Well, a lot has happened since my last post. Obviously.
Fall semester ended well, although the exegesis paper for Biblical Interpretation was quite a challenge. A lot of older seminarians told the people in my class that the exegesis paper is sort of the traditional hurdle for first-year students, difficulty-wise. If you don't know what exegesis is (because it wasn't long ago when I didn't), it's basically a study of a passage of Scripture that tries to get at its meaning. Some of the ways we do exegesis is by studying important words in the Scripture passage, its grammar, the historical background of it, and how it fits into the rest of the chapter, the book, and the Bible. Whew! Talk about humbling. And rewarding.
I had a few weeks off, took a one-week intensive class on the Pentateuch (a.k.a. the first five books of the Bible), and am currently enjoying my final day off before spring classes begin. Got another full plate this semester:
1. Systematic Theology
2. Greek II
3. Introduction to New Testament
4. Introduction to Missions
5. History class on models of Christian community
One change this semester is that my housemate Sarah (above middle) has to move back to New England this week. The photo depicts me along with our other housemate, Hannah, engaging in a bizarre inside joke that would take way too long to explain in this post. Suffice to say, we had a lot of fun with Sarah and will miss her.
3 Thanksgivings:
* For the start of new classes
* For a pain-free trip to the dentist last week
* For a renewed awareness of God's presence
3 Prayers:
* For Sarah as she departs Ambridge this week
* For peace, strength, and humor for this new semester
* For the poor living in Ambridge and Pittsburgh
