I want to learn greek

[Dave_Noonan]

I learned Greek using Hansen and Quinn. It’s still my favorite after all these years:

amazon.com/Greek-Intensive-Course-Hardy-Hansen/dp/0823216632/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1302405162&sr=1-1

 

[GonQPat]

Hello Mojoforyeshua

I learned tourist Greek, and I do have a pipe-dream of learning to read Koine Greek.

However, when it comes to the interpretation of a passage from the Scriptures, then the interpretations that I have accepted were based on trust; and not on grammar, nor a persuasive argument. In the page entitled ‘The Bystander,’ at my web-site at ‘www.faithembraced.co.za,’ I made the following comment:

Protestants and Catholics were inclined to present their respective arguments by using somewhat different rules of the game. And one manner of illustrating the rules of the game that a debater may use is to describe his frame of reference and his vision. The frame of reference that a typical Protestant debater will adopt is that of a debating society. And his vision is that of a conclusive and incontestable argument.

In contrast with that, the frame of reference that a typical Catholic debater will adopt is that of a mentor-novice relationship. And his vision is that of a revelation (or even mentoring) accepted with trust.

So, with that perspective, and when in doubt, I am inclined to accept, on trust, the interpretation of a passage from the Scriptures of an acknowledged Catholic authority, such as a Father or Doctor of the Church.

But, having said that, I am still toying with the idea of learning to read Greek.

Patrick Q Gonsalves

 

[GonQPat]

Hello Mojoforyeshua

I have an afterthought on an earlier post.

In the page entitled ‘Mere Journalism,’ at my web-site at ‘www.faithembraced.co.za,’ I made the following comment:

A writer of fiction will often adopt a real-life report, and add additional details to mould the report into a fictitious story. The writer might then wish to mould the story to offer moral insight. Then the story might be somewhat comparable to ‘Aesop’s Fables.’ Furthermore, the writer might then wish to mould the story to offer religious insight, somewhat comparable to a parable. Finally, this sliding scale might perhaps terminate on a profession of faith, which is a conclusive statement of one’s religious beliefs. One such a profession of faith is the “Apostle’s Creed.”

Then, according to my perspective, a Biblical writer might have used Koine Greek to express his religious conviction. But, as I see it, a faithful interpretation of any such passage is an attempt to capture the writer’s religious conviction. So, I should think that a knowledge of Greek grammar is essential, but not conclusive.

And having said that, yes, I still would like to learn to read Greek.

Patrick Q Gonsalves

 

[tmj365]

I don’t see any problem taken a language class in a Protestant setting, as long as they are not anticatholic. Koine Greek is Koine Greek. While some professors may wander off on tangents, it should be obvious when they do so. In my Greek classes, it was all about the language, and I had two learned men teaching. It was academic all the way.

“To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor’s thoughts, words, and deeds in a favorable way: Every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a favorable interpretation to another’s statement than to condemn it.(St. Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises)”

LOVE IT!
Tom