Academic year 2025/2026
Overview
This course provides an opportunity to study and enhance competence in the Holy Bible within the Syriac tradition. A historical overview of the Holy Bible will be presented, focusing on the New Testament.
The course will emphasize the exegesis of Syrian Orthodox church fathers. Classical Syriac is the language of the early Bible translation, known as the Peshitta or simple translation. Participants will be introduced to other Syriac Scripture translations from the 5th and 6th centuries, specifically the Philoxenian and Harkelean versions.
Additionally, the course includes a brief introduction to the Diatessaron, a Syriac attempt to harmonize the four Gospels into a single, coherent narrative.
Learning Approach
At Sankt Ignatios Folkhögskola, the overarching principle that guides learning is that all knowledge is intersubjective.
Knowledge is dialogue, which requires humility and empathy.
This course is built on collaborative and dialogical learning where participants actively shape not only their common learning journey but also the course itself. The content, materials, and methods will be adapted in real time based on participants’ needs, interests, and input. Beyond mastering subject matter, a central goal is for each participant to become aware of how shared learning experiences and dialogue transforms their thinking, practice and identity. Through dialogue, narrative, group discussions, shared reflection, creative expression, and collective exploration, participants develop awareness of their own growth while supporting others’ development. The learning community becomes a space where everyone’s experiences and questions not only enrich understanding but actively guide the direction of the course, helping each person to integrate learning into their own life context in meaningful, personally transformative ways.
Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course, the participants are (individually and collectively) expected to be able to:
- understand Biblical texts using traditional explanations while connecting them to today’s questions from different social contexts;
- compare different Syriac Bible translations and explain how having different versions helps understanding;
- explain how the church interprets scripture, both historically and for today;
- connect Biblical texts with daily life by showing how scripture shapes both personal faith and community; and
- reflect thoughtfully on specific moments when studying the Bible with others revealed insights they might have missed on their own, and share how these discoveries have personally transformed their approach to scripture and deepened their participation in community life.
Other requirements
Attendance is mandatory. Students are expected to participate in all course activities, both by being present and playing an active role in scheduled sessions and by completing assignments outside of scheduled lessons. If participants miss lessons, they may be required to complete extra assignments to fulfill the learning outcome requirements of the course. For the course to be considered complete, 80% attendance and participation are required.
The syllabus was established by the Teachers’ Collegium on December 18 2024.
The Deans Council revised the syllabus on February 26 and March 18 2025.
