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SBL e-Newsletter
A bi-monthly newsletter for members of the Society of Biblical Literature


November 1 , 2010

Invitation to sessions

Only three weeks to the Annual Meeting! You are warmly invited to the following events on Saturday evening, November 20:

Presidential Address, 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Regency Ballroom, Hyatt Regency
Carol Newsom, Emory University, Presiding
Vincent L. Wimbush, Institute for Signifying Scriptures, Claremont Graduate University
INTERPRETERS: ENSLAVED/ENSLAVING/RUNAGATE

Members’ Reception, 8:30 to 10:00 p.m.
Centennial Ballroom, Hyatt Regency
Join us to greet John F. Kutsko, SBL’s new Executive Director

Student Reception, 10:00 to 11:30 p.m.
Sponsored by Fortress Press
A601 & A602, Marriott Marquis
John Kutsko and SAG members will lead a conversation about strategic planning for student members, their involvement in the Society, and their professional development. Information will be shared about continuing this conversation through 2011 and organizing a subsequent conversation at the San Francisco meeting. Join us with your ideas, questions, and enthusiasm!

Members are also encouraged to attend the SBL business meeting:

Annual Business Meeting
11/21/2010
7:30 AM to 8:30 AM
Dunwoody - Hyatt Regency
Vincent L. Wimbush, Institute for Signifying Scriptures, Claremont Graduate University, Presiding

More Books Available through SBL ICI Program

Nine new books have been added to the International Cooperation Initiative (ICI) Online Books Program.

Hamilton, Gordon J. The Origins of the West Semitic Alphabet in Egyptian Scripts. Washington, DC: CBQMS40.

Tatum, Gregory, O.P. New Chapters in the Life of Paul: The Relative Chronology of His Career. Washington, DC: CBQMS41

Campbell, Joan Cecelia. Kinship Relations in the Gospel of John. Washington, DC: CBQMS42

Richey, Lance Byron, Roman Imperial Ideology and the Gospel of John. Washington, DC: CBQMS43

Krietzer, Larry J. Philemon. Readings: A New Biblical Commentary. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2008.

Brett, Mark G. Decolonizing God: The Bible in the Tides of Empire. Bible in the Modern World 16. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2008.

Bodner, Keith. 1 Samuel: A Narrative Commentary. Hebrew Bible Monographs 19. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2008.

Exum, J. Cheryl and Ela Nutu, eds. Between the Text and the Canvas: The Bible and Art in Dialogue. Bible in the Modern World 13. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2007.

Calvert-Koyzis, Nancy and Heather E. Weir, eds. Strangely Familiar: Protofeminist Interpretations of Patriarchal Biblical Texts. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2009.

Annual Meeting Session Highlights

Cross, Resurrection, and Diversity in Earliest Christianity (S21-312)
Sunday, Nov 21, 4:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Room: A704 - Marriott Marquis
As our earliest documents, Paul’s letters are crucial for an understanding of Christian origins. In this session, scholars of differing perspectives will explore Paul’s teaching on the resurrection of Jesus from the dead and the evidence that his letters provide for beliefs regarding Jesus’ resurrection in earliest Christianity. Participants include Elaine Pagels, Todd Still, E. Elizabeth Johnson, James Ware, and Dale Martin.

Deuteronomistic History/Pentateuch (S22-315 and S23-112)
Monday, Nov 22, 4:00 PM to 6:30 PM and Tuesday, Nov 23, 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Room: International North - Hyatt Regency and Regency VII - Hyatt Regency
Recent scholars challenge the earlier consensus that the D source left hardly any mark on Genesis-Numbers and that it provided the sole basis and rationale for the Deuteronomistic History. These two sessions bring together various voices from the recent debates in order to reexamine the role of Deuteronomy in different literary and redactional contexts, from Genesis to Kings.

From Dissertation to Publication: Advice from Editors and Authors (S21-212)
Sunday, Nov 21, 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM
Young scholars face significant pressure as they launch their careers, pressure that includes the often tricky task of publication. In this session, a number of sage editors and authors—those who are intimately involved in and have themselves navigated the task of publication—are at your service. They will discuss converting the dissertation into a marketable book, something that involves more than another proofread.

