St. Raphael offers biblical Greek, Arabic, and contemporary Russian courses for beginning and continuing students. Studying Greek trains children in the art of grammar universal to all language, as well as giving them access to the New Testament and Septuagint, Byzantine hymnography, and Patristic writings in the original tongue. Russian opens possibilities for students to engage more deeply with the Slavic roots of many Orthodox churches. We’re excited to add Arabic as the most recent addition to the St. Raphael School language program.
LS Greek Alphabet & Grammar Primer
LS Greek Reading & Literature
MS Greek 1
MS Greek 2
US Greek 2 Intermediate
Greek Curriculum Map
MS Greek 3
New Testament Greek 1 for Adults
US Greek 1 for Beginners
New Testament Greek 2 for Adults
Russian Primer: Alphabet and Songs
Russian Primer: Reading and Grammar
US Russian 1
US Russian 2
US Russian 3
Russian Curriculum Map
US Arabic 2
More About Greek and Russian at SRS
Greek at SRS
Why study Greek at St. Raphael School?
Learning to read the New Testament and Septuagint as they were originally written is a cornerstone of a Christian liberal arts education (and a great foundation for later study of pre-Christian Greek classics). Moreover, for Orthodox Christians interested in serious study of theology, church history, iconography, or Byzantine chanting, Greek is a must. Biblical Greek is simpler than Attic or Homeric Greek, making it appropriate for younger learners. And the immediate relevance of Greek class to the students’ lives is clear when they learn to sing familiar hymns or say well-known prayers in Greek.
Our immersion in the prayers and hymns for the feasts brings us into the rhythm of the liturgical year. This inductive approach nourishes our souls, as well as providing inspiration and context for the labors of the deductive approach found in the grammar curriculum. To give just one example, the Lord’s Prayer in Greek contains an instance of three out of the four cases of the first-person plural pronoun: Our Father (genitive/possessive), give to us our daily bread (dative/indirect object), and deliver us from evil (accusative/direct object). Our textbook instructs us in the usage of these pronouns, and we memorize the paradigm that lists them in Greek, but learning the prayer as well gives us context.
Russian at SRS
Why Study Russian at St. Raphael School?