Orthodox Church Greek is the one to learn if you want to follow the Divine Liturgy and the Gospel reading in the language your church uses. The Gospel and epistle readings are Koine Greek, said with Modern Greek sounds, and the hymns are later church Greek. For apps that teach Ancient Greek of any kind, see our Ancient Greek app comparison.
Bible textbooks and church services share the same written Greek, and they say it differently. Many Bible Greek courses teach the Erasmian sounds, and the church uses Modern Greek sounds. Bubblegum's Orthodox lessons use the church's sounds. If you read a Bible textbook alongside it, expect the words to sound different from the audio.
| Word | Modern Greek (As in Church) | Erasmian (Many Bible Greek Courses) |
|---|---|---|
| ἐλέησον (have mercy) | eh-LEH-ee-sohn | eh-LEH-ay-sohn |
| ἀγάπη (love) | ah-GHAH-pee | ah-GAH-pay |
Service books print the Greek with all its accents and breathing marks or with only the accent, and a learner who opens one of the plainer books sees the same words with fewer marks.
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Ancient Greek. You learn from Ancient Greek you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
Tell Poppy, your AI tutor, your level and what you like, and she writes your Orthodox Greek lessons. If a sentence is hard to follow, ask Poppy to explain it. Ask her what the call Κύριε, ἐλέησον means word by word.
With Regenerative Review™, words you save show up again in new lessons, so that you can review words in new contexts without having to use flashcards.
To learn Orthodox Greek in Bubblegum, pick Ancient Greek, then Orthodox. Level 6 for Orthodox Greek reads: "I can read Chrysostom and the church's hymns as written."
- Pick Ancient Greek, then Orthodox, and lessons have audio in the church's sound.
- Pick a goal like following the Divine Liturgy, and the lessons are written to match.
- Ask Poppy what a line means while you read.
- Regenerative Review™ brings saved words back in new lessons, and you can export them to Anki.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- Learn every letter and its sound in the free Classical Greek Alphabet course.
- You can't turn your own service book into lessons. However, you can paste a prayer in the chat, and Poppy will explain it.
- Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read.
- Regenerative Review™
Mobile
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America's free app, Digital Chant Stand, brings texts and music together, with Greek and English texts, scores, and audio recordings of hymns and entire services. Its App Store page lists English as its only language. St. Anthony's Monastery posts the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom with most hymns in both English and Greek, set in Byzantine chant notation.
Mango Languages
Mango's Koine Greek course is built on short conversations. It doesn't say which texts the course reads, so check a lesson against the prayers you want to follow.
- Mango lists Greek (Koine) as its own course.
- Lessons are built from conversations, with grammar notes and color-coding that point out how Koine sentences are put together.
- Flashcards
MobileWeb
The Greek of the Gospel reading and the epistle is the Greek of the New Testament, so a Koine textbook is a good base. Bill Mounce's Basics of Biblical Greek has a free online class that goes through every chapter, and each chapter's vocabulary comes with a modern pronunciation as well as the standard one. Workbook exercises come with audio, and you will want the textbook beside it.
Preply
Preply's Ancient Greek tutors work with private students. Tell yours you want the Greek of the Liturgy, and ask for the church's pronunciation.
- Preply lists 129 Ancient Greek tutors from 21 countries.
- If the first tutor isn't a match, you can try two more for free.
MobileWeb
A long language list can mean only the menus are translated, so try one Greek lesson in your language first.
| App | Languages You Can Use It In | Full List |
|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | 76 | Supported language pairs |
| Digital Chant Stand | 1 | Full list |
| Mango | 2 | Full list |
| Preply | 19 | Full list |
Which Orthodox Greek app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Ancient Greek, start with Bubblegum. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level about things you like. Or open Digital Chant Stand beside the service to see the Greek and English texts together.
Is Church Greek the same as Modern Greek?
No. The church reads Koine Greek, the Greek of the New Testament, with Modern Greek sounds. A Modern Greek course such as Rosetta Stone's teaches today's everyday language, so the sounds will help you and the words and grammar will differ.
Do I need to learn Biblical Greek first?
No. Bubblegum's Orthodox Level 1 is for learners who know a few words from church, like Κύριε, ἐλέησον, and a Biblical course is there when you want to go deeper into the New Testament. The Biblical Greek page lists its books and courses.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read. Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Bubblegum: Ancient Greek
- Digital Chant Stand on the App Store (Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America)
- St. Anthony's Monastery: Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, Byzantine notation, Greek and English
- Bill Mounce: free online class for Basics of Biblical Greek (vocabulary in standard and modern pronunciation)
- Mango Languages: Greek (Koine)
- Mango Languages: available languages
- Mango Languages on the App Store (languages you can use it in)
- Preply: online Ancient Greek tutors
- Preply on the App Store (languages you can use it in)
- Wikipedia: Koine Greek
- Wikipedia: Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom
- Mango Languages
