International Symposium of Biblical Exegesis

Biblical Studies. HRF Maria Cioată co-organised the fourth edition of the International Symposium of Biblical Exegesis, at the West University Timisoara, which took place online 11–12 November. The theme was 'The Reception of Bethlehem in Holy Scripture and Judeo-Christian Literature (up to the 6th century CE)'. One of the speakers was another member of the Ehrhardt Seminar and HRF, Dr. John Applegate, emeritus Archdeacon of Bolton, who spoke on 'Bethlehem? In Jeremiah? Or: Why does Matthew refer to Jeremiah 31:15 in relation to the Slaughter of the Innocents in Matthew 2:16-18". Further information.

Impact Support Award

Theology. Wren Radford has been awarded funding from the SALC Impact Support Fund to further develop their research around addressing inequality through creative engagement with the everyday. You can see more around the outcomes of their research in the creative booklet ‘Filled to the Brim’.

International Conference Paper

Jewish Studies. HRF Maria Cioată presented a paper, “Moses Gaster's Romanian Bird and Beast Stories (1915): A Critical Appraisal,” at the second edition of the international symposium Iuliu Barasch, entitled Moses Gaster: from Bucharest to London; Romanian Academy, Bucharest, 1 November 2024.

Ehrhardt Biblical Studies Seminar

 

Biblical Studies. 5th December, Jeremy Penner, "What is an Ancient Liturgy?". 4pm in Uni Place 6.207 and hybrid access. Tea and light refreshments will be served in the Religions and Theology Common Room on the first floor of the Samuel Alexander Building from 3pm. For further information and Zoom link, please email Lynne Potts.

New Publication

Biblical studies. Peter Oakes has published "Paul and Empire", in The State of Pauline Studies: A Survey of Recent Research by Nijay K. Gupta, Erin M. Heim, and Scot McKnight. The book is well explained in the commendation by a leading scholar: "Studying Paul remains a vibrant, dynamic, bewildering, and frenetic enterprise. This erudite compilation is a most welcome moment of stillness for those of us unable to curb our ceaseless fascination with the apostle to the gentiles. These essays allow us to catch our breath, survey novel approaches, give attention to diverse voices, and reexamine the interpretive landscape of Paul, raising new queries and revisiting some old ones with additional clarity. In these pages, Paul the Jew, the Messiah-follower, the community builder, the social reformer, and the letter writer is reigniting significant questions for the academy, the church, and the world” – Andrew K. Boakye, lecturer in New Testament, University of Manchester. Further information.

Scriptural Encounters

Faith responses to difficult challenges. ‘Peace-making in the Middle East’, presented by Rabbi Dr. Daniel Roth (Director of Mosaica, an Israeli NGO advancing community mediation and dialogue and Director Emeritus of the Pardes Center for Judaism and Conflict Resolution). 4-5.30pm on Thu 28 November 2024. Part of the Scriptural Encounter programme. Register for Zoom details.

MA Taster Class

For students. Calling all R&T third years! Interested in studying for a Masters? Interested in free pizza? Say no more! Join our MA taster class on 3rd December at Manchester Art Gallery (2pm-4pm) then head back to the R&T common room from 4.30pm for our finalists social, where we’ll have free pizza and the chance to chat with departmental staff about getting the most out of your final year, share feedback about how we can help you, and learn more about further study. Email Siobhán Jolley to sign up.

Society of Biblical Literature Meeting 2024

Biblical studies. At this year's Society of Biblical Literature, San Diego, 23–26th November, Holly Morse will present "Seeing Hidden Crimes: Visual Art as Witness to Violence against Biblical Women"; Siobhán Jolley, "Max and the Magdalene: On Violence, Grief, and Trauma under Patriarchy" and "A New Muddle of Marys? Troubling a (Post-) Biblical Binary with Savoldo’s Sepulchre Magdalenes"; Sarah Parkhouse, "Perpetua: Which Amphitheatre and Why Does It Matter?", which was awarded SBL's A.R. Pete Diamond Award for Integrative Scholarship; and Rachel Miller, "My Name Isn’t Jezebel: Layers of Jezebel’s Reception in The Handmaid’s Tale". At the American Academy of Religion side of the event, the MWRC will host a session titled “Early Methodism: Reflections on Community Formation, Equalitarian Marriage, and Attitudes and Relationships with People of African Descent”. The MWRC, NTC, and the University of Manchester are also hosting a lunch reception on the Saturday. Further information.

Call for postdoc fellowship application

Jewish Studies. The Rothschild Foundation Europe offers a Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship in Jewish Studies for £35,000 per annum for two years (in the UK, this equates to a part-time position). The Foundation only allows one application per institution, and so there will be an internal selection process. Candidates who wish to be considered for entering the competition as Manchester’s institutional applicant, should submit (i) a one-page CV, and (ii) a proposal of no more than 2 pages, including: 

1. Project title 

2. 150 word abstract 

3. Project description 

4. Research methodology 

5. Explain how your project would advance Jewish Studies in Europe and align with the University of Manchester and the Centre for Jewish Studies 

