lot of work, not necessarily the hardest class but so many readings and if you don't do them I can imagine you would not do too well.

Linafelt is the GOAT. 2 tests: 20% each, memorize the vocab list for an EASY A. 1 essay 20%: 3 prompt and due date options (I wrote 1 and 1/2 pages under the minimum and still got an A). Handwritten final 20%: You are given the prompts a week out (they aren't complex) Journal 20%: 1 sentence for each chapter assigned DUE AT END OF TERM. JUST SKIM

He was a very humorous and knowledgeable prof. but readings were disproportionate for an intro level class; I easily spent 3+ hours/day on them. I really enjoyed his lectures but the amount of readings truly kept me in Lau. Would recommend considering other professors, especially for the theology credit.

Took this for my first religious studies requirement and glad I did. It was my favorite course this semester. You'll learn alot about the Bible, and his daughter. : )