Biblical World

Amy and Chris - Epic of Gilgamesh (Part 1)

Episode: Welcome to the first of a multi-part series on the Epic of Gilgamesh, hosted by Chris McKinny and Amy Balogh! Why is this story so important, and what might it say about how we read the Bible? Where did it come from? What's its relationship to real places and history? What does it have to say to themes like guilt, grief, and what it means to be human? Does Gilgamesh have anything to say about the development of the Bible, or the biblical flood story (Gen 6-9), or David and Jonathan? This is an in-depth series, so gird your loins and get ready for a wild ride.

Hosts: Chris McKinny and Amy Balogh

References: Irving Finkel, The Ark Before Noah.

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Image Description and Attribution: Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyrian palace relief (713–706 BC), from Dur-Sharrukin, now held in the Louvre By, Unknown artist - Jastrow (2006), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=866865

Suzanna Miller and Sebastien Doane - The Bible and Animal Studies

Episode: Suzanna Millar and Sébastien Doane introduce us to a newer field in biblical studies that focuses on animals in the Bible and ancient Near East. Millar and Doane co-chair "The Bible and Animal Studies" program unit at the Society for Biblical Literature.

Guests: Dr. Suzanna Millar is the Chancellor's Fellow in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament at the University of Edinburgh. She co-edited the Cambridge Companion to Biblical Wisdom literature, and is also interested in ecology and non-human animals. She's also editing the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of the Bible and Animals and is writing a book tentatively entitled Animals and Power in the Books of Samuel.

Dr. Sébastien Doane is Associate Professor of Biblical Studies at the Université Laval. He's the author of several books, including Questions controversées sur Jésus (Montréal, Novalis, 2023) and Analyse de la réponse du lecteur au récit des origines de Jésus en Mt 1-2 (Leuven, Peeters, 2019). He's currently writing Reading the Bible Amid the Environmental Crisis: Interdisciplinary Insights to Ecological Hermeneutics (Lexington).

Image Attribution: By Syrischer Maler um 1335 - The Yorck Project (2002), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=159265

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Azzan Yadin-Israel - Temptation Transformed

Episode: In this episode, Amy Balogh interviews Prof. Azzan Yadin-Israel (Rutgers University) about his recent book Temptation Transformed: The Story of How the Forbidden Fruit Became an Apple (Univ of Chicago Press, 2023) in which he finally solves the mystery of how the “fruit” of Genesis 2-3 came to be known as an apple. This is the third installment of the “New Perspectives on the Bible and Nature” series.

Guest: Prof. Azzan Yadin-Israel is Professor of Jewish Studies at Rutgers University. He's the author of four books, the most recent of which we discuss in this episode:

• Temptation Transformed: The Story of How the Forbidden Fruit Became an Apple (Univ of Chicago Press, 2023)
• Scripture and Tradition: Rabbi Akiva and the Triumph of Midrash. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2015.
• Intuitive Vocabulary: German. Lingua Press, 2013.
• Scripture as Logos: Rabbi Ishmael and the Origins of Midrash. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004.

Extra! The book has a companion site that art/iconography lovers will certainly want to check out: https://treeofknowledgeart.com

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Erica Ferg - Geography and Religion in the Eastern Mediterranean

Episode: In this episode, Amy speaks with Prof. Erica Ferg (Regis University) about the impact of geography on the religious history of the Eastern Mediterranean, including the Baal Cycle from Ugarit and the biblical story of Elijah. Erica’s research focuses on the agricultural communities of the Levant and the lived experiences that shaped how people viewed the religious traditions of the biblical world in the pre-modern era, which is the subject of her book Geography, Religion, Gods, and Saints in the Eastern Mediterranean (Routledge, 2020).

Guest: (From the Regis Univ. website) Dr. Erica Ferg is Associate Professor of Liberal Arts and Religious Studies at Regis University. Her research focuses on Mediterranean comparative religion, comparative linguistics, and archaeoastronomy. Prior to academia, Erica was a Persian linguist in the United States Air Force. Erica's first book, Geography, Religion, Gods, and Saints in the Eastern Mediterranean, was published in paperback in January 2022 by Routledge. Erica currently is at work on her second book, entitled Starry Nights: A Celestial History of Religion in the Mediterranean.

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Ron Simkins - Creation and Ecology in Ancient Israel

Episode: This episode covers new terrain for Biblical World. Amy speaks with Ron Simkins about the environmental crisis, ancient Israel, and an economy of enough. This is part 1 of our series on "The Bible and Nature". 

Guest: (From the Creighton University website) Ronald Simkins is Professor of Theology and Classical & Near Eastern Studies at Creighton University. He also directs the Kripke Center for the Study of Religion and Society. He completed his graduate studies at Harvard University in Near Eastern Languages and Civilization, with specialties in the history, literature, and religion of ancient Israel, Hebrew, and epigraphy. He regularly teach courses on the Hebrew Bible, archaeology, and history. He's the founding and general editor of the Journal of Religion & Society. He has also produced the digital archaeology project, The Virtual World Project (http://www.virtualworldproject.org), which enables scholars and students to take virtual tours of archaeological sites in Israel and Jordan. He, along with other colleagues, continue to contribute to the project. Simkins is the author of Creator and Creation: Nature in the Worldview of Ancient Israel (Hendrickson, 1994), Yahweh’s Activity in History and Nature in the Book of Joel (The Edwin Mellen Press, 1991), and most recently, Creation and Ecology: The Political Economy of Ancient Israel and the Environmental Crisis (Cascade, 2020).