6. Estimated duration of the project (usually two years) 

7. Describe how the results of the research will be published (eg book, article). 

8. Confirm eligibility according to the Rothschild application guidance. 

The two documents named above should be sent to daniel.langton@manchester.ac.uk by the internal selection application deadline of 8 December 2024. (The deadline for the institution’s grant application is 13 January 2025.) It is important to note that the successful internal candidate will be expected to draft a full application as soon as an internal decision has been made (around 13 December 2024) and to secure agreement from two referees who know their work and can provide a reference by 20 January 2025. The internal deadline is set so as to allow time for consultation, feedback and necessary University permissions before a submission meeting the Foundation's deadline. The internal selection will be guided by criteria of the Rothschild Foundation, although these are not detailed. However, they include an emphasis on "advancing Jewish Studies in Europe" and at the relevant institution, and the future potential of the proposed research. Although all research topics in Jewish Studies are eligible in principle, the Foundation says it welcomes in particular applications from those engaged in “the study of contemporary Jewish life in Europe from a social science perspective and those whose proposals involve digital humanities research techniques”. Full eligibility criteria, additional conditions, a sample application form and guidance notes, are available from the Rothschild website: https://rothschildfoundation.eu/what-we-fund/academic-jewish-studies/post-doctoral-fellowships/

Religion & Theology Seminar

Religion & Theology. 28th November, Dr Dawn Llewellyn (University of Chester), with Dr Siobhán Jolley (University of Manchester) In Conversation: "On Childlessness" in University Place 6.207 and online. 4-6pm. For online access, please email Siobhán Jolley or Scott Midson.

New Publication

Biblical studies. George J. Brooke has published "Locating the Wilderness in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament: A Study in Mutual Illumination” in The Dead Sea Scrolls at Seventy: “Clear a Path in the Wilderness!” edited by Esther G Chazon et al., STDJ 147 (Leiden: Brill, 2024), 333–353. Further information.

New Publication

Jewish and Biblical Studies. Daniel Langton, 'Paul of Tarsus: Judaism' in Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception Online, edited by Constance M. Furey et al (Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2024). Further information.

Rylands Lunchtime Seminar

Sikh studies. "Sikh Heritage in Colonial Collections: Conservation, Digitisation and Community Engagement with Contested Collections at The John Rylands Research Institute and Library".  This talk introduces a recent collaborative project between Manchester’s Sikh community and the University of Manchester Library (UML). The talk will reflect on what it means to care for a cultural treasure that is also understood as a living being, and how establishing dialogue with communities is crucial to framing decolonial acts of library collections. Thursday 28 November, 1 – 1.45pm, online Zoom. All events are free for anyone to attend. Further information and booking here.

Shut Up and Write Sessions

For students. Got a deadline coming up? Need some motivation? Pomodoro Writing Sessions are open for Religion & Theology and Liberal Arts students; Tuesdays 10am-12pm, 12 Nov, 19 Nov, 26 Nov, and 3 Dec, in S1.25 Samuel Alexander Building. Scott Midson is running these sessions and has promised snacks! No sign up necessary.

Ehrhardt Seminar

 

Biblical Studies. 21 Nov. Walter Houston, "Work as God’s Intention for Humanity in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures". 4pm in Uni Place 6.207 and hybrid access. Tea and light refreshments will be served in the Religions and Theology Common Room on the first floor of the Samuel Alexander Building from 3pm. For further information and Zoom link, please email Lynne Potts.

Article in Church Times

Christian studies. David Law has written a public facing piece "Saint in Zanzibar, headache in Lambeth: Bishop Frank Weston (1871-1924)" for the Church Times. Further information.

Affective Artefacts Seminar

Magic. Wednesday 6th November, the Affective Artefacts Seminar welcomes archaeologist Nigel Jeffries (MOLA) and historians Owen Davies and Ceri Houlbrooke (Hertfordshire) to speak about their exciting interdisciplinary project, Early Modern Witch Bottles: Concealed and Revealed. Ellen Wilkinson, A3.7 at 4pm.

Spotlight on Ruth Hadley-See Toh, alumna

Religion and politics. Dr Ruth Hadley-See Toh was a student on our MA programme on Religion and Political Life and went on to complete a doctorate on the concept of tolerance, supervised by Dr Michael Hoelzl. She now works in the Civil Service in the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and leads a small team representing the UK’s interests in multilateral agriculture reform negotiations at the World Trade Organization. Ruth was recently part of the UK team that attended the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi alongside the UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade, and regularly travels to Geneva to cover negotiations.

Research Seminar Talk

Islamic studies. Centre for Translation and Intercultural Studies talk welcomes Dr Kamran Khan (University of Birmingham) on the topic 'Regimes of Shibboleth Consciousness: Justice making, Language and ‘Muslims’. Thursday, 7 November, 2–3.30pm. Further information.

Abduction of Weizmann bronze busts, University of Manchester

Jewish history. The BBC reports: "Police are investigating reports of a burglary at a university in which two busts of the first president of Israel were taken. Footage circulating online showed two masked people smashing a glass display case in the University of Manchester's chemistry building and removing two busts of Chaim Weizmann, who had been a lecturer there in the early 1900s." The University has issued an appeal for tolerance. Update 6 Nov: Bust beheaded. See the CJS's online exhibition on 'Manchester and Zionism' for more information on the role of Manchester and the University in the modern history of the Jewish national movement.