Ancient languages

Study objectives

The Latin course is intended to provide authentic access to the entire church and theological tradition up to and including the 18th century. The way to achieve this is to learn all the grammatical constructions and build a vocabulary of 900 words with the help of exercises and some 30 texts from the pre-Christian period. Most of these are actually taken from the period between 100 BC and 100 AD. This foundation is then built on by reading and discussing some 30 important theological documents from the fields of church history, liturgics and dogmatics.

Teaching offer

• The Latin courses at the University of Bern are run jointly for those studying Theology and Humanities.
• The Latin course is optional in principle. However, those who have not studied for a school-leaving examination in Latin must undergo a test to ascertain their expertise in Latin.
• Those who know Latin and would like, for example, to do some reading to freshen up their skills will find they are able to join a motivational learning group and study interesting texts in the second part of the course.

Study recommendations

• Someone hoping to become a Bachelor of Theology who still does not know any ancient languages will follow Latin Course I during the first semester and Latin Course II in the second. Both courses are immediately preceded by an intensive week-long course, and you should earmark 100% of this for Latin. This approach will mean less effort needs to be devoted to Latin during the two semesters.
• The Latin course is available each year. It is also possible to attend the Latin course as an auditor without being registered. If someone proves capable of reading the Latin texts provided, this will be recognized at the time of registration for the Faculty of Theology at Bern.
• The lecturer will be happy to provide you with information about the next course via e-mail.
• Since Latin is offered at gymnasiums (the Swiss secondary schools that typically prepare people for university), no credit is awarded for the actual language course. By contrast, you will receive 5 ECTS credits for in-depth reading of basic theological texts assuming your participation is successful.

Literature

The teaching material is as follows:

Cursus Brevis (published by Gerhard Fink and Friedrich Maier)

• Texte und Übungen (Texts and Exercises) (ISBN 3-486-87693-7)
• Systematische Begleitgrammatik (A Systematic Grammar Aid) (ISBN 3-486-87695-3)

As the official lingua franca in Roman times, Greek also became the language of the New Testament. In order to be able to work competently with the text in the Bible and get a better "feel" for the time in question, theologians need some knowledge of this language. The course is very much focused on the language of the New Testament, while trips designed to promote familiarity with the language and cultural history provide a glimpse of Classical Greece.

Study objectives

• The Greek course enables people to work with the New Testament in the original language, translate easier texts without assistance, make sensible use of commentaries and evaluate possible translations with a degree of discernment.
• The trips with a cultural history element are intended to help students see the New Testament and Christianity in the context of Greek philosophy, religion and mythology.

Teaching offer

• The first semester is when students pick up the basics of Greek morphology and syntax and develop a reasonable vocabulary. Even at this early stage, some work will be done with initial short texts from the New Testament.
• Language skills are further consolidated during the second semester. Reading various texts from the New Testament and its immediate context is intended to improve a person's translation skills and encourage them to work with the original text. Cultural history trips based on theology-related topics complete the program.
• In addition to participation in actual lessons, students are also expected to prepare material both before and afterwards and spend as much time as possible on individual translation work. On average, the amount of work per week is around five to six hours.
• The knowledge acquired is assessed via three attainment checks during and at the end of the course. More detailed information is available at the start of the course.

Literature

The teaching material currently used is as follows:

Whittaker/Holtermann/Hänni, Einführung in die griechische Sprache des Neuen Testaments (Introduction to Greek Used in the New Testament) (ISBN 3-525-52142-1).

Hebrew is one of the fundamental languages of Jewish culture and, in particular, of Jewish religious literature. In-depth engagement with this literature is not possible without knowledge of Hebrew, and this also applies to the Hebrew texts of the Bible. From the perspective of the Christian Bible, these Hebrew texts constitute by far the largest portion of the biblical writings.

Study objectives

• Like the two other language courses, the Hebrew course is a way for people to learn the language under instruction and prepare for their examinations.
• Officially speaking, the Hebrew rounding off the course is a supplementary examination intended to build on the school-leaving examination. This means that anyone who has attended Hebrew classes at a gymnasium to the level of the school-leaving examination will not have their Hebrew tested (until further notice).
• Once they have passed the examination, students should be able to read and translate prose texts and easier texts from the poetic/prophetic books on their own and apply the knowledge they have acquired by engaging with the academic literature with a degree of discernment.
• The Hebrew course also provides some initial in-depth insights into the language, culture and religion of the Orient in ancient times.
• Given how little time is available, it is intended – like an "appetizer" – to prepare people for the academic training on the subject of the Old Testament to be undergone during the course of their studies.

Teaching offer

• The first semester focuses on learning to read the language and mastering some grammar basics, as well as on vocabulary and morphology. Students start working with original texts from the Old Testament as soon as possible.
• The second semester is devoted to picking up on any remaining grammar, building vocabulary and working with biblical texts in greater depth. Everything is briefly revised at the end of the course in order to give people that last bit of preparation for the imminent examination.
• Anyone who has not attended Hebrew classes up to the school-leaving examination at a gymnasium must study for the Hebrew examination. This consists of a two-hour written examination and an oral lasting a quarter of an hour. The main purpose of this is to check how competent the person is at translating Hebrew prose texts without any help from others, as well as testing familiarity with basic functions of Hebrew morphology and syntax.