Bible Department Goals

Libertas Bible Department Overall Goals and Objectives 

  • To help students achieve familiarity with the content and grand narrative of each book of the Bible and the historical context of its authorship and events
  • To grow students’ ability to identify key concepts and themes in books and passages of Scripture 
  • To develop an exegetical method that is reliable and faithful to the text while retaining space for the Holy Spirit to speak through the text (in other words, presenting an academic and consistent method to interpret Scripture without taking the inspiration of the Spirit out of the equation) 
  • To introduce reliable, useful sources for in-depth study of the Bible such as lexicons, commentaries, Bible software etc.
  •  To provide an introduction to biblical languages(Greek and Hebrew), how they’re used, and how to study them in a way that will inform students’ study of Scripture; this includes significant vocabulary words, basic grammatical concepts, and aspects of syntax that influence how the text is translated
  •  To strengthen students’ ability to evaluate arguments about the nature, reliability, and interpretation of Scripture

Middle School Bible Class Goals

To teach students the Biblical narrative through a thematic and survey style approach to Biblical content with an aim towards personal faith formation. Methodology will include selected readings in OT and NT texts, special attention to characters and important passages, the study of specific Hebrew and Greek terms that are theologically and thematically significant, the memorization of select verses that carry the theme of each Biblical book, and an introduction to the cultural and geographical setting of the Old and New Testaments. 

Upper School Bible Class Goals

To confer upon students skills in exegetical method and theological interpretation with an aim towards personal faith formation. Methodology will include required reading of the totality of select OT and NT books, intermediate examination of the specific application of historical circumstance for theological interpretation, introduction to genre (structure and style) for theological interpretation, special attention to canonical intertextuality (i.e., NT use of the OT [Scripture's use of Scripture]), introduction to the Bible's use of language to convey meaning (varied level of analysis appropriate to student language acquisition), and an introduction to using extra-Biblical resources (commentaries, concordances, lexicons, etc.,) for the life-long study of God's word.