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Saturday, February 28, 2009

More Thoughts on Memorization

Although I have not gotten much further with my memorization of Philippians (through v.10), a few comments on my last post by readers have prompted me to elaborate a bit more on technique.

At first, I set a goal of memorizing two passages a day. I believe this is still realistic, and with that pace I would complete Philippians in about 52 days. However, I have found that some days I have more time than others, so I have ceased from putting a specific number of verses on my daily agenda. This allows for the verses I have already memorized to become cemented and enable instant recall.

Another factor I have long thought about and has preoccupied much of my own work to this point is the aural/oral aspect of memorization. This current project has engaged my thinking once again about Paul's audiences and whether Scriptural allusions and citations would have been recognized by them. This may be a bit anachronistic, especially considering the fact that I live in a text-based culture, but it would be fascinating to see if I could memorize parts of Philippians on the basis of hearing alone. I might try that for part of this project.

Once again, this has become an exercise that is extremely gratifying, humbling and fun. I am hoping that Paul's words to the church in Philippi will resonate with this endeavor:
πεποιθὼς αὐτὸ τοῦτο ὅτι ἐναρξάμενος ἐν ὑμῖν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἐπιτελέσει ἄχρι ἡμέρας Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ (Philippians 1.6)

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