[B-Greek] The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Data: An Argument for a
Richard Lindeman
oblchurch at msn.com
Sun Mar 28 08:21:50 EDT 2010
I think that there is a problem with Greek grammars generally, both ancient
and modern. And the problem is that they come off as being far too
authoritative. I don't see any of them entitled "Grammatical Crutches For
Learning To Read Biblical Greek". And yet that is precisely what they are.
They are "crutches" at best and their goal should be to assist a student to
actually read the Greek and then at some point throw the crutches away like
the leper hopping and dancing and praising the Lord. I think that it would
help a great deal if new grammars would incorporate this kind of "crutch"
mentality not only in the title but also throughout the book. Each major
new insight concerning Greek grammar should be introduced with a warning
about its limitations and an encouragement to just read more (perhaps with
an appropriate reference to specific Greek literature where the student can
advance his/her understanding of the subject at hand.) The grammar should
also encourage the student to regularly read Greek even when it makes no
sense at all, to just get a feel for the language and perhaps offer reading
assignments apart from itself that regularly exceed the stage at which the
learner is at. Even intermediate and advanced grammars would do well in
regularly reminding readers of their limitations and encouraging students to
read.
Rich Lindeman
More information about the B-Greek
mailing list