Wednesday, January 7, 2015

2 Kings Hebrew Reading Group

A public service announcement for people in the Caronport area who have taken a year or two of Hebrew: We will be hosting a Hebrew reading group on Monday evenings this semester from 6:00-7:00 p.m. at the Miller residence.

We often run a Hebrew reading group in the summer for fun--and it really is fun: What could be more exciting than sitting in a circle, reading and translating an unfamiliar passage from the Hebrew Bible? Anyway, we thought it would work to start in January this year.

As usual, the goal for the group is to create a supportive, non-intimidating, and enjoyable environment that will help us maintain and refresh our Hebrew. Some sort of advance preparation is typically a good idea, though people are welcome to come and listen in even if they aren’t ready to translate. I’ll have some lexical aids handy in case we get stuck.

Since I don't do this in my official capacity as a teacher, I make a point of choosing a passage that I have not read before in Hebrew, and try to minimize my own advance preparation. Why 2 Kings? We read through the Elijah narratives in 1 Kings a few years ago, and thought that Elisha deserved his due. Also narrative generally makes for nice, straightforward reading.

If you are interested in attending, please let me know. If you would like to join a Hebrew reading group but are not in the Caronport area, I highly recommend Charles Grebe's online reading group.