Hebrews (S20-221)
Saturday, Nov 20, 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Room: International 7 - Marriott Marquis
Fritz Graf, Ohio State University, will be presenting a paper entitled “‘You Have Become Dull of Hearing’: Hebrews 5:11 and the Rhetoric of Conversion” in a session of the Hebrews Group dedicated to the theme “The Literary, Philosophical, and Theological Content and Context of the Book of Hebrews,” on Sunday, November 20, at 1:00 PM (SBL20-221). Dr. Graf is Distinguished University Professor for Greek and Latin and Director of Epigraphy at the Ohio State University. His research deals with aspects of Greek religion, the transformation of the late antique world, and archaic forms of government.

History and Literature of Early Rabbinic Judaism (S22-226)
Monday, Nov 22, 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Room: A701 - Marriott Marquis
Rabbinic Judaism is known to us largely through its own literatures--Mishnah, Tosefta, Tannaitic midrashim, Amoraic midrash-compilations, and the Talmuds. Yet these rich literatures do not exhaust what we can know of the rabbis’ Judaism and its place among Jewish religious expressions in late antiquity. Archaeological evidence as well as literary evidence from Christian and Greco-Roman sources can shed light on opaque intra-Talmudic rabbinic polemics against non-rabbis as well as illuminate aspects of late antique Jewish practice and belief that are not discussed in rabbinic sources. The papers in this session will explore the rabbis in light of this extra-rabbinic evidence and thereby enrich our understanding of the larger context of early rabbinic Judaism.

Paul J. Achtemeier Award for New Testament Scholarship (S21-227a)
Sunday, Nov 21, 1:00 PM to 2:45 PM
The 2010 Paul J. Achtemeier Award for New Testament Scholarship has been awarded to C. Kavin Rowe, Assistant Professor of New Testament, Duke University Divinity School for his paper “The Grammar of Life: the Areopagus Speech and Pagan Tradition.” The Achtemeier Award was established through the generosity of tax-deductible gifts to SBL, and the purpose of the award is to stimulate the finest and most penetrating work in New Testament studies.

Qur'an and Biblical Literature (S20-232)
Saturday, Nov 20, 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Room: Hanover Hall G - Hyatt Regency
Join prominent scholars of Islam and the Bible as they probe controversial topics surrounding traditional Islamic sources and the use of literary critical methodologies, structural analysis, and conjectural emendations for the study of the Qur’an. These diverse approaches to the “Qur’an as Text” will also debate the provocative contributions of Bellamy, Luxenberg, and Wansbrough. Participants include John Kaltner, Herb Berg, Stephen Shoemaker, Vernon Robbins, Devin Stewart, Gordon D. Newby, and Corrine Carvalho.

Journal of Biblical Literature

The deadline for subscribing to the Journal of Biblical Literature in time to receive the Winter issue (129:4) is fast approaching. We need to receive your subscription by November 15, 2010 to insure that you will receive your copy. You can renew online at www.sbl-site.org , download the subscription form here, or contact our Membership and subscription services department at sblservices@sbl-site.org or call us at 866-727-9955 (toll free within the US) or 404-727-9498.

Articles of interest

Preparing Professors to Teach 
FromInside Higher Ed, October 15, 2010

Institutions and doctoral candidates are seeing a need for future faculty who can not only conduct research but also be effective in the classroom. Teaching certificate programs are springing up to fill that need at public and private institutions across the country. The SBL Annual Meeting will have several sessions on teaching: list of sessions 


From the NY Times: New Web Life for the Dead Sea Scrolls
By Isabel Kershner
Published: October 19, 2010

Personal Profile Winners

Every month, we randomly select two members from the pool of those who have filled out the Optional Profile for a free one-year membership. October 2010 winners are:

• Sarah Harris
• Brian Stoffregen

As our privacy policy indicates, we will never divulge information from your profile to a third party. Thank you to all of you who have supplied this optional data. If you have not yet filled in the information (or you would like to update it), you may do so by logging into our website with your SBL Member number and going to the “my profile” tab, which will appear on the left hand side of the screen in the box where you logged in. While you are filling out the Optional Profile, please make sure all of your profile information is up to date!

