Friday, December 23, 2011

January 8-19, 2013, Trip to Turkey: Christianity in Asia Minor with Profs Good and Shaner of GTS


Join Professors Deirdre Good and Katherine Shaner of General Theological Seminary for an illuminating and informative journey to Asia Minor (modern day Turkey), exploring both the urban contexts ouf ot which early Christianity was shaped and some of the spaces in which Christianity grew to prominence. Through visits to some of the great archaeological parks of the world, we will examine the historical and cultural context in which the earliest Christians and their writings emerged.

Deirdre Good is professor of New Testament at General Theological Seminary. She has visited Turkey twice and after the second visit wrote this piece “Buildings and Meanings” – http://www.episcopalcafe.com/daily/interfaith/by_deirdre_good_my_last.php   - on the meanings of religious buildings in Istanbul and elsewhere.  She edited a 2005 book on Jewish, Christian and Muslim interpretations of Mary (Mariam, the Magdalen and the Mother) which contextualizes Mary traditions in and around Ephesus.

Professor Katherine Shaner is assistant professor of New Testament at General Theological Seminary.  Her research focuses on slaves, women, and low-status persons in Pauline communities and especially the city of Ephesos, where she worked with the excavation team in the summer of 2010.   She has also worked with excavators from Pergamon and Sardis. Her expertise in Roman archaeology provides an invaluable tangibility to the 1st century world – and will help us experience the lives, beliefs, practices and challenges of first-century Christians and their neighbors.

This is a unique opportunity to travel with New Testament experts who know how to bring history to life in some of the most fascinating archaeological sites in the world.  We invite you to join us!

Please click on the link for information about itinerary, registration, costs and other travel details. For questions about the trip, please email Deirdre Good: good@gts.edu or Katherine Shaner: shaner@gts.edu 

2 comments:

Eliyahu said...

1st century Christian is anachronistic. The very earliest Christians were at the time of the expulsion of all Jews from Jerusalem in 135CE. See the History Museum at netzarim.co.il

Deirdre said...

Couldn't agree more and thank you for your comment. I myself believe and teach that Jesus himself and NT writers are Jewish until proven otherwise. Same goes for early noncanonical texts like the Didache. I think each region of the ancient Mediterranean world has to be investigated for particular configurations.

Take the term "Jewish-Christian" to designate followers of Moses and Jesus. Geza Vermes has a good essay on Jews, Christians and Judaeo-Christians in Standpoint for December 2011 here: http://www.standpointmag.co.uk/node/4204/full

See also the recently published Jewish Annotated New Testament (OUP, 2011) for further nuanced discussion:
http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/Bibles/?view=usa&ci=9780195297706

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