Irish Biblical Association Annual Meeting 18th-19th February

The IBA have introduced a new date for the Annual Meeting-this year to be held on the 18th and 19th February in All Hallow's College, Dublin:

The Schedule is:
Friday 18 February 2011

4:00 – 6:00pm Emerging Scholars Forum

7:30 p.m. Conference Registration

8:00 p.m. Public Lecture

Professor Robert Hayward

The paper will introduce the Aramaic Translations of the Hebrew Bible known as the Targumim. It will offer a brief survey of modern research on the Targumim, and will consider the type of literature they represent, their relationship to other Rabbinic Literature, and their dates of composition. Some final comments will be addressed to the light they may shed on Jewish-Christian relations in the early days of the Church.
Coffee and Tea will be served after this lecture.

Saturday 19 February 2011

9:00 a.m. Conference Registration

9:30 a.m. Dr. Jessie Rogers

Filling in the gaps: ‘Faithful’ readings of the Book of Job

This paper explores two interpretations of the book of Job, one ancient and one modern: the Testament of Job and C.G. Jung’s Answer to Job. The first is not a commentary on the biblical Job nor, strictly speaking, a straightforward interpretation of it. It is a folkloristic adaptation and expansion of the story in the Testament genre. The result of this adaptation of the Job story is to present the reader with a picture of God and of Job which is faithful to pietistic conventions precisely because it deviates so radically from the biblical story. Jung’s Answer to Job is a reading which is ‘faithful’ in precisely the opposite sense. Jung offers an interpretation which is often regarded as theologically scandalous.
10:45 a.m. Coffee, Tea and Biscuits

11:15 a.m. Professor Robert Hayward

The paper will examine the ways in which the different Aramaic translations of Genesis interpret the creation of the first human beings and their presence in the Garden of Eden. The responsibilities of the first human pair and their activities within the Garden, as the Targumim interpreted them, will be compared with other Rabbinic interpretations of the same passages of Scripture.

12:30 p.m. Wine reception

1p.m. Lunch

2:30 p.m. Dr Jonathan Kearney

The Torah of Israel in the Tongue of Ishmael: Saadia Gaon and his Arabic translation of the Pentateuch

Although contemporary political tensions between Israel and the Arab-Islamic world present an image of almost total estrangement, it was not always so. Jews and Muslims have a long, shared history. A very real example of this history is offered by the once-thriving Judaeo-Arabic culture. The foundational document of Judaeo-Arabic culture is the Tafsīr of Saadia Gaon (882–942) – a translation of the Pentateuch into Arabic. This paper seeks to use Saadia’s Tafsīr as a key to exploring the fascinating world of Judaeo-Arabic culture.
3:45 p.m. Annual General Meeting

Professor Robert Hayward is a Professor of Theology and Religious Studies in Durham University and his interests include Aramaic Targums, Jews and Church Fathers, Post-biblical Judaism,Talmud and Midrash.

Dr Jessie Rogers teaches in Mary Immacualte College, Limerick.Jessie originally hails from Cape Town, South Africa, where she lectured in Biblical Studies at Cornerstone Christian College before joining Mary Immaculate College , Department of Theology & Religious Studies in September 2007. Jessie is also based at the Dominican Biblical Centre in Limerick where she researches intertextuality in 1 Corinthians and teaches on their Pastoral Scripture Programme.

Dr Jonathan Kearney is a lecturer in Jewish and Islamic studies in St Patrick's College, Maynooth and survived personally tutoring me in Calssical Arabic for a year. That should be kudos enough!

Email me for any more info and looking forward to seeing you there!

Yes I'm still here!

Grovelling apologies for being away for so long but I’ve been rather swamped since the festive season. I thought I was being terribly clever by spending the time I was house-bound from various snow storms getting all my lectures ready for 2011 but try as I might these things do have a habit of coming all of a once! I went to the Society for Old Testament Study (SOTS) conference in the lovely Durham for the first time and for some reason that became all the more insane the longer I was at the conference I gave a paper at the conference.

