Students and those in charge of the postgraduate program of the translation of the original Bible text, carried out by the Hellenic Bible Society, visited Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece, this afternoon.
The Archbishop welcomed the students and the coordinators of the program and was interested in learning about the teaching methods and learning.
The Director, Michael Hatzigiannis, presented the curriculum, emphasizing that it is an international program of training Bible translators in Orthodox countries under the name “Innovation and Tradition in the Translation of the Bible” (Postgraduate Diploma in the Translation of the Bible in an Orthodox environment).
This program provides an opportunity for Bible Societies operating in Orthodox countries to nominate suitable candidates and is organized by the Nida Institute of the American Bible Society, the University of San Pellegrino in Misano, Italy, and the Hellenic Bible Society, which participates as coordinator. It comprises 3 years of distance learning and 2 weeks of seminars requiring physical presence per year. At the end, an officially recognized postgraduate degree (60 credits in total for a recognized EU diploma) is granted.
Mr. Hadjigiannis announced that during the seminar they meet with the Primates of the Orthodox Churches, therefore, they asked to inform the Archbishop of the program and to receive his wish.
The Archbishop congratulated the organizers of the program, stressing that in a time of confusion this is necessary, because the Word of God is spiritual food for all of us. He also described the activities of the Greek Bible Society as useful, pointing out that the Church would like to do something similar. The Archbishop also congratulated the students and the staff and emphasized that there will be cooperation in order to address any problems and to spread the Word of God in every home.