Q: I enrolled in the Online Biblical Studies Program or a Program of Study prior to August 13.  Do I need to do anything differently?

A: No.  You are able to continue taking courses using the original Courses and Suggested Course Order.

Q: What’s different about the revised Online Biblical Studies Program (after August 13)?

A: -The 25-course Online Biblical Studies Program now has twenty-two required courses and three electives, while previously it was twenty-one required courses and four electives.

-We have added four new courses to the Online Biblical Studies Program: The Jewish World of Jesus, Windows to the Ancient World, Biblical Studies Seminar, and A Survey of the Biblical Text.  All of these are now part of the required courses for the complete Online Biblical Studies Program.  Two of these courses, Biblical Studies Seminar and A Survey of the Biblical Text are comprised of previous courses (see below for details).

–A Survey of the Hebrew Bible and A Survey of the New Testament have been merged into one 17-session Course, A Survey of the Biblical Text (this was its original format when originally taught).

– Two courses, Israel in Worship I and Israel in Worship II, were previously electives. They are now required courses.

– Three previously required courses are now electives.  They are: Biblical Backgrounds I and Biblical Backgrounds II, and Jewish Backgrounds of the New Testament.  The Biblical Studies Seminar consists of 13 class sessions taken from the three older courses. There is no significant overlap with the newer courses that are now required (Israel in Worship I and II, Jesus and His Jewish World, and Windows to the Ancient World).

Q: I enrolled in the Online Biblical Studies Program prior to August 13.  Am I able to take any of the new courses and have them counted toward the required courses?

A: Yes.  Whether they are counted toward your required core or electives will depend on the courses you have previously taken.  So, while you do not need to change anything, you are free to enroll in any of the new courses.

For example:

(1) If you have not yet taken Jewish Backgrounds of the New Testament and Biblical Backgrounds I and II, you could enroll in the Biblical Studies Seminar, the Jewish World of Jesus, and Windows to the Ancient World. They would then count toward your required courses.

(2) If you have not yet taken A Survey of the Hebrew Bible or A Survey of the New Testament, you may enroll in A Survey of the Biblical Text instead to count toward your required courses.  If you have taken A Survey of the Hebrew Bible but not A Survey of the New Testament, you may take A Survey of the New Testament.

(3) If you have already completed the previously required courses but would like to take any or all of the new courses, you are welcome to do so. They would be counted as an elective(s).

You are welcome to email the office with any questions you may have about any of the new courses.

Additional FAQs about our Online Courses:

Q: Do I need to take The Synoptic Gospels I, II and III if I already took The Life of Jesus I, II and III?  What is the difference?

A: No, you do not need to take both sets of courses, as both sets of courses study the Synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke.  The courses The Synoptic Gospels I, II and III have a required textbook (or alternate online method), whereas The Life of Jesus I, II and III do not have a required textbook, although the same textbook is suggested.  We recommend taking The Life of Jesus I, II and III, since it is our latest course on the Synoptic Gospels.

Q: What is the difference between the various courses on the Gospel of John?  Should I take them all?

A: You do not need to take all of the courses on John’s Gospel.  For the Online Biblical Studies Program and Life of Jesus Program, the required courses for the Gospel of John are The Gospel of John: The Book of Signs (Chapters 1-12a) and The Gospel of John: The Book of Glory (Chapters 12b-21).

The older course, The Gospel of John, was taught in one semester and is ideal for those who are not enrolled in either program above and want to study John as an individual course in a single semester.  We do not recommend this as an elective if you took the two required courses, as the newer courses go into greater detail.

A Journey Through John is a slower-paced verse-by-verse study in John’s Gospel.  While Part One, covering Chapters 1 through 4, is the only part currently available as an Online Course, more chapters will be available in the future.

Q: Is Understanding the Parables of Jesus still available?

A: Jesus and His Parables replaced Understanding the Parables of Jesus in 2019.  While we are no longer offering Understanding the Parables of Jesus to new students as of August of 2020, anyone who had previously enrolled is still able to log in and complete the course.