Collingwood College, Durham where the conference was held

At the swankiest conference of bible nerds you could possibly imagine-SOTS is one of those “exclusive” societies that you need a PhD to get into which made me rather fearful for a) the possibility that people would speak in Hebrew to each other (the two members who nominate you must vouch for your competency in Hebrew) and b) the possibility of an abundance of tweed. While there was a little tweed in evidence (to be honest I would have been disappointed if there hadn’t been any) it was the friendliest, most welcoming group of people I have met in a long time. What this has to say about bible nerds if you rid them of the NT riff-raff element is time for another post! It also struck me that no one asked for my business card-something that you find quite a lot at SBL-sometimes you think that the Annual Meeting is a competition to hand out as much cards as possible. Anyone whose email address I needed I wrote (Shock!) with a pen (Gasp!) in my notebook (Swoon!) and we had a good snigger at the fact we weren’t all cool and trendy like the SBL types.

I also got to meet the all-hallowed biblioblogger Jim West who thankfully documented and photographed much of the proceedings (you can go and have a look at his picture of me and Joe Blenkinsopp-that’ll be my Christmas card for next year!). Search his site for the tag "SOTS" for the full run through-well worth reading! I picked up some books to review for the SOTS Book List which I’ll post about later and one “for myself”- A Reassessment of Biblical Elohim by Joel S. Burnett which I’d been hunting out for a while.

My paper “What’s in a Name? The Names of God in Interfaith Dialogue” went without (much) rotten fruit throwing. It was a bit of a personal achievement for me (cue Oprah moment) as I’d finally decided (academically at least) to come out of the bible closet as it were and admit that, I, Máire Byrne, am a biblical theologian and it’s about time I stopped trying to be like the kool kids (the archaeologists and the linguists, etc) and stuck to what I’m trained in, and most importantly be helpful to my students. Nobody laughed or pointed at the Catholic trying to study the Bible so all in all a bit of a success!
Just when I thought I could get some peace when I got home, I had the copy-edited manuscript form my book to look over (in a week!) and get back to the publishers. Fingers crossed the book, based on my postdoc, The Names of God in Judaism, Christianity and Islam: A Basis for Interfaith Dialogue. My SOTS paper was based on this which is basically using systematic theology (or comparative theology) to do some good in the world! But more on that anon and now back to some biblenerdery…

EABS Call for Papers (Annual Meeting 2011)

The Call for Papers for the 2011 Meeting of EABS has just been announced:

EABS 2011 Poster

The meeting will be held from 8-11 August 2011 in Thessaloniki, Greece. There have been assurances that there is air conditioning so we don't have an SBL/EABS In Estonia re-run.

All research groups are listed in the EABS site for more info on submitting an abstract.

EABS Graduate Symposium, Maynooth April 8-10 2011

One of the best conferences I ever attended was the first graduate symposium held by EABS in Hawarden in Wales in 2009. I made lifelong friends and got to share the trials and tribulations of postgraduate research with fellow postgrads and post doctoral students. The work shared by others opened my eyes to the huge variety of work that people do in the field of biblical studies and the talks given by James Crossley and Philip Davies were very helpful-plus things are always less intimidating in a small group-the thoughts of Prof Davies listening to a paper describing my postdoc research would have sent my knees a-knocking in normal circumstances, but when you're sitting around a table with a cup of coffee, it's less about the fear and more about the amount of help and guidance I received from not just the Professors, but from my fellow students. And I got to ask James Crossley was he NT Wrong....

So now, partly I suspect because of my enthusiasm for the venture I've been "volunteered" to host the 2011 symposium at my alma mater St Patrick's College, Maynooth and I lots of people to come! I promise the snow will have melted by April (*not a guarantee)



A weekend event supported by EABS, the European Association of Biblical Studies, is being run by and for graduates at St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, just outside Dublin. This will be a small event with a big impact. A maximum of twenty people will be in attendance including Professor Jorunn Økland (Director for the Centre of Gender Research, University of Oslo and EABS President) and Emeritus Professor Philip Davies (Sheffield University). In addition there will be a joint session with graduates from the University of Alberta, organised with Professor Ehud Ben Zvi.