Teaching the Bible E-News

The November issue of Teaching the Bible has been posted.

Calendar

Submit your events to Sharon Johnson.

November 2010
11/1 Call for papers Deadline for the Association of Ancient Historians (AAH) Annual Meeting. The Thematic title of the 2011 meeting is “Adaptation in the Ancient World.” Papers are now solicited in the following areas of inquiry: Maritime interconnectivity in the Mediterranean (Chair, Elizabeth Green, Brock University); Greek and Roman Historiography (Chair, John Marincola, Florida State University); Ancient Political Theory (Chair, Ryan Balot, University of Toronto); Tyranny and Response (Chair, Sian Lewis, University of St. Andrews); New Directions in the History of War (Chair, Lee Brice, Western Illinois University); Swords and Sandals: The Ancient World in Modern Media (Chair, Rachael Goldman, CUNY); Religious Innovation and Empire (Chair, Robert von Thaden, Mercyhurst College); Women and Religion in Greece and Rome (Chair, Michelle Salzman, UCLA) Egypt (Chair, Carlis White, Slippery Rock University); The Ancient Near East (Chair, Cindy Nimchuk, Mercyhurst College); Open panel(s) for strong papers in other categories (Chairs, TBA)
More Information
11/5-11/6 Infancy Gospels: Stories and Identities
While the traditions concerning the birth of Jesus have always figured prominently in culture, art and Christian piety, the so-called "Infancy Gospels" have been somewhat neglected in modern research, being viewed as they are as legendary or belonging to folk literature. The aim of this research seminar is to reconsider the canonical and apocryphal traditions on the infancy of Jesus, taking the themes of the identity embodied in the discourses and the multiple ways of reading the texts (historical, narrative, psychanalitic, feministic, artistic, liturgical readings, aso).
This research program will be held in three sessions in Switzerland in autumn 2010.

Session 2: University of Geneva, 11/05/2010 - 11/06/2010, with Frédéric Amsler, Jean-Claude Basset, Valentina Calzolari, Andreas Dettwiler, Adriana Destro et Mauro Pesce, Christian Grappe, François Rosset, Andrea Taschl-Erber
A previous session was held in September 2010 and the final session is listed in December.
Information on all three sessions: http://www3.unil.ch/wpmu/evenfance/
11/17-11/19 Symposium on the Johannine Epistles
Hosted by the McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University in Atlanta.
The Symposium will feature major presentations by D. Moody Smith, Jr., Judith Lieu, John Painter, and Jan G. van der Watt and short papers by Paul Anderson, R. Alan Culpepper, Peter Rhea Jones, Craig Koester, Andreas Kostenberger, Gail R. O’Day, David Rensberger, Urban C. (Cam) von Wahlde, and others.
Registration: $150 payable to McAfee School of Theology
Hotels: Hampton Inn (Northlake) or Comfort Suites (North Lake)
Program and Schedule (draft copy)

For more information contact: Diane Frazier, 678 547-6470 or Frazier_d@mercer.edu
11/17- 11/20 ASOR Annual Meeting, Sheraton Atlanta Hotel, Atlanta, Georgia
11/20- 11/23 SBL Annual Meeting, Atlanta, Georgia
December 2010
12/3-12/4 Infancy Gospels: Stories and Identities
While the traditions concerning the birth of Jesus have always figured prominently in culture, art and Christian piety, the so-called "Infancy Gospels" have been somewhat neglected in modern research, being viewed as they are as legendary or belonging to folk literature. The aim of this research seminar is to reconsider the canonical and apocryphal traditions on the infancy of Jesus, taking the themes of the identity embodied in the discourses and the multiple ways of reading the texts (historical, narrative, psychanalitic, feministic, artistic, liturgical readings, aso).
This research program will be held in three sessions in Switzerland in autumn 2010.