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Kyle Keimer - Hezekiah Prepares for War

Episode: Biblical World co-host Kyle Keimer discusses his research on King Hezekiah's preparations for the Assyrian attack in 701 BCE. How do archaeologists determine the nature and extent of Hezekiah's defensive network? Did the Judeans use fire signals? How did the king prepare for war (and pay for it)? Listen in for a fascinating discussion of Keimer's archaeological, biblical, and geographical thoughts on this crucial event in Judah's history. 

Guest: Kyle Keimer is Senior Research Fellow in the Department of History and Archaeology at Macquarie University, where he was Senior Lecturer in Archaeology, History, and Language of Ancient Israel. He also lectures at Jerusalem University College. For over 20 years he has been excavating in Israel and Cyprus and was co-director of the Khirbet el-Rai excavations. He loves digging as much as he loves working with ancient texts, especially the books of 1-2 Samuel and Isaiah. His research currently focuses on the early Israelite monarchy in text and archaeology. He’s co-edited Registers and Modes of Communication in the Ancient Near East (Routledge) and The Ancient Israelite World (Routledge), and he's published articles in various journals. His UCLA Ph.D. dissertation was on "The Socioeconomic Impact of Hezekiah’s Preparations for Rebellion."

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Shlomit Bechar - Middle and Late Bronze Age Canaan

Episode: In this episode, Kyle and Chris chat with Shlomit Bechar of Haifa University about her recent book Political Change and Material Culture in Middle to Late Bronze Age Canaan (Eisenbrauns 2022). We tackle the topic of how changes in the material culture relate to political events (in particular the expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt and Thutmose III's campaign to Canaan), the excavations at the mega-site of Hazor, the challenges in defining archaeological periods, literary archives in Hazor, and we even hear about Kyle almost finding the long-sought archive at Hazor. We also hear about Shlomit's new project excavating in the lower city of Hazor.

Guest: (from the Univ. Haifa website) Shlomit Bechar is a senior lecturer at the School of Archaeology and Maritime Cultures at the University of Haifa. She is the director of the excavations in the Lower City of Tel Hazor in the Upper Galilee. Shlomit specializes in ceramic analysis to ask questions relating to social differentiation, interconnections between different cultures, trade relations, economic change and challenges, and more recently to identify methods of resilience to climate change. She combines the study of pottery and architecture with geochemical and geophysical aspects, environmental considerations, economic processes and the wider socio-political context, while leading and joining several interdisciplinary research projects. Her current projects examine the interactions between humans and environment in wetlands, focusing on the inland wetland of the Hula Lake, identify the creation of memory and narratives through archaeology, and study the daily life of people in the Middle and Late Bronze Age.

Link to Dr. Bechar's excavation in the Lower City of Hazor

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/dig/tel-hazor-lower-city/#directorsSec

 

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The Archaeology of Nazareth in the Days of Jesus - Ken Dark

Episode: Chris and Kyle chat with Ken Dark about his work in and around Nazareth, which has illuminated our understanding of early Roman-period Nazareth. Ken talks about his survey on the northern outskirts of Nazareth, his re-analysis of the Franciscan excavations at the Church of the Annunciation, and his work at the nearby Sisters of Nazareth Convent.

Guest: Prof. Ken Dark (KCL London) He’s the author of Archaeology of Jesus’ Nazareth (OUP), The Sisters of Nazareth Convent: A Roman-Period Byzantine and Crusader Site in Central Nazareth (Routledge), and Roman Period and Byzantine Nazareth and its Hinterland (Routledge), and he’s the co-author of books like Hagia Sophia in Context, The Landscape of Roman Britain, and Constantinople.

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Image Attribution: Nazareth (1657) By Jansson, Jan, 1588-1664 - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nazareth_1657.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=120977092

Tom Davis - Pauline Archaeology (and beyond)

Episode: This wide-ranging interview explores the joys, travails, and wonders of archaeology related to the history and context of the Bible. Discussion focuses on Pauline archaeology, especially on Cyprus, but also his excavations in Kazakhstan, Sudan and elsewhere.

Guest: (from the Libscomb University website) has forty years of experience as an archaeologist, working extensively in Cyprus, the Near East, Egypt, Central Asia, and the United States. He started his archaeological career as a professional archaeologist for a private company in the USA from 1991-2003. He next served (2003-2011) as Director of the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute (CAARI) in Nicosia, Cyprus, one of the premier archaeological research centers in the Eastern Mediterranean. Before coming to Lipscomb University, Tom was a Professor of Archaeology from 2011-2020 at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth Texas. Dr. Davis currently directs the Lanier Center excavations at the early Christian site of Kourion (Cyprus). He also serves as Project Co-Director and Field Director, of the Ilyn Balik Expedition, Kazakhstan, as Project Coordinator for the Recordation Project of the West Wall of the Cour de la Cachette in the Temple of Karnak, Luxor Egypt, and as Co-director for the Nuri Pyramid Project in Sudan. Dr. Davis has lectured extensively in the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and Australia. He's the author of Shifting Sands: The Rise and Fall of Biblical Archaeology.

Image Attribution: On site image from https://www.lipscomb.edu/news/sculpture-young-boy-highlights-lanier-work-kourion-summer

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The Archaeology of Passion Week (pt. 3) - Kyle Keimer and Chris McKinny

Episode: This episode is the final installment in the 3-part archaeology of Passion Week discussion. Chris and Kyle take a detailed look at how archaeological finds in Jerusalem can help us better situate and understand the events of this fateful week. Chris and Kyle discuss the location of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial, the Garden Tomb, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and traditions about Jesus’ death and burial. (republished from 2021)

Hosts: Chris and Kyle

Resources: Archaeology of the Passion Week Bibliography; Archaeology of Passion Week Visuals (pt 3).

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Image by DEZALB from Pixabay