Hebrew and Old Testament lecturers visit Marburg
From Friday 1 May to Sunday 3 May, Lieve Teugels, Paul Sanders, and Michaël van der Meer participated in the annual conference of the international — though predominantly German-speaking — association of Hebrew lecturers.
Teaching Hebrew
In Germany, Hebrew is taught at some secondary schools, and there is still nationwide coordination regarding what is taught in Hebrew courses at universities. In the past, Hebrew lecturers from Amsterdam participated in such conferences. This year, the above-mentioned colleagues were invited to speak about the current Hebrew curriculum at the PThU (Lieve Teugels and Michaël van der Meer) and about the research project Semantics of Ancient Hebrew Database (Paul Sanders).
Digital tools
Many colleagues in Germany still work within traditional frameworks aimed at small groups of highly educated students, but others recognise the need to renew the curriculum, for example by making greater use of digital tools and by taking into account the differences among students. In these areas, we at the PThU have already gained considerable experience.
Enthusiastic responses
Lieve Teugels has ensured that the selection of texts to be studied is no longer determined solely by Hebrew grammar (Lettinga), but now includes texts relevant to the theology and liturgy of Jewish and Protestant Christian traditions. Paul Sanders demonstrated how the aforementioned digital developments and an integrated approach to all available data — from other Semitic languages and the oldest translations — can help determine the meaning of rarely occurring Hebrew words. Both lectures were enthusiastically received by the Hebraists present from Germany, Denmark, Austria, and Israel.