Session 3: University of Fribourg, 12/03/2010 - 12/04/2010, with Simon Butticaz, Elian Cuvillier, Luc Devillers, Daniel Gerber, Ursula Ulrike Kaiser, Jean-Daniel Kaestli, Isabelle Saint-Martin, Sever J. Voicu, Benedict Viviano
Information: claire.clivaz@unil.ch
Previous sessions were held in September and November 2010.
Information on all three sessions: http://www3.unil.ch/wpmu/evenfance/
January 2011
1/6-1/9 Linguistic Society of America 85th Annual Meeting
Plenary Speakers: Barbara Johnstone, Carnegie Mellon University; Janet Pierrehumbert, Northwestern University; Ted Supalla, University of Rochester
For Meeting information see:http://www.lsadc.org/info/meet-annual.cfm
For Abstracts information see:http://www.lsadc.org/info/pdf_files/callforabstracts2011.pdf
February 2011
   
March 2011
3/27-3/28 SBL Pacific Coast Regional Meeting, Whittier College,Whittier, California
More Information 
April 2011
   
May 2011
5/5-5/8 The annual meeting of the Association of Ancient Historians (AAH) will be held at and hosted by Mercyhurst College, Erie PA
More Information
June 2011
6/21- 6/24
Melanesian Association of Theological Schools (MATS) Inaugural Conference
A meeting to reconstitute the Association will be held on the last day of the conference. It is envisaged that the MATS conference will become an annual gathering of educators and postgraduate students from the theological schools of Melanesia and the wider South Pacific.

The conference will provide a scholarly forum for four broad areas of theological enquiry: OLD TESTAMENT, NEW TESTAMENT, THEOLOGY (SYSTEMATIC AND HISTORICAL), and APPLIED THEOLOGY (MINISTRY, ETHICS, MISSIOLOGY). Presenters will be encouraged to submit expanded versions of their papers for publication in the Melanesian Journal of Theology.

There will be an initial call for abstracts in Nov 2010 with registration to follow in Feb-Mar 2011.
MATS 2011 will be held at Pacific Adventist University in Papua New Guinea (located about 20 km from Port Moresby). Thereafter the conference will be hosted by other theological schools in Papua New Guinea and the South Pacific islands. For details and further information please contact Scott Charlesworth

6/26- 6/29 Sixth North American Syriac Symposium
Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
More information
July 2011
7/3-7/8 SBL International Meeting, London, England
7/7-7/9 The Bible in the Seventeenth Century: The Authorised Version Quatercentenary (1611-2011)
Centre for Renaissance and Early Modern Studies: University of York

Speakers Include: Sharon Achinstein, Hugh Adlington, David Appleby, Gordon Campbell, Elizabeth Clark, Karen Edwards, Lori Anne Ferrell, Christopher Haigh, Paul Hammond, Hannibal Hamlin, Tom Healy, Mark Knights, Peter Lake, Barbara Lewalski, Erica Longfellow, Judth Maltby, Scott Mandelbrote, Peter Marshall, Peter McCullough, Nick McDowell, David Norton, Roger Pooley, Joad Raymond, Anne Prescott, Jane Shaw, Jonathan Sheehan, Alison Shell, Yvonne Sherwood, Deborah Shuger, Nigel Smith, Peter Stallybrass, Alex Walsham, Helen Wilcox, Susan Wiseman, Blair Worden, Stephen Zwicker More information
7/26-7/28 Colloquium Biblicum Lovaniense LX International Biblical Conference
Topic: The Apocryphal Gospels within the Context of Early Christian Theology, Venue: KU Leuven, Faculty of Theology
Proposals for offered papers should be submitted to the president before April 1, 2011
President: Prof. Dr. Jens Schroeter (HU Berlin): schroetj@hu-berlin.de ; Secretary CBL: Prof. Dr. Joseph Verheyden (KU Leuven): jos.verheyden@theo.kuleuven.be For more information please contact the secretary or check the CBL conference webpage at http://www.theo.kuleuven.be/page/centr_collbibl
August 2011
   
September 2011
   
October 2011
   
November 2011
11/18- 11/22 SBL Annual Meeting, San Francisco, California

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