Bogdanow Lecture in Holocaust Studies 2021

Holocaust Studies. The Centre for Jewish Studies is delighted to announce that the Bogdanow Lecture in Holocaust Studies 2021 will be given by László Nemes, Oscar-winning director of Son of Saul (2015). This will be a free online event Weds 10 February 2021. Further information.

Funding, MA fee bursary in Jewish Studies

Masters studies at the University of Manchester, 2021-22. This is a home/EU fees bursary for MA students who make Jewish Studies topics their main study focus in their MA in Religions and Theology. One bursary will be awarded each year on a competitive basis... Further information.

Conference on Theology of Aging

Christian Studies. This conference, a collaboration between our validated colleges Nazarene Theological College, Luther King House, and Cliff College with Manchester, is on 'Theology, Aging and the Life of the Church'. 29-30 Jan 2021. Further information.

Conference paper, SOTS

Biblical and Jewish Studies. Philip Alexander will give a paper entitled 'Recent Trends in the Study of the Aramaic Targumim' at the windeter meeting of the Society for Old Testament Study. 7 Jan 2021. Further information.

Podcast, The Sherman Community Lecture 2020

Jewish Studies. The 2020 Sherman Community Lecture by Dr Miri Freud-Kandel (University of Oxford) is now available to view online. The lecture is entitled "Spades and Shovels: Louis Jacobs, Northern Grit, and the Reshaping of British Jewry" and took place on 3 Dec 2020. Further information.

Poetry series, 50 Jewish Objects

Jewish Studies. Atar Hadari has generated the Gethsemane suite of poems inspired by the fragment of the New Testament from the Gospel of John, as part of the 50 Jewish Objects project. For a poetry reading by Atar, watch on YouTube.

Podcast, Jewish Small Communities Network

Jewish Studies. Lindsey Taylor-Guthartz presented and took part in a Q&A session on the topic of her forthcoming book Challenge and Conformity: The Religious Lives of Orthodox Jewish Women (Littman Library, 2021). 24 Aug 2020. Watch again.

Spotlight on Harry Farley, alumnus

Religion in the media. Harry Farley studied Religions & Theology in our Dept 2011-14 and is now a BBC producer and senior broadcast journalist. He specialises in religion and ethics and works with Martin Bashir, the BBC Religion Editor, to provide stories across the BBC's TV, radio, and online outlets. Harry  mainly covers religious affairs, politics and law but he also has an interest in north African Islamic culture. Watch or read his recent pieces on 'Working from home could led to more prejudice' (16 Nov) and 'Gay Conversion Therapy' (16 Dec 2020).

New publication

Biblical Studies. CBS honorary fellow Dwight Swanson, ‘Insights from Qumran for the Exegesis of Scripture in the Gospel of Matthew’, Peter Oakes, 'George Brooke’s The Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament: Reflections and Principles for Future Study', George J. Brooke, 'The Dead Sea Scrolls and Comparisons' all feature in La Bible hébraïque et les manuscrits de la mer Morte. Études en l’honneur de George Brooke, part of Semitica 62, 2020. Further information.

Research funding, Islam and Pacifism

Islamic Studies. Dr Tom Woerner-Powell (AMES) has been awarded a £250,000 AHRC Early Career grant to support an international research project entitled ‘Religions of Peace: Formations of Principled Pacifism and Nonviolence in Modern Islam’.

Opinion piece

Biblical Studies. Libby Jackson (R&T year 3) writes "Did you know there’s a female Noah in the Bible? Probably not! She and her sisters changed the law for women and their marriage options for the better. One of the first things that pops into your head when you think of Eve is sin isn’t it? So, it’s interesting that the word sin does not appear once in regard to her. It only appears when Cain kills Abel..." Further information.

Online Paper, Uppsala University

Christian Theology. Clare Radford gave a paper on ‘Creative Arts-Based Research in Practical Theology’ at the Nordic Research School in Practical Theology Study Day, hosted by Uppsala University on 7 December 2020. The day brought together researchers in Practical Theology from Sweden, Scotland, Norway, Finland, and Denmark.

