Bethel Seminary Launches 9-credit Biblical Studies Certificate
April 6, 2018 | 3 p.m.
By Monique Kleinhuizen ’08, GS’16, new media strategist
Students engage in classroom learning on Bethel’s campus in St. Paul.
Bethel Seminary is offering a new nine-credit Certificate in Biblical Studies beginning in fall 2018. It showcases some of Bethel Seminary’s best attributes—its stellar faculty, deep theological training, supportive community, and diverse perspectives—through a condensed, low-cost learning experience. On its own, the certificate will give a solid understanding of biblical interpretation to lay leaders, ministers, or anyone else looking for personal development.
The three courses in the program—Hermeneutics, Old Testament Survey, and New Testament Survey—are foundational to every Bethel Seminary program. This means the credits will easily roll into a full seminary program, and students won’t lose any momentum should they decide to continue their training, explains Jeannine Brown, professor of New Testament and co-vice president and dean for Bethel Seminary.
"This certificate is designed to give students a basic framework for biblical interpretation,” says Brown. Having taught at both Bethel Seminary St. Paul and San Diego, Brown is a veteran faculty member, and she’s excited about the possibilities and new groups of students that this option could bring. “It's a foundational certificate that will prepare students well for a wide range of options, whether they continue on to a full Bethel Seminary program or simply want to deepen their understanding of the Word,” she says.
The program is flexible, with start dates offered in the fall, spring, or summer. It can be taken online or through traditional, face-to-face classes in either San Diego or St. Paul. And while it can be completed in less than a year, with all three courses taken in immediate succession, it can also be spaced out for students who want a more relaxed pace.
“We really hope this becomes a way for people to try out seminary, but also to understand the Bible better—in a deeper, more intimate way—as they do that,” says Brown.
Find out more about the Biblical Studies Certificate or other program options at Bethel Seminary.