Registration is now open for Online Greek: Part I, which will be taught during the fall semester of the 2020–21 academic year at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.

Registration for Part I of the course is available through Aug. 7. Registration for Part II, which will be taught during the spring semester, will be available in October. The course fee is $1,200 per semester and the class size is limited to 15 students.

The course is designed to serve three groups of prospective students: those who have completed the Specific Ministry Pastor (SMP) Program and are continuing on with the Specific Ministry Pastor to General Pastor Certification (SMP-GPC) Program, and those who have applied for the Master of Divinity (M.Div.) or Residential Alternate Route (RAR) programs. The course prepares these students to take the Entry Level Competency Exam (ELCE) in Greek, an entry-level requirement.

Dr. James W. Voelz, the Dr. Jack Dean Kingsbury Professor of New Testament Theology, will teach the course. Voelz is a preeminent Greek scholar who has taught the language for more than 40 years. He is author of What Does This Mean? Principles of Biblical Interpretation in the Post-Modern World, Fundamental Greek Grammar, and Mark 1:1–8:26 and Mark 8:27–16:20 in the Concordia Commentary series.

“I am very glad to be able to teach this course once again. It is very rewarding to see the students grow in their understanding of the New Testament as a result of being able to use the Greek original,” Voelz said. “I invite all who wish to increase the depth of their study of the Scriptures to sign up.”

The schedule for the course consists of live online tutoring sessions from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. (CT) Thursdays. The first class will be Sept. 3. The class meets each week through the academic year for a total of 30 sessions. Students should plan to commit eight hours in study each week for the course.

Students are required to use the following textbooks:

• Fundamental Greek Grammar, 4th Revised Edition (Concordia Publishing House, 2019)
• Novum Testamentum Graece, 28th Edition (German Bible Society, 2012)

If space is available in the course after SMP-GPC, M.Div. and RAR students have enrolled, anyone wishing to learn Greek may enroll. The course has no prerequisites and is not for credit, but a solid understanding of English grammar is essential to success.

In addition to the online course, residential Greek courses are offered in the summer term and fall semester. RAR students are encouraged to enroll in either the summer residential course or the fall online course because they are ineligible to take the fall residential course.

For more information about the Seminary’s Greek courses, contact Rev. Bill Wrede, director of ministerial admissions, at 314-505-7200 or wredew@csl.edu. To request an application, contact Gina Matzenbacher, administrative assistant in the Registrar’s office, at 314-505-7107 or matzenbacherg@csl.edu.

About Concordia Seminary

Concordia Seminary, St. Louis provides Gospel-centered graduate-level theological education for pastors, missionaries, deaconesses, scholars and other leaders in the name of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). To learn more, visit csl.edu.