Paper, Oxford University

Jewish Studies. Philip Alexander will give a paper entitled 'The "World to Come'' as a Postmortem Disembodied State vs the "World to come" as a Post-Resurrection Embodied State at the End of History' at the conference 'Apocalyptic Thinking'. Oriel College, University of Oxford, 14-15 February 2021. Further information.

Jewish Muslim Research Network event

Jewish-Muslim Relations. CJS hon research fellow and founding member of the JMRN, Adi Bharat, announces the next event to be JMRN Book Launch & Conversation 'The Converso’s Return: Conversion and Sephardi Historyin Contemporary Literature and Culture' with Dalia Kandiyoti (City University of New York) in conversation with Flora Hastings. 2 December 2020 5.30pm. Further information.

Brandon Memorial Prize 2020

Postgraduate prize. This prize of £100 is awarded annually for the best MA dissertation in the area of Comparative Religion. For 2020, it was awarded to Turganbay Abdrasillov for 'An analysis of modernist movement (Jadids) in Central Asia in the late 19th and early 20th century (1870-1917)' (supervisor: Kamran Karimullah).

Postgraduate Thesis Prize for Religious Studies and Social Responsibility 2020

Postgraduate prize. This prize of £60 is awarded annually to for the best PG thesis in R&T that explores a social or ethical challenge at the intersection of religion and social responsibility. For 2020 it was awarded to Joy Nicholson for 'Gateways and Barriers to the Participation of Faith-Based Organisations in the UN's Ordained Humanitarian Field' (supervisor: Peter Scott).

Hasse Memorial Prize 2020

Postgraduate prize. This prize of £250 is awarded annually for the best MA dissertation in the area of the study of Religions and Theology. For 2020, it was awarded to Esther Zarifi for a thesis on 'A woman of substance or a capable wife? An examination of the eset hayil of Proverbs 31:10-31 and her postfeminist appropriation within blogs authored by evangelical Christian women' (supervisor: Holly Morse).

Bernard Jackson Prize 2020

Postgraduate prize. This prize of £100 is awarded annually to the student with 'the highest grade for a master's dissertation in Jewish Studies' at the University of Manchester. It honours the Centre's second co-director Bernard Jackson. For 2020 it was jointly awarded to William Kerrs-Farmer (History) for 'Rewriting the Past: Denazification and Ernst von Salomon' (supervisor: Christian Goeschel) and to Rachel Miller (R&T) for 'Witch, Please: A Feminist and Narratological Reading of 2 Kings 9:22' (supervisor: Todd Klutz).

Sherman Community Lecture, 2020

Jewish Studies. Dr Miri Freud-Kandel (University of Oxford) will give the next Sherman Community Lecture entitled "Spades and Shovels: Louis Jacobs, Northern Grit, and the Reshaping of British Jewry". 8pm Thur 3 Dec 2020. Further information.

Research project, BRIC-19

Worship in the age of COVID. Dr Katja Stuerzenhofecker is contributing to the research project “Social Distance, Digital Congregation: British Ritual Innovation under Covid-19". This is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and examines how British religious communities have adapted to the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions it has imposed. The project aims to document, analyse, and understand the new ways that religious communities are coming together, and to use those findings to help make religious communities stronger and more resilient for the future. See the survey which is asking as many people as possible to share their experiences. Further information.

Library's online resources for Religions and Theology

Boosting the Library's online resources for Religions and Theology in the time of COVID. Many of you will have been made aware of the Library’s efforts to assess and flag up additional electronic resources made freely available by publishers in an effort to shore up scholarly activity during the early months of the pandemic through the April 27th posting. Publishers have now significantly scaled back on such offers of support for teaching and research despite continued pressure on them to do so from HE networks such as JISC. Unsurprisingly, demand for access to electronic resources has of course continued to increase and certainly at a rate greater than that which libraries have been able to facilitate easy access to physical book stock and archives. (The current levels of access to physical holdings offered by our University Library, site libraries and Special Collections are of course detailed on our service availability page).

