Greece: In the Footsteps of Paul and the Ancient Cultures May 2026
Course Description:
Come with us and rock in the cradle of Western civilization! Get ready for your own Olympian journey, and put a little Greece in your diet!! This extraordinary cross-cultural course explores the remarkably diverse cultural history of Greece from its ancient past to its modern present. We will tread in the footsteps of the apostle Paul, walk the paths of Socrates, and hike on the trails of the ancients. Our odyssey will take us to Athens, Corinth, Olympia, Mycenae, Epidaurus, the island and Rhodes, Thessaloniki, Philippi, Meteora, and Delphi. We will eat delicious Greek food and, if you desire, bask in the sun on the coasts of the beautiful Mediterranean, Aegean, and Ionian seas. Through a field-based examination of biblical archaeological sites, Eastern Orthodox churches, architecture, religious art, and cultural sites, we will learn about the influence of the Greco-Roman culture on the early and contemporary Christian tradition. Please read the attached brochure for more details. This is an educational trip of a lifetime!
Estimated Course Fee: $7,490
Faculty Biographies:
Dr. Sharon Putt received her undergraduate degree at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, her M.A.T.H. from Texas Christian University and her Ph.D. from Southern Methodist University. She has significant experience traveling abroad and taking students on cross-cultural trips. She has traveled with youth groups and took 22 Messiah students to Ghana, Africa in 2009. Their stay in mud huts with thatched roofs, lack of hot water for three weeks, and hours of rough travel on dirt roads have prepared her for future travel under very diverse circumstances. She and her husband have taken students on international trips to Italy, Greece, and Turkey for years. She has traveled extensively in Europe and the Middle-east. Her discipline is world religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, and Christian theology which have prepared her to teach students to value views other than their own and to provide the guidance necessary for a cross-cultural trip
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Dr. B. Keith Putt is Professor of Philosophy at Samford University in Birmingham, AL and Sharon’s husband. He has a Ph.D. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Philosophy of Religion and a Ph. D. from Rice University in Philosophical Theology. He has traveled extensively in the United States, in Europe and the Middle-east. He and his wife have taken students on international trips to Italy, Greece, and Turkey for years. He also teaches the core Cultural Perspectives courses at Samford that enable him to teach students how to appreciate those who think and live differently.
Professor Dan Schmidt received his MA at Trinity International University and an MDiv at Princeton Theological Seminary in Hebrew Bible and New Testament. He serves as an adjunct instructor in Bible and Theology at Messiah University and as the senior pastor at St. Thomas UCC church in Harrisburg, PA. He has extensive international travel experience in Europe and in South America. He traveled with Messiah students for a three-week cross-cultural trip to Greece in 2019 and to Turkey and Greece in 2022. Prof. Schmidt also served for years as a pastor in various Costa Rica.
Other Course Information:
Greece May 2026 - Know Before You Go.pdf
Greece May 2026 - Brochure.pdf
