I disagree with the premise that biblical monotheism evolved as man became smarter and more sophisticated, but this conference with leading scholars will certainly have interesting insights nonetheless.  The conference is being held on the AJU campus in Los Angeles.  More details and registration details are available at their website.


What Do We Mean When We Say ‘Monotheism’?

Monotheism is a basic tenet of Jewish belief. In a fascinating day devoted to this topic, a group of eminent archaeologists and scholars will broaden our understanding of the origin of monotheism and how it has shaped our religious thinking.

Please join us as our esteemed AJU Distinguished Professor of Biblical Literature and Semitic Languages, Dr. Ziony Zevit, addresses this question and introduces the following speakers and their topics:


Dr. Mark Smith, Skirball Professor of Hebrew and Near Eastern Studies at New York University, The Old and the New in Israelite Monotheism.


Dr. Barry Gittlen, Professor of Biblical and Archaeological Studies at Towson University, An Archaeological Introduction to Biblical Cult Places and Images.


Dr. Jeffrey Tigay, A.M. Ellis Professor of Hebrew and Semitic Languages in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at the University of Pennsylvania, Monotheism in the Hebrew Bible.


Dr. Steven Fine, Professor of Jewish History at Yeshiva University in New York and Director of Yeshiva University’s Center for Israeli Studies, The Archaeological Evidence for Monotheism in Synagogues and Churches in the Roman World.


Dates: Sunday, January 10, 2010


Meeting Duration: 10am – 3pm


Tuition: $50 Includes lunch

If you’d rather hear Clinton and Bush lecture at AJU, there’s more information here.

HT: G. M. Grena

The University of Arizona Library is hosting a lecture series this semester on writing in the ancient world. The first lecture was yesterday, but four more lectures are slated.  From the website:

Lecture I – October 1, Thursday, 3:00 p.m.

Ancient Near Eastern Literacy and Libraries: Their Significance for the Scholarly Tradition of the ‘West’
Anne Kilmer, in conjunction with the Archaeological Institute of America, Tucson Chapter

Lecture II – October 19, Monday, 3:00 p.m.

Speaker Panel:


From Ancient Mesopotamia to Modern Arizona: The First Writing, Indiana Jones and the Arizona State Museum Basement’s Mystery
Ewa Wasilewska, Associate Professor/Lecturer, Department of Anthropology and the Middle East Center, University of Utah


The Origins of the Alphabet: From Proto-Sinaitic to Greek
Ronald S. Hendel, The Norma and Sam Dabby Professor of Hebrew Bible and Jewish Studies, University of California, Berkeley


Egyptian Hieroglyphs: Writing with Pictures and Painting with Words
Richard H. Wilkinson, Regents’ Professor of Egyptian Archaeology, School of Anthropology, Department of Classics and Department of Near Eastern Studies, The University of Arizona

Lecture III – October 29, Thursday, 4:00 p.m.

Archaeological Preservation Efforts and Agonies in Northern Iraq, 2006
Jesse Ballenger, Ph.D. Candidate and Haury Fellow, Department of Anthropology, The University of Arizona, in conjunction with the Archaeological Institute of America, Tucson Chapter.

Lecture IV – November 5, Thursday, 4:00 p.m.

Life and Death on the Estate of a Princess in 21st Century BCE Mesopotamia
David Owen, The Bernard and Jane Schapiro Professor of Ancient Near Eastern and Judaic Studies and Curator of Tablet Collections, The Jonathan and Jeannette Rosen Ancient Near Eastern Studies Seminar, Department of Near Eastern Studies, Cornell University, in conjunction with the Archaeological Institute of America, Tucson Chapter.

Lecture V – November 9, Monday, 7:00 p.m.

Lecture location: Tucson Jewish Community Center, 3800 E River Rd.


The Art of Writing in Ancient Israel
William Schniedewind, Professor of Biblical Studies and Kershaw Chair of Ancient Eastern Mediterranean Studies, University of California, Los Angeles. Lecture presented as part of the Arizona Center for Judaic Studies Shaol Pozez Memorial Lectureship Series.

The Biblical Archaeology Society is sponsoring the 12th Annual Bible and Archaeology Fest in New Orleans from November 20 to 22.  A full schedule is not yet out, but a preliminary posting of speakers and lecture titles is now available at the BAS website.  The line-up is outstanding, and I’m planning on attending.  Below are the lectures that look most interesting to me.


Anson Rainey, Tel Aviv University: Whence Came the Israelites and Their Language?


Aren Maeir, Bar Ilan University: Fleshing out the Bible at Philistine Gath: The Interface of Bible and Archaeology


Avraham Faust, Bar Ilan University: The Assyrian Peace: A Reexamination


Dan Schowalter, Carthage College: Architecture and Power: Excavations of a Roman Temple Site at Omrit in Northern Israel


James Charlesworth, Princeton Theological Seminary: Should the Gospel of John be Used in Jesus Research?


James Tabor, University of North Carolina at Charlotte: Media Hype, Academic Squabbles, and the James Ossuary: Getting the Facts Straight


Jim Hoffmeier, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School: Exploring David’s Strange Antics after Defeating Goliath


Leonard Greenspoon, Creighton University: Ten Common Misconceptions about Bible Translation: How I Learned to Live with—and even Love—Modern Versions of the Bible


Mark Wilson, Asia Minor Research Center: In the Footsteps of Paul in Asia Minor: Are there Still Roman Roads to Follow?


Steve Mason, York University: The Historical Problem of the Essenes


Sean Freyne, Trinity College, Dublin: The Archaeology of Roman Galilee: What we have and have not learned about Jesus the Galilean


Yosef Garfinkel, Hebrew University: *Plenary Session Speaker*: Khirbet Qeiyafa: Not Shaaraim, but Ephes-dammim. 

Just kidding on that last title.  (If you don’t get it, you’ll have to slog through last year’s posts on the subject, especially here, here, and here.)  The true title is: Khirbet Qeiyafa: A Fortified City in Judah from the Time of King David.