To alleviate this unprecedented call on resources the Library has been actively seeking to complement our existing and extensive electronic holdings and where possible increase access to specialist materials in disciplines that have been particularly hard-hit. The latest news in this regard is the ready online availability for the remainder of the academic year, ie until the end of July 2021, of an additional suite of primary source materials in the Humanities from ProQuest and its Alexander St. Press ‘imprint.’ Of particular interest to the department is the Twentieth Century Religious Thought Library which grants immediate access to virtual collections addressing Christianity; Islam; Judaism and Eastern Religions, incorporating some 400,000 pages, 900 monographs, and 10,000 archival items, which will hopefully benefit those undertaking independent study and dissertation work in particular. A cross-searchable Religious Magazine Archive (1845-2015) is also now available and the more populist leanings of this repository offers a useful and eclectic source for those looking at comparative religion across this period. You can explore the complete portfolio of these new supplementary resources here.

Blog entry, CBS and Society of Biblical Literature

Biblical Studies. Members of the Centre for Biblical Studies (CBS), including David Bell, Siobhán Jolley, and Holly Morse are presenting at the virtual meeting between the American Academy of Religion (AAR) and the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL). Online, 29 Nov - 10 Dec 2020. Further information.

Student work, Manchester Museum

South Asian Studies. South Asian Heritage Month means that there are vacancies for paid (online) roles at the Manchester Museum suitable for current students (14-25 years old). Further information.

Academic advising, Reformation Monuments Network

Christian Studies. Peter Nockles has accepted an inviation to join an Oxford-based academic network (led by Profs Paulina Kewes and Susan Doran) exploring the historical, cultural and material legacies of the Reformation (mainly in the nineteenth century and beyond) and religious conflict more broadly. Central questions to be addressed include why monuments were erected to commemorate people and events, and why they are contested.

Panel discussion: Oxford Three Faiths

Jewish Studies. CJS Hon. Research Fellow Michael Hilton will be contributing to an online panel on the topic of 'Light in the Dark: A Three Faiths Celebration'. Oxford Three Faiths, 8.00-9.30pm, 10 December 2020. For registration, see further information.

Archive committee, Jewish Continuing Education

Jewish Studies. Dr Lindsey Taylor-Guthartz has joined the Limmud Archive Committee, which is currently designing and setting up an archive of Limmud's history and operations worldwide since 1980. The archive will include photographs, documentation, and recorded interviews with organizers and participants, as well as digitalized copies of conference and other event programmes. As part of the project, Limmud has set up a link for all current and former participants to send in information about their holdings and to volunteer for interviews. Further information.

Keynote speech, Hebrew University

Jewish Studies. On Sunday 22 November, Dr Lindsey Taylor-Guthartz gave a short address on 'Limmud: The Shared Journey' as the keynote speaker at the Hebrew University's online presentation of the Flegg Prize 2020 to Limmud, in honour of its promotion of understanding, acceptance, and co-operation between different parts of the Jewish world.

New publication

Digital Theology. Scott Midson, 'Robots and Religion' in Dialogue: A Journal of Religion and Philosophy 55 (Nov 2020), 50-55. Further information.

Paper, UK Rabbinic Workshop

Jewish Studies. Philip Alexander will lead a workshop session entitled '"If they are not prophets, they are sons of prophets": Tosefta Pesahim 4:13-14 and its "reception" in the Yerushalmi and the Bavli' at the second UK Rabbinics Network Workshop. 2pm on Thu 26 Nov 2020. Contact Laliv Clenman or Tali Artman for further information.

Paper, Erlangen-Nürnberg

Jewish Studies. Daniel Langton will contribute a paper on 'Origins and Evolution in Judaism' for a conference on 'The concept of protology in Judaism, Christianity and Islam'. Bavarian Research Center for Interreligious Discourses, Friedrich Alexander University, Erlangen-Nürnberg. Workshop paper and book chapter in Key Concepts in Interreligious Discourses (de Gruyter). 16 Feb 2022. Further information.

