Regent Retreat and Thanks to Editorial

Hi, everyone,

On Sunday, I got back from a weekend Regent College retreat to Warm Beach Camp in Washington. Much of the faculty went too, so it was unlike any other retreat I've ever been on. One of the faculty members was the speaker for the retreat, and he spoke on three texts: Psalm 1 and what it means to be "happy," Luke 1 and the virgin Mary, and Matthew 17 and the transfiguration.

Also, there was a (mostly) hilarious talent show this year at the retreat. During one part of the talent show, people began constructing an imaginary "house of love" out of people on stage. One of the faculty members also participated. He had to be a crackling fire, and he played his part by being prompted to say (with feeling), "Crackling fire!" It was pretty funny to see a biblical scholar saying this in his native Scottish brogue.

I've also found that learning all about coordinating conjunctions, prepositional phrases, and other grammatical peticulars from Editorial has been extremely helpful in learning Greek. They also use a modified version of the Chicago Manual of Style for research paper formats, which I'm relieved to know (I don't like the MLA system as much).

Homework's been picking up, but everything's been falling into place so far, and it's an exciting place to be. Hope everything's well!

First Class

Today, I had my first class (I have only one class on Mondays): Introduction to Biblical Greek, or to put it more succinctly, κοινή (koine, “common”) Greek, the language of the New Testament writers. This sort of Greek was the everyday language of the Greco-Roman period, which is why it was the ideal language for spreading the gospel throughout the Roman Empire.

My professor’s name is Keith Ganzer, a very lively and likable guy who gets very excited about what he teaches, which is always a plus. He sent us the syllabus via e-mail before the first class, asking us (but not requiring us) to do some advance preparation. I did the advance work, and it was helpful for the first day of class.

One great thing about preparing for this class is that I had already bought the books he listed over the summer (on the advice of a friend), so I had already reviewed the first four chapters. To some degree, I’m ahead, but I’m looking forward to the inevitable challenges as the term goes onward.

I wanted to take Greek because I had taken Hebrew in my undergraduate studies, and it was also recommended that I take a biblical language for my first term at Regent. Professor Ganzer also teaches Hebrew, and he emphasized that students should not just take Greek (as, he said, often happens in Christian schools). They should take both Greek and Hebrew, even if their concentration is on the New Testament, since the New Testament makes extensive use of quotes from the Old Testament.

Long story short: I’m thrilled to be taking Greek!

Here are my three other classes that I will be attending throughout this week:
1. History of Christianity I, with Prof. Sarah Williams
2. Christian Thought and Culture I, with Prof. Iain Provan
3. OT Foundations, with Prof. Iain Provan

As a language class, Greek is required, but the three I just listed are all core classes for MCS (Master of Christian Studies) students, so they recommend getting those out of the way first.

Hope everyone is doing great!

Εν Χριστω (“in Christ”),

Becca

First Two Days of Orientation

I had my first two days of orientation, and here are a few things that I learned:

First, I learned about Regent's interesting history, which you can read a little about here: http://www.regent-college.edu/about_regent/introduction/history.html.

Before coming to orientation, I didn’t know that Regent really dislikes the word seminary, and the faculty (and students) insist that it’s a Christian graduate school (which is exactly what it is). They used to call it the “unseminary.” (But this terminology is no longer used. Now it is simply known as a Christian grad school.)

Regent is NOT typical. (I did know that before coming here.) One emphasis at Regent is that students should first and foremost always remember the main reason for doing their studies, which directs everything else: to love Christ and understand what it means, as one of the faculty members stated, “to be ‘with Him’” (based off Mark 3:14), and then to be sent out by Him. (One of the things that I’m always going to be cherishing is the “with Christ”/ “in Christ” theme of the New Testament, which reminds us constantly that our identity as Christians is in Him.)

Regent is only a graduate school (not an undergrad school), and they will insist that it is NOT a seminary. (It’s also NOT a place where the MDiv or “pastor” student is the star student. They have a “lay emphasis,” which means that they believe that every Christian is in ministry in their respective contexts, and their ministries are just as important as the pastor’s, regardless of whether they go to the academy, become homemakers, engineers, publishers, etc.)

They also encourage using the intellect to love, worship, and glorify God, which really excites me.

Thanks again to everyone for all your continued prayers!

Moved In

Hey, everybody.

Well, I'm all moved in (I just need to unpack a few boxes), and I have a few errands to run this morning.

I'm living in what is known as "Capella House," which, as the house policy stipulates, is named after the word capella, which is Italian for "chapel." It derives from cappa, a Latin root meaning "cape" or "cloak." I'm enjoying my time here greatly, and it's been a treat to get to know the family and the other tenants here.

Today I'm off to Vancouver to take care of some things (getting a bus pass, paying for fees, etc.). I will have another post detailing more soon.

God bless!