Prof Jorunn Økland

Graduates are being encouraged to present a lecture, seminar or discussion on a specific topic related to their studies. Topics are welcome on any subject that may enhance the skills and knowledge of the audience. Presenters at previous events have read papers, given interactive workshops, and used a range of teaching techniques on topics as varied as the epistemology of feminist scholarship, humour and fantasy in the story of Samson, narrative and law, the names of God, and polysemy in Hebrew.

Attending Professors will present on aspects of the development of graduates which do not form an integral part of doctoral training at all institutions, including ‘How to publish your doctoral thesis’ and ‘Realistic career-opportunities in a challenged discipline’. There will also be possibilities for discussion on matters many will have experience of such as networking, gaining copyright permissions and presenting at conferences.

The event is residential and all attendees will eat together in the communal Pugin-designed dining room. Accommodation is on campus.
There will be a tour of the campus and on Sunday afternoon there is an optional tour of the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin city. Use of the Russell Library (huge collection of nerdy bibles) and College library can be facilitated with prior arrangement.
The Venue

St Patrick’s College, Maynooth (founded 1795) has three different institutions of learning. Pontifical University staff and students share the campus with their colleagues in the National Seminary and National University of Ireland, Maynooth. This historic campus blends a tradition of learning with state of the art technology and educational facilities. It is 40 minutes by train from Dublin and is very well serviced by public transport. If you need any specific directions let me know.

The Cost

€130 including 2 nights B&B, Dinner on Friday and Saturday, lunch on Saturday and refreshments.

Further Information

Máire Byrne (St Patrick’s College, Maynooth) or post below!

EABS Graduate Symposium 2011 Application Form (email me for a copy)

Let me know if you have any questions or need more info!!





Interface Conference 2011 Call For Papers

I know it’s not strictly Bible but it’s by stealth that us bible nerds take over the world!

I’m helping to organise a conference entitled “Interface: Being a Young Theologian in the World” and we’ve just launched our Call for Papers:

Interface Call for Papers

Thanks to Amanda Dillon for the design.

And all our formal info!

About the Conference

St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, Ireland, is hosting the second Interface: Being a Young Theologian in the World conference on 4th and 5th March 2011. The conference is aimed at young theologians and has two objectives – to explore the role of the young theologian and to explore the role of theology in contemporary society.

The Conference is the "brain-child" of a group of postgraduate students and recent alumni of the college . We thought that a forum specifically aimed at people who had an interest in theology to see how their studies may impact on the world around them would be both interesting and valuable. At the moment in Ireland there is no formal setting for this.

Some FAQs


What exactly is a "Young Theologian"?
We would be loathe to allocate any age group to a definition of what "young" might be! If you feel you are "young" in terms of your age or your experience with theology then you are more than welcome to propose a paper or a poster! There is no minimum or maximum age-think "neophyte"!

What else is going on at the Conference?

The Conference begins on Friday 4th March with registration at 18:30 and the keynote paper at 19:30. Our keynote speaker is Prof Janet Soskice, Professor of Philosophical Theology at Jesus College, Cambridge.

Jayme Reaves, a postgrduate student from Trinity College, Dublin will be the respondent.

Saturday 5th March has been scheduled for paper sessions, lasting from 09:30-18:00. The poster sessions will run throughout the conference.

Do you have a schedule yet?

As we have not scheduled the paper sessions we have not finalised the internal timings of the conference. Registration will begin at 18:30 on the 4th March with the Conference beginning at 19:30. The conference will end at 18:00 on March 5th.

How much does the conference cost?

Registration for the entire conference is €20, €10 for students and FREE for students of St Patrick’s College, Maynooth. This covers coffee breaks and a reception on Friday night.

We will be opening registration in early February 2011 and all participants will need to register.

Can you tell me more about St Patrick’s College, Maynooth?

Our college website or ask in a comment below!
How do I get to Maynooth?

Details on our location


View Larger Map

Please send us an email if you need any specific information on your journey.


Do you have any information on Accommodation?

