From November 18-21, 17 Wheaton College Bible and theology professors traveled to San Antonio, Texas to present at an annual conference hosted by the American Academy of Religion, the Society of Biblical Literature, the Institute for Biblical Research and the Evangelical Theological Society. Nine Wheaton graduate students and one undergraduate student also presented.
Michael Graves, professor of biblical and theological studies, said he views this conference as an important place for Christian academics to present their work. Each year, the conference draws thousands of Christian academics.
“All of these events are valuable venues for people in our fields to be part of,” he said.
The four groups hosting the conference are all major organizations in the field of religion studies. The Evangelical Theological Society is devoted to biblical and theological studies in relation to the evangelical world, where academic participants can address the way certain theological topics pertain to Christian faith and life. The Institute of Biblical Research is a similar organization that focuses just on biblical studies, rather than theology. The Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) is an academic organization that fosters biblical scholarship more broadly. The American Academy of Religion studies religion the most broadly of the four, including all religions and a wide variety of methodologies.
Grant Flynn, visiting assistant professor of New Testament at Wheaton, presented a paper, which was part of a session called “Letters of James, Peter and Jude,” for SBL. He said that his session’s primary theme was the critical assessment of authorship in James and 2 Peter.
“I sought to challenge the scholarly assumption that James, the brother of Jesus and the leader of the Jerusalem church, could not have been proficient enough in Greek to write the letter by reassessing the quality of James’s Greek and the use of secretaries in Greco-Roman letter writing,” Flynn said.
Flynn also said that conferences like this one give scholars an opportunity to present their latest research in the form of paper presentations and receive valuable feedback from other scholars in their discipline or others.
Andrew Abernethy, professor of Old Testament, presented two papers: “A Kingdom of God Hermeneutic? Prospects and Cautions” and “The Office of Kingship and Isaiah.” He said that he was particularly mindful of the war in Gaza during his presentation.
“There were Israelis in the session, so I acknowledged the difficulty of speaking about an ancient military campaign in Israel during a time like this,” said Abernethy. “Yet an Israeli scholar shared with me prior to the conference that studying such things provides a window into resilience among the Judahites that can be relevant for today.”
Julia Morrow, a senior biblical and theological studies and philosophy major, spoke at the conference as one of the few student presenters. Her paper looked at how the values found in Luke 1:46-55 – a passage known as Mary’s Magnificat – and images of Mary from early Christian history could apply to women’s healthcare.
Morrow said she felt honored to have presented at the conference, noting the unique opportunity as an undergraduate to present a paper alongside other female scholars. She presented as an independent student, unaffiliated with a specific professor or advisor. When she first inquired with the program coordinators about presenting, they encouraged her to apply but said that undergrads rarely present at SBL. She submitted her proposal anyway and was accepted in April. A grant from Student Government’s student conference fund helped her pay for travel and registration.
Morrow said she paid attention to how her outfit would serve as a representation of her beliefs.
“I thrifted a wonderful purple coat and vintage red heels for the conference because we, as women, really need to stop believing that if we have information that we want to communicate, we need to present it as masculine and neutral in order for it to be taken seriously,” she said.
Amy Peeler, professor of biblical studies, said she sees conferences as an important place for students like Morrow to present their work.
“I’ve had students do this because they want to go on to graduate work in biblical studies, and sharing papers at conferences is one of the most basic aspects of engagement in the field,” she said. “I’ve also had students do this who are going into other vocations, but the chance to learn how to share your ideas clearly, succinctly, and engagingly as well as the chance to learn how to respond to questions and feedback is a skillset translatable into any career.”
Much of Peeler’s time at the conference focused on her most recent book, “Women and the Gender of God.” Peeler also teaches in Wheaton’s PhD program in biblical and theological studies, and she said she did some recruiting for the program at the conference.
She also spent time getting feedback on her work from other scholars, including her colleague Emily McGowin, associate professor of theology, who Peeler said offered thoughtful feedback on her book.
“I learned so much from them,” said Peeler. “I also connected with prospective students for the PhD program, learned from intriguing papers, wandered the massive book room, and connected with many friends. It is a huge highlight of my year, and I’m very grateful Wheaton provides funding for me to go.”