Virtual panel member, AAR

Japanese Religious Studies. Erica Baffelli (Japanese Studies) will be presiding over the panel 'The Aesthetics and Emotions of Religious Belonging: Case Studies from Buddhist Communities' at a viritual meeting of the American Academy of Religion. 4pm (local) on Wed 9 Dec 2020. Further information.

Symposium keynote paper, Chester

Japanese Religious Studies. Erica Baffelli (Japanese Studies), '"I would do it all again”: former members’ experience in Aum Shinrikyō'. MA Symposium, Theology and Religious Studies, University of Chester. 4pm on Wed 9 Dec 2020. Further information.

New publication

Japanese Religious Studies. Erica Baffelli (Japanese Studies) “Did Aum Shinrikyō Really End?” in The Demise of Religion: How Religions End, Die, or Dissipate  eds: M. Stausberg, C.M. Cusack, S.A. Wright (London: Bloomsbury, 2020), chapter 3.  Further information.

Webinar, Trento

Japanese Religious Studies.  Erica Baffelli (Japanese Studies) will present a paper entitled 'The Android and the Fax: AI and Buddhism in Contemporary Japan' for the Webinar Series 'Artificial Intelligence and Religion – AIR2020/21', sixth episode. The Center for Religious Studies, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento. 25 November 2020, shortly before 4:00 pm CET. Further information.

Social Responsibility

Christian theology. Prof. David Law has been appointed as the representative for the Diocese of Chester (Church of England) on the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE) for Trafford Council. The role of SACRE is to provide local government with advice on matters related to collective worship and religious education in community schools.

New publication

Dead Sea Scrolls. Baesick Choi, Leviticus and Its Reception in the Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2020). This is the publication of a PhD thesis supervised by George Brooke from 2013 until 2017. Dr Choi now works as a Methodst minister in Virginia, USA. Further information.

Ehrhardt Seminar

Christian Studies. Dr Samuel Rogers ‘Black Lives Matter and the Bible: Use of the Bible in Discourse Surrounding the BLM Movement’ 14:00 - 16:00 17 December 2020. Further information.

Religions & Theology Research Seminar

Biblical Studies. Dr Andrew Boakye (University of Manchester) “Apostles Behaving Badly: Peter, Paul and Black Lives Matter” 16:00 - 17:30 10 December 2020. Further information.

Ehrhardt Seminar

Dead Sea Scrolls. Nicholas Kay (King’s College, London) ‘The Concept of 'ir in 11Q19: Spatiality’ 14:00 - 16:00 10 December 2020. Further information.

New online publication

Biblical Studies. CBS honorary research fellow, Mary Mills, 'Isaiah 1-39' in The Jerome Biblical Commentary, eds David Senior, John Collins et al (London: T&T Clark, 2021). Further information.

Public lecture, CIDRAL and CJS

Jewish Studies. Prof Oliver Leaman (University of Kentucky): ‘“It’s Not Just the Same”: How Rituals and Religions Cope with Crises’. 5-7pm, 8 Dec 2020. Joint Zoom event with CJS and CIDRAL. Further information.

New publication

Dead Sea Scrolls. George Brooke, "Patterns of Priesthood and Patterns of Prayer in the Dead Sea Scrolls," in Petitioners, Penitents, and Poets: On Prayer and Praying in Second Temple Judaism, edited by Ariel Feldman and Timothy J. Sandoval, BZAW 524 (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2020), 115-130. Further information.

Ehrhardt Seminar

Dead Sea Scrolls. Dr Helen Jacobus (University of Manchester) ‘A Response to the Alleged "Fallacy of Jaubert's Hypothesis" and the Flood Calendar in the Dead Sea Scrolls’ 14:00 - 16:00 03 December 2020. Further information.

Reading group, Jewish-Muslim

Jewish Muslim Research Network. JMRN seminar 'Theories and Contexts of Jewish-Muslim Relations' with Bryan Cheyette, Yulia Egorova and Jonathan Glasser in conversation with Adi Saleem Bharat. 5 November 2020, 3pm (GMT). Further information.