The Campus Conference Office offers excellent value accommodation on campus in rooms about 2 minutes walk from the Conference venue. Please contact the office by email  or by phone 00 353 1 708 6400

I’m not sure what a “Poster” entails?

The idea for the poster sessions was inspired by their success in the Society of Biblical Literature meetings that some of the organizers have attended. Posters emphasise dialogue and provide an effective vehicle for exchanging information and ideas with other scholars and for making some of the latest research available to a wider audience. For those students who might be too nervous to give a full paper or may only be at a stage in their work of proposing ideas, a poster gives a valuable opportunity to dialogue with other students and academics in a more relaxed environment.

Check out how last year's conference went and find us on Facebook for lots more info

Rescheduled IBA Conference next weekend!

The rescheduled IBA conference is taking place next weekend in All Hallows College,

The Conference Schedule:

Friday 8th October

7:30 p.m. Conference Registration

8:00 p.m. Public Lecture:

Professor Larry Hurtado
Who is ‘God’ in the New Testament? : The Particulars of the New Testament Deity in a World of Gods



Coffee and Tea will be served after this lecture.


Saturday 9th October



9:00 a.m. Conference Registration

9:30 a.m. Dr. Edward Adams
The New Testament House Church: A Reassessment

10:45 a.m. Coffee, Tea and Biscuits


11:15 a.m. Dr. Edward Adams
Early Christian Meeting Places: Beyond Domestic Spaces

12:30 p.m. Wine Reception
1.00 p.m. Lunch

2:30 p.m. Professor Larry Hurtado
‘God’ and Jesus: The Implications of Jesus for ‘God’

3:45 p.m. Annual General Meeting


Prices:
Conference, excluding meals, €25
Individual lectures, €7 each
Lunch Saturday, €15
Supper Friday, €10

2010 Ordinary Membership Subscription, €30
2010 Associate Membership Subscription, €20
Special Associate Membership for STUDENTS Subscription, €10 (for 3 years)

Map for All Hallows:

And have a look at the All Hallows website for more details.

If you need any more information just email me and looking forward to seeing you there!

For those of you who have inquired about the beautiful graphics we used on our fliers and posters, the painting, "The Prodigal" was created by Daniel Bonnell and the layout of both were designed by Amanda Dillon

From World Mission to Interreligious Witness-Visioning Ecumenics in the 21st Century

Now there's a conference title :) And it's the reason I have been so quiet of late-I'm trying to boil down the exciting things I've been working on into a 20 minute paper and trying not to think about how I'm trying to persuade people I know something about interreligious dialogue. If in doubt, talk in Arabic. And I'm not that good at that either :) The conference is in Trinity College, Dublin and starts on Wednesday. My paper is on Thursday afternoon.

Anyways, forgive my lack of blogging, and have a look at my abstract instead :)

Biblical Theology and Interfaith Dialogue-is there a need for a clearer language?
While the three Abrahamic faiths (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) share a wealth of common themes in their respective sacred scripture, there exists a marked difference in the reception of these texts. This is present both in terms of a more critical study of the texts themselves in an academic environment, and in the response to and use of the texts by a modern audience, regardless of a faith based or a secular viewpoint.

In order therefore to facilitate a more fruitful and universal understanding and respect of the sacred texts of the three religions, it is necessary to explore both the commonalities and differences between the three theologies based on the texts. Many adherents of the three religions are not familiar with the thread of commonality that runs through the three sacred texts (Hebrew Bible, New Testament and the Qur'an); particularly in relation to the images of God presented in each and it is my argument that this would provide a viable starting point for interfaith dialogue.

To keep this study at manageable level, I propose that examining the divine designations used to develop an image of God in all three texts makes a worthwhile foundation so that both academics and lay followers of all three religions may develop a deeper understanding of each others faiths. In order to illustrate this argument, this paper shall use the image of God as Creator, and related divine designations (names, titles and epithets) in each of the key texts in the discussion.

My chair for the Parallel Paper Sessions is Gladys Ganiel from TCD. She has a rather cool blog and I'm glad to see she lectures on (and coordinates) the Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation Studies Programme in the ISE. The only handier qualification in a chairperson is a boxing referees certificate :)