Join a Semester Field Study
JUC is expanding opportunities to experience the lands of the Bible through Semester Field Studies in Greece, Türkiye and Patmos, Egypt, and Jordan.
Egypt
Ancient Egypt and the Bible
Travel with JUC through the Sinai, Upper Egypt, and Lower Egypt. Through on-site teaching and firsthand exploration, you'll discover the history and culture of ancient Egypt while examining its connections to biblical people and events and its relationship with the lands of Canaan and Israel.
Along the way, explore some of Egypt's most significant historical and archaeological sites, including the Giza Pyramids, Coptic Cairo, the Egyptian Museum, Grand Egyptian Museum, Memphis, Sakkara, the Djoser and Dahshur pyramids, Aswan, Luxor, and Mt. Sinai.
Whether you've studied Egypt before or are encountering its history for the first time, the field study offers an opportunity to see the geography, monuments, artifacts, and cultural world of Egypt in their original setting and consider how they illuminate the world of the Bible.
Greece
The Life and Times of Paul
Travel with JUC through Greece, exploring the historical, geographical, and archaeological settings of Paul's second and third missionary journeys. Through on-site teaching and firsthand exploration, you'll encounter the cities and landscapes that shaped Paul's ministry and gain a richer understanding of the people, places, and events recorded in Acts.
Follow Paul's journeys through Thessaloniki, Philippi, Berea, Corinth, and Athens, while also exploring significant sites at Delphi and Olympia. The journey includes a day in and around Meteora, where centuries-old monasteries rise above the dramatic rock formations of central Greece.
As you travel, you'll consider the historical and cultural world in which Paul proclaimed the gospel, established early Christian communities, faced opposition, and encouraged new believers. Seeing these places firsthand provides a new perspective on the geography and context behind Paul's ministry and the growth of the early church.
Jordan
Cultural Backgrounds of the Bible
Travel with JUC on a field study through Jordan, designed to deepen your understanding of the cultural world behind the biblical text. Rather than simply observing from a distance, you'll participate in traditional practices and experience ways of life that can provide valuable context for understanding biblical customs, imagery, and ways of thought.
Visit traditional villages and Bedouin areas, practice traditional farming and cooking, spend time with a shepherd, ride camels, hike through Wadi Dana, and stay with a Bedouin family in Wadi Rum. Along the way, on-site teaching will help you consider aspects of society, identity, economy, subsistence, hospitality, and religious expression and how cultural context can enrich your reading of Scripture.
The goal is not simply to see Jordan, but to experience traditional life as much as possible and develop a better understanding of the cultural practices and customs that illuminate the biblical world.
Patmos and Türkiye
Revelation and the Seven Cities of the Apocalypse
Travel with JUC on a narrative, historical, and archaeological field study to Patmos and the seven cities addressed in the Book of Revelation. Through on-site teaching and firsthand exploration, you'll encounter the geography, history, archaeology, and cultural setting of the communities that first received John's message.
Begin with Patmos, the island where John received the visions recorded in Revelation, before traveling through western Türkiye to explore Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.
Standing in these ancient cities provides an opportunity to consider Revelation within its first-century setting. Explore the world of the early Christian communities addressed in the text, examine the historical and cultural circumstances they faced, and consider how the imagery and messages of Revelation would have resonated with its original audience.