Blog entry, Faith in the 18th Century English Town

Christian Studies.  Hannah Barker (History) and colleagues have written a series of blog entries as part of the AHRC project ‘Faith in the Town: Lay Religion, Urbanisation and Industrialisation in England, 1740-1830’ (2018-21). The latest is on 'Memory and Religious Space in the Eighteenth-century Town'. Further information.

Blog entry, Research Centre update, CBS

CBS in the Time of Corona. As the unprecedented circumstances of the global pandemic become somewhat more precedented, the Centre for Biblical Studies has settled into some new routines... Further information.

Public lecture, Church of England

Religion and race relations. A conversation with Dr Andy Boakye on race, religion and the Church. The online session is entitled 'No Longer Jew or Greek: The Church, The Gospel and the Question of Race' and is open to clergy and laity. The aim is to reflect theologically on the issues raised by the recent resurgence of Black Lives Matter and facilitate dialogue about racial harmony. 19:30 on 30 November 2020, Diocese of Manchester. To register, see further information.

Social responsibility, OxNet

Widening participation. The OxNet programme, which partners the Department of Religions & Theology with Oxford University, is designed to attract A-level students located in the North of the UK, selected by Pembroke College, Oxford. It aims to encourage the study of religions and theology at university, among other areas in the humanities. This year's seminar programme theme, designed by Michael Hoelzl, is on 'How to Change the World with Words' with sessions led by Michael Hoelzl, Katja Stuerzenhofecker, Clare Radford, Stefania Silvestri, Holly Morse and Scott Midson. The live online series will take place fortnightly February to March 2021. It is organised by Felix Slade (Pembroke College, Oxford) and Sonja Bernhard (University of Manchester). Contact: sonja.bernhard@manchester.ac.uk. More information to follow.

Roger Ballard, 1943-2020

The Department was sad to learn that Dr Roger Ballard died on 30 September 2020. Roger was a lively and very visible member of this Department from 1989-2003 as Senior Lecturer in Comparative Religion. Born in York on 20 April 1943, Roger was by training a social scientist (BA in Social Anthropology Cambridge 1966, PhD in Sociology University of Delhi 1970). As two of the (then) few specialists in non-biblical religions at the University of Manchester, he and I found a camaraderie and became firm friends. He enthusiastically set up the joint degree in Comparative Religion and Social Anthropology, the teaching of Urdu, and the Centre for Applied South Asian Studies, of which he was Director. After his retirement, he did valuable work for the civil, criminal and family courts as an expert witness, preparing over 400 reports, and was recognised as one of Britain’s leading experts in the field. Very much of the generation of Prof. Sir Edmund Leach’s teaching at Cambridge, Roger had conducted extensive ethnographic fieldwork in both India and Pakistan, and also with members of the South Asian diaspora in the UK. In 2012 Roger was awarded the Lucy Mair Medal for Applied Anthropology.
     Here at the University of Manchester, as before at the University of Leeds in Race Relations, Roger inspired many students, who got a real kick out of being taught by someone who had actually worked in the field. We knew he was never quite at home in a textual theological setting, and he was certainly a positive influence on the transformation from the former Faculty of Theology into the new Department of Religions and Theology. He was indeed jolly Roger, always good-humoured, laughing, larger-than-life, blunt and ebullient, never shy of a heated debate, with a passionate commitment to issues of ethnicity and gender long before they became fashionable.
     He is survived by his wife Tahirah and their two sons Zafar and Akbar, and Mark and Joe by a previous marriage. He is missed by many and, with colleagues in the field who worked with him, I am currently putting together a collection about his life and work for publication in the journal South Asia Research, and will post a link here when this happens. 

Alan Williams, Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Religion

Paper, University of Edinburgh

Biblical Studies. Andy Boakye on 'A Justification of Life: Abraham, the Resurrection and a New(wish) Perspective on Romans 5–8' at the Biblical Studies Seminar, School of Divinity, Edinburgh University, 8 Oct 2020